The Canon PowerShot TX1 FAQ
UPDATED 10th June 2007.
This post will evolve to cover many of the most frequently asked questions about the Canon TX1, based on comments on this blog, discussions on web forums and other sources. If you'd like a question/answer added to the FAQ, or notice something's not right, add it to the comments section of this post.
This FAQ assumes you already know a little bit about the Canon PowerShot TX1 - i.e. - that it's a hybrid digital still camera and high-definition camcorder.
Table of Contents
1. About the Canon PowerShot TX1
- Where can I read up on the features and specifications of the TX1?
- Where can I download the user guide (manual), drivers, software and firmware upgrades for the TX1?
- These should all be available in English on the Canon Support Site page for the TX1
- Where can I read reviews online about the TX1?
- There are a number of reviews of the camera available online
- The TX1 Blog first impressions
- Digital Camera Info first impressions
- Gizmodo first hands on
- DC Resource thorough review
- CNET thorough review
- Digital Trends full review
- Digital Photography Review full review
- What accessories are available for the TX1?
- A list of accessories is shown on the Canon USA product page
- Can I attach filters or a wide angle adaptor to the TX1?
- Filters possibly, wide angle adaptor it doesn't seem so
- There is a thread on the inside of the front of the lens which it's been though could allow the adding on of filters, but none seem to exist currently, and none are advertised by Canon
- The rapid retraction of the lens back into the main camera housing seems to suggest that no externally protruding adaptors (like a wide angle or tele converter) could be attached
- What types of memory/flash cards can the TX1 use?
- As of May 2007, not many TX1's were in circulation, and for those that were, there has been different experiences with different branded SD and SDHC memory cards
- See this post for the most up to date listing of people's experiences with different types and brands of flash cards
- What's the angle of the lens on the TX1 and how far can it zoom?
- The angle (in 35mm terms) is 39mm-390mm
- This equates to a 10x optical zoom
- 39mm is not considered to be a very wide minimum angle, however a 10x zoom on such a small camera is particularly impressive
- The TX1 also has the capability to set the digital zoom to 1.5x and 1.9x, with little degredation in resulting picture quality. At the 1.5x setting, the zoom range becomes 58.5mm-585mm and 1.9x results in 74.1-741mm. This can only be selected in 4:3 mode not 16:9
- Where can I see some example videos from the Tx1?
- There are 12 sample videos taken in bright daylight in this TX1 Blog post
- There's also a bunch here at Blip.tv (if you are the author of those and want attribution, please leave a comment)
- If you see any other collections, please leave a comment and a link to let me know
- What sizes and formats of video can the TX1 film in (e.g., 4:3, 16:9, HD)?
- 320x240 @ 60fps (4:3)
- 1,370KB/sec
- 320x240 @ 30fps (4:3)
- 746KB/sec
- 640x480 @ 30fps (4:3 High Quality)
- 1,920KB/sec
- 640x480 @ 30fps (4:3 Long Play)
- 1,020KB/sec
- 1280x720 @ 30fps (16:9 High Quality, High Definition)
- 13 minutes per 4GB, 4,480KB/sec
- 1280x720 @ 30fps (16:9 Long Play, High Definition)
- 26 minutes per 4GB, 2,280KB/sec
- See the Canon specs page for further info
- What compression codec does the TX1 use?
- The TX1 uses Motion-JPEG, which is essentially a series of JPEG compressed images taken in quick succession and strung together into a movie (for a more scientific overview of the codec, see this Wikipedia article)
- Many people believe this was an odd choice by Canon because it is not a commonly used codec for video cameras, and creates movies that are extremely large (in file size) when compared to more modern codecs like MPEG4
- How much video can I fit on my memory/flash card?
- It depends on the size of your card, but typical results are as follows (per gigabyte of memory):
- 320x240, 60fps - 10.5 minutes
- 320x240, 30fps - 18.5 minutes
- 640x480, 30fps - 7.5 minutes
- 640x480, LP - 14 minutes
- 1280x720, 30fps - 3.5 minutes
- 1280x720, LP - 6.5 minutes
- Why is the camera telling me the buffer is full?
- The data captured for movies needs to be written to the memory card quickly enough to save every frame you film. If your card is not fast enough to cope, the camera will start to 'buffer' the information, which just means it queues it up as it is trying to write it to the card. If the queue gets full, you'll get a buffer full message and your movie will stop recording
- So far it seems like any buffer messages tend to happen only when shooting in 720p HD mode, because the amount of data needed to be saved to the memory card is very high for every second you film
- See this post for the most up to date listing of people's experiences with different types and brands of flash memory cards
- I've heard I need a 'fast' memory/flash card to take 720p video, is this true?
- See above
- Can I zoom in and out whilst filming?
- Yes you can, full 10x zoom in and out
- Some flash cards have displayed poor performance (ie - buffering problems) when zooming in and out rapidly during movie capture. Check this post for more information
- Can I use macro mode and other camera features whilst filming?
- Many of the stills functions are also available during filming, including:
- Auto focus
- Face recognition
- Focus lock
- Exposure lock
- Macro and super-macro
- 10x zoom
- Can I take a photo whilst filming?
- Yes you can. It will be the same aspect as the video you are shooting (ie - if you are shooting in 4:3 it will be a 4:3 photo. If you are shooting in 16:9 it will be 16:9)
- How well does the TX1 perform in low light conditions?
- How does the TX1 compare to other HD camcorders?
- Where can I see some example photos from the TX1?
- How many megapixels does the TX1 have?
- What's this super macro mode I've heard about?
- Can I take photos in 16:9 or just 4:3 aspect?
- How well does the TX1 perform in low light conditions?
30 comments:
I believe the lens is 39-390mm equivalent, not 49-490mm.
Good spot. Cheers!
I think Matt was just testing us to see if we were paying attention!
Thanks for the download address of the TX1 manuals! :-)
Matt, I have a question that may or may not be of general interest.
Can the TX1 video utilize what they call "smart zoom" if using 640x320 video? As you know, this mode gives 1.5X or 1.9X depending on the magapixels selected, supposedly without deterioration of quality. On my other Canons, this can be done,...but ONLY in for still pictures.
I asked Canon and, after a lengthy time away from the phone, the tech said "Yes" but I don't see that anywhere in their promotional writing that refers to video.
Tameside reported this on DP forum but I'm not sure he tested it. If this is true it would give quite a bump to the 10X zoom!
Hey Jack,
Yep it sure can. They call it Digital Zoom/Tele-converter, and it allows 39-1560mm using full optical and digital zoom. They also have what you described, 1.5x (58.5-585mm) and 1.9x (74.1-741mm) settings where the digital zoom is fixed at those lengths to allow faster shutter speeds and less camera shake (according to the manual). This function can only be used in 4:3 mode.
Greetings! Thanks for keeping up with this blog. It's been useful as I consider a purchase of a TX1.
I have one question, though, that would be a good entry for the FAQ:
What programs are good for editing video from the TX1?
I've tried using Pure Motion's EditStudio 5, but it doesn't seem to be able to handle the video. I would install Premiere Pro 2, but I have an older AMD CPU so it won't run (darn Adobe).
That's the only question I have at this point. Keep up the good work on the blog!
In reference to a wide angle lens being available. I saw this on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/0-5X-Wide-Angle-Lens-For-CANON-Powershot-TX1_W0QQitemZ180113743803QQihZ008QQcategoryZ23780QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Thanks for the site; I found it useful when I was making the TX1 buying decision. Now that I got it (two days ago!) I thought I would return the favor... Here is a comparison of the regular and LP modes for 1280x720 movie recording.
Enjoy!
hi there
I'm really glad I've found this blog :) as I can't find any info on using tx1 as webcam.
Is it possible to get the live video to the computer or tv with this camera??
Have you tried it yet?
greets
Koshi, I haven't tried using this camera as a webcam. Can anyone else report results using as a live camera?
Printable English User Guides / Manuals without annoying "COPY" watermarks:
Tip: Use left click.
PowerShotTX1_CUGad_EN_clean-version.pdf (3.67MB)
PowerShotTX1_CUGba_EN_clean-version.pdf (1.95MB)
PowerShotTX1_SM_EN_clean-version.pdf (429KB)
Enjoy. :-)
-TX1 fan
Since the TX has a lens thread, has anybody tried out a generic filter and/or wide-angle adapter?
Downloads fixed:
Printable English User Guides / Manuals without annoying "COPY" watermarks:
Tip: Use left click.
Advanced Camera User Guide Download: (1)
(3.67MB)
Basic Camera User Guide Download: (1)
(1.95MB)
System Map Download: (1)
(429KB)
All the manuals compressed (password: blog)
Download: Mirror (1) (2) (3) (4)
-TX1 fan
I think a good topic for discussion maybe in the FAQ might be about how to get the best possible video out of the device. I find that in outdoor lighting or very bright indoor lighting, video is great. In medium indoor ambient lighting though, I have very grainy, almost unuseable video.
Yeah I agree, the TX1 is really best in ideal conditions and seems to tail off pretty quickly under less than ideal situations. I can live with it as is until TX2 comes out. Cheers, Matt
What video editor is recommended to edit the .avi files from the TX-1? I use the Studio 9 editor to produce DVD's. The results are only fair when compared to the native .avi file. I note the frame rate is 30fps vs the NTSC 29.97fps. Help is appreciated.
how do you use time lapse mode? i cant find anything on google about it.
Any word on an upgraded model (TX2, TX100, whatever...)? This is so close to the mark - a few refinements and MPEG4 video would make this my next point and shoot.
Matt,
You bought the japanese version of the TX1, and so did I.
Did yours come with the component video cable in japanese standards (DTC-100/S instead of CTC-100/S) ?
Did you get the RCA component cable?
Cheers.
Hi - I bought the TX1 a few months ago and am pleased with it. I am using it for Aieral photography and video from my RC plane.
I would like to increase remote control of the camera. Does anyone know if additional features -- like camera control! -- are available via the USB connector?
thanks,
Paul
I think somewhat asked the question about remote shooting control - I just bought the TX1 and I wanted to try and control the camera from my MacPro intel powerbook, but no luck. Is this not possible?
Cannot get live video or a live USB connection to a Mac either. Please let me know of a way so I can use this as a webcam if possible.
Right now, I don't think it can be used even for 'remote shooting' capabilities in the utilities of the bundled software, castrating it completely as web/live/surveillance by computer.
Has anybody used the connection to go to component out to HDMI in on a computer? Is this doable/ adaptable? What is the video quality live on an HDTV monitor like?
I really like it as a still camera. Sort of like it as a video camera. Obviously, in tight places, it's a go-to choice. Not quite as all-around as I'd hoped for. Only viewed footage on my mac thus far. Quality depends a little on the viewing program also.
My best pictures with the TX1 are the pix made while recording video. However, every time I make a still while recording video it leaves a black blank spot in the video whick I have to edit out. Anybody else have this issue?
yea, when is the tx2 coming out? im hoping soon, like maybe at CES in january
Thanks for this blog. I have been using the TX1 since September for various video opportunities. I love the portability of the camera. I have learned about its strengths and weaknesses, but the ability to carry the TX1 without appearing as a tourist is invaluable.
My biggest problem is editing and archiving the TX1 film clips in Microsoft Adobe Premiere Pro.
Since the TX1 records in MJPEG with an "avi" file extension, I have tried to edit the clips and then export the edited version to the three avi formats: "DV avi", "uncompressed avi" and "microsoft avi". I have also used the Adobe Media Encoder for MPEG2.
"DV avi" is no good because it does not retain HD 720p video. "Uncompressed avi" produces an unreasonably large file for archving. The "avi" files do not seem to produce any better results than exporting to QuickTime or MPEG2. A support person from Adobe told me that the MJPEG format was odd and that my best bet was to export the edited TX1 clips into MPEG2 for archiving and distribution.
I like MPEG2 for distribution and DVDs, but I want the best format for archiving that will give me my best copy (or lease compression) of the original TX1 files.
Can anyone give me some guidance? I guess I want to import my original TX1 "avi" 720p 30fps clips into a program, then edit the clips, and then export the edited version into a 720p 30fps format. What would you suggest for archiving after editing the clips?
Hi Raymond, check out this post, it should help you out...
Cheers, Matt
EHy i have a very IMPORTANT Question..till now no1 has answered it....
Can we pause video while recording..
as in between i decide to pause fr smtime n continuue the video recording after smtime..So it is possible????
Ple leem knw??
I was having trouble importing the video of the tx1 into premiere cs4. So after much trouble shooting and codec searching my best solution was importing then exporting out of imovie. This does create a larger file. Premiere does not work well with many obscure codes. Beware.
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