In recent years, worldwide demand for camcorders has remained stable at about 15 million units. In Japan, shipments reached about 1.7 million units in 2003 when manufacturers came out with MiniDV digital camcorders, which featured high performance for cost. However, in 2005, shipments declined to slightly over 1.5 million units and have since remained at about that level. Against this backdrop, a wider variety of media is appearing and, at the same time, technologies are shifting to accommodate full high-definition (full HD) images. Entering 2007, the ratio of HD camcorders increased dramatically. At the end of 2006, the HD ratio was slightly over 20 percent, and this year, the ratio has surpassed 30 percent. Some manufacturers forecast the ratio of HD camcorders in 2007 to reach 40 percent or 60 percent (Fig.1).
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