View source for PXL2000

{{Short description|1987 toy video camera}}
{{Refimprove|date=January 2011}}

{{Infobox movie camera
| image                 = FisherPrice-PXL2000 IMG 20200524 (filter etc).jpg
| caption               = 
| models                = 3300 and 3305; PixelVision, Sanwa Sanpix1000, KiddieCorder, and Georgia
| manufacturer          = [[Fisher-Price]]
| introduced            = {{start date and age|1987}}{{cn|date=May 2024}}
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| batteries             = 6 x [[AA battery]]
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[[File:Fisher-Price PXL2000 Video Clippets RJP.ogv|thumb|Video shot in 1994 with a PXL2000]]

The '''PXL2000''', or '''Pixelvision''', was a toy black and white video camera, introduced by [[Fisher-Price]] in 1987 at the International Toy Fair in Manhattan, which could record sound and images onto [[Compact Cassette]] tapes.<ref name=NYTimes>{{cite news|last=Revkin|first=Andrew C.|title=As Simple as Black and White; Children's Toy Is Reborn as an Avant-Garde Filmmaking Tool|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/01/22/nyregion/simple-black-white-children-s-toy-reborn-avant-garde-filmmaking-tool.html|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|language=en-US|date=January 22, 2000|accessdate=July 29, 2023|archive-date=July 29, 2023|archive-url=https://archive.today/20230729161637/https://www.nytimes.com/2000/01/22/nyregion/simple-black-white-children-s-toy-reborn-avant-garde-filmmaking-tool.html}}</ref> It was on the market for one year with about 400,000 units produced.<ref name="Toying">{{cite book|last=McCarty|first=Andrea Nina|title=Toying with Obsolescence: Pixelvision Filmmakers and the Fisher Price PXL 2000 Camera|date=2005|publisher=Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Comparative Media Studies|location=Massachusetts}}</ref>{{rp|20}} After that one year, it was pulled by the market, but rediscovered in the 1990s by low-budget filmmakers who appreciated the grainy, shimmering, monochrome produced by the unit, and the way in which its lens allowed the user to photograph a subject an eighth of an inch away from the camera, and pull back to a long shot without manipulating a dial, while keeping as the background and the foreground in focus.<ref name=NYTimes/> It is also appreciated by collectors, artists, and media historians, and has been used in major films and spawned dedicated film festivals.<ref name="Toying"/>

==Development==
The PXL2000 was created by a team of inventors led by James Wickstead. He sold the invention rights to [[Fisher-Price]] in 1987 at the [[American International Toy Fair]] in Manhattan.<ref>{{cite news|last=Revkin|first=Andrew C.|title=As Simple as Black and White; Children's Toy Is Reborn as an Avant-Garde Filmmaking Tool|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/01/22/nyregion/simple-black-white-children-s-toy-reborn-avant-garde-filmmaking-tool.html|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|language=en-US|date=January 22, 2000|accessdate=July 29, 2023|archive-date=July 29, 2023|archive-url=https://archive.today/20230729161637/https://www.nytimes.com/2000/01/22/nyregion/simple-black-white-children-s-toy-reborn-avant-garde-filmmaking-tool.html}}</ref>

==Design==
The PXL2000 consists of a simple [[aspherical lens]], an [[infrared]] filter, a [[Charge-coupled device|CCD]] image sensor, a custom [[ASIC]] (the [[Sanyo]] LA 7306M), and an [[audio cassette]] mechanism. This is mounted in a plastic housing with a battery compartment and an [[RF modulator|RF video modulator]] selectable to either [[Channel 3/4 output|North American television channel 3 or 4]]. It has a plastic viewfinder and some control buttons.

The system stores 11 minutes of video and sound on a standard audio cassette tape by moving the tape at nearly nine times normal cassette playback speed. It records at roughly {{convert|16.875|in|mm}} per second, compared to a standard cassette's speed of {{convert|1.875|in|mm}} on a [[Audio tape specifications|C90]] CrO<sub>2</sub> ([[chromium dioxide]]) cassette. In magnetic tape recording, the faster the tape speed, the more data can be stored per second. The higher speed is necessary because video requires a wider [[Bandwidth (signal processing)|bandwidth]] than standard audio recording. The PXL2000 records the video information on the left audio channel of the cassette, and the audio on the right.<ref>[http://www.freepatentsonline.com/4875107.html US Patent 4875107].</ref>

In order to reduce the amount of information recorded to fit within the narrow bandwidth of the sped-up audio cassette, the ASIC generates slower video timings than conventional TVs use. It scans the {{resx|120|90}} pixel CCD 15 times per second, feeding the results through a filtering circuit, and then to a [[frequency modulation]] circuit driving the left channel of the cassette head, as well as to an [[Analog-to-digital converter|ADC]], which creates the final image for viewing.{{fact|date=July 2023}}

For playback and view-through purposes, circuits read image data from either a recorded cassette or the CCD and fill half a [[digital frame store]] at the PXL reduced rate, while scanning the other half of the frame store at normal [[NTSC]] rates. Since each half of the frame store includes only {{val|10800|u=pixels}} in its {{resx|120|90}} array, the same as the CCD, the [[display resolution]] was deemed to be marginal, and black borders were added around the picture, squashing the frame store image content into the middle of the frame, preserving pixels that would otherwise be lost in [[overscan]]. An [[anti-aliasing filter|anti-aliasing low-pass filter]] is included in the final video output circuit.{{fact|date=July 2023}}

==Marketing==
The market success of the PXL2000 was ultimately quite low with its targeted child demographic, in part due to its high pricing. Introduced at {{US$|179|1987|about=yes|round=-1}} and later reduced to {{US$|100|1987|about=no|round=-1|long=no}}, it was expensive for a child's toy but affordable by amateur video artists. The PXL2000 was produced in two versions: model #3300 at $100<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://groups.google.com/g/rec.arts.movies.production/c/Ia_Lm3CJJVk/m/DaKJYbIPMuoJ?hl=en|title=FS: Fisher-Price PXL-2000 Pixelvision Camcorder|website=groups.google.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://groups.google.com/g/misc.wanted/c/63SwF62aIiI/m/JzaqspItuDAJ|title=Technical Info on Fisher-Price Camcorder??|website=groups.google.com}}</ref> with just the camera and necessary accessories; and #3305 at $150<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://groups.google.com/g/sci.electronics/c/3zoIp6vwTX8/m/kehrqFND6E8J|title=PixelVision Camera|website=groups.google.com}}</ref> adding a portable black and white television monitor with a {{convert|4.5|in|mm|adj=on}} diagonal screen. Extra accessories were sold separately, such as a carrying case.

It was also produced as Fisher-Price PixelVision, Sanwa Sanpix1000, KiddieCorder, and Georgia.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.retrothing.com/2008/02/pixelvision-mys.html|title=Pixelvision Mystery - More PXL-2000's Than We Thought? - Sanpix 1000|website=Retro Thing}}</ref>

==Revival==
The PXL2000 has received a minor revival in popularity since the 1990s among filmmakers, due to its point-and-shoot simplicity and low-grade aesthetic. Because the unit is degradable and obsolete, its use is aligned with a certain romanticized mortality, unfit for serious mainstream appropriation. Erik Saks wrote this: "Each time an artist uses a PXL2000, the whole form edges closer to extinction."<ref name="Toying"/>{{rp|93}}
[[File:Gerry Fialka with the PXL 2000 videocamera.jpg|thumb|[[Gerry Fialka]], founder, organizer, and curator of the PXL THIS Film Festival]]
In 1990, Pixelvision enthusiast [[Gerry Fialka]] founded PXL THIS, a film festival dedicated to projects shot exclusively on the PXL2000.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Cardy|first=Tom|date=November 19, 2008|title=Passion for the pixel|page=D1|work=[[The Dominion Post (Wellington)]]|url=http://www.laughtears.com/images/GerryDomPost.pdf|access-date=May 29, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Smith|first=Lynn|date=November 9, 2002|title=Coming to you in glorious pixelvision|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-nov-09-et-smith9-story.html}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Willis|first=Holly|date=Nov 14, 2007|title='PXL THIS' 17: The Bad and the Beautiful|work=[[LA Weekly]]|url=https://www.laweekly.com/pxl-this-17-the-bad-and-the-beautiful/}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Willis|first=Holly|date=Aug 27, 1999|title=Strange days: Showcases burgeon for every taste|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|url=https://variety.com/1999/film/news/strange-days-1117755168/}}</ref><ref name="NYTimes" /> The festival continues to occur annually in [[Los Angeles]], [[California]], usually at the [[Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center]]<ref name=":8">{{Cite web|date=February 10, 2008|title=An Invention Without a Future: Greatest Hits of PXL THIS|url=https://www.sfcinematheque.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/Invention_PN2_10PXL.pdf|website=[[San Francisco Cinematheque]]}}</ref> and the Echo Park Film Center,<ref>{{Cite web|title=PXL THIS 28|url=http://www.echoparkfilmcenter.org/events/pxl-this-28/|access-date=July 18, 2021|website=Echo Park Film Center}}</ref> with Fialka continuing as organizer and curator. Although the festival operates without a budget,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Annual Events: PXL THIS|url=https://www.virtualvenice.info/media/annual.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060507204349/http://www.virtualvenice.info/media/annual.htm|url-status=usurped|archive-date=May 7, 2006|access-date=July 7, 2021|website=Virtual Venice}}</ref> it still manages to tour many locations<ref name="Toying" />{{rp|7}} including the [[San Francisco Cinematheque]]<ref name=":8" /> and Boston's [[MIT]] campus.<ref name="Toying" />{{rp|7}} Festival entries, oral history interviews, and other relevant materials donated by Fialka are being processed into the Performing Arts and Moving Image Archives at the [[University of California, Santa Barbara Library]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Gerry Fialka 'PXL THIS' Archive (PA Mss 231)|url=https://www.library.ucsb.edu/gerry-fialka-pxl-archive-pa-mss-231|access-date=July 7, 2021|website=[[University of California, Santa Barbara Library]]|date=15 June 2021}}</ref> Recalling the PXL2000's initial promise of accessibility, Fialka's vision includes accepting submissions indiscriminately, juxtaposing the works of established artists with those of amateurs and children.<ref name="Toying"/>{{rp|71}}

PXL2000 cameras have been used occasionally in professional filmmaking, with camera modifications to output [[composite video]], enabling it to interface to an external camcorder or [[VCR]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Fox|first1=Claire|last2=Martin|first2=Nicole|date=January 1, 2021|title=Preserving Pixelvision: Image Vulnerability and the Early Video Works of Sadie Benning|url=https://online.ucpress.edu/fmh/article-abstract/7/1/40/115935/Preserving-PixelvisionImage-Vulnerability-and-the|journal=Feminist Media Histories|publisher=[[University of California Press]]|volume=7|issue=1|pages=40–60|doi=10.1525/fmh.2021.7.1.40|s2cid=234170231|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

==Productions==
The PXL2000 was used by [[Richard Linklater]] in his 1990 debut film, ''[[Slacker (film)|Slacker]]''.  A roughly two-minute performance art sequence within the film is shot entirely in PixelVision.{{fact|date=July 2023}}

[[Peggy Ahwesh]]'s ''Strange Weather'' (1993), which follows several [[cocaine|crack cocaine addicts]] in Florida, was shot entirely on a PXL2000. This video relies heavily on the camera's portability to maintain an intimate presence.{{fact|date=July 2023}}

Video artist [[Sadie Benning]] is among the most critically acclaimed pioneers of the PXL2000, one of which was given to them by their father [[James Benning (film director)|James Benning]] around the age of 15. Benning's early video diary works gained popularity in the artist market, earning them a lasting reputation as an innovator, with an important presence in video art.<ref>{{cite web |work=IndieWire |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2018/08/pixelvision-pxl-2000-fisher-price-toy-experimental-film-camera-lincoln-center-series-1201991348/ |author=Chris O'Falt |date=August 9, 2018 |title=Pixelvision: How a Failed '80s Fisher-Price Toy Camera Became One of Auteurs' Favorite '90s Tools    }}</ref>

[[Michael Almereyda]] used the camera for several of his films. ''[[Another Girl Another Planet (film)|Another Girl Another Planet]]'' (1992) and his short ''Aliens'' (1993) were shot with it entirely, it was used for [[point of view shot]]s of the title character in ''[[Nadja (film)|Nadja]]'' (1994), and it was used by the title character to make video diaries in [[Hamlet (2000 film)|''Hamlet'']] (2000).{{fact|date=July 2023}}

The camera has been used for several music videos, including "Mote" by [[Sonic Youth]] and "Black Grease" by [[The Black Angels (band)|the Black Angels]].{{fact|date=July 2023}}

Artist John Humphrey's 2003 video, ''Pee Wee Goes to Prison'' was shot on a PXL2000, employing a cast of dolls and other toys to stage the imaginary trial, incarceration, and eventual pardoning (by newly-elected president [[Jesse Ventura]]) of [[Pee-wee Herman]] for the sale of [[Yohimbe]].{{fact|date=July 2023}}

The PXL2000 was used by the characters Maggie ([[Anne Hathaway]]) and Jamie ([[Jake Gyllenhaal]]) in the 2010 film, ''[[Love & Other Drugs]]'', although the black and white footage from the camera is shown at full film resolution.<ref>[http://www.latinoreview.com/movie-reviews/love-and-other-drugs-878 Movie reviews: Love & Other Drugs]</ref>

In 2018, Toronto filmmaker Karma Todd Wiseman used a PXL2000 to shoot key scenes, processing the footage with enhanced monochrome. The custom PXL2000 camera was fitted with windshield mount suction cups and painted with the red and white paint scheme of the Canadian flag.{{cn|date=July 2019}}

The PXL2000 was used<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pictureshop.com/news/behind-the-look-archive-81 |title=Behind The Look: Archive 81 |access-date=2024-12-24}}</ref>  by the characters Melody and Jess during the show [[Archive 81]].

== See also ==
* [[Mattel Vidster]]
* [[Toy camera]]
* [[VCamNow]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.totalrewind.org/cameras/C_PXL2.htm Fisher-Price PXL2000 in the Total Rewind museum of Vintage Video]
* [https://www.flickr.com/photos/nickledndimed/sets/72157594402812643/ The original Manual to the PXL2000]
* [https://archive.today/20110826083452/http://rogercline.com/pxl2000/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3&sid=640a8f7bc63b4a31b88182fd108f8d3d Manuals]
* [https://archive.today/20110826082926/http://rogercline.com/pxl2000/ PXL2000 Forum with Camera Modification Guides]
* {{USPTO patent|patnum=5010419|title=Apparatus for storing video signals on audio cassette}}

{{portal bar|1980s}}

[[Category:Video storage]]
[[Category:Camcorders]]
[[Category:Products introduced in 1987]]
[[Category:Fisher-Price]]