1. a portable television camera and recording unit designed to be carried by one person, used especially in broadcast journalism and documentary filmmaking.
Usage: often capitalized as a trademark (Portapak); historical: primarily used from the 1960s through 1980s; also called a portable video camera system

Examples

• The journalist grabbed her portapack to film the breaking news on location.
• Early television documentaries were revolutionized by the invention of the portapack.
• With a portapack, reporters could finally move away from the studio and cover stories in the field.
• The portapack made it possible for independent filmmakers to produce professional-quality video.
• Before digital cameras, the portapack was the standard equipment for mobile news crews.