Sony DCR-DVD408 4MP DVD Handycam Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I tried this camera during my recent visit to Seattle for Tulip festival. The recording quality is amazing. 5 channel recording is superb. I tried it in 16:9 and 4:3 fine mode with playback on HD Plasma TV. The quality was breathtakingly good. Yet to try photo (claimed to take 4 MP pictures) as photos can only be taken with a memory stick.
Cons:
-Limited Mini DVD space (20 minutes max in fine mode).
-Limited support for combining mini DVDs to a regular sized DVD. Bundled software requires double the size of DVD (9GB) free on the PC to make a movie
-Box contains just the camcorder without any memory stick or DVD. It has to be separately ordered.

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Sony DCR-TRV730 Digital8 Handycam Camcorder with Built-in Digital Still Mode Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)What makes this camcorder nice is the fact that it is very easy to use. You can keep this as simple as you like, or you can spend some time and learn the more advanced features -- but they are optional and learning them will not get in your way of making great home movies.
With no knowledge of camcorders and a basic understanding of how to connect the power to the cam so that you can charge the battery, you can start making movies.
Video quality is superb and the sound recording works very good. When compared to my old analog tapes the quality of a digital recording is amazing.
Once you master the basics (which is all you ever actually need to know) you can advance at your own pace and learn how to fade in and out and add great titles. Sony provides a number of easy to use titles that overlay on your recordings, or you can make your own.
The instruction booklet is thick with detailed explanations of what, why and when - but the first few pages use pictures and simplicity to explain how to use this unit right out of the box.
One great new feature: Sony has made it easy with scroll wheel that also depresses and allows you to navigate many menus with only your thumb.
I connected my TRV730 directly to my new desktop using the Firewire cable (included with your camcorder!) and loaded the software (Studio DV) that came with my computer (HP Digital Video Desktop System) and within minutes I was controlling my camera from the computer. There is also a USB port if you do not have Firewire capabilites.
I was able to upload several hours of old movies up and into the computer with no problems at all. This unit is backwards compatible (the TRV130 and TRV830 are NOT!) so you can view all of your old analog based recordings.
These new Lithium ION based batteries are great because you can charge them anytime you like without affecting the "memory" and you can charge the unit without ever removing the battery.
I have other cameras that use the first generation lithium-ions and found them to be great batteries that lasted and lasted. These next generation ones are simply smaller with the same amount of power.
Nightshot works great in low light conditions and SUPERnightshot makes it possible to record in virtual darkness. I walked outside on a pitch black night and zoomed in on the license plate of a car across the street and it read perfectly. No way could I read that plate with my own eyes and I have great vision.
The Steadyshot is seamless and works well. My last camcorder (the analog one) did not have this feature and you can tell the difference in my recordings. When you are zooming in, the effect of Steadyshot is increased.
The bottom line is that this camera has a lot of nice features that make it worth the price. The most important feature is that it is easy to use and the controls are intuitive so you can start using your camera as soon as it is charged.
I am a pro-Sony consumer and have spent thousands of dollars on various Sony items. I do this because they WORK and when they don't, Sony stands behind their products with a warranty.
You REALLY don't need those expensive in-house warranties sold at Circuit City and Best Buy, despite what you may read in other reviews. The only decision you should be making is where to save the most money.

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The Sony DCR-TRV730 is a full-featured Digital8 camcorder. Digital8 utilizes the digital video format, but records onto Hi8 tapes, and can play your old Hi8 and 8mm movies. The 18x optical (400x digital) zoom is combined with image stabilization, a boon since high zooms can lead to increased shakiness. Additionally, the DCR-TRV730 has a low-light shooting mode that allows for visibility in near darkness. An assortment of special effects and faders help give your footage a more professional feel. Also, a 16:9 widescreen-shooting mode lets you shoot movies in the same aspect ratio as Hollywood films.
The black-and-white EVF is adequate, but the large 2.5-inch color LCD monitor is the better bet for framing your shots. MPEG movies and digital stills can be recorded onto the accompanying 4 MB Memory Stick, which can then be downloaded to your computer via USB. Like all DV camcorders, the audio is recorded at CD quality levels--PCM digital stereo. Should you need more professional sound than the built-in mic provides, a mic input jack is located on the camcorder.
Because the DCR-TRV730 uses the DV format, you can download your footage to a computer for editing using an IEEE 1394 cable. Analog pass-through ports are built-in, letting you digitally archive all your old analog footage. Also included are a shoulder strap, lens cap, battery, AC adapter, and remote control.

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Sony HDR-SR12 10.2MP 120GB High Definition Hard Drive Handycam Camcorder with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I've now had this camera for about a month now and I couldn't be happier. The video quality is STUNNING as well as the recording sounds. It comes with a base and proprietary power and video cords (both component-HD and composite, which means that they are not interchangable with over the counter video cords), but thats ok. It also has the software for transferring the videos and photos to your CPU. Back to the picture and sound... amazing really. The sound records in 5.1 surround which is so cool, plus you have many options on the video such as night vision, black and white, sepia, old movie mold, etc and some of them you can combine (I did night vision with black and white to make a short zombie movie, it looks wicked). There are so many possibilities with this cam. The play back is all touch screen, which the screen can get smeared by fingerprints (easy to wipe out), but I suggest buying a stylus. Of course if you hook it to your television, it does come with a remote control, and you can do everything with that remote except for deleting images. But that is a positive because you don't want to accidentally delete your images. And it does ask for you to confirm deleting so it's hard to do that accidentally.
Plus, it's a great photography camera. With the flick of a thumb you can change from filming to photographer easy and it takes crystal clear pictures in 10.5 mega pixel. Although I do find it a bit awkward to reach the photo button. Now it takes better picture in photo mode, then it do in filming mode (While filming you can snap a picture also),
Another word on the night vision, I had all the lights off and it films in that greenish color sort of like the movie Cloverfield. But even filming at night without the night vision on, it picks up everything. I had a buddy drive at night, while I was shooting and the only lights were coming from headlights and streetlamps (when we passed them) and you saw everything on the camera that you could see with you naked eye and I even thought it was better than my eye.
Now when you film and take pictures, it organizes the images according to date and when you film several scenes it will play them one after another without a bit of a pause. The camera also has little doors on the back and the side so you can hook up your cords without the base, which is good. Also inside of one of the doors are an hdmi output, a headphones output and a mic input. I ran my iPod through the mic input to make a music video and it turned out great (although be sure not to have your iPod any louder than half).
The camera also has a one touch DVD burning button on the camera and the base, but I haven't used it yet.
The only real negative is that the battery only last 90 minutes, but I bought a bigger battery, which last 14 hours. That battery weighs as much or more than the camera (the camera is really light) and it sticks out the back some but that isn't really that big of a deal.
The software is pretty smart. You hook the camcorder with the use of the provided usb cable (after loading the software) and it finds the camcorder and asks if you want to transfer all the items to your computer. But the cool thing is that you can keep those images on your camcorder after transfer, film other stuff, hook you camera back up to the computer and it will only transfer items that haven't been transferred yet. This is good because you don't have to try to figure out what has or haven't been transfer and you don't get dup copies, or that annoying message about whether you want to overwrite a file. And it organizes by date and you can do a total calendar view and see what dates you filmed on. When it organized and transfer to your CPU, it organized by date filmed, not date transfer, which is extremely helpful, especially if you visit multiple locations during multiple dates.
This is really the last camcorder you will possibly buy for many many years. The only thing is that it has so many cool accessories you can buy, like wide-angle lenses, telescopic lenses, attachable lights, and underwater case etc that you may eventually end up with a $2500-3000 total purchase when you are done. The accessories are not a necessity but they do look like a lot of fun.
Auto focusing can be a pain at times, but it does have a manual focus, which you can set to infinity and if you zoom, set it up on a tripod.
Oh and one last thing, I actually filmed something for 5 minutes that was playing on my plasma in HD and it look as if its the movie itself.


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The HDR-SR12 delivers everything you need to shoot stunning Full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution video and 10.2 megapixel still images. With Hybrid recording technology, you can record to either an internal 120GB hard disk drive or removable Memory Stick Duo or Memory Stick PRO Duo media. A professional-quality Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* lens and ClearVid CMOS sensor (with Exmor technology) and BIONZ image processor let you capture every detail in video and still images. Additionally, Face Detection technology helps everyone put their best face forward, while the Super SteadyShot optical image stabilization system helps ensure images remain sharp and true.

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Sony DCRTRV840 Digital8 Camcorder w/ 3.5" LCD, USB Streaming, Memory Stick, and Mega Pixel Video/ Still Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The TRV840 is like a M1 tank in several ways:
1)When you shoot a subject, you get great results.
2) It can use a variety of "ammo" (plays Hi8 and 8mm tapes also).
3) Weighs "a ton" (stable but rough on the hand after a while).
4) Reliable and sturdy.
Summary: Exceptional video, excellent sound, 1 MP digital stills (Great for email or web posting). Able to convert any video to digital, 8mm inside the camera or other video by pass through. A great feature if you have old videos you want to digitize. Just make sure your PC is up to the task!
For my specific needs of great digital video and the ability to digitize old tapes, I can overlook the excess bulk. Videos should be short and sweet anyway, so I'll just put it down when my hand starts to ache! If you need the same features, the TRV840 can't be beat.

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The Digital8 line was conceived as a path to digital for current owners of 8mm or Hi8 camcorders. The DCR-TRV840 succeeds in that regard, playing back both 8mm and Hi8 tapes.
The TRV840 can also be used as a digital still camera, recording megapixel stills onto the included 8 MB Memory Stick, or it can record MPEG movies. MPEG movies usually are much smaller than DV footage, and can more readily be e-mailed, or posted on the Web. Unlike most MPEG modes, however, the TRV840 lets you record for as long as you want, your only limit is the size of the Memory Stick.
Sony put in a 15x optical zoom and paired it with Super SteadyShot image stabilization. Image stabilization is a handy technology that helps to eliminate the shakiness associated with high zoom levels. The only way to avoid shakiness completely is to utilize a tripod, table, or other stable surface. The 3.5-inch LCD is the best way to frame your shots, although you can use the black-and-white EVF to preserve battery life.
In addition to the normal slew of ports (IEEE 1394, S-Video, Mini AV) that have made their way onto TRV840, there's also a USB port, which, with some included software, offers some interesting functions. There is also one very important port on the TRV840: a mic input. Not only do most camcorders have poor built-in microphones, but also they are often situated too near the tape mechanism, meaning you get the annoying throbbing sound of the tape pulled through the heads.
The DCR-TRV840 comes with a power adapter, InfoLithium battery, 8 MB Memory Stick, remote control, two AA batteries, AV cable, lens cap, shoulder strap, USB cable, and software CD-ROM.

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Sony HDR-CX550V 64GB High Definition Handycam Camcorder Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)COLOR:
The camcorder does a good job in the color department, most of the time you get Accurate & Natural colors but other times it tends to vivid the blues & reds. The same happens with the Canon HF-S21, while Panasonic HDC-TM350 & HDC-TM700 looks more natural "most of the time".
LCD:
The touch responsiveness is simply amazing, comparing it to the Very Difficult to handle of the Canon HF-S21 and the just OK of the Panasonic family. The resolution is the best of his class by far. Also you can organize it in a very custom way; "You can use the menu items easily by registering the menu items you use most often on MY MENU. You can register 6 menus items on each MY MENUS of the MOVIE, PHOTOS and PAYBACK. That's a total of 18 pre-determent Custom Menus. LENS:
The HDR-CX550V has larger lens than last year's model. The new G-Lens is capable of capturing videos at enormously wide angles, Close to 20 degrees more than Canons & JVC are capable of. It's also a much wider angle than you'll get from the Panasonic HDC-TM700.
Low Light:
In this area the clear winner is the HDC-TM350 or HDC-TM700, Sony has the Night Shot which allows to record in almost 0 LUX but you get a graining and unacceptable quality. Using the LOW LUX feature improves the image quality but some light is needed to be able to record.
RECORDING MODES:
Format -Resolution -Bitrate -Codec
HD FX -1920 x 1080 -24Mbps -H.264AVC (AVCHD)
HD FH -1920 x 1080 -17Mbps -H.264AVC (AVCHD)
HD HQ -1920 x 1080 -9Mbps - H.264AVC (AVCHD)
HD LP -1920 x 1080 -5Mbps - H.264AVC (AVCHD)
STD - 720 x 480 -9Mbps - MPEG-2
ZOOM & STEADYSHOT:
For some reason the SteadyShot has an impact on the zoom of the camera, when you have the SteadyShot set to Active the zoom goes up to 14X (this has been a complain for some reviewers because they have said it only goes up to 10X) but if you have the SteadyShot in Standard or OFF it does only go to 10X. Based on this, it seems like a good idea to consider that setting depending on the scene and recording conditions, example; if you are going to use the camcorder on a tripod to film landscapes, sunsets or any other scenography in which you want a wider angle it will be very helpful to turn OFF or put in Active the SteadyShot, but if the situation is the other way around, you want to record a far away object and want them to looks closer then the SteadyShot should be in Active mode even when using a tripod.
Comparing the HDC-TM700 (12X) to the HDR-CX550 (10X) in Optical Zoom and TM700 (18X I. Zoom) vs. CX550 (14X Without been named or pointed out by anybody else). At Digital Zoom the TM700 goes up to 30X or 700X (complementing its name) while CX550 MAX is 120X, either of them display very bad and distorted images when the Digital Zoom is used.

The Stabilization produced by the STEADYSHOT is one of the best I have ever seen, it works great in all situations while keeping very sharp image quality.
STILL PICTURE:
In the still picture nobody can beat the JVC GZ-HM1 as far as quality-sharpness-colors; the Sony does a descent job just like any other camcorder in this price range. The Smile Shutter is one of the FUN features of this Camcorder, this allows to take a picture every time the cam detects someone smiling, Smile shutter can be set so that it is always on, to work during video recording only, or it can be turned off completely but unfortunately this is NOT available when recording at the MAX Quality Setting of 24Mbps HD FX Mode.
FUN Features:
Smooth Slow Record: A slow motion setting that records 3 seconds of footage and turns it into 12 seconds of Very Slow Video. This setting shoots at a very high Frame Rate of 240fps in order to create the slow motion effect. You have the option to select that the Camcorder record those 3 seconds after you press the START button or be recording at all time (like a Pre-Record Mode) so when you press the START button the last 3 seconds will be converted into the 12 seconds of Very Slow Video. The quality of this Smooth Slow Record is NOT quite close to HD, it may be SD quality at 16x9 aspect ratio.
Golf Shot: Takes two quick seconds of video and divides it into frames that are recorded as a movie and photos in a 16x9 aspect ratio.
GPS: The built-in GPS allows you to keep track of your videos & photos by the location in which they were shot. By having the GPS on, the battery life decreases by 2-3 %.
CONCLUSIONS:
This is a good camcorder with lots of Manuals and Fun features, very portable, with a good overall performance; it looks like a very good choice for a Family-Vacation's Camcorder.
Hope you find this review helpful enough, if you have a particular question feels free to ask in the comments section and meanwhile press the YES button below!


Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony HDR-CX550V 64GB High Definition Handycam Camcorder

Capture stunning 1920 x 1080 high-definition video and 12 Megapixel still images with the HDR-CX550V, which employs an "Exmor R" CMOS sensor for superior low-light performance and 64GB of embedded flash memory. Optical SteadyShot image stabilization with Active Mode and 3-way Shake Canceling enables you to capture remarkably smooth video from wide angle to full telephoto shooting.

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Sony HDR-UX10 4MP DVD High Definition Handycam Camcorder with 15x Optical Zoom Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Excellent HD cam at a low price,
- it's a SONY,
- the video quality is very very good, 1080i! FULL HD, crystal clear.
- the 5.1 channels mic records amazing sound.
- the menus are easy to use, if you dont get it: use the "easy" button, it sets up the cam and you're good to go.
- the photos are very good taken thanks to the "Steadyshot" feature and the integrated flash. You can take photos at any time during video recording.
- the "night shot" func. really works.
- it fits in your hand perfectly and it has a good weight, not too light nor heavy.
- transfers to PC are easy and fast. just connect the usb, it's software detects it and download the videos, once it's done you can watch the videos on Windows media player, if you have any issue doing so, just google: "ffdshow" and download this codecs pack, so your pc can play almost any kind video out there.
- If you have a PS3, just plug the memory stick and play the vids.
- The photos can be transferred without using the sony software just copy/paste.
Opportunity:
-The Slow motion feature could be better, you won't get good video quality using this function, it's helpful if you just need to observe something in slowmo but not if you want to make an artistic video or something like that. What i do is take the regular video on HD and slow it down with Windows Movie Maker ;P (You can speed it up too)
This a very good HD camcorder for the price; you can't go wrong with SONY.
Edit: here is the link to the actual codecs you may need to play the videos with Windows Media Player,

[...]
Just install them and you're good to go.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony HDR-UX10 4MP DVD High Definition Handycam Camcorder with 15x Optical Zoom

Experience the world of high definition video with the HDR-UX10. Hybrid recording technology lets you choose your recording format -- DVD or removable Memory Stick PRO Duo media. The ClearVid CMOS sensor (with Exmor technology) and BIONZ image processor captures detailed Full HD 1920 x 1080 video, as well as 4 megapixel still photos. Super SteadyShot optical image stabilization helps ensure clear images; while Face Detection technology helps everyone put their best face forward. You can use the Dual Record Mode to capture still images and video at the same time, and even capture a lifelike audio experience with built-in zoom microphone with Dolby Digital 5.1 channel surround sound.

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