Great Buy
Oct 29 '99 (Updated Apr 06 '00)
Sony is an excellent electronics manufacturer. They make big, small, and professional camcorders. Some are so good that the media and movie producers uses them. I read part of the movie The Blair Witch Project was filmed on a Sony 8mm camcorder.
Based in Japan, Sony camcorders are reliable and produce great quality movies. I bought my Hi-8mm Sony camcorder in 1996 and it works great. I can't remember the model number, but it has a 4" LCD color screen that's excellent to record moving objects (except in bright days, when the sun reflects off the screen and you can't see anything). It has tons of special effects, lets me write custom messages in different colors (including letters with accents), and has some programs to adjust the way the camera records different types of images (i.e. sunsets, moving soccer players, etc.).
All Sony camcorders are light, and some come with a 2 hour battery. The latter will last about 1:45 or 1:15 if you use the LCD screen. My came with a battery extension where you can use regular AAA batteries inside (I never used this, so I can't tell you how long it lasts).
I have used my camcorder in trips to the Grand Canyon, Hawaii, Yosemite Natl. Park and others, and I'm very happy with the quality of the images. I have also recorded my brother's soccer games - where I highly recommend the use of a tripod - with good success. Note: I have used several tripods with my camera and found the bottom of the camera is not long enough to provide a base big enough for stable recording. Maybe they fixed the newer ones... but I'd check before buying, if soccer games is your main purpose.
Sony puts all types of analog and digital zoom in their cameras. The bigger the analog, the better. Digital zoom is only good until about 20x. After that, the image will have so many squares it will look bad.
Also, my camera can record in very low levels of light (it doesn't have the night feature), also known as low number of lux. This feature is great for dark days and parties. If you are in the market for a camera, get one with the lowest lux number, like 1.
Who should buy this?
Anyone with a budget over $900. Now, if you are going to get a camera, get one of the best Hi-8mm ones. Don't settle for less! The best quality ensures a better viewing of your loved ones later - if its 1 week or 10 years later.
If you have a huge budget, maybe you should check into the digital camera market. They are great for editing, and the image is much better.
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Epinions.com ID:
andrevm
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 - Top 1000 |
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Location: Aberdeen, Scotland
Reviews written: 121
Trusted by: 55 members
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