Sony Handycam® DCR-TRV950 Mini DV Camcorder

Pros: Video Quality, Picture Quality, Features
Cons: included memory card is small (need to purchase a larger one)

We bought this camera in the summer of 2003 to replace our older video camera and have had a great experience. The video quality is excellent. The color is superb. Great audio quality. The video records at more lines of resolution than current ...

Pros: Superb video quality, 3CCD sensors, 1MP stills, MPEG movies, Memorystick, iLink port, Bluetooth.
Cons: Larger size compared to PC series, awkward touch screen with stylus, optional Bluetooth adapter.

My quest for the best possible video quality. A few years ago when I adopted MiniDV as my pr ...

Pros: Sony HAD CCD's, pretty comprehensive manual controls
Cons: Overpriced, omissions from previous generation TRV900E

As ever Sony come up with a very high quality semi-pro model, usual high video quality (3CCD, HAD CCD), usual range of manual controls (shutter speed, iris/aperture, gain, importantly -audio, white balance) in an easy to use package.

One nice...

Pros: Very easy to use.
Cons: Bad performance in normal room light conditions. Lens not wide angle enough for general use.

A very easy to use high quality camera. However its low light performance is diabolical. I sent the camera back to sony for checking since it was so bad and it came back no fault found. In daylight it is superb but as soon as you take it into the inside with normal room light the performance deteriorates.

ez to use after a few trials..manual works well.takes a nice clean movie pic..works also with firewire. If your looking to get a decent 3 chip and get it for under 1800.00 great deal...

Positives: great picture quality, packed with features that will take weeks to explore for a new user, USB and firewire drivers installed effortlessly and functioned well on my PC with Win98 and basic editing software. Negatives: power zoom speed needs a delicate touch to control, Manual focus seems to be electronically linked and responds with an annoying lag time (however, autofocus works very well in most situations and is not obvious when viewing playback). Bought this camera for U/W use, and found white balance difficult, but not impossible, to deal with at depths of more than 40 feet. Overall: Would recommend camera to anyone looking for an "affordable" 3-chip camcorder

I recently shot a 2-hour live performance with this camera -- all hand-held -- and didn't have a single problem! Shooting with the fold-out screen or through the color viewfinder, this camera performed better than some of the DV machines running $4000 and up! The zoom is exquisitely smooth at any speed and the auto-focus is so advanced you're almost not aware you're using it. The special effects filters will delight and amaze users for quite a while... they are great fun and even include the ability to shoot video as if it was turn of the century B&W. Can't say enough positive about this one!!