Sony DCR-DVD305 1MP DVD Handycam Camcorder with 12x Optical Zoom

Just received my Sony DVD305 a few days ago and am extremely satisfied. I have put this camera through the ringers, from Black and White, to Sepia, to Still Images, to Super Night Shots and I firmly believe this is the best camcorder I've ever owned! I was particularly impressed with the small size, yet the image stablizer really controls any shaking. The still images are fantastic for a 1 Mega Pixel camera.

You cannot go wrong with this camera, not to mention it was over $150.00 cheaper on Amazon than getting it from Best Buy, Circuity City, or Ultimate Electronics!

I bought the DCR-DVD305 after using a Hi8 Camcorder for a few years and a VHS Camcorder for many years before that. I would consider myself an "occassional" user and typically only pull out the camcorder to capture vacations, holidays, family events, sporting events, and trips to the local theater to watch friends and family perform. I spent countless hours researching camcorders online and in the stores before I purchased this and flipped back and forth between Hard Drive (bad), MiniDV and DVD models before I finally settled on DVD. That said here's some insight that I think would help other camcorder purchasers:

(1) DVD305 vs the competition: If you've been doing online research, you've probably found that most reviewers give the highest marks to two competing models: the Elura 100 and the Sony DCR-HC96. Both of those use the older MiniDV format and are said to have more bells and whistles, better low light filming conditions, and longer filming times on one cassette, and better ability to edit films on the PC. I managed to borrow both of those models from friends and try them out before I bought the DVD305 and truthfully I didn't see much difference. Maybe a serious filmmaker can tell the difference, but an occassional home user won't be able to.

(2) Edit on a PC I've seen some other reviews here where the reviewer said they couldn't edit their movies on their PC. I have Windows 2000 and a USB2.0 port and didn't have any issues. I used the included sony software to download the movie to my PC, used 3rd party software to edit, then burned my edited movie back to a new DVD using the camcorder (yes...you can use this camcorder as a DVD burner when it's attached to the PC with the included USB cable). I'm guessing the other reviewer didn't read the help files that come with the software.

(3) DVD vs MiniDV I've heard that MiniDV is a better quality medium and can record for longer than a DVD. As far as quality goes, I couldn't tell any difference in the quality between the two. The MiniDV does record longer, but they also cost about twice as much as the DVDs and they're much bulkier to carry. So for me, I prefered the low cost of the DVDs the ability to put about 10 of them in a tiny little case in the front pouch of my camcorder bag (imagine putting 10 MiniDV tapes in a bag it would fill the whole bag up!!!). Also, if you want to share your movies with friends, you'll need to transfer MiniDVs to DVD anyway. Going straight to DVD removes the need to purchase a DVD recorder.

(4) Size All of the models were about the same size. If you're trying to figure out how big this camcorder is, imagine a US dollar bill. The 305 is about as long as dollar bill and an inch or so taller. The 305 does feel a little awkward to hold, but the same is true for all of the small camcorders.

(5) Low light Seriously, I'm not sure what all the fuss is around low-light. I filmed in lowlight conditions with the 305 just fine. The viewfinder does appear a little grainy in really low light, but the film looked just fine. And think of it...how often are you filming in the dark?

Overall...my advice is this. If you're an occassional user, stop reading the reviews and buy this camcorder. You'll be VERY happy you did!

Buy Sony DCR-DVD305 1MP DVD Handycam Camcorder with 12x Optical Zoom Now

I wasn't planning on buying it already, but I had a few margarita's for lunch. Came home with it, and was quite pleased. It worked out of the box!

When my kids came home, we played with it. Low light, full light, it was set for the widescreen, which looks funny on the tv, so I have to set it for the smaller screen I have. That's ok. The widescreen may look better on my computer monitor, so I will withhold judgement here.

I do wish the batter could work longer. You will have to buy an extra battery if you plan on doing any filming away from a power source for any amount of time.

I also wish it came with a disk, like my sony camera did. But that's minor.

So far I'm pleased with my purchase. It's intuitive to use, and I love the touch screen controls. I used it, played with it, changed settings before I read the manual.

I will be back again later to update if anything comes up!

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Purchased this product in August and three days later got on a plane for a family vacation in Mexico.

The thing that became apparent straight out the box is the ease of use of this camera..despite the rather daunting manual that comes with the machine. We wanted a DVD based machine for the ease of shooting and straight into the PC without the use of cables and this machine couldn't be easier to use.

The menus are intuitive and rational making first movies very simple. Formatting the disc is a simple and pain free operation as is finalizing prior to viewing on a PC then it's straight into the computer for any editing or simple viewing pleasure.

Colors are great as is the detail at least in daytime, beach and sunny locations as we haven't had the desire to take night video.

The camera also does still shots but since this isn't why I bought it I won't critique their quality which is obviously not as good as the 7MP pocket still camera we throw in our bag.

All in all very happy with the purchase and at a great price!

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This is a very good DVD Camcorder. I have decided to go for DVD-305 instead of 205 just because it has USB connectivity where you can transfer your recordings to a PC/Laptop for editing. You can also use your camcorder as a DVD writer by connecting to USB port. This camcorder is really great if you are looking for mid budget camcorder.