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.
Compact and Lightweight (something my wife wants over holding my Canon 5D2 and lenses)
Wide Angle 26.3mm Photo
Wide Angle 29.8 mm Video to 298mm (On the Canon it is 35mm equivalent 43.5-435mm which is longer)
12 Mega Pixels still images
10x Optical Zoom
Stabilization which works really well
Takes both SD-HC (this is great) and Sony memory sticks (I don't use them)
Built-in 64GB Flash memory.
Excellent low light shooting
Includes GPS geotagging (which I haven't used yet, I keep it turned off for now)
3.5" LCD (921K)
Dolby Digital 5.1ch recording with Built-in Zoom Mic, which I haven't really tested to say how good the results really are, but off-the-bat the results are very acceptable.
It is also very easy to set up and operate, not a lot of digging for menus to get it recording right! You simply either swing open the LCD or pull out the viewfinder (having one is plus for me) and it turns on and after a few second, you can hit the record button. Vice-versa to turn-off.
Shoots in HD and records in 1080/60i and this equates to it being 24p or 30p via software when editing, this is argued extensively on forums, but the HDR-CX550V does not let you specify, which may be a good or bad thing depending on your own preferences. Having said that don't let the 1080/60i put you off, since this is the same with all other camcorders I have seen including professional camcorders. The 24p or 30p on the Canon HF-S21 also records at 60i.
I think ultimately making a choice on either the Sony or the Canon, you won't be disappointed, however, to me the main highlights are that this is a very compact camcorder with excellent touch screen (this one works!) and shoots wide to long instead of normal to long, and has excellent low light results as well as support for SD-HC flash media and a wonderfully sized LCD display.
I ended up buying the BC-TRV Travel charger and the NP-FV100 battery, although is larger than the supplied battery it is still small enough that it shouldn't bother you when you require the extra juice for extended shooting which is about 15 hours at High-quality HD mode.
Image results are great for such a small system, very satisfied.
Update: April 12, 2011.
***********************
Okay first off, apologies to all those that asked questions in the comments. Unfortunately I don't have the time to go over each question, but here is a short feedback after a year of use towards my personal usage and preferences. I don't shoot in extreme circumstances, such as a heavy metal rock concert or middle of a field with no lighting what-so-ever! I have shot in noisy market streets, and noisy restaurants to dimly lit rooms with no extra accessories.
Okay, this time I was able to shoot my son's first birthday party a couple of days ago. A month or so ago, a couple of weddings. A short trip to Asia. So here are the highlights:
Menu continues to be simple to use.
The camera stability feature still works extremely well hand held. Just don't expect miracles if your hands happen to be the exact opposite!
A whole day and evening banquet(Not continuous) for a wedding shoot, the extra battery and internal memory provided enough juice and storage needs.
HD quality is above average at best and that's good enough for me, now do understand this, I don't believe any home camcorder can perform beyond much past this point to date. So do understand the satisfaction level this will provide you. Yes it is short of a prime lens mounted on a DSLR like the 5D Mark II shooting video, and is costing so much less and much easier to operate as well.
The camera continues to be so simple to use, that you flip open the screen to turn it on, press the record button to start recording (duh!) and press again to stop, and flip close the screen to turn it off. This alone can give both me confidence and whoever I pass the camcorder to that they will do a satisfactory job (no experience needed)! With the exception, do tell them not to shoot portrait orientation :P Camcorders don't work that way!
Color Saturation level could be a little more vivid and the backlighting response with regards to white balancing are the only improvements I can think of for video quality. Neither of which are bad, just feels average. Physically, the size is small and lightweight. Only other thing is the top hot-shoe (I don't own any accessories), but did try to mount a 3rd party LED light, but couldn't, because the hot shoe is recessed into it's own slide-away compartment, it was too small to slide my LED light.
I continue to shoot stills with my DSLRs, so I cannot comment on the stills from this camcorder.
My original rating stands, the camcorder has been reliable but well looked after (It still looks like new for the amount of times I have used it), I have used it often, lent it out, played back and recorded. I love what this camcorder gives me for the money in both video quality and sound. I hope this helps that little bit more.
Buy Sony HDR-CX550V 64GB High Definition Handycam Camcorder Now
After comparing many camcorders and recording technologies I picked this camcorder for the following reasons:1. I decided on flash memory because you do not have the sound of a tape drive or a hard drive and the camera is more compact. 64GB gives you hours of recording time without the need to change miniDV tapes or buying extra memory cards. Copying the highly compressed video files to a MAC or PC takes minutes for hours of video. Compare this to miniDV tapes hour for hour.
2. Quality low light performance is great on this model and far exceeds my old Sony HC-1.
3. This camcorder has a wider angle lens than most camcorders which to me is more desirable. The drawback is that such a 10x lens cannot zoom in as close which is fine unless you go on a safari.
4. The image stabilization is phenomenal. You could have a tremor and the picture is rock solid. You can walk with the camera and the picture is smooth. If you make a sudden movement you can see the picture lag and move less abruptly.
5. The touch screen menus take some exploring. You can customize "My settings" with buttons you wish to have at your finger tips. The only wish I have would be another recording button for one handed operation when you do not use the wrist strap.
Best accessory: the under water housing
7. Finally, this camcorder works great with MACs. Image Capture and iMovie recognize the camcorder and you can work with these applications as usual. Final Cut Pro works equally well, but instead of Log and Capture you have to use Log and Transfer (Shift Cmd 8)
Read Best Reviews of Sony HDR-CX550V 64GB High Definition Handycam Camcorder Here
I had a Canon HFS200. I returned it. Great overal camcorder, but one deal killer. No wide angle lens. I was constantly backing up, and telling my kids to back up, so I could get them in the frame, and I still missed a bunch of shots. With the Canon, a wide angle adapter would have been an essential tool, and I just wasn't willing to incur the extra expense and weight.I looked at the Panasonic TM700 as an alternative. I was intrigued, but right or wrong, the fan noise issue scared me off (see reviews), as well as the fact that the files are apparently difficult to edit (also see reviews). I know that there are many people that swear the fan noise is no big deal, and swear that you can work with the files, and swear that the Panasonic is the best camcorder on the market, but.....
I opted to go with the Sony primarily because of the wide angle lens. The Sony has the equivalent of a 29mm wide angle, the Panasonic was 35mm, and the Canon was 43mm. Since alot of the video I shoot is of the family, inside my house, I wanted the widest angle possible. Right now, the Sony is it.
Things that I like about the Sony:
-Wide angle lens....probably the #1 reason to buy this camcorder
-Excellent picture quality
-Excellent low light capability in general, with 2 additional low light modes (night mode and low lux mode)
-Excellent stabilization....nice for shooting walk around videos
-Large (3.5"), bright, high image quality LCD
-EVF (not the best, but at least there is one, which is important if you are shooting outdoors in bright sun)
-Nice menu system....like the look and feel much better than the Canon HFS200. (This is probably more of a personal preference)
-Nice ergonomics....feels good in your hands (at least for me and I have large hands)
-64gb flash memory.....unless you shoot several hours of video a day, and shoot for days on end without downloading to your computer, you should be able to get by without ever having to use SD cards (unless of course you want to).
-Easy to get files out of the camcorder and into your computer for editing with the supplied Sony software.
Things I don't like about the Sony:
-Only 10x zoom.....15x would have been nice. Heck, even 12x would have been better than 10x.
-The wide angle is a blessing and a curse. Wide open it is excellent in virtually all lighting situations. Zoomed in, in even moderately low light situations, you lose ALOT of light, and the zoom becomes essentially unuseable since the images become VERY dark. For me, this is a minor tradeoff. I just know not to zoom in very much in low light situations. Not a big deal for me, but it might be for you.
No wind screen. Outdoor videos in moderate wind produce a noticeable sound. I'm planning to buy an aftermarket wind guard myself for about $20, so I'm not anticipating that this will be a major problem for me.
-Supplied Sony software is great for getting the video out of the camcorder and into the computer, but that's about it. Strongly suggest you use a separate editing program. I use Cyberlink PowerDirector and am having good results with the video that I've shot with the Sony. There are many other editing programs, but that is for another review.
-Price.....prices flucuate dramatically, but generally The Sony doesn't stray from around $1000-$1050 anywhere. I've seen the Panasonic and the Canon pop into the mid to high $700's here on Amazon, so on any give day the Sony can be about $200-$250 more than either of them. That's a pretty substantial price premium (around 20%), so if you're on a budget, or if you don't really care about the wide angle lens of the Sony, this may not be the camcorder for you.
-I would say the Photo quality is good to very good, but not excellent. In my opinion, the photos that came out of the Canon were noticably better. If you are looking to carry only one piece of equipment for videos and photos, just something to consider. Personally, I don't plan on taking very many photos with my camcorder. The ones I did shoot with the Sony, with a little editing in Photshop Elements, were fine.
Overall, I am really liking my new camcorder. I didn't give it a 5 star rating for the negatives noted above, but definitely a solid 4 star. Again, Canon and Panasonic produce some excellent camcorders, so the main reason to buy the Sony in my opinion is the wide angle lens. That is by far the most distinguishing characterstic. To me, it has made a HUGE difference. Coupled with the fact that overall video quality is excellent in all lighting conditions, excellent stabilization, and the files are easy to edit on your computer, I would highly recommend this camcorder.
Note: In other reviews, you may see people mentioning confusion because 3 files are generated when you download the video to your computer (.m2ts, .modd, .moff). I was confused myself until I researched it. I can safely tell you to ignore the confusion. The m2ts is the file that contains the video and the audio, and is easily handled by any of the current crop of video editing software. The other 2 files are nothing but marker files used by the Sony software to keep track of the video clips in the organizer, and store data about the clips. If you re not planning on using the Sony software to organize and edit your videos, then you do not need to concern yourself at all with these files. Even if you are, they have absolutely nothing to do with the video and audio itself, and thus you will never need to do anything with them.
Want Sony HDR-CX550V 64GB High Definition Handycam Camcorder Discount?
I'll save the long winded review since so much has been said. It came down to two cameras for me the Panasonic 770 and the Sony 550. I had a chance to compare the two and the Sony won out because:1. Wider Angle Lens the Panasonic was going to require a wide angle addition ($25 $75),
2. Storage the Panasonic was going to require a 32Gb card to match the Sony storage ($35 $75),
3. Fan Noise I found the Panasonic was picking up too much fan noise for my taste using gain control in manual I was able to reduce the fan noise to nearly inaudible, but it was going to require I use the camera in manual all the time...not an option.
4. Underwater Housing I had a housing from a past Sony camcorder, which despite the housing kit stating it was for an earlier version, it works just fine. Its not a frequently used accessory, but boy does it make for some cool shots. The reason it works is becuase the new camcorders still use the Sony "half moon" shaped connector which allows the housing to control the camera in this case.
5. Smart Doors the 550 doors (the things that cover the charge port, mic port, etc.) slide neatly out of the way most other camcorders have doors that dandle on a plastic hinge. Its not a huge thing, but its nice to have the camera look and feel tidy when plugging in accessories.
Add all this up, and I think you get something close to your moneys worth for the more expensive Sony.
I will give slightly better marks to Panasonic for color the colors seemed more vivid on the Panasonic. Sony's colors seem real, but maybe a touch muted not enough to really matter for me though.
Low light performance In darker settings I liked the Sony...using just two CF bulbs in lamps, I can easily film, producing a picture that looks natural and well lit. White balance has been perfect so far.
Quick Update (12/22/2010) Camera is still going strong and I am loving it. Its been one of the most satisfying electronic purchases in a while. I have been using it with Final Cut Express on my Mac, and editing has been pretty easy -would help if I knew Final Cut a bit better, but I am learning fast now that video is SOOOOO much easier to import without having to transfer from a tape.
No comments:
Post a Comment