Sony HDR-HC5 4MP MiniDV High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom
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Brand: Sony Model : HDR-HC5 Customer Rating : List Price : $1,199.99
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Sony HDR-HC5 4MP MiniDV High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom Feature
- 2-megapixel ClearVid CMOS sensor; choose between HD & DV recording formats
- 4-megapixel still image capture; Super SteadyShot image stabilization
- Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T lens; 10x optical zoom/20x digital zoom
- 2.7-inch widescreen Clear Photo LCD Plus
- Memory Stick Duo media slot
Sony HDR-HC5 4MP MiniDV High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom Overviews
Capture high definition (HD) and standard definition (SD) video to a MiniDV cassette with the HDR-HC5 high definition camcorder. Record every detail of every moment with the 10x optical/80x digital zoom and Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T Lens. However, you’ll be capturing more than just video with the 4.0 megapixel still image feature. Snap spectacular 2.3 megapixel photos while filming in dual record mode. The HDR-HC5 even slows down the audio. Get it all and get it in high definition with this amazing camcorder.
Sony HDR-HC5 4MP MiniDV High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom RelateItems
- Sony DVC-60 PR/5 Premium Minidv Videocassette (5-Pack)
- Belkin F3N401-06-ICE IEEE 1394 4-Pin/6-Pin 400 Mbps FireWire Cable (6 Feet)
- Sony NPFH70 H Series Actiforce Hybrid InfoLithium Battery for most Sony Camcorders
- Sony High Definition Minidv Videocassette (2-Pack)
- Digital Optics lens for the Sony HDR-CX7, HDR-HC1, HDR-HC5, HDR-HC7 – 0.45x High Definition, 37mm Super Wide Angle Lens (not the SONY brand)
Sony HDR-HC5 4MP MiniDV High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom CustomerReview
I have had this camera for about 2 1/2 years now, and it is an extremely good camera overall.
I chose this over the Hard drive versions for 3 main reasons; tapes can be easily purchaced when the ones you are using are full, tapes arent susceptible to damage from jerky motion, and it was about 0 cheaper. It would help to have drag and drop capabilities, as to transfer video to a computer you do still have to play the tape in real time.
The video quality is good. I had a Panasonic MiniDV camcorder before this one. And I will say that the video quality of this camera is much better than any consumer SD camera.
The only complaint I have about this camcorder is that it doesn’t support any progressive video recording OR display modes, even though it has the “Full 1080″ sticker on it. By this I mean that it can only record in wither 1080i or 480i, and when you play it on a TV or transfer it to a computer, you can only play it in 1080i or 480i. There is no 720p option at all. The only way to get progressive video out of this camcorder is to capture the 1080i stream onto your computer, and then convert it to 720p (or 1080p if you want to), which is a painfully long process.
The quality of video is still fairly good when converted to 720p. I have a BD Player, but no BD burner. So, I convert the HDV mpeg2 ts streams this camcorder creates to x264 720p using MeGui, and then from there create an AVCHD disk using tsMuxer. Burn that to a DVD-R and It plays in my Samsung BD player, and the quality is still very good (of course it depends on the encoding settings used in MeGui).
The video quality is also much worse when you are indoors and the lighting isn’t good. The video becomes extremely grainy, and much detail isn’t visible.
Other random things; I also really like the touch screen LCD on this camera, it is very clever, innovative, and easy to use. I like that this camcorder is still a MiniDV camcorder, and uses the same tapes as my old MiniDV camcorder even though that camcorder wasn’t a HD camcorder. I like that this camera still hooks up to a computer using Firewire, and it is easy to transfer (losslessly) video from the camcorder to the PC. I like that the camcorder can hook up to the TV through A/V cables, Component A/V cables (for HD viewing), AND HDMI (for HD viewing); it gives you lots of ooptions.
Overall, good quality, lots of connectivity options, clever, and a good choice for a camcorder.
*** Product Information and Prices Stored:May 06, 2010 18:15:56
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