Digital Trends

Sony has the widest selection of high-definition camcorders of any manufacturer. At last count they had 12, ranging from $999 to $3,699 USD. The company is touching almost all the high-def format and media bases this year including HDV (tape) and AVCHD using either mini DVDs, hard drives or Memory Stick Pro Duo flash cards. No MPEG-4 720p cheapies for them though, thank you very much. Most of Sony’s HD videomakers—save the $3,699 USD HDR-FX1—use CMOS sensors like the Canon HV10 and HV20 rather than CCD imaging devices. At first I was skeptical of manufacturer hype about the improved quality of CMOS image sensors but the proof is in the low-noise video. Of the most recent models reviewed for Digital Trends, the 3-megapixel CMOS sensors are really delivering the goods. The new Sony HDV HDR-HC7 has a 3.2MP ClearVid CMOS imager, optical image stabilization and lots of other goodies. As usual Sony asks you to pay a bit more for its gear than the competition—list price, anyway. Is the HC7 worth the extra bucks? There’s only one way to find out…