Small but perfectly formed (Sony Handycam DCR-PC110)

Member Name: jgreatrex

Product:	Sony Handycam DCR-PC110
Date:	31/10/01 (944 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Compact, Excellent features, Picture quality

Disadvantages: Price

In 2002, one of 2 things is going to happen to me; either I become a father or I go on an expensive holiday with my wife. Whatever happens I wanted a camcorder to capture the memories.

After doing a great deal of research I plumped for Sony's DCR-PC110E, a mini-DV camcorder packed full of features for both the amateur and keen hobbyist alike. There was one drawback, or rather 1200 of them - pounds.

Could I honestly justify the expense? Not really, but I stumbled across a deal and bought it on the spot. It was one of the most rewarded impulses I have ever had.

I got the PC110E home and unpacked it straight away. Wow I thought that is small, a CD could be used to hide it completely from view, its dimensions were that small (122x122x60mm) and it weighs about 0.5kg, well distributed which adds balance and comfort.

The camera boasts a Carl Zeiss T Star lens which is an improvement on earlier CZ Vario Sonner ones. This enables a 10x optical zoom and upto a 40x digital zoom. The picture produced is clear and bright, colour balance is excellent and shaking pictures are limited by an image stabiliser. When playing back your videos the quality is on a par with DVD.

Digital effects are easy to use and you don't have to be a camcorder guru to get to grips with them. Playback zoom is a personal favourite.

If you're looking for a camcorder that packs just about every feature and mode you could ever ask for into a small package, you'd be hard pushed to find a more enticing offer than the PC110E. It may cost a lot of money, but as the old saying goes, why have cotton when you can have silk?

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