Sony HC3 (Sony Handycam HDR-HC3)

Member Name: dhj1

Product:	Sony Handycam HDR-HC3
Date:	20/08/09 (6 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: high def on tape

Disadvantages: touchscreen

I have used the sony hc3e on holiday and locally to shoot indoors and outdoors. Overall I have been very impressed with the quality and ease of use. I got the hc3e because it shoots high definition footage on mini dv tape meaning I can get extra capacity whereever I am in the world. This was for the advantage rather than a hard drive which is limited and also I was worried about losing my footage if the hard drive failed especially if I were on holiday unable to transfer it to a pc in time.

The high definition footage is very sharp and the camera allows quite steady shots - a definite improvement over older standard def camcorders.

The camcorders menu is selected using a touchscreen which has its pro and cons as it can be quite fiddly especially when you can't see the screen in bright sunlight. Although it does provide some ease in playing back and knowing exactly which buttons you need to press to get seomthing done.

Sony have kept to their usual controls and positioning so it's very familar and the camcorder is a good compact size/weight. Overall a good value entry level camcorder for shooting high definition home video.

Summary: good value entry level camcorder

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