Digital Camera Brands

It's old news that Apple is lagging when it comes to making the Mac platform friendly with tape less camcorders. Currently, only a few tape less camcorders out there are truly Mac-compatible, and Sony's high definition HDR-SR11 Handy cam happens to be one of them.

Easy to use, craftily designed, and packed with features, the HDR-SR11 is a strong contender in the tape less HD camcorder market-especially because it currently doesn't have much competition.

This camcorder shoots and stores high-definition video and still images on a 60GB hard drive or Memory Stick Duo or Pro Duo card. Most importantly, you can import your video seamlessly into movie '08 or Final Cut Pro. On top of that, the camcorder's video looks stunning, on par with that of Canon's Vixia HV30, our top product in the Mini DV camcorder category. There's still work to be done, but we can only hope more manufacturers work with Apple the way Sony did to get their camcorders working properly with the Mac.

Though a little bulky, the HDR-SR11 rests comfortably in your palm. The weight of the camcorder tends to lean toward the left, so it's best to hold it with two hands (left hand under the LCD, right hand on the body) to ensure stability. The zoom tab is within easy reach of your index finger. A menu wheel, which you control with your thumb, toggles between Memory Stick recording and HDD recording.

I especially liked the design of the plastic doors all around the camcorder used to protect connection ports from dust: They easily snap open and are much sturdier than the removable rubber covers found on most camcorders.

The HDR-SR11 features a very intuitive touch-screen control panel located on its LCD. Most camcorders we've tested use a joystick, which can be quick and snappy, but ever since the phone’s release, touch-screen technology has been getting sexier and preferable. The HDR-SR11's touch screen buttons are easy to understand, so you shouldn't need to consult the user manual to figure out how to use this camcorder.

When it's time to import your video and photos, the HDR-SR11 works exactly as it should: You simply connect the device to your Mac via USB, and iMovie '08 and Final Cut Pro will recognize the camcorder and allow you to choose the clips you wish to import. After that, all you have to do is wait for the files to transfer over and you can start editing.

In our test footage, the HDR-SR11's video at both low-light and standard-light settings looked impressive. Colors looked pleasing and accurate (though a little heavy on the blues) compared to our control objects. Upon close inspection, some motion artifacts were slightly visible, but they were negligible; for the most part, motion looked smooth. Our panel of experts gave the HDR-SR11's video quality a Very Good rating.
Still images were less impressive: Colors looked too dark, even when we used the flash.

We photographed a line chart to test the HDR-SR11's resolution, and overall the image looked slightly fuzzy. Our jury gave the camcorder's still-image quality a Good rating.

Sound quality was nothing spectacular, but built-in camcorder microphones have never been very good. Fortunately the HDR-SR11 features a microphone jack and accessory shoe so that you can add an external microphone.

MacWorld’s buying advice

Given the limited options Mac users currently have, the HDR-SR11 is an easy choice for those wishing to jump on the tapeless bandwagon. With this device, Sony has all the bases covered: the camcorder is Mac-friendly, sports impressive video quality, and is elegantly designed.

[Brian Chen is a Macworld associate editor.]
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If, owing to they say, discrepancy is the zip of life, the fitter we have in camcorders today must be a little like a bowl of four-alarm chili. For at least the past decade or so, it could be argued that too much variety is the problem when deciding which the best digital video camera to select is. From basic single-chip models, to the latest three-chip rigs, the world of digital camcorders today offers more choices than any other category of video camera. In order to help you sort things out, let's take a look at the features and capabilities you can expect to find in basic, intermediate and advanced models with an eye to helping you understand what to look for when you go out to buy your next camcorder.

Finding the Best Digital Video Camera: Entry-Level ($600-$1,100)

Digital cameras cover the hawk at around $600. Samsung's SC-D80 lists as congruous $599. Sony produces cameras in a transition format called Digital8 that use Hi8 tape stock but record a digital video signal, the TRV240 ($600) for example. Entry-level Mini DV camcorders are not any more expensive, however, and unless you have an archive of analog Hi8 tapes, you might want to consider Mini DV. Entry-level Mini DV units are sure to sport plenty of automatic controls, like auto focus and auto iris, in addition to laying a visually pleasing picture to tape. Even the most basic DV camcorders are capable of quality video graphic. And since the Mini DV format is all-digital, every camcorder in this category records video and audio in a format that can be edited on a computer without translation.
Finding the Best Digital Video Camera: Mid-Level ($1,200-$2,400)

At the imminent extirpate of action further price are Mini DV camcorders that start at around $1,200. These single-CCD units are incredibly popular for vacation videos, family events and other types of typically non-commercial video production. Yet, in the hands of a serious videographer, they are often fully capable of professional work.

As you disturb maturity the monetary worth adjustment with a single chip Mini DV camcorder you'll find three causes for the increase. First, the units will typically get smaller and smaller. Some of them are so small and unobtrusive that it is a snap to toss them in a small bag and tote them along wherever you go. Mid-level Mini DV models are small in size, but they have a large feature set. When you look at two cameras with similar features at two very different prices, you might find that the more expensive camera weighs in at less than a pound (the lightweight Samsung SC-D590, at $1,299, for instance) while the less expensive camera might be nearly three times as heavy.

Second, learned are fresh bells and whistles, some of them useful, some of them less so. While digital wicked effects and infrared night mode might have their uses (and they sure are fun), not everyone needs them. An increasingly more important feature may be the ability to take quality mega pixel digital still images and save them to a memory card. At $1,699, the Canon Optura 200MC is a fine example.

The inquiry concede as slightly supplementary prices is more advanced manual controls such as white balance, exposure and shutter speed, offered by camcorders like the $1,500 Panasonic PV-DV852.

While it's apt that a single-chip camcorder won't typically realize a construe that duty compare to the quality level of it's more expensive three-chip cousins, camcorder manufacturing technology has advanced to the point where - when you pay attention to proper lighting - even a modestly priced single chip Mini DV camcorder will produce a professional picture. Just don't tell the pros we said so.