The Sony Handycam HDR-XR550V has complete manual feature set for video and even though it’s not fun, but the GeoTagging surely is fun here. Also the autofocus system of the camcorder performs pretty well.

Thumbs Down:

The Sony Handycam HDR-XR550V’s menu system can be annoying at times; it doesn’t have meaningful audio controls or a wind filter and it’s comparatively heavy and huge. The camcorder also doesn’t offers full-HD video quality, has a awkward touch-screen expensive and is expensive for sure

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

Price (MSRP): $1,099.00 – $1,249.99

Product Type: Camcorder – 1080i

Manufacturer: Sony

Part Number: HDR-XR550V

Weight: 1.1 lbs

Dimensions (W x H x D) in inches: 2.8 x 2.9 x 5.6 inches

Operating System Support: Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows Vista

LCD display Type: 3.5 in Color LCD display in TFT active matrix

White Balance: Automatic, Custom and Presets

Flash Memory: Flash Memory Stick

Lens System Type: Zoom lens

Optical Zoom: 10 xs

Still Image Format: JPEG

Optical Sensor Type: Exmor R CMOS

Camcorder Still Resolution: 6 megapixels

Camcorder Sensor Resolution: 6.631 megapixels

Camcorder Interpolated Still Resolution: 12 megapixels

Camcorder Video Resolution: 4.15 megapixels

Included Accessories: Rechargeable battery, AC adaptor, Component AV cable, Remote commander, Lithium battery, AV connecting cable and USB cable

Additional Features: Golf Shot function , Exif Print support , Accessories hot shoe , PictBridge support , USB 2.0 compatibility , Built-in GPS , Touch-screen control , Direct print ,Digital noise reduction , Backlight compensation , Face-priority AF function , Dynamic Range Optimizer , Takes photos while movie recording , Smile Detection technology and Dolby Digital 5.1 channel recording

Cables Included: A/V cable, USB cable and Component video cable

Connector Type: Composite audio/video output, Component video output, USB, S-Video output, HDMI output, Headphones, Remote control and Microphone

Battery type: Lithium ion

Supported Battery: Sony NP-FV50

Auto Focus: TTL contrast detection

Software: Sony Picture Motion Browser and Drivers & Utilities

Razzle Dazzle:

The Sony Handycam HDR-XR550V gets some alteration from Sony, but not in terms of its design, but in terms certain trimmings and cut downs in its feature list. As a matter of fact the overall design of the Handycam HDR-XR550V is somewhat similar, except for one and two controls missing from it. The HDR-XR550V has a sturdy feel on a whole. The camera’s hard disk has a tad protuberance on the top of its body, which gives a better grip on the camera to the people with huge hands. So it’s pretty clear that at any point what you are looking at is not a lighter and slim model, but if you want it you can go for the CX550V.

Most of the doors of camcorders are sturdily attached and has an sliding door situated on top of the accessory shoe; there also is another slider positioned closer to the right vertebrae of the camcorder and covers the mic jacks and headphone; the proprietary AV out and DC power in are covered by two separate doors; and another one is positioned under the LCD hiding the USB connectors.

Inside Dope:

The Sony Handycam HDR-XR550V priced at $1000, can be a real pain for some of the users, especially considering the accouterments of the camera. The Handycam HDR-XR550V has a huge a 3.5-inch LCD, G series lens, a 240GB hard disk, EVF, iris and shutter controls and mic and headphone jacks. Basically the HDR-XR550V and its almost identical sibling CX550V are the high-end models belonging to the high-end Prosumer line of Sony. The CX550V has somewhat different design than its siblings and also the recording media ability of the camera is a bit different. The design difference between the two cameras can easily be credited to camera’s storage type. This is because of the fact that the CX550V comes with 64GB of fitted flash memory and XR550V comes with a hard drive.

The frontage of the camera contains a huge-barreled lens with an electronic lens and flash positioned on top of it. The trademark Sony’s stale a manual control dial is again present in the camcorder, but it seems like Sony has started expanding its capabilities a little bit.

Sony once again has used the five-channel mic, instead of stereo mic, which we have always felt annoying and have always recommended stereo mic there. One another thing that we found was annoying here is the fact that even though the camera has a mic input, but still there is nothing to use for controlling volume controls. Though, there are two reference level options are given in the form of Low and Normal. The electronic viewfinder of the camcorder actually has a better resolution than some of its rivals.

The Sony Handycam HDR-XR550V gave close to flawless performance, OK, lets put it in this way, we didn’t had any problems in the performance of the camera. The autofocus clearly is one area which seems like Sony has worked seriously on it, though we still think that the camcorder could have been a tad faster in focusing while panning. Even the stills and video shot from the camcorder appeared pretty clear. But still we think that the video could easily have been a bit sharper. But considering the price of the camcorder, we think that its performance is decent.

Nitty Gritty:

The Sony Handycam HDR-XR550V is a much better camera in comparison to some of its competition, but still the video shot from camcorder could have been better and even the interface of the camcorder is a bit awkward. Bit the storage space of the camcorder makes us go gaga over this camera, and if you are a shooter who likes to shoot plenty of videos and at the same time loves to store it, then the HDR-XR550V really is a great option. But if you are not interested in this then its better to go for flash based CX550V, it has almost the same feature set, but the flash-based camera is a much better deal in the market.

Compact and lightweight design; 60GB hard drive with Memory Stick Duo Pro slot which supports up to 8GB cards; quick responsive touch-screen; easy to use interface.

Thumbs Down:

Overpriced for the features and there is no optical image stabilization.

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 is a standard-definition camcorder that has 60GB internal hard drive and an expansion slot that supports Memory Stick Duo Pro cards up to 8GB. It has 1/6 inch Advanced HAD CCD optical sensor. Maximum shutter speed is 1/4000 second and minimum is 1/4 second. The camcorder has 2000x digital zoom, Super Steady Shot Electronic Image stabilizer and digital photo shooting mode.

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 has 2.7-inch LCD touch-screen display that has a resolution of 123,200 pixels. This display also works as rotating viewfinder. The DCR-SR85 has inbuilt stereo microphone and a slot for external mic. and Sony lights.

The supported video format is MPEG2 and recording speed is of three types: SP, LP and HQ. The camcorder’s effective still resolution is 1-megapixel and image format is JPEG. The image storage resolution options are JPEG 640×480, JPEG 1152×648 and JPEG 1152×864.

The white-balance is of three types: Automatic, Presets and Custom. White-balance presets include Outdoor and Indoor. The exposure metering is Matrix and Spot. Exposure modes are Automatic and Program. Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 has 10 shooting programs: Twilight mode, Portrait mode, Sports mode, Spotlight, Landscape, Fireworks, Sunrise, Sunset, Candle, Beach and Snow. The SR85 also has two digital scene transitions: White fader and Black fader.

Zoom lens is manufactured by Carl Ziess and it has 30mm filter. Lens has a focal length of 2.5-62.5mm with an aperture of F/1.8-62.5 that provides 25x optical zoom. The auto-focus is TTL contrast detection. The zoom adjustment is motorized drive and focus adjustment is both Manual and Automatic.

The additional features of Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 are Dolby Digital AC-3 (2 channel) recording, Progressive shutter system, Backlight compensation, USB 2.0 compatibility, Index Search, Face Index Search, Night Mode/Low Lux, Digital camera function, Touch-screen control, PictBridge support, Histogram display, inbuilt speaker and Face detection.

Supported operating systems are Microsoft Windows 2000/XP/Vista. Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 has five connectors: 1×DC power input, 1×Control-L (LANC), 1×S-Video output, 1×Composite video/audio output and 1×USB.

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 has Sony NP-FH60 lithium ion battery. Accessories supplied inside the package are user manual, drivers & utilities disc, A/V cable, USB cable, remote control (infra-red) and power adapter.

Razzle Dazzle:

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 is 3.1 inches tall, 3 inches wide and 4.5 inches deep and it weighs around 14 ounces. The DCR-SR85 has black-and-white body, which is lightweight and compact. Sony has revamped the design of DCR-SR82 for new SR85.

Inside Dope:

The DCR-SR85 is a Sony’s Hybrid standard-definition camcorder, which records the videos at hard-disk drive and on Memory Stick Pro Duo cards. It has 60GB hard drive that provides 14 hours to 41 hours of video recording time. It depends on the quality settings. The overall video quality is better than its sibling, the DCR-SR45. Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 is not the best deal, so we recommend you to go for any other HD camcorder like Canon HG10, which costs only a couple of bucks more but you get good quality.

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 has a dial that works for still capture, video recording and power on/off. A record button is located in the center that allows recording fast. Activity and power lights sit above the record button. You will also find Quick On button to take the camcorder in/out of standby mode. The camera shutter and rocker switch for lens are located on the top of the SR85. Rocker switch and zoom rocker are easy to operate and allows for shutter-free close up shots. As there is no optical image stabilization, so you will need a tripod mount for extremely close up shots.

The zoom stereo microphone is located at camcorder’s front above lens. The microphone is capable to attenuate with lens for capturing audio. There is a socket for external microphone and Sony lights located behind the stereo mic. A switch to open/close the inbuilt lens cover sits under the lens. Mini-USB port and A/V output port is located behind the sliding door. You will find one more sliding door at the top, which contains Memory Stick Pro Duo card slot. There is also another flip-down door located under the main control, which contains the power jack. Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 has a switch for Nightshot Plus infrared light that allows capturing night-vision photographs even in the complete darkness.

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 has 2.7-inches touch-screen LCD display. You can use this touch-screen interface for menu navigation and selection of options. The touch-screen is accurate and quick responsive. Sony has included two menu systems: Home menu for all settings and Options menu for available video functions such as recording modes, white balance and focus. The new users might take a while to remember how and when to use the menus. Four buttons are also located on the left side screen bezel, which allows to selection the options: start/stop recording, zoom in, zoom out and Home.

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 provides passable video quality that is only good for playback at small and medium size TVs and monitors. However, the videos appear to be soft and washed out. Videos also appear to lack clarity and detail. The noise is also noticeable while playing the videos. The SR85 does not provide high-definition video quality for playing back the videos on large screen. We liked that the overall video quality of the DCR-SR85 was better than the SR45.

On the bright side, the performance aspects of Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 are good such as quick adjustment of auto exposure, nice white balance and responsive auto focus.

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 is a good standard definition camcorder in its class. It provides 60GB hard drive that means you can go for continuous shooting on vacation without worrying about the storage space. In addition, you can also save the videos and photos to Memory Stick Pro Duo cards up to 8GB. The SR85 camcorder has touch-screen interface. However, the latest HD camcorders are providing better video and HD quality movie recording at fewer prices.

Nitty Gritty:

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 has 25x optical zoom, touch-screen and 60GB hard drive, but still it is a standard-definition video camcorder. If you are still living in low resolution world for only one purpose to share the recorded videos on social networking Web sites and do not mind the quality too much, then you can go for the DCR-SR85. However, we will recommend you to check better HD camcorders in the same price range such as Canon HG10.

Thumbs Up:

Compact, small in size.

Thumbs Down:

Unimpressive video quality.

Inside the Trunk:

Component video cable, USB cable, A/V cable.

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

Sony Handycam HDR-CX100 is a 1080i camcorder, with 120x digital zoom, optical sensor size is 1/5”, videos are stored in AVCHD, MPEG-2 format, minimum shutter speed is 1/60 second and maximum shutter speed is 1/1000 second, shooting programs include twilight mode, portrait mode, spotlight, landscape, fireworks, sunrise, sunset, candle, beach.

Camcorder sensor resolution is 2.36 mega pixels, effective still resolution is 2 mega pixels, interpolated still resolution is 4 mega pixels, images are stored in JPEG format. The camcorder has 8 GB on internal memory. The camcorder has 2.7 inch touch screen TFT LCD.

The device has Zoom lens – 3.2 mm – 32 mm – F/1.8-2.2, lens aperture is F/1.8-2.2, with focal length of 3.2mm-32mm, has 10x optical zoom, minimum focal lengths is 3.2 mm, maximum focal length is 32 mm, lens is manufactured by Carl Zeiss, filter size is 30 mm.

Additional features include Dolby Digital AC-3 (2 channel) recording, Takes photos while movie recording, Dynamic Range Optimizer, Smile Detection technology, Backlight compensation, USB 2.0 compatibility, Touch-screen control, PictBridge support, Face detection.

Connectors on the camcorder include S-video output, HDMI output, component video output, USB, composite video/audio output. Sony NP-FH50 is powered by li-ion rechargeable battery.

Razzle Dazzle:

HDR-CX100 is a full sized camcorder but Sony has managed to keep it small and hence it fits easily in your jacket pocket. The exterior is glossy and will attract a lot of fingerprints on to it. It comes in color options of bright red, traditional silver and basic black. It has a box like design and is a very cute camcorder owing to the small size.

Inside Dope:

HDR-CX100 is Sony’s first attempt at a HD camcorder and the manufacturer has tried to keep the price low. In the end you get a cheap camcorder but it doesn’t give great quality videos. Get this camcorder if you are looking for something cheap and are willing to compromise on quality.

The HDR-CX100 is pretty but doesn’t have good ergonomics when you are shooting. We couldn’t hold the camcorder properly because of the awkward design. We also had to struggle to keep the device still in our hands. For shooting stills, you need both the hands, one to hold the camcorder and other one to press the shutter button. The camcorder has a 2.7 inch touch screen display. It is very small in size and pressing the tiny onscreen buttons is miserable experience. We had lots of mis hits in our labs. The LCD also performs poorly in bright sunlight, it accumulates a lot of fingerprints which makes the display worse.

The functions like display info, power, playback, full auto easy and direct DVD burn are located on the touch screen display and the record, zoom and home buttons live on the bezel of the LCD. On the LCD cavity, there is mini-HDMI and USB connector, Memory Stick Duo slot, proprietary AV jack and charging connector.

We found the menu system a bit frustrating to use. The touch screen is responsive and fast but the structure of the menu is convoluted and it is hard to remember where the functions are located. On the home menu you get three capture modes – smooth slow record, photo and movie. You can also toggle through these modes through the mode switch. The Manage Media feature lets you choose if you want to store the media in the internal eight GB memory or external memory card. There are also settings for options like smile shutter, face detection, output settings, toggle between the high or standard definition. Options menu contains settings which relate to shooting like recording quality (bit rate), scene modes, white balance, manual exposure and focus and spot meter and focus.

The highest quality is 16 Mbps and it takes up a gigabyte of space in seven minutes. The eight gig internal memory can thus store 55 minutes of video. The economical 9 Mbps mode takes up a gig in 10 minutes of video recording.

There are a few goodies spawned like scene modes, smile shutter and face detection but other than that there is nothing spectacular about the HDR-CX100. Sony also sacrifices the 5.1 channel surround and gives us the typical 2-channel mode.

Sony gives us a 1/5-inch 2.4-megapixel Exmor ClearVid sensor in the HDR-CX100 and it is great in shooting in dim light conditions. Video quality is not great, just average quality. In conditions of bright sunlight the highlights look blow out, colors are saturated and attractive. The device has a 10x zoom lens and the image stabilization worked with it. We viewed a few videos on HDTV, they looked sharp but the edges were smeary.

Nitty Gritty:

Sony Handycam HDR-CX100 is not great on video quality. Apart from the small compact size, this camcorder cannot compete with other devices in the similar price range. We would recommend you to go for Canon Vixia HF100 if you are a camcorder enthusiast.

Thumbs Up:

Fast in starting up, comfortable to hold.

Thumbs Down:

Video quality is not that good, touch screen is cramped due to its small size.

Inside the Trunk:

USB cable, Component video cable, A/V cable

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

HDR-XR100is a camcorder which is capable of 1080i video capture, 120x digital zoom, videos are stored in AVCHD, MPEG-2 format. Images are stored in JPEG format. Minimum shutter speed is ½ second and maximum shutter speed is 1/1000 second.

Shooting programs include twilight mode, portrait mode, spotlight, landscape, fireworks, sunrise, sunset, candle, beach, snow.

Camcorder sensor resolution is 2.36 megapixels, effective resolution is 1.49 megapixels, effective still resolution is 1.99 megapixels, interpolated still resolution is 4 megapixels. The device has 80 GB built in hard disk. The lens is Zoom lens – 3.2 mm – 32 mm – F/1.8-2.2, focal length is 3.2 mm – 32 mm, lens aperture is F/1.8-2.2, has 10x optical zoom, lens manufacturer is Carl Zeiss, maximum focal length is 32 mm,

Additional features include Dolby digital 5.1 channel recording, takes photos while movie recording, Dynamic range optimizer,  USB 2.0 compatibility, smile detection technology, touch screen control, face detection.

The camcorder has 2.7 inch TFT LCD touch screen display. Connectors include USB, HDMI output, component video output, S-video output and composite video/audio output. There is an expansion slot for Memory Stick PRO Duo cards.

The camcorder is powered by Sony NP-FH60 Li-ion rechargeable battery. The device is 2.7 inches wide, 5.1 inches depth, 2.7 inches height and weighs about 11.6 oz.

Razzle Dazzle:

HDR-XR100 is far from pretty; it has a boring looking exterior with black and silver plastic. The camcorder is hard drive bases which makes it a bit heavy. The hard disk protrudes out of body of the device and due to this the device better to handle while shooting but still a flash drive would have been better. To sum it up, the HDR-XR100 has simple design that other camcorders have been known to have; nothing out of the box has been done to make it look sexy.

Inside Dope:

This camcorder from Sony is hard disk based; it is an 80 GB model. The presence of hard disk makes the device heavy but the protrusion makes it easy to handle. We thought that Sony has got this device a bit over priced, there are other camcorders offering the same set of features and for a smaller price. The device has a touch screen interface; the screen is a bit small and if you have thick fingers, be wary of mishits because the buttons are tiny.

The camcorder doesn’t have headphone or microphone jacks, accessory shoe, video light or flash. What you do get on the HDR-XR100 is USB connectors, proprietary AV and mini-HDMI. There is a lens cover which protects the lens of the device. There is a 5.1 channel microphone which we thought was more of a gimmick than a necessity and it could have been sacrificed to bring the price down. Behind the hard drive is the photo button and zoom switch. The latter is a difficult to control because it is a bit wobbly. Apart from these there are two buttons behind the device, the record button which is quite comfortable to use due to the placement and the camcorder/camera toggle which is a flat and hard to touch.

There are a few buttons near the LCD display and play option buttons, one-touch DVD burning, Easy operation and the power key. There is also a slot to put Memory Stick Duo Pro card. You will be using the touch screen LCD for most of the controls. The LCD is a bit small, now we know mostly all camcorders have screens of such size but they are not touch screen devices. Most of the controls are placed on the touch screen and it is a bit difficult to use owing to the small screen and hence small icons. The touch screen isn’t responsive and certainly not good when it comes to navigation. Fortunately the screen performs well in bright sunlight. Most LCDs are overwhelmed when they are held in direct sunlight and the content cannot be seen clearly in them.

We were frustrated to find old school menu system used in the camcorders. You cannot remember where the controls are in the sub menus and you will be often wasting time hunting them in the screen. There are three modes for capturing, video, photo and Smooth Slow Record (for example to record swings in golf). There is also a physical button on the device for this.

There are features like selecting standard definition or high definition, SteadyShot stabilization, output settings (for HDMI or TV type), face detection. There are more settings in the options menu like manual focus and exposure, spot meter and focus, scene modes, recording quality for bit rate and white balance.

The camcorder is capable of recording full HD videos of 1920X1080/60i resolution. At the highest quality which is 16 Mbps, seven minutes of shooting takes up a gigabyte of space. The other option is 9 Mbps which takes up a gigabyte of space in 15 minute of shooting. Video quality is not good when you watch it on a large TV and the video quality worsens in low light conditions.

We weren’t happy with the lamentable auto focus system, as it struggles while detecting background subjects. The LCD isn’t very good either, even though it performs well in bright sunlight. And finally the battery life of the camcorder is too small, about a less than an hour.

Nitty Gritty:

We won’t recommend the Sony Handycam HDR-XR100 owing to its high price and the bad quality videos. Performance wise, the HDR-XR100 is pretty bad and we must say we have seen better camcorders at a lesser price.