Sony Handycam DCR-DVD404E > Reviews (2)

Bought one of these for Xmas as some people are now starting to sell of ex-display models, which makes them a bargain.

With a baby on the way I was looking for a camcorder that I could use to record those family moments as he grows up, and with this little device I think I have it. This camcorder has great specifications, 3 mega pixel CCD and 16:9 being the most important for me. This camera is also very easy to use, infact i think i have only looked in the manual once, and that was more cause I am not up with the photo/videography lingo.

The ability to record to DVDs is very handy and very versatile. Although you can not record more than 30 mins per DVD, you are able to keep the DVDs for life if you want to. Personnaly I have been using DVDs from the £1 shop and I have not had a problem. You do get a message telling you that you should be using Sony media but this soon goes away.

The biggest problem I had with the device out of the box, is that the battery is charge through the camcorder, but not to worry; i just logged on to ebay and order my self two better batteries and a standlone charge which i can even use in the car. This little set of goodies cost me about £15 delivered....BARGAIN!

Although I have yet to get them you can get add on lens for this camcorder, one being a wide angle lens and the other being a 2x zoom. Friends of mine have told me that the wide angle is a good investment, however the 2x is only really need if you are outdoors filming something like birds. Again you can get these cheap on ebay, although they would not look as good as the sony ones; they are a 1/3 of the cost though.

As a conclusion I would say for the £200 that I spent on this camcorder it was an absolute bargain. Great features, easy to use, good quality, with the only quibble being that it would be nice if it had a 20x zoom. however for filming the family grow, and holidays etc this is not something I really need.