Sony Handycam DCR PC110

...nature and superb quality. The Sony DCR-PC120 was then chosen as the model I wanted. But wait, I hear you cry, isn't this an opinion about the DCR-PC110? Well yes, but the electrical shop where I bought it from was selling the DCR-PC110 for half price (£650) - an offer that was to good to ignore.

But enough about my good fortune you want to know about the camcorder. The VERY first thing you notice when you get it out of the box is ...
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As with any Sony product, the build quality is both practicle and sturdy. it has survived being dropped on the floor from a height of roughly 5 feet. Controls are intuitive and well positioned, although the strap handle can be constricting to those with large hands. There are enough accessories available to take your camcording to any level you wish.

Using the camcorder is simplicity itself whether its on a tripod or handheld. ... more

First things first - I'm slightly biased.

My wife and I found out that we were expecting twins. Helen's parents live in France, while mine live way "oop north". Photos and videos were going to be the way in which we could keep them informed of the twins development. So I started doing some research.

I quickly decided on miniDV as the format of choice due to its compact nature and superb quality. The Sony DCR-PC120 was then chosen as the model I wanted. But wait, I hear you cry, isn't this an opinion about the DCR-PC110? Well yes, but the electrical shop where I bought it from was selling the DCR-PC110 for half price (£650) - an offer that was to good to ignore.

But enough about my good fortune you want to know about the camcorder. The VERY first thing you notice when you get it out of the box is how small it is, it's not much bigger than a standard camera. Okay so it's heavier (about half a bag of sugar) and the orientation is different, but it is tiny for what it is!

As with any Sony product, the build quality is both practicle and sturdy. it has survived being dropped on the floor from a height of roughly 5 feet. Controls are intuitive and well positioned, although the strap handle can be constricting to those with large hands. There are enough accessories available to take your camcording to any level you wish.

Using the camcorder is simplicity itself whether its on a tripod or handheld. To give you some idea of the quality of the picture, record something off your television onto ordinary video - this camcorder beats that quality hands down, both in terms of framerate and lines of information. This is very near to broadcast quality.

The onboard microphone isn't the best in the world and if you are going to use this for amateur film-making then an external mic. would be necessary.

When it comes to saving your films, you can either save them onto VHS or link the camcorder to a PC or MAC (via firewire or USB) for further editing or otherwise. The bundled software makes this a breeze (but then I am quite PC literate!)

I don't normally talk about features as these can be found elsewhere, but I am very impressed by the zoom (120x digital zoom!!!) and the camera can take still photcraphs to. There are also several recording formats that can give your videoing an arty feel.

All in all this is a brilliant piece of kit. Suitable for both serious home users and those wanting to dip their toes into the film-making world, any budding Spielbergs out there? 

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