Sony and Panasonic AVCHD Camcorders
There’s a new video capture format on the block. It’s called AVCHD, and it’s a bad son of a gun. AVCHD stands for Advanced Video Codec High Definition. AVCHD was developed in a joint effort between Camera Manufacturers Panasonic and Sony. It allows for unheard of High Definition resolution video capture onto non-high definition media like Mini DVD, DVR tape, Hard Drives as well as Flash cards. We’ve got several of these AVCHD equipped devices on TigerDirect.com. In this review, I’ll take a quick look at the Sony HDR-HC7, the Panasonic HDC-DX1 and the HDC-SD1, also from Panasonic.
Sony Handycam HDR-HC7 HD Camcorder
The Sony Handycam HDR-HC7 HD Camcorder lets you view the world through a professional grade Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T Lens with 10x optical/20x digital zoom and a 1/2.9” ClearVid CMOS Sensor. In addition to pristine quality video, you can capture 4.6 megapixel still images while the camcorder is recording video with the dual record mode feature. Here’s a video you may have already seen before. It highlights some of the features of the HDR-HC7, as well as those of it’s sister camera, the HDR-UX5 Mini DVD Camcorder.
Take command of your pictures as you manually control focus, exposure, shutter speed, auto exposure shift and white balance shift. View everything you shoot on the 2.7” Wide Clear Photo LCD Plus featuring Touch Panel SwivelScreen technology, so you can swivel from any shooting angle. Super SteadyShot technology and the Super NightShot feature will help you capture videos you’ll want to share with the world.
Panasonic HDC-SD1 HD Video Camcorder
The HDC-SD1 records HD video on high-capacity, solid state SDHC Memory Cards. Because there are no moving parts in the recording section, the HDC-SD1 is also exceptionally resistant to impact. You can count on reliable, virtually error-free High-Definition recording. There’s no beating the interoperability of recording on Flash memory. The time between recording content and having it ready and waiting in your computer is minimal.
The HDC-SD1 features the world’s first 5.1-channel surround sound capability. It accomplishes this by using 5 separate microphones to record audio data. When recordings made with these models are played on a 5.1-channel home theater system, viewers are surrounded by a clear, detailed sound that makes them feel as if they are right in the middle of the action. The microphones are attuned to the zoom function on the camera, meaning that when you zoom in on a subject, the microphones “zoom in” as well—recording the sounds from your subject, specifically. When recordings made with the HDC-SD1 are viewed on a HD TV with 5.1-channel surround sound, the result is a complete theater experience—from your home video!
Panasonic HDC-DX1 Video Camcorder
The HDC-DX1 conveniently records onto Mini DVD discs. There is never a need to rewind or fast-forward, so you can play back a scene immediately after recording on the Widescreen LCD display. The video image and sound data are recorded directly onto the disc for easy storage.
The HDC-DX1 also features 5.1-channel, 5 microphone surround sound system.
This HD camcorder uses a 3-CCD sensor for the best capture of color information for either video or still photographs. It also employs Optical Image Stabilization to reduce handshake vibration that can be especially troublesome on HD home video. Recording time on Double Layer Mini DVD disc is about 40 minutes (when set for the absolute best quality.) on average. Lesser resolutions produce longer record times.
Related Links: Sony Handycam HDR-HC7 HD MiniDV Camcorder, Panasonic HDC-SD1 High Definition Flash Memory Card Camcorder, Panasonic HDC-DX1 HD Mini DVD Video Camcorder
Hello!
I’ve just purchased a Panasonic HDC-DX1 AVCHD 3ccd HD DVD-RAM camcorder. I use Windows Vista Home Premium. What kind of video capture card do I need? I have a Dell system. The guys in India said I did not have a video capture card. What do I need? Thanks for your help.
Sincerely,
Mark Barksdale
Ok, I’ll wait…
Mark,
Sorry for the very, very long period of time, but it’s been a busy year. You need a firewire port on your machine. If you do not have one (sometimes called an IEEE 1394 port or iLink), you need to purchase a Firewire interface card. For desktops or notebooks they are fairly inexpensive.
Thanks again and sorry!
Umm wrong…the HDC DX1 does have a firewire port but it isnt for capturing video its for reading the still photo card.
currently there is no way to get the video from this camera into an editing machine easily.
you could use the Intensity HDMI capture card at 249.00 USD
Or most Bluray DVD rippers like AnyDVD can read the finalized DVD.
Thats the ONLY way currently to get the video into an editing machine.
Umm That’s also incorrect. I own a HDC-DX1 it records to a DVD-RAM disc in a UDF system format that can not be read by most dvd players due to the lack of support for UDF. Microsoft claims to have a Hotfix for the UDF driver, but they provide absolutely no documentation on how to install the Hotfix. Microsoft of course will help you if you call them and pay an arm and a leg for phone support. I was very unhappy with the lack of software Panasonic failed to provide. They could have at least provided a working driver for the UDF format. I can’t even read the disc. I am very computer savy and still came up with no dice. My best advise is to return the camera and get a new HD camcorder that uses a more common format like miniDV or hard drive. I hope this helps.
I own a Sony SR1E, tried to use Vista to show recorded movies, dont know how, please advise.
thank you