Sony DCR-DVD905E

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Image quality
The most interesting development in the Sony Handycam DCR-DVD905 is the 1/3-inch Sony ClearVid CMOS. It's a sensor with 2 million photosites--what we usually consider a 2-megapixel sensor--that's rotated 45 degrees off its typical axis. Plus, green filters comprise two-thirds of its RGB color filter array (CFA), compared to only half in a Bayer CFA used by the typical sensor. In theory, this should yield a sharper image: The green channel is generally the cleanest, best-resolved channel from a sensor, so adding one-third more image data should increase the signal-to-noise ratio. Furthermore, the rotation decreases the distance between the center of adjacent pixels (known as pixel pitch), without having to reduce the pixel size, which would reduce the chip's sensitivity.

The ClearVid CMOS delivers on its promised video-quality improvements; image quality is noticeably better than that of the DCR-DVD905's predecessor, the already-impressive 3.3-megapixel DCR-DVD403. Sharpness and detail rival those of some prosumer single-CCD MiniDV cameras, with very good resolution overall. Dynamic range is decent, with detail loss in shadowed or highlighted areas evident only when a shot has dramatic contrasts in lighting. Color is relatively accurate and well saturated in normal lighting. Automatic and manual white-balance settings both work well, but the One Push white-balance setting gives footage a noticeable bluish cast when shooting in natural light.

Generally, DVD's biggest quality issue compared to MiniDV is artifacts, a result of the extensive compression necessary to fit footage on disc. Though some compression artifacts were noticeable in our footage, particularly when playing back on a projection TV, the compression quality was the best overall that we've seen on a DVD camcorder. Areas with tightly spaced parallel lines, such as a home heating vent, showed some compression shimmer. But generally, color gradations, complex textures such as grass, and other typical victims of compression remained smooth and shimmer-free.

Outdoor-lit footage showed almost no graininess. Indoors, the DCR-DVD905 is a more average performer. Footage is noticeably grainy in dimmer conditions but less so than many competing single-CCD cameras. The NightShot mode does a good job of maintaining a clear--albeit green-toned--image even in total darkness. The color slow-shutter mode keeps hues more accurate, but as the environment dims, the footage gets increasingly blurry.

Photo quality is very good for a camcorder, particularly considering that it's interpolating a 4-megapixel image from a 2-megapixel CCD. Images lack some detail compared to those of dedicated still cameras, but overall, they're sharp enough for acceptable 4 x 6 prints, and they boast decent color. The flash works well when capturing in dimmer situations, though we found its red-eye-reduction mode ineffective. When capturing stills at the same time that you're shooting video, the flash doesn't fire, so indoor stills captured this way are likely to be grainy or blurry.

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