CNET Asia

Ask CNET Asia

Find Products

  • Brand
  • Form factor
  • Price
  • Primary storage type
  • Optical zoom
  • Image stabilization
  • Filter »

Buying Advice

CNET Features

 
advertisement

Sony DCR-SR100E (30GB)

 Print    Email     Bookmark     Share


Sony may not be the first manufacturer to enter the hard drive camcorder market--that distinction goes to JVC's Everio models. But with excellent video quality and fluid operation, the Sony Handycam DCR-SR100 puts all but the more expensive JVC 500 series models--as well as Sony's own DVD-based models--to shame. Video quality still can't quite match that of similarly priced MiniDV models, and MPEG-2 video degrades on editing, but you certainly won't be embarrassed by the vacation videos you shoot with it, and there's always the cool factor. Make sure you can live with the touch-screen interface before you commit, though.

Design
The Sony Handycam DCR-SR100 seems designed around the constraints of its long, wide 10x zoom lens and the 2.7-inch-wide touch-screen LCD; it's a squat, squared-off cylinder that's odd looking but not unattractive. It feels quite solid and comfortable to hold--not too heavy at 615g--but it's big enough to require a carrying case.


The Sony Handycam DCR-SR100 sports few buttons, relying mostly on its touch-screen-based menu system to change settings and activate features.

We've complained before about Sony's touch-screen interface--that it's simply annoying on a large LCD and close to unusable on a small one such as the DCR-SR100's. It's full of tiny buttons and the touch screen itself is prone to smudges and fingerprints. Tweak-happy users will find themselves either cursing this camera or praying for a stylus. If you like the touch screen, however, then you can kick the SR100's design rating up by a point. The left bezel sports duplicate zoom and record buttons, though they're neither responsive nor very useful.

As befitting its price class, Sony put some nice finishing touching on the DCR-SR100, including an automatic lens cover and a snug accessory shoe protector. Although it might sound trivial, that lens cover eliminates a significant speed bump when you're shooting.

 
Next page »