Sony DCR-TRV120 Allows You Save On Tapes

Author's Rating:

Pros: Digital 8 savings, good picture, powerful zoom, excellent stabilizer, features, value

Cons: Low-light noise (but only if you don't select the proper Program AE mode)

The Bottom Line: 
Hey, I bought one myself!

Author's Review
Update (06/29/05): After some 5 years, I am still impressed with this camcorder's performance and durability!

Sony DCR-TRV120 is a Digital 8™ camcorder. It means that you can save money on tapes: Digital 8 camcorders use regular 8mm or Hi-8 tapes instead of MiniDV.

A Word On Online Rip-Off

It took me 5 attempts to buy my TRV120. Some online stores try to rip you off by lying that the supplied battery is only good for 30 minutes (not true!), end even saying that the camcorder has no charger and comes with a non-rechargeable battery (in hopes you buy a larger battery and another charger from them). See my review at http://www.epinions.com/content_1485086852

Digital 8

Digital camcorders usually use MiniDV cassettes, that are small and specially designed for use with digital camcorders, but they are expensive and incompatible with “regular” 8mm or Hi-8 camcorders and VCRs.

Digital 8 camcorders, on the other hand, use regular 8mm or Hi-8 tapes, but performs digital recording. And Digital 8™ camcorders are backward compatible with 8mm or Hi-8 tapes – they can play your old 8mm or Hi-8 recordings.

The drawback: you cannot play your Digital 8™ recordings on regular 8mm or Hi-8 machines – only on Digital 8 equipment. Additionally, 8mm tapes are bigger in size and hold less information than MiniDV (recording times on Digital 8 are less than on MiniDV in LP mode).

Note: Sony recommends to use Hi8 tapes fro D8, but 8mm tapes will do fine. Sony recommends to play 8mm tapes on the same camcorder that was used to record them. D8 camcorders can record at SP speed (120-minute Hi8 tape holds 60 minutes of digital video) or LP speed (120-minute Hi8 tape holds 90 minutes). But Sony recommends to play the LP-recorded tapes on the same camcorder. And you cannot record in LP on a 8mm tape – even if you set it to LP mode, the recording will be in SP. To be able to record in LP, you have to buy Hi8 tapes.

Sony DCR-TRV120 allows you to have up to 500 lines of horizontal resolution, no analog noise and digital sound. You can record on the most popular cassette format within the camcorder industry - 8mm tapes, which are at least five times cheaper than MiniDV tapes. You can also play back all your current 8mm and Hi8 tapes.

Performance And Features

The picture quality is excellent (make sure you have abundance of light) and, since the recording is digital, should not deteriorate as time goes by. But in the low-light conditions the noise appears in the dark areas (you can manually adjust shutter speed and/or exposure to compensate for this).

Zoom

The camcorder has impressive 25x optical zoom (48-1200mm in 35mm equivalent terms) and 450x digital zoom. Additionally, there is a Sony's SteadyShot® image stabilizer, which uses motion sensors to remove unwanted picture shake. The stabilizer works very well and optical zoom is usually sufficient. You can set three levels of zoom using the menu: optical zoom only (up to 25x), digital zoom 1 (up to 25x optical, then digital up to 50x) and digital zoom 2 (up to 25x optical, then digital up to 450x).

The camcorder has both a B&W viewfinder and a 2.5" LCD (good visibility in sunlight, brightness is controlled by the rocker switch on the edge of the LCD, color is controlled through the menu).

It allows you to shoot still pictures using Digital Photo Mode. The camcorder allows you store hundreds of still pictures on the tape. It has 7 mode program AE, edit search and TBC (Time Base Correction), 16:9 mode and LP recording capability (on Hi8 tape only, remember?).

You also get manual focus and manual exposure in addition to automatic ones. Manual focus is controlled by the ring, which also looks cool. You can switch between manual and automatic focus using a switch on the left side of the camcorder (by LCD), it also has a position for “infinity” focus.

The digital and picture effects can be used independently (some of them can be combined). The cool A/V fader modes I like include “dot” and “bounce”. You can also manually adjust (if you want, otherwise it’s automatic) shutter speed and exposure.

The playback zoom (PB Zoom button under the LCD) allows you to zoom in during the playback (but it’s cumbersome to use). You can also shoot in total darkness with Sony’s Super NightShot™, which enables you to shoot subjects up to 10 feet away. The system uses a built-in infrared light; the optional IR light can extend the range to up to 100 feet.

There is a built-in speaker (you can control the volume with a rocker switch) and intelligent accessory shoe, which accepts accessories ranging from lights, IR lights and photo printers to microphones that “zoom” with the camcorder.

VCR

The VCR mode allows you to see your material and transfer it to a VCR or other devices using i.Link, A/V out or S-Video. When you switch to it, the VCR buttons appear on the upper black panel, backlit by the amber light (they are invisible in other modes). In “camera” mode you can use “Edit Search” to look through the material to find the insertion point, or use “End Search” button, located under the LCD to find the end of your last recording.

Inputs

The camcorder has the following inputs: A/V in and out, S-Video in and out, control L interface, i.Link in/out, microphone in, headphone out.

NightShot

Super NightShot™ enables you to shoot subjects up to 10 feet away in total darkness. The NightShot™ System provides better overall picture quality by automatically selecting from two shutter speeds. The system uses the built-in infrared light (you can switch it off and on using the menu). With a use of the optional NightShot light, the range can be extended to up to 100 feet.

Sound

The camcorder uses Digital Audio Pulse Code Modulation (PCM) - similar to CD recording technology, with 12-Bit or 16-Bit modes, for a dynamic range of more than 96dB. In 12-bit mode you can have two soundtracks, 16-bit mode provides better sound quality at high frequencies.

Data Code

The camcorder records so-called “Data Code” on the tape in digital form separately from the picture. Data includes the date, time and recording parameters. This leads to the ability to search for recording by date (you have to use the supplied remote control). You can also see the information about the recording conditions as well as date/time by pressing the “Data Code” button under the LCD.

ADC

The TRV120 has an ADC (analog-digital converter) that converts an analog signal you pass through the analog input, so you can either record it on the D8 tape in digital format (for archiving purposes) or send it through the IEEE-1394 (i.Link) interface to your computer, i.Link-equipped VCR or another device.

i.Link

The camcorder has i.Link® Digital Interface (IEEE1394, FireWire), which is a two-way input/output that carries digital audio, digital video and control signals to compatible digital VCRs, edit controllers and computers.

Control L (LANC) Editing Interface provides standardized connection for synchronized operation of camcorder, VCR, and edit controller.

Battery

In spite the information some “educators” in online stores can give you, the supplied F330 InfoLithium® Battery lasts more than 30 minutes (more like 50-70) and no "memory effect", that “old” Ni-Cd had. You can always see the approximate remaining power: AccuPower™ meter shows you the remaining battery time in minutes on the camcorder's LCD or viewfinder.

The backlit LCD on the outer side of the 2.5” color LCD shows the remaining battery power in minutes while charging and tape counter when operating VCR. The power cord can be connected to the camcorder while the battery is attached and the external power also charges the camcorder while it is in the “off” mode.

Stamina® Power Management cuts power consumption and extended battery life when camera is not in use.

Super Laser Link

The camcorder also has a Super Laser Link® Wireless Transmitter, which uses infrared light to make a wireless connection from your camcorder to your television. The transmitter is built-in, so you can buy a receiver and connect your camcorder wirelessly. The Super Laser Link system features a transmission range up to 26 feet.

You can buy a receiver (IFT-R20) and connect your camcorder wirelessly to the TV or other equipment. Some Sony TV models will even switch to the appropriate channel when signal from the IFT-R20 is received.

Remote Control

The TRV120 comes with a remote control that features some functions that are unavailable without it (slow motion playback, frame-by-frame, date search, photo search, photo scan). The remote also has a rocker switch to control the zoom (but it is one-speed and somewhat slow) and a Record/Stop button.

There are other features I didn’t mention – after all, the camcorder comes with a 120-page manual :-) .

Bottom Line

If you read my reviews, you might know that I don’t like some SONY products because of poor build quality and too high prices. SONY Camcorders are not among these. Hey, I bought one myself!

I like the kind of compatibility Digital 8 provides, and if you are going to perform a lot of shooting, the savings of using 8mm instead of MiniDV will add up quickly. However, if you don’t have any old 8mm tapes (and even if you do, you can still use your old camcorder) and don’t expect to need a lot of tapes, MiniDV-based camcorder will be a better choice, because of the more compact size of the tapes and higher capacity.