Unbelievably small packed with BIG features and primo image-quality!

Author's Rating:

Pros: Ultra-compact size; optics; great LCD screen and the usual fun Sony toys

Cons: Pricey; included battery pack & Memory Stick are a bit on the stingy side

The Bottom Line: 
A top-of-the-line compact digital camcorder that delivers in image quality and fits like a glove.

Author's Review
Sony has "wowed" me again!

I was trying to hunt down a nice camcorder to capture some travel adventures without hating the thing for weighing me down. Plus, I wanted the ability to take still images and to easily edit all of them and/or add soundtracks, if I so desired. I found that and more in Sony's DCR-TRV20--a well-bred digital camcorder that felt right at home in my hand.

The features that sold me on this particular camcorder were many...the least of which were its incredible compact size and the top-notch Carl Zeiss lens. Let's face it--your stereo is only as good as your speakers; your camcorder is only as good as the lens. The digital zoom will take you up to 120x, and trying out a few camcorders with higher zoom capability just proved that getting closer doesn't necessarily mean getting better--the picture quality goes way down and the 120x was adequate for my needs. In reality, the actual lens only zooms to 10x and anything beyond that is performed digitally...so I wouldn't make the #x zoom a prime comparison feature. Ask to look at an actual recording of the high-end zoom to see if it's really worth it.

This camcorder really has too many features to list. But one of the cool ones is the infrared NightShot feature, with the ability to go to Super NightShot (the latter really only useful with a tripod.) This will allow you to take decent footage in low-lighting & nighttime conditions--one thing I really wanted for my travel tapes. It takes a little adjustment to get the settings just right but once you have, you almost feel like you have military capability with this thing! It will give your subjects about a 10 ft. range for decent-quality filming and that improves with even slight ambient lighting. Also useful are the Auto Exposure settings that can improve the quality of images recorded in a variety of lighting situations. The sound quality has been respectable and all the bragging that Sony does about its Super SteadyShot capability is worth the hot air--pictures are filmed smoothly all the way to the close-ups. Michael J. Fox could film on this thing and I bet it would come out even.

Unfortunately, I have not had the ability to check out the included software with this camcorder or try out the ultra-destination for my recorded tapes--computerized digital editing. Since digital footage requires so much hard drive space (min. of around 10 Gb), I have to wait for my wallet to catch up with this camcorder so I can upgrade my computer situation. But with the bells/whistles of digital recording and this camcorder, one can edit/manipulate the footage on the tape without really needing a computer. The included remote control makes this fairly easy for VCR monitoring and if you spend around $5 more for the Cassette Memory DV tapes, your life is made even easier for searching for specific scenes and title superimposing.

What separates the DCR-TRV20 even further from the lower priced camcorders is the larger, excellent quality LCD monitor (3.5"), and the ability/resolution for digital still photos the camera can take on its Memory Stick. I don't think anyone will confuse the digital stils for ones taken with a nice SLR camera. But if your pictures are headed for the internet or prints of around 4x6" or less, this will be more than adequate.

Since I bought this camcorder primarily for travel, I was more than a little disappointed that only a 4 Mb Memory Stick was included with this high-end camcorder. For my needs, I'll probably have to shell out more $ to get the 64 Mb Memory Stick, as well as a larger-capacity battery...I'll definitely be filming longer than 90 minutes away from a power supply. But I met my goal of having the ability to carry just ONE camera--and now that one is my new Sony camcorder. A bonus for me is that the AC adaptor included wil accommodate voltage from 120-250...so only a plug-end adaptor is required for foreign travel.

Depending on what you want to shoot with your camcorder, you can probably find a nice camcorder that isn't nearly as pricey as this Sony, or one that's designed for seriously advanced videography. Comparison shopping for this particular one will probably save you a couple hundred $'s, too...while I paid a little more, my package also included video classroom sessions and some other little "freebies." So you can definitely save some money and get a cheaper camcorder that will fit your needs just fine. But if you want a camcorder to grow into and learn the finer points of videography, while enjoying the ability to customize your digital shots and stills, the Sony DCR-TRV20 packs a major punch for such a compact size.