Sony DCR-HC52 MiniDV Handycam Camcorder with 40x Optical Zoom by Sony
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Digital camera reviews of Sony DCR-HC52 MiniDV Handycam Camcorder with 40x Optical Zoom
Digital camera Review: DOA
Summary: 1 Stars
Had to send it back. Arrived but camera would not focus at all. Send it back and bought a Canon Z900, which works fine.Digital camera Review: Decent Camera, But Horrible Color Saturation
Summary: 2 Stars
I bought this product to replace one of the first Sony Digital8 Camcorders that ever went on the market (DCR-TRV510). I've had that camera for 9+ years and have loved it. I bought this camera because because the reviews were decent, the price was good, and I like Sony products. I've had the camera about two months now and I'm very disappointed with the color of the videos. They are very dark compared to what they should be.
My most recent project was filming a basketball game where I had four different Sony digital camcorders in use on the same court (I film a complete game once a year). The other three Sony camcorders (all older, different models) produced far better color than this one. The colors produced by this camera are, quite simply, terrible. The one caveat to that is outside on a bright, sunny day will produce a rich color saturation. Other than that, though, you're out of luck.
I originally thought it was maybe just my camera, but another reviewer also talks about bad color saturation in his review, so I guess it is product wide problem. Do yourself a favor and look elsewhere.
Digital camera Review: EXCELLENT quality for the $
Summary: 5 Stars
I tried to buy this camera from Amazon but their server was trashing on 6/6/08 so I dashed over to the local WalMart and picked up one. After spending the last 7 hours going over every feature and nuance, I wish I'd had this camera last week for videoing a great rock band in Illinois... the spot metering feature would have provided me vastly better results than the old Sharp miniDV it replaced! One review of this camera is extremely biased by the buyer's ignorance of technology... firewire is the only way to go for transferring DV to computer, and this feature works flawlessly on this camera. I'm very pleased to have one, and not even sorry to have paid more at WalMart than Amazon's great price! Image quality is excellent!Digital camera Review: Easy to use and great quality
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this for my husband who wanted it to film his hunting trips. He loves it. It is a great size, the picture is much better than the one on our old camera, and it has been easy for him to learn how to use it. We will probably invest in the extended battery, based on what other users have said.Digital camera Review: Entry Level Handycam
Summary: 5 Stars
First let's correct the Amazon description, this is a 40X optical zoom camera, not 25X as seen on the product itself.
This is a great camera to start out with, the simplicity of Mini DV tapes makes this a good value choice. DVD camcorders in this price range suffer from bad battery life, and disk errors that can render your disks useless. The Mini DV tapes are tried and true.
I use an Apple computer at home and the camera connects to iMovie with no problems using the iLink port on the camera. All you need in most cases is a Firewire 6pin to 4pin cable, and you are good to go.
The video and audio quality are good, and the night vision is fun too. This is not a upper level camera so don't expect several bells and whistles, but it performs great, and has the basic features most people will ever need. The battery life is fair, but that is expected, all camcorder companies want you to buy an extra battery, but at least Sony gives you several options.
With a full charge and a new tape, expect about an hour of record time.