Rating: 
Summary: Bad picture quality
Review: After owning a Sony 8mm camcorder for 10 years without any problem, I thought I would get this model. BIG mistake.These other reviewers are right. The indoor quality is terrible. Much too grainy. Do yourself a favor and look around a little more. Don't buy this.
Rating: 
Summary: DO NOT BUY this for normal family/group videos
Review: After spending a week with this camcorder, I found that whilst the quality of videos from outdoors was nice, for normal indoor use this camcorder is far worse than my 8 year old standard 8mm camcorder. The picture gets REALLY GRAINY indoors under normal room lighting. For many people, BY FAR the greatest use of camcorders is to take videos of family/group activities INDOORS (e.g. children growing up, birthdays, graduations, wedding receptions etc). For these situations, it is very important to shoot the videos in natural light and not have powerful video light/s which make people conscious of their videos being taken. Sony have lately neglected this capability for other stupid gimmicks like nightshot (0 Lux !). Example: Sony's previous generation camcorders had MINIMUM ILLUMINATION specifications of 1 Lux or less whilst for the DCR-TRV230(, TRV330 and TRV530) Sony specify a minimum of 4 Lux! Sony's previous generation camcorders had a 1/4 inch CCD sensor whilst the new 230/330/530 camcorders have a 1/6 th inch sensor. In fact you are better off taking pictures with SONY's current generation of Hi-8 camcorders for indoor videos for which Sony specify minimum illumination of 0.4 Lux. Unfortunately, Sony no longer offer Stereo sound or even external microphone inputs on their Hi-8 camcorders. Finally, the new 230/330/530 camcorders have the cassette door latch at the bottom. This is really inconvenient if you have mounted the camcorder on a tripod and you need to change the tape.
Rating: 
Summary: TRV230 is a very good camera: Read your manual!
Review: I bought this camera in November of 2001 and am very happy with its performance and features.
For all those that complain about the grainy picture: read your manual that came with the camcorder! With this camera you have the option of different exposure settings. I have found that the AE(automatic exposure) setting tends to make the picture look grainy, especially when filming indoors. This can be corrected by using the 'sun and moon' exposure or one of the others. Take the time to try each setting in different lighting and surroundings and view them on your television to see which ones you like best. Some pros about this camera
* light-weight
* very good lcd color screen
* excellent image stabilization
* very good color representation (with right exposure)
* excellent compatibility with computer OS's & programs
* great stero sound
* excellent remote control Some cons to consider
* changing tapes is awkward, tape loaded from bottom
* camera hum audible on tape if shooting quiet scene
* digital zoom is not focused (keep on analog zoom)
* battery does not last long when using the lcd screen
(about 1/2 hour) This cam does not have a digital media storage card for photo stills but I don't consider this a con. High cost models are beginning to come out with decent resolution photo still capability integrated into the camcorder and until the price falls, buy a seperate digital photo cam.
Very good camera overall!
Rating:
Summary: TRV230 is a very good camera: Read your manual!
Review: I bought this camera in November of 2001 and am very happy with its performance and features.
For all those that complain about the grainy picture: read your manual that came with the camcorder! With this camera you have the option of different exposure settings. I have found that the AE(automatic exposure) setting tends to make the picture look grainy, especially when filming indoors. This can be corrected by using the 'sun and moon' exposure or one of the others. Take the time to try each setting in different lighting and surroundings and view them on your television to see which ones you like best. Some pros about this camera
* light-weight
* very good lcd color screen
* excellent image stabilization
* very good color representation (with right exposure)
* excellent compatibility with computer OS's & programs
* great stero sound
* excellent remote control Some cons to consider
* changing tapes is awkward, tape loaded from bottom
* camera hum audible on tape if shooting quiet scene
* digital zoom is not focused (keep on analog zoom)
* battery does not last long when using the lcd screen
(about 1/2 hour) This cam does not have a digital media storage card for photo stills but I don't consider this a con. High cost models are beginning to come out with decent resolution photo still capability integrated into the camcorder and until the price falls, buy a seperate digital photo cam.
Very good camera overall!
Rating:
Summary: Very Disappointing!!
Review: I expected high quality video and still pictures from a digital camera! Instead I got grainy results that any cheap camera on the market could produce. In fact, my brother's $300 VHS-C camera took video far superior to this model. Some nice features include a wireless remote and the lithium batteries last a while. If you are looking for sharp pictures from a digital camcorder, look elsewhere!
Rating:
Summary: I agree! Do not Buy this camera
Review: I have found exactly the same problem - grainy and unnatural colors for indoor shots. In fact I compared the video quality with my 6 year old Sharp camcorder and found the older camera had clearer images than Sony DCR-TRV230 in almost EVERY case.
Rating:
Summary: Works fine
Review: I read all the negative reviews and whining in the reviews of the Sony TRV-230 Digital 8 camcorder, and bought it anyway for use of live-action reference for my animated projects. I didn't need stellar image quality, anyway, so the complaints didn't apply to me. I was suprised when I got this thing. The image quality is wonderful! It has natural looking colours, excellent sound reproduction for a built in microphone and is razor sharp. While it is true that indoors you may have a bit of grain, it isn't a detriment like the people here would make it out like. I lit my subjects evenly and brightly, and the grain disappeared. Scratch one problem. If you have good lighting, there's no grain. Very simple. But, if you do not have even, bright lighting, it can become very grainy indeed. The camera has a mind-boggling array of effects, all of which can have a nice effect if used in moderation. The effect I particularly like is the "flash" effect. If you crank it down to one bar, you get a nice cinematic look that is very similar in look to 35mm film at 26fps. The lens is very good, but in very bright situations some glare can appear on subjects. However, all cameras do that in some respect so if you're doing a lot of outdoor shooting, Sony has some lens filters that you can screw on. Scratch another complaint. I especially liked how virtually everything is near your thumb. Record mode, play mode, zoom. The zoom is amazing, but you can forget a 700x zoom. It gets blurry around 400 or 500x, but as someone else at Amazon put it, who needs that much zoom anyways? If you really want to shoot something, then get off your [behind] and shoot it. The remote is also handy, as well, especially if you are doing stop-motion/steadycam work. It may seem like a toy, but when it's on a tripod, you don't want to jolt the camera when you're doing stop-mo. It has most of the functions of the camera itself. One complaint that I have is the tape loading mechanism. Most 8mm camcorders have a simple door, shove in the tape and slam the door shut --- just like a cassette deck. Not this one. It has a fancy little motor that wheels out the cassette like some kind of science fiction movie. It definitely looks cool but if it breaks down, how are you supposed to get the tape in? demerit point for Sony there. I did like the bottom tape loading mechanism, though, because most 8mms have the door where your palm is, so you have to slip your hand out. Not so here. Tripod could be a problem, but a display tells you how much tape you're used and how much tape is left, so it doesn't reall matter because you have more than enough notice to change the tape anyhow. It is a simple point and shoot camcorder which does a good job. It also suits me well in professional ways, as it runs circles around all the other broadcast cameras at Cogeco. This camera exceeds quality than any of the other cameras at the Cogeco studio, before or since. It takes some photography know how and a true artistic eye to get professional quality out of this camera, but it can certainly be accomplished.
Rating:
Summary: Works fine
Review: I read all the negative reviews and whining in the reviews of the Sony TRV-230 Digital 8 camcorder, and bought it anyway for use of live-action reference for my animated projects. I didn't need stellar image quality, anyway, so the complaints didn't apply to me. I was suprised when I got this thing. The image quality is wonderful! It has natural looking colours, excellent sound reproduction for a built in microphone and is razor sharp. While it is true that indoors you may have a bit of grain, it isn't a detriment like the people here would make it out like. I lit my subjects evenly and brightly, and the grain disappeared. Scratch one problem. If you have good lighting, there's no grain. Very simple. But, if you do not have even, bright lighting, it can become very grainy indeed. The camera has a mind-boggling array of effects, all of which can have a nice effect if used in moderation. The effect I particularly like is the "flash" effect. If you crank it down to one bar, you get a nice cinematic look that is very similar in look to 35mm film at 26fps. The lens is very good, but in very bright situations some glare can appear on subjects. However, all cameras do that in some respect so if you're doing a lot of outdoor shooting, Sony has some lens filters that you can screw on. Scratch another complaint. I especially liked how virtually everything is near your thumb. Record mode, play mode, zoom. The zoom is amazing, but you can forget a 700x zoom. It gets blurry around 400 or 500x, but as someone else at Amazon put it, who needs that much zoom anyways? If you really want to shoot something, then get off your [behind] and shoot it. The remote is also handy, as well, especially if you are doing stop-motion/steadycam work. It may seem like a toy, but when it's on a tripod, you don't want to jolt the camera when you're doing stop-mo. It has most of the functions of the camera itself. One complaint that I have is the tape loading mechanism. Most 8mm camcorders have a simple door, shove in the tape and slam the door shut --- just like a cassette deck. Not this one. It has a fancy little motor that wheels out the cassette like some kind of science fiction movie. It definitely looks cool but if it breaks down, how are you supposed to get the tape in? demerit point for Sony there. I did like the bottom tape loading mechanism, though, because most 8mms have the door where your palm is, so you have to slip your hand out. Not so here. Tripod could be a problem, but a display tells you how much tape you're used and how much tape is left, so it doesn't reall matter because you have more than enough notice to change the tape anyhow. It is a simple point and shoot camcorder which does a good job. It also suits me well in professional ways, as it runs circles around all the other broadcast cameras at Cogeco. This camera exceeds quality than any of the other cameras at the Cogeco studio, before or since. It takes some photography know how and a true artistic eye to get professional quality out of this camera, but it can certainly be accomplished.
Rating: 
Summary: It just rocks
Review: if the size doesnt matter this is no doubt better product then any other mini dv camcorder in low midle class... as picture can esly match any mini dv, or even better... soo, if weight (size is quite compact) doesnt metter go for it, as it has superior zoom...!!! Iown 330, but there cant be diff.
Rating:
Summary: Don't but this camera
Review: Indoor shooting is terribly grainy.
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