Rating: 
Summary: very good picture, pathetic built-in mic
Review: I'm very happy with the image quality presented by this camera. The built-in mic, however, is quite sad. It picks up the buzzing of the camera when recording. This is especially annoying during quiet moments, but it can still be heard even when there are other environmental sounds.Will a external mic fix this problem? Guess I'll have to shell out around 80.00 Sony dollars to find out. As noted by others here in the reviews, the digital still picture component of the camcorder is useless (but taking digital still pics is not the reason to buy this camera - - moving into the digital video recording/editing realm is). Also, it is true that the picture quality degrades quickly under minimal lighting conditions (more so than my previous analog Cannon Hi8). A decent camera, overall. I hope to be more on the positive side once I start editing video with it.
Rating:
Summary: very good picture, pathetic built-in mic
Review: I'm very happy with the image quality presented by this camera. The built-in mic, however, is quite sad. It picks up the buzzing of the camera when recording. This is especially annoying during quiet moments, but it can still be heard even when there are other environmental sounds. Will a external mic fix this problem? Guess I'll have to shell out around 80.00 Sony dollars to find out. As noted by others here in the reviews, the digital still picture component of the camcorder is useless (but taking digital still pics is not the reason to buy this camera - - moving into the digital video recording/editing realm is). Also, it is true that the picture quality degrades quickly under minimal lighting conditions (more so than my previous analog Cannon Hi8). A decent camera, overall. I hope to be more on the positive side once I start editing video with it.
Rating: 
Summary: This camera rocks!
Review: Really love this camera. Colors and detail are very nice. Using it for DV to computer editing; Putting 12 minutes of footage of my kids in Mpeg2, burning to a CD and sending to relatives. Firewire functionality great. In low light it's grain is there and it hunts a bit in autofocus but with good light it's great. Nice manual focus and sound it better than any other camera of this grade that I've had (3). Sure blows away anything that Canon has under a k. Very pleased so far.
Rating: 
Summary: good, but nothing amazing
Review: sony puts out ads proclaiming great things, but that just makes the truth hurt more. the features are ok, but nothing "wows" you. the quality comes off as shabby, and the tech support is nothing short of terrible. accually, i'm quite dissappointed, but you might not be as picky as me.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice Camera, but has its annoyances
Review: Sony's Digital8 cameras have been consitently good for a number of years. This new line (the 30 series) seems to be a step down from their usual high quality. I bought the TRV530, and for the most part, I am pleased. First off- the good features: this camera has a very nice, high-rez 3.5" LCD screen, a more sensitive focus ring than previous cameras, and all of the built-in connections are streamlined along the camera's base, freeing up room around the headphone and mic connections near the base of the lens. Now, the bad. Most of these comments are more aesthetics than anything, so it'll just take a little getting used to. Sony's new line now uses the InfoLithium M-series batteries, which are about half the size and twice the price of the L-series batteries used on all previous D8 cams. All of the digital, picture, and auto-exposure options are deep within Sony's on-screen menu instead of having easy-access buttons. This camera is very compact in size and shape, which is very nice and sleek. However, one compromise of the camera's size is that now, the tape loads from the bottom. At first this is kinda cool, but then you realize that if you're using a tripod and need to change tapes, you must pop the camera off the tripod, remove the mounting plate, eject the old tape, pop in a new one, and remount the camera on the tripod, which, in my opinion, is extremely stupid on Sony's part. Another thing that really annoys me is the Black and White viewfinder. Whereas all of the cameras in the 20 and 10 series had color viewfinders, all of Sony's new cameras have Black & white viewfinders, which makes it impossible to pick out anything colorful when it's too bright to use the LCD screen. Also- whereas Sony's TRV720 had a huge 4" LCD screen, the largest LCD screen you can get now is the 530's 3.5" screen. (The TRV730, the so-called "replacement" to the 720, only has a 2.5" screen.) But again, all of the above comments are aesthetics only, and I'm sure that eventually I can get used to these changes. However, one new feature that bothers me a bit is the grain. Sure, all cameras will become grainy in low-light situations because you have to gain up the iris in order to see. But I've been noticing a subtle but distinct graininess even in full sunlight. The cameras in the 20 series had a slight grain to them all the time, but in this camera the grain seems a bit more defined. All-in-all, it's a good camera with many nice features (like the 1/30th sec shutter speed- great for a more film-like look.) But the problems with grain and the overall stupidity of a Black and White viewfinder knock down my rating for this. The TRV-20 series was a work of art. The new TRV-30 series seems more like a step in the wrong direction. Sony, why mess with a good thing?
Rating:
Summary: Very basic
Review: the camera works ok, but there is nothing that "wows" you. It's digital, but it doesn't enhance the picture quality much. It doesn't have many effects that can be done with it. The imput is somewhat awkward on the camcorder. And the editing software is extremly basic, meaning not to many options, not an easy imput. really disappointing for more then an entire weeks pay.
Rating:
Summary: good video, terrible pictures
Review: the key reason i bought this camera was because of the "built in camera." As you probebly know, you can take still shots, and put them on the computer. The quality is really awful, it's not even worth taking the picture, even if you have a good printer. Forget about the still-frame mode on this when disiding what camera to buy.
Rating:
Summary: Very satisfied except...
Review: This camcorder has been great for my family. The digital stills are o.k. when we don't have our Olympus available though resolution is no comparison to a still digital camera. We can view our old films too now that we have another camcorder that accepts 8mm and Hi8 analog videos. My only disapointment, a biggie! is that I have not been able to get the camera to cooperate with the firewire connection on my computer. It recognizes my card but once the camera is hooked up, everything freezes. Once I disconnect, the computer is back to normal. I would like to know how the others here got this feature to work. (I am using win98 v 2). This was the main reason I chose this camera instead of analog. I really want to try editing and making videos on the computer once I get this straightened out. Can somebody help?
Rating:
Summary: Good camcorder, but not all that i hoped for
Review: This camcorder is very good with the recording but the still images are not all that great. The quality of the still images are a little dark and blurry but i dont use the still image function that much so, it's up to you. It is very easy to use and pretty light weight. Some good features are the night shot, ilink, and the different titles or modes that you can have. The ilink is for those that have a sony television so that you can plug a reciver in the back of the TV and the laser shoots from the camcorder to the reciver and you can play the movie without any cords. One thing they need to have is a light which will make it a better film. Otherwise the zoom is more than i need and the automatic focus reduces the shaking of the video. Another thing is to buy it online because you can find it alot cheaper than any store would have it. I hope I was a help for your decion of buying this camcorder.
Rating:
Summary: I've had this camcorder for over two years now and love it!
Review: This camera is excellent for capturing videos, and the still picture quality is ok if you are outdoors. For shooting still pics indoors & especially during night-time, you must have a very bright light source or a brightly illuminated room. The optical zoom is great. The memory stick is a nice addition but Sony should have provided a 32 MB memory stick as a standard accessory. The software is good enough to get started but I recommend Adobe Premiere and an iLink (firewire) cable if you are serious about editing video. Battery Life is adequate but I recommend buying another battery. Overall I highly recommend it.
Pros:
1. Portable, small and light weight, but big enough to hold steady.
2. Extra-large 3.5 inch LCD screen.
3. Photo quality is ok but you may need a separate camera if you are a stickler about quality.
4. Reversable swivel screen for viewing from any angle.
5. No detectable motor noise or hum when recording.
6. Easy operation and simple controls.
7. I've dropped it several times with no problems.
Cons:
1. Battery must charge in unit... not easy to remember. Get a charger or a second battery because you will forget to charge it and may miss the good shots.
2. Software is fair but useable.
3. Included memory stick is insufficent for camera, buy 32 or 64 MB memory stick.
4. You must remove camera from the tripod to change tapes.
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