Customer Reviews

Sony DCR-SR82 1MP 60GB Hard Disk Drive Handycam Camcorder with 25x Optical Zoom (Handycam Station Included)

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

UPDATE: My camera just broke after 18 months! The video screen shows rolling video like the old TV sets that needed the vertical hold adjusted. There is a sensor in the screen that detects when it has been rotated 180 degrees for filming yourself (which I've never done). Evidently this sensor is "stuck" and is causing the video to flip between right side up and upside down which results in a rolling video that is completely unusable.

--------- Original Review -------------
I picked up this camera from Amazon for a great price and I have to say that it is everything I expected and more. We just got back from a 10 day vacation in California (Disneyland, Legoland, Zoo, etc.) and all of the videos that we took came out fantastic. I searched for about 6 months before deciding on this specific brand and model and I'm more than happy with it. Here is a quick rundown on the camera.

1) Hard disk cameras are just wonderful. I can record 14 hours of video without ever worrying about the thing getting full. That's more video than I took over an 8 year period with my my VHS-C camera.

2) The camera looks just like an external USB hard disk to my computer so I can just drag and drop the files that I record. I didn't even bother installing the software that came with the camera because I really didn't need it.

3) The resolution and color are much better than I expected from a low-end sensor. In good light the colors look great. They aren't oversaturated like some of the other cameras I looked at. In low light the colors are a little off but that is true of all cameras. Overall I'm very happy with the quality of the video for the price I paid.

4) My biggest beef is with the manual focus controls. You have to use the touch screen to adjust it and you really can't get a fine level of focus because it seems to jump in odd increments and isn't consistent. The auto focus does a pretty good job at lower magnification levels and with enough light. But when you get in REALLY low light situations or at really high magnification levels (25X) it can have a hard time locking in.

5) The night vision capability is really cool. I didn't think that I would actually ever use it but I used it quite a bit on vacation. When we went through the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland I used it to film the whole thing. Being dark I wouldn't have gotten hardly any good video without it. But with it I was able to get really good detail on what we were seeing. Using the night vision feature causes the video to be greenish/grayish but it is acceptable in many situations.

6) I was skeptical when I heard that you had to use a docking station to transfer the video to a computer but it turns out not to be bad at all. The docking station is really tiny and you actually don't need it to charge the unit or play back video on your TV. We left the docking station at home on vacation because we wouldn't be taking our computer anyway.

7) This thing is actually really tiny. I was able to carry it in one of those small fanny packs while going through Disneyland. It's very comfortable to hold for long periods of time.

8) I love the advanced battery capabilities. It tells you down to the minute how much time you have left. I actually ran it all the way down and was amazed that it gave me that kind of feedback. The battery can last from 60 to 120 minutes depending on what you are doing with it. That's actually pretty good. I only bought the one battery and really don't think you need a second one unless you intend to film a long-running show or something. The only time it ran out was when I forgot to charge it after the previous day of shooting.

Overall I am very pleased with this purchase. I got a great price and the quality and usability of this camera is way better than I expected. Having searched the hard disk camera offerings for over 6 months I finally settled on this one. And I'm glad I did.

I bought this camera mostly for home movies, and after doing extensive research on camcorders. First was the decision of going to Hard-drive over DVD or Tape. The ease of downloading videos to your computer, plus the fact that it's the way most camcorders are going to be heading in the near future made this almost a no-brainer. Then was the question about which model to buy. I chose the SR82 over the SR42 and SR62 because of the extra storage capacity, and the improved resolution over the SR42. The video resolution for the SR82 is good enough for most televisions. If you want HD video, you will need to spend at least $200 or $300 more for an "entry-level" HD camera. I'm not too worried about the 1MP still photos because, let's be honest, I'm not planning to use this camera to take pictures! I have a digital camera for that, which has better resolution, low-light performance and options than a camcorder will ever have for taking pictures. Plus, it has a flash, which camcorders usually don't have (unless you're willing to add an accessory shoe and external light).
Picture quality as I mentioned is pretty good, even in low-light, and the camera is very intuitive and easy to use right out of the box. Downloading to a computer was a breeze too. Do get however an extra battery, since the one it comes with usually runs out pretty fast

I just picked this camera up a few days ago and boy is it great. Easy to use right out of the box. Have not purchased a Sony Camcorder in years but I needed a new one. Not having to pop in a tape or a disk is great. I was a little worried about not having enough space on the hard drive in the camera for enough recording time but the 60GB drive gives you plenty of room. I just plug the Camcorder via USB into the computer push one button and it's on a DVD. The picture quality is outstanding and the camera itself is incredibly light and small. Love this camera!!! The only down side is the camera does not have a view finder. You really don't need it as the LCD screen is better. If you are like me and like managing your media on a home computer then this is the camera for you.

I recently bought this camera after my last handycam went out during my daughter's recital. We had it for close to 10 years, it had been dropped several times, and with my children constantly getting ahold of it, I knew it was going to happen sometime, just was a little upset it happened during my 3 year olds first ever recital!
We bought this camera on our way on a family vacation and it is a dream. I went with the intentions of getting a cheaper model, but after realizing the minimal amount you can record on DVD's and how you can't really delete the info on there without going through many steps, I decided on this camera. I took it right out of the box as we were headed on vacation and really haven't sat it down since. It is so incredibly easy to operate, and so many of the features are just a touch on the screen. I thought the software that came with it was very self explanatory and I was able to make a DVD of our trip within a matter of minutes and quite easily. Like another poster said it doesn't take good pictures, but do you really need it to? If it was all that you had and you wanted to email pics it is fine for that, but I wouldn't recommend printing them.
All and all once again sony has made another wonderful camera that I know we will have for years to come.

This was my first Sony product purchase and all I can say is that this video camera is first rate. The night-shot infrared is awesome to use and I'm pleased with how well constructed and rugged this unit is. It was smaller than I had imagined and I was very pleased with how it performed on my yearly motorcycle tour.

Not having to change tapes is a blessing. I hooked the camera to my laptop nightly and exported the movies to it using the Sony transfer software. Fairly simple process and the 60gb of recording time is enough for an entire vacation. The battery lasts for 90 minutes and I combined a 12vdc/120vac inverter with the charger in my car to keep it topped off nicely. I do think the battery prices are a bit much for new batteries, but if you shop around, there are good deals to be had.

All in all, I give it 5 stars and have already purchased a couple of other Sony products on the basis of the quality and ease of use their products are known for.

Great videocam - buy it!

I am a Mac user and the reviews initially for the Sony cameras and Macs were not to flattering. What really swung my vote to get one was iMovie 08. Finally the camera was compatible with a Mac using this software. The camera itself is amazing with great resolution and superb features. The touch screen is easy to use and the ability to zoom comes in very handy. Low light conditions are good if you don't mind a little grainy video. The IR light does a good job of picking things up that are close. I have used this to record family events as well as record meetings. I am extremely please with this camera and what it does. My only complaint is that my wife doesn't want to share it with me at times because she is having fun recording the kids with it. Oh well.

The video files are standard MPEG2 w/ AC3 stereo sound at 720x480i resolution. It comes with Windows software, but is Mac compatible. iMovie 08 makes it easy to edit footage. This camera even works under Linux as a standard USB2 storage device.

I've owned two previous Handycams, and this one is a huge leap forward. The DCR-SR82 has tons of recording time, clocking in at over 14 hours at the HQ high quality setting. It works great in low light, especially with the infrared and slow shutter. It's amazing how small this full-featured camera is. Make sure to get a better battery, though.

If you're wondering whether to go high-def... don't... unless you have massive amounts of disk space to edit with, and want to wrestle with some proprietary video format. This MPEG2-to-disk camcorder is the way to go.

This low 2-star rating is only for the Sony DCR-SR80's poor ability to take videos in low light, and natural night conditions, and is compared to my better JVC GZ-MG255 F1.2 lens camcorder (all comparisons using Normal, Automatic operation, and not Manual operation). In bright light, the Sony DCR-SR82 and DCR-SR80 videos are okay and probably can be at least 4 stars.

In 2007, I have compared the three camcorders side by side: JVC GZ-MG255, Sony DCR-SR82, and Sony DCR-SR80. I compared for the ability to videotape in low light or natural night light conditions, and without video lights, and in Automatic mode. The JVC GZ-MG255 is the winner and takes best low light videos because it has the largest F 1.2 lens, and largest 1/4 inch CCD. I still have the videos to prove this.

Sony DCR-SR80 has smaller F1.8 lens, and the CCD is smaller 1/5.5 inch, 1 MP Gross Pixels, 0.690 MP Effective Pixels. Bright light videos were okay, but the low light videos were poor, and grainy, and I returned for refund.

Sony DCR-SR82 has smaller F1.8 lens, and the CCD is smaller 1/6 inch, 1 MP Gross Pixels, 0.690 MP Effective Pixels. Bright light videos were okay, but the light videos were poor, and grainly, and I returned for a refund.

Please see my full Customer Review of my JVC GZ-MG255 camcorder, for more details. JVC GZ-MG255 has largest F1.2 lens, and the CCD is the largest 1/4 inch, and 2.18 MP Gross Pixels, 1.23 MP Effective Pixels. Bright light videos are great, and low light videos are the best.

I love this hard disk camcorder. One can record some 40 hours, before downloading to a computer. No disk changing, no tapes to fuss with.
The extra battery is a bit expensive, but necessary. Also an accessory light for use indoors and in low light conditions is recommended

I have owned this camera for about 4 months and have shot hours of video with it. It's a good little camera for it's price. The video quality is great at all telephoto distances (that I have found). The audio quality is good with exception of wind. My only two complaints about the camera are 1) it shakiness on zoom (even on a tripod); it has a stabilizer but it is not effective on close-ups, and 2)editing the video is all but impossible. The software that comes with it does not have any editing capability. It shoots in MPEG-2 format and I had to purchase a very expensive software editing package to be able to make edited movies. If you shoot raw footage - the camera is great. If you want to make Windows Movie Maker videos, it won't work. There are ways to get around this, but it takes quite a while.