Sony DCRTRV27 MiniDV Digital Handycam Camcorder w/ 3.5" LCD, MPEG EX, Memory Stick & Mega Pixel Video/ Still

Other products by Sony

Product Details

Product Manual [9.30mb PDF]

• Item Weight: 4 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 5 pounds
• Shipping: This item can only be shipped to the 48 contiguous states. We regret it cannot be shipped to APO/FPO, Hawaii, Alaska, or Puerto Rico.
• ASIN: B00006686Q
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,574 in Camera & Photo (See Bestsellers in Camera & Photo)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #66 in

  Camera & Photo > Camcorders > Digital MiniDV

• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 4, 1973

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description
The Sony DCR-TRV27 is a solid MiniDV camera with a load of functions, including that of a 1-megapixel digital still camera. Demanding video enthusiasts will find their needs satisfied with a 10x optical zoom, manual focus ring, a night-shooting function, and a large 3.5-inch LCD screen.

Lens
The lens is a famous, high-quality Carl Zeiss construction with a single 1/4.7-inch CCD capturing the image, enabling the camera to produce 520 lines of resolution. The SteadyShot function stabilizes the picture and reduces camera shake. Use the infrared NightShot for shooting at night or in dark settings. The TRV27 also sports a 10x optical zoom, which is enough for most purposes. Turn on the digital zoom, which electronically magnifies the optical image, and reach up to 120 times.

Digital Stills
Digital stills can be stored on a Memory Stick, which works independently from the DV tape system. The camera performs with 1-megapixel resolution, making it capable of sharp images that are up to 1,152 x 864 pixels in size. The camera can also shoot in MPEG movie mode, storing 320 x 240 videos onto the memory stick. MPEG movie lengths range from five seconds to the length allowed by the capacity of your Memory Stick.

Inputs and Outputs
The TRV27 is equipped with the standard DV IEEE 1394 port (also known as FireWire) for a super-fast, lossless connection to a PC or other DV machines. The USB connection is used to transfer digital photos and MPEG movies. The traditional S-video and RCA connections are also present for direct viewing on a television or VHS dubbing.

The DCR-TRV27 comes with one 8 MB Memory Stick. Memory Sticks are reusable, but if you tend to take a lot of digital images, then you'll want a bigger card.

MiniDV Format
MiniDV digital technology delivers clear, sharp video with over 500 lines of horizontal resolution--far superior to the 240 lines of resolution offered by 8mm camcorders. You'll also get minimal color noise interference for a more stable picture.

You'll also get excellent sound quality, recorded in either 12-bit or 16-bit audio recording modes.

• 16-bit audio includes on set of stereo audio tracks to produce CD-quality sound.
• 12-bit audio utilizes two sets of audio tracks so you can easily add background music or commentary into your videos while maintaining the existing soundtrack.

This is all delivered on a cassette that's 1/12th the size of a standard VHS tape. A MiniDV tape offers digital recording time of two full hours--20 times the capacity of a CD.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

93 of 94 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seeing is truly believing, November 1, 2002

By	"rsa911" (Rhode Island) - See all my reviews

I did my homework on digital camcorders, and in the end came down to the conclusion that I only had two brand choices: Sony or Canon. Now my only dilema left was the style of camera that I was to purchase. By that I mean the "ultra compact" upright style, like the Canon Elura40MC and Sony DCRPC101, or the traditional style of the Sony DCRTRV27. It should be obvious by the fact that I am writing this review that I chose the Sony DCRTRV27.

One of the reviews I read said that the upright camera wasn't comfortable to hold in comparison to the horizontal style of the TRV27. I could not agree more. I held the Canon for about two minutes and had a hand cramp. The TRV27 is certainly small enough too. I also noticed immediately, that it was near impossible to hold the Canon Elura 40MC without covering the light sensor with my finger. I would say that this is a serious design flaw on Canon's part.

That aside, the features of this camera far exceed my expectations for the price point. There are almost too many features! In all seriousness, the video I have captured so far has all been excellent, and I could not be more satisfied. The most common complaint I read about this camera (and all others BTW) is that it is not that great in low light situations. All I can say is that 1) Even cameras costing 3x this have the same issue and 2) this is easily remedied with a $... video light. For those reasons, I will not take any points away from this product. For me (first time camcorder owner with demanding tastes) this camcorder is fantastic.

The only additional feature I would like to comment on is the digital photo quality. This is NOT a digital camera. The photo quality is fine for what it is, and to expect more would not make sense. I am more impressed by the 1 trick pony type of electronics, as I think that multi-purpose products tend to do a lot of things fair, and don't do anything great.

...

66 of 67 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sony DCR TRV27, June 18, 2002

By	Jekka (NJ United States) - See all my reviews

Excellent camcorder!

Was looking for TRV30 which went out of production and came across this one.

Pros: 1) clear and vibrant video picture (video 690K pixels and still 1 mega pixels CCD)
2) Fast focusing when using zoom in auto mode
3) simple to use knobs and buttons
4) Value for price
5) still photo fairly good with 1 megapixel rating
6) video looks great on TV (at least in Sony Wega TV) than the LCD screen (May be I have reduce the brightness of screen)

Cons:
1) 10x optical and 120x digital zoom slightly less than the competion JVC, Panasonic, Canon
2) Battery life is short with LCD usage
3) No memory stick holder/case supplied
4) No flashlight/ video light (have to buy separately)

Will recommend for anyone who wants good decent video with high resolution and money to spend.

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great value, more features than anyone could use., January 21, 2003

By	"patswamp" (Cheyenne, WY United States) - See all my reviews

Pro's:
- Mini-DV format is ubiquitous and produces excellent images.
- Large swivel-screen and color viewfinder.
- Can also take 1 mega pixel still images and low-res MPEG's on memory stick.
- Crazy, useless, nonetheless cool features like Super Night Shot, various fades, several picture effects, digital effects, time-lapse, digital zoom, etc.
- Great design considerations including button placement, the overall feel (shape, weight, balance), and menu options.
- Can take higher resolution stills directly onto tape (vs. onto memory stick).
- A lot of DIY features like manual focus, exposure setting, white balance, etc.
- USB streaming means it can be used as a web cam (overkill, but nice for eliminating extra devices).
- Camcorder can be used as a bridge for transferring analog films directly onto a computer or onto DV tape (i.e., it has input capability).
- Several connection options including: standard RCA, S-video, headphones, USB, Firewire, external mic.
- Excellent battery life and information.

Con's
- One design problem comes from the bottom-loading tape, but honestly where else could they have put it?
- Only 1 CCD, but that's what you get in the sub $1500 category.
- Still images are 1 mega pixel, but hey, the fact that there are any stills is a bonus on a camcorder.
- Battery charges on camcorder.

I highly recommend this product: the value, features, and quality are all outstanding.

I recommend doing certain things right out of the box to maximize the camcorder's capabilities. First, do not install the Sony issued software, it's worse than useless, it's anti-productive (just short of destructive). For stills and MPEG's you can simply use Windows' standard programs. The camcorder/memory stick shows up as a drive in My Computer when attached via firewire. For video editing you need something more robust anyway, so go with something like Pinnacle Studio 8 (lower end) or Adobe Premiere (the other end). Next, Turn off the digital zoom, it tends to make the picture pixilated. Raise the audio to 16 bit. Set still images and MPEG's to the highest settings simply because even at that level they aren't too good. Always keep steadyshot on. Finally, I have yet to get one, but a wide-angle lens seems desirable because the auteur ends up backing so far away from the subject being filmed.

Here are a couple more recommendations for people that will be editing film on a computer. Firewire is a must, not just for the high transfer rates, but for the control you have through the computer. It allows you to preview your work without the long capture sessions. I use Pinnacle Studio for editing, it's great (i.e., easy and cheap). When filming, don't use: fades, picture effects, digital effects, or digital zoom, these will all just get in the way when you start editing. Make sure the lighting is good, if not use the exposure wheel. I like the letterbox feature, it just looks cool. There are different kinds of Mini-DV tapes, the tapes with built-in memory are expensive but invaluable while editing (the time code allows you to preview film without capturing it in the editing software). These tapes are about three times the price of a regular tape, but obviously can be reused (make your movie, edit it, output it to DVD or regular Mini-DV tapes, then record over the original raw material).