Customer Reviews

Sony HDR-CX110 High Definition Handycam Camcorder (Red)

5 star:		(42)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I was looking to replace my JVC Everio, that had a 60GB hard drive in it. I loved the convenience of the hard drive, since that replaced an older unit I had that used the small tape cartridges. But the prices for the HD capable units are more than I was willing to pay for a camcorder, so looked at the units that just used memory sticks.

I have the Sony DSC-TX1 digital camera and was blown away by its optical quality, and it even took 720p movies which were just insanely clearer than my 1 year old JVC camcorder. That was when I realized I needed to lose the JVC. Almost all the movies I do are of my son, now 6 years old, so the better the quality the happier I would be. Too many artifacts with the low definition JVC, panning was just ugly ugly ugly, and while it had a great response in low light, the picture quality was just not what I wanted considering how good everything else with my TV and still camera.

I was initially going to get the 100 version of this, since it was so insanely cheap for a 1080 capable camcorder, but the bad low light capability put me off, since most of what I record is in my house. And the very low numbers for optical zoom also concerned me. But amazon conveniently puts little links under the initial product listing if there's a new version, so I saw the 110 and the price was good. I did some digging on Sony's site, somewhat confused that the cheap little 100 had 16GB built in but the higher end had none, but when I saw the rest of the specs in comparison, I felt it was a very good unit to give a test run with. My local brick and mortars didn't have it in stock, so I ordered it from Amazon and got the Saturday delivery early on Saturday, plenty of time to charge it up and try it out.

I left all settings at default except for the quality setting. That was easy to find, and the touchscreen on this unit makes it very easy to operate. As with my sony still camera, it has a "user" screen too where you can pin the six most used functions to save you from having to navigate into submenus. I love this feature, as it made my touchscreen still camera so simple and quick to use.

So I did four test movies, all of the same thing (my 6 year old playing with a huge Geotrax set), at all four of the options for 1080p resolution. The camera is smaller than I had expected, very light and fits well in the hand. The only real buttons to deal with in normal operation are the zoom and the start/stop recording, which are placed well despite the small size of the unit. If you want to grab a still as well, which you can do while recording, that button is on top right behind the zoom, so it's easy to get at. So use is great, no problems.

As I said, touch screen menu is great, so changing settings as I went was a piece of cake.

Started with the highest 24Mbps, then the next down (I think it was 17Mbps), then the "default" one they start you out at, 9Mbps, then the lowest. When I was done, I pulled the card out (nice, quick access on the bottom with a great, sturdy, hinged door). Went into my macbook pro just fine, and i started playback.

I have a 13" macbook pro, the aluminum unibody, that I got about four months ago. So new core2 duo processor, nvidia 9400 graphics... And it could not play the highest or second highest quality movies raw... Which told me that they were going to be great on my windows 7 media center. The third and fourth files played, but since the laptop is not a 1080 screen, it didn't look that good. So I went ahead and pulled the memory card out of the laptop, put it in my Dell Zino that runs my beautiful 46" Samsung HDTV, and played them all.

One thing I hadn't realized is that when it creates the files, it creates them in a native bluray playback format, the folder structure and all. So that should make it easy for people who will want to burn to Bluray.

Anyway, on the media center, i played the highest quality one first. And my jaw dropped, and I nearly had to go buy some adult diapers. WOW. That was all I could say or think. WOW. It was just outstanding, WAY better than I had expected. And it's not like I'm so unfamiliar with HD that even bad HD was impressive to me - my first HDTV was purchased back in 1999, a huge 60" Mitsubishi diamond line TV. So I've been using HD for over 10 years now. And this just knocked my socks off.

I had nearly no artifacting or blurring or anything with the movement of the camera as I've come to expect from camcorders. Even the blurring was minimal. And the shots of things were just crystal clear. I had a 1080p version of the movie BOLT running on the TV as he played with his geotrax, so I zoomed in so that filled the viewfinder, and recorded some of the movie. During playback at that scene, I couldn't even tell it wasn't the original playing back, that it was a recording of the TV from earlier, it was that clear.

I was indoors, in Wisconsin on a winter day with snow falling, so there was no direct sunlight, just all clouds. Only one window's curtains open, and no lights turned on inside. And the clarity and lighting was excellent. Every bit I could hope for.

So I tried the next down quality, and it blew me away. As did the third and then the lowest quality. All looked stunning. When I got down to the lowest, I could see some difference between it and the highest, but for what I was, and will be, shooting (my son), I think I'll end up using the default third lowest setting because it was still jaw droppingly good on my HDTV.

I got the 16GB card since the 32GB card was still in the three digit price range, and i have a habit of transferring the files to my computer as soon as I'm done shooting anyway. And at the third quality setting, the default 9Mbps one, a 25 minute clip used just 1.9GB, so I should get about 3 1/2 hours on this card at this rate, so I'll not have to worry about running out of media for my normal use.

The display is crisp and clear, widescreen format, and not cluttered when recording. Response to touch was very good, only once when selecting something from a bottom of a menu did I have to touch it twice, since the first didn't register. Didn't take any pressure to get it to see my pressing.

The still picture while shooting video worked easily enough, but they're not great quality, so it won't replace your digital camera if you have a good one. But it may give you a decent still shot of something you would have missed otherwise...

All in all, this is waaaayyyyy better than I had expected, and more than I had even hoped for. 100% satisfied with the unit.

I can't attest to battery usage yet, since I have only had it for five hours, and only ran about 40 or 45 minutes of recording through it so far. In a few days I'll pop back in here and edit this with the results I've seen with regards to the battery life, since this is evidently the first review of this model.

I purchased this camera a couple of weeks ago after someone I now had also picked it up. It was to replace my old Sony Hi-8 camera that recently quit working. I must say right off the bat that anyone looking to buy a starter, entry-level, low price high definition camera - this is the one for you! At under two pounds, it's extremely light, compact, and portable. (Having longer fingers I almost have a hard time working the trigger and zoom.) As an entry level camera, you must be prepared for the fact that things like memory cards, cases, HDMI cables, and other bells and whistles will not come with this camera - hence the low price.

What you do get is an incredible 1080 24bit HD picture that will blow you away. My first outing was to our local Desert Botanical Gardens to view and film the colorful wildflowers, cactai, and butterflies. I used the HD FX (highest quality video setting) for video, as well as taking 3meg pictures. When I returned home and viewed the footage and photos, my jaw dropped at the clarity and vivid, rich colors in beautiful 1080 on my 52" Sony TV. The details were very crisp and no artifacts were present in the movies. It was amazing.

The camera was easy to use and operate with the simple touch screens, as well as the I-Auto feature to help with the proper contrast and exposure. It was great to pick which scene you wanted without having to fast forward or rewind ever again!! The only drawbacks on the camera that I don't like are the low life battery that comes with it, as well as having to purchase your own HDMI cable separately. All in all, this is a great camera for the price!!

This is the cheapest high-def camera from sony, has exactly the same quality and specs than the other more expensive HD handycams but it doesnt come with any memory at all (that's the catch!). I also purchased the sony pro duo 16GB mark2 memory, that provides enough space to save up to 90min on full hd (1920x1080) quality for less than $70! When I first opened the box I couldnt believe how small this camera is and I thought it would be a problem since I have big hands, but I was mistaken, I have full access to all the buttons (rec - zoom - mode) with only one hand. Once connected to an HDTV the recording/play back quality is amazing. Steady-shot technology makes it really easy to take great and stable shots even when zooming in and no tripod. Highly recommended!

Pros: excellent video recording quality even on low-light shots, stereo microphone array, 25x optical zoom, touch screen has good response (even for big fingers like mine!), user-friendly menus to configure settings, Carl Zeiss - Vario Tessar lens, stock battery (NP-FV50) has good charge above 100mins, steady-shot works great (image stabilizer).

Cons: no memory, no case, no view-finder, no batt-only AC charger (will have to charge the battery while mounted on the camera), lcd has to be open or the camera will turn off (but you can turn the lcd 180deg, close it and that works!), no mini-HDMI to full-HDMI adapter cable.

Important/recommended accesories:
- Sony PRO Duo 8/16/32 GB Mark2 memory stick
- HDMI Cable, mini-to-full (Part No. VMC-15MHD)
- Travel AC charger (Part No. BC-TRV)
- Carrying case with extra-battery (Part No. ACC-FV50A)
- Shooting grip with mini-tripod (Part No. GP-AVTI)

Hope this review will be helpful!

We really do like our Sony HDR-CX110 high def Handycam camcorder. It is easy to use and takes beautiful high def videos. Unfortunately, our camera had to be returned to Sony for repair during the 90 day warranty period. This is the description of the problem I provided to Sony with the returned camera: "When viewing door of Handycam is opened, it responds with a message: "the viewing lens cover might be closed, check the cover" regardless of whether the lens cover is open or closed. The viewing area of the screen is dark even with the lens open (not covered), but in other respects normal. It will actually record videos and take pictures but the picture and video recorded is blank/dark. Audio (when recording a video) does record and play back."

I hope the camera they return to me is more reliable. They will provide a new 90 day warranty period. I have to pay shipping to the Sony repair center but they will pay shipping when they return a functioning camera to me. Luckily the problem started just before the 90 day warranty period expired. They will cover both parts and labor. Given this experience, I would suggest purchasing an extended warranty for this camera.

Video quality on this camcorder is fantastic. I did many research and debated between Canon and Sony. I didn't like the model CX100 because of the fact that the poor quality in low light condition. I almost decided to buy canon HF200. I went to bestbuy to buy this canon. I saw this new model CX110 and bestbuy representative explained the features. This CX-110 is a major upgrade from CX100. New sensor Emos "R" and 25X optical zoom were the best one. I then decided to buy this Sony new model instead of Canon.

I am very happy about my decision. I took shots in day light and also in low night, the video is excellent. Amazon.com is very good and i got it within 4 days after placing the order.

I read the review comment of the person who rated 2 for this camcorder. I am surprised to note the reason for the low rating. Even though the specification of this camcorder clearly says no internal memory, i don't understand why people buy and rate low for their mistake.

Bottomline, my prediction is Sony will break-through and out beat other competitor in 2010 in camcorder.

I wanted to buy a video camera because I was going on my honeymoon in 2 weeks in Hawaii and I wanted to capture the memories and scenery. After reading the reviews and nailing down the criteria for my first video camera puchase, I was swayed by what I saw for the CX110. It was somewhat more expensive than I wished, but had HD (which was a must), and had good reviews to back up the money. I am glad I listened to the user reviews.

1. It is very compact. I can fit it easily in one hand and into a cargo shorts pocket. It also fits nicely in my wife's purse if she wanted to carry it.

2. It has a touch screen LCD which is very intuitive. I did not read the instructions (well, maybe a little) and mostly figured everything out on my own. The menu system is easy to navigate once you understand the basics. If it is too complicated, just point and hit record and the default "auto" feature automatically adjust focus and light sensitivity (for evening, daytime, nighttime scenes) for amazing quality. Anyone can use this camera! Even my technophob wife had no problem.

3. Has no built in memory, which is why it is cheaper than the CX150 (has 16 gigs built on it) but I knew that going in. I got a Kingston 32 gig Class 4 memory and have about an hour worth of footage on it from the honeymoon and still have plenty of room. I am not sure exactly much, but i would guess I used about only 15% - 20% of all of my memory. It has 4 different recoridng qualitys, 24 MB per second (best), 19 MbPS, 12MbPS (default setting), and 9 MbPS. I used the second highest quality (since I had lots of memory) and got amazing picture! I used the component cables and am waiting for my HDMI cable for some real digital hd, but the component picture blew me away!

4. The optical zoom is scary good. I creeped on people across our condo and could see how many beer cans they had on their kitchen table.

5. The audio quality is great. You can hear wind on lots of our footage but thats because our fault. Hearing the crashing waves and the birds in the background are a nice treat to our video.

6. I am very happy with my purchase. HD is the way to go and this is a powerful cheap camera. This is all you need to get amazing picture for little cost. Sony is a quality brand and you know if your paying 500 for something, you might as well get something thats quality. Plus, having HD and blue-ray quality video makes it future proof.

** I purchased mine off ebay for $400 dollars and got my 32mb for about $90. I know amazon sells it for 500 but perhaps some shopping would save you some bucks.

I'm kind of new to this HD stuff. I just wanted a camcorder that would take good videos and not break the bank in the process. I tried 3 camcorders in this low-mid price range. The CX-110, Canon's M30, and Panasonic's TM-55. I have to say, the CX-110 being the cheapest of the bunch, was the best.
Compared to the M30, the picture quality was more realistic for me. The M30 touts it's vibrant picture quality but it was almost too vibrant. The colors seemed a little over-saturated. As for the ease of use, the touch screen on the CX-110 was much easier to navigate than the M30. I found at times that I had to really push down hard on the screen to make it do anything. Whereas the menu items on the CX-110 were easily selected with a tap of the finger. Also, I take a lot of videos of the kids inside the house where low light is an issue. This is where the Sony really blows the M30 away. Though it lacks the little led light (which I found useless unless you're really up close), The CX-110 was still able to produce decent video with minimal grainyness.
As for comparing to the TM-55, it was really close. Both produced good video, easy to navigate, and good in low light. However, the TM-55 got a little too hot, to the point where it became uncomfortable. I also had problems with the white-balance. Even in it's manual mode, I couldn't correct it. Videos had a somewhat orange tinge to it.
This is how I ended up with the CX-110. Alas, all is not perfect. The one thing that I felt the other two camcorders had an edge over the Sony was the image stabilization. The CX-110 has two modes: Active and Standard. Both are relatively the same except the Active will further assist in stabilizing the image when zooming in more. When keeping up with the kids or just plain walking, I found it to be a little more shaky than the other two camcorders. This was the reason for 4 out of 5 star rating.
Couple of other points I'd like to hit on is the battery life. The camera comes with it's lowest capacity battery (NP-VF50) That'll give you a decent 1 1/2 - 2 hrs worth of shoot time. As stated before it's very portable. At 4 1/2 inches long it can fit easily in a shirt pocket. Works well with my imac. Imovie recognizes the camera/sd card immediately.

I usually do not write reviews. However, after I have been looking for a "perfect camcorder" I think this one deserves a review. Note, this is not a perfect camcorder, but Sony got it close enough to make most consumers happy.
About a year ago, I decided to go "high definition" . I decided to get a Canon which has so many features, internal light, internal memory, many adjustments. I realized that all the specifications for almost professional looking movies did not make Canon's picture any better than this Sony one. Canon was bulky, heavier, and had less zoom.
Sony packed a very simple camcorder. No option to plug a microphone, no place for accessories like light, not that many manual adjustments. Just a good picture and a very small body. If you want a good picture, portability and convenience, this is for you.
The features that this camera has are the ones that I am going to use: good zoom, transfers videos to portable hard drive and , YES, I can not only use the memory sticks but also SD cards. Thanks Sony. People would avoid some Sony products because they do not want to buy another type of memory.
My only complain about this camera is that it looks cheap! The plastic with Sony logo looks horrible! Otherwise, it is a good buy.

This is a nice little camcorder. There's not much to dislike about it. Maybe the worst thing is fingerprints on the view screen, which show up even worse when there's sunlight glaring off the screen and it's already hard to see. I'll have to keep a soft cloth in the camera bag.

I like the color, the resolution, the zoom, autofocus works well, sound recording is good. The menus aren't too bad to navigate, and I especially like that you can place the common selections in your own custom menu at the beginning. I can't believe how small this unit is. Playback on a big screen TV is just astounding!

Low light recording is excellent, at least for my needs, around the home in the evening. This should work well on Christmas morning too, I've been recording Christmas mornings with the family for almost 30 years.

Battery life is ok, I seem to get an honest 90 minutes out of mine. I picked up a spare just in case.

I bought a Toshiba camcorder for about 1/2 the price of the CX110 about 2 months ago and regretted it. Spend the money and get the Sony, you'll be glad you did.

A word about some accessory items;

(1)Small camcorder bag: look at the Tamrac 3392 Aero bag. Small, slim, good for a spare battery and SDHC card. Hang on your belt or keep the shoulder strap. Find it and see my review.

(2)Wide angle lens: I got the Sony VCL-0630X wide angle lens for about $37 and am very satisfied. Find it and see my review. I like this lens.

I think my review is less the camera's fault than my expectations of it not being met. However, others may find themselves in a similar position, so I hope my experience will enlighten anyone making the same mistake.

This was my first video camera, and I was expecting similar functionality to my a similarly-priced still camera from 6 years ago -- a Minolta Dimage 7Hi. Specifically this meant some sort of easy manual focusing, and the ability to change settings like f-stop (or its video equivalent), white balance, ISO, etc...

I expected too much and did not research enough, because with this video camera you've got to go through the menu system to attempt any of that. Good luck if you're trying to do it in the sun!

That being said, the video quality is fantastic when it's in focus. I was recently on a camping trip, and did a sweep of the sunset over the Pacific. It's a beautiful shot, but the camera's automatic settings couldn't cope, and the image goes in and out of focus as the autofocus was freaking out.

So, before I ramble on, let me summarize my experience:

Pro's
- Absolutely beautiful video quality in HD
- Zoom is scary-good, but you need a tripod or camera stabilizer to use it at the highest level.
- Extremely small. Front pants-pocket small.

Con's
- No viewfinder, no button-access to camera settings (everything through the LCD menu)
- Menu is hard to see in the sun
- Closing the LCD screen turns off the camera
- Has an "easily breakable" feel to it. Don't ever drop it!
- File format (AVCHD) is a pain to work with.