Customer Reviews

Sony Handycam HDR-CX500V 32 GB Flash High-Definition Camcorder (Black)

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought this camera last night and am so impressed with it I wanted to post an initial review ASAP since the camera is so new and there are so few reviews out there for it.

To begin, I am new into the HD video, but am a techie and have done a lot of research. My primary objective was to get a camera that took good low light video, so video in my living room with the kids with normal evening lighting looked good. Also important to me was ease of use so my wife can easily grab it and catch the kids and also a small size for ease of carrying to Disney and such.

After doing a lot of research, I initially bought the Panasonic HDC-HS250. One of the popular camcoder web sites claim the new Panasonic cameras with 3 sensors to be the best low light cameras.

Well, I had nothing to compare it against, but I was VERY disappointed in the video taken in my living room with normal incandesant lighting with this Panasonic. I spent about 1 week learning all the camera settings, and no mode or setting improved the low light video. It was fuzzy and grainy with washed out color. Based on the reviews of this CAM being so good at low light, I was beginning to wonder if I just had my expectations to high for this technology, and this was about as good as you get in this range of camera.

I was also not real happy with the outdoor video. While it was mostly good, the greens were far to vivid/bright, and just did not look natural.

I was about ready to settle for this camera, and then this past Sunday I had family in town. After dinner I took a lot of video in the living room of the family. Apon playing it back I was just disgusted in the quality. I then saw the Sunday add for Best Buy which had this new Sony camera which claimed 2X better low light. I searched the internet for reviews, only finding initial reviews with no actual tests since the camera was so new.

I decided to buy the Sony and compare it to the Panasonic. I got the camera home last night and was happy to learn that the charger plugs directly into the camera without removing the battery, so I was able to use the camera immediately (The Panasonic has a goofy system where you have to remove the battery and place in a separate charger, and then you can EITHER charge the battery OR run the camera, not both.).

It still wasn't dark but I took some video and pictures and toyed around with the menu system (I am a man so of course I didn't read the manual!). I found the menu system easy to navigate, with nothing terribly hidden or buried in layers to access. There are some features that I found I will need to read up on, and the MY CAMERA feature very confusing, but I suspect will be very useful after I read up on it and learn how to use it.

I hooked the camera to the HDMI of my 720P TV and was just FLOORED with the quality of the images and video! This is the feeling I hoped to have when I first watched the video from the Panasonic that I never had.

OK, so it is around 7pm, still light out but no direct sun in the house. I have big windows so this presents a tricky backlighting issue for most cameras. The video and picture from this Sony were just a true as life. The camera handled the tricky lighting automatically with no manual backlighting adjustments. I couldn't wait for dark to test the low light but I was really confident that I had a winner here.

While waiting for dark I test the still pics in both video mode and normal camera mode. The pics were FAR superior to the other camera. I just bought a Nikon D5000 SLR, so I have pretty high standards for my pics now, and this camera takes very good pics in either mode. I am not sure if it has a faster shutter mode (probably is) because the pics were a little subject to blurring from movement, but over all they were as good or better then my old Cannon S45 5 MP camera that took some darn good pics.

So now we come to the true test that I have to believe is very important to most average consumers that want to take family video, Low Light.

I was beginning to wonder what the reviewers meant by low light in their reviews. They had all types of fancy tests and terms which I am sure are good BUT please just tell me how the video in my living room at night will look with normal lighting! ! ! ! !

So let me tell you this, this camera capture video in low light as good or better them my normal sight. The video of my daughter playing looked exactly like it did for real in that kind of lighting setting, all without setting a thing. Then there is LOWLUX mode should you need it which takes two taps to set while recording (I think this takes the camera from 60 frames to 30 frames and probably something else too). This setting is for extreme low light and works wonderfully. I even went into the girls room after they were sleeping. The only light was from the hallway light coming threw the doorway. My one daughter was camping in her sisters princess bunk which had hardly any light and I almost didn't even see her there. I videoed her in auto mode and then turned on LOWLUX. It was amazing, I could see better through the camera than with my own eyes. When I played the video back I was surprised to see the my girl fell a sleep with her IPOD headphones on, which I couldn't even see with my own eyes.

So, there is so much more that can be reviewed with these CAMS that I pass on here because I have to get to work. I thought this article would be real important to many who have the same primary need as me and that is what I focused on.

I can also add that Sony has a new 3 way image stabilization technology in this CAM. I did a few zoom tests before it got dark and I can tell you that it also works FAR better than the other CAM.

So in closing, this Camera has FAR surpassed my expectations. It has fabulous low light, great still pics, small and light, great image stabilization, VERY quick startup time, and super easy to use for my wife, with plenty of more advanced gadget settings for me to learn to use. I strongly suggest you spend the money and get this CAM!

I am not a professional videographer and am therefore writing this review from the perspective of an average user. I have owned the camera since the day after it was released and have used it quite a bit. I will also continue to update this review as I spend more time with the camcorder.

Decision to buy
I debated between the Sony HDR-CX500V, Canon VIXIA HFS100 HF S10, and Canon VIXIA HFS10. I chose the Sony model because of its HD image quality and powerful feature-set, including the 3" touch-screen LCD screen, 32GB of on-board flash memory, 12MP still camera shots, dual capture mode (video & 8MP still shots simultaneously), etc. I also wanted a camera that had built-in memory but not in the form of a hard-drive, tape or DVD - I've come to learn the hard way that the fewer the moving parts, the less likely my friends are to turn the device into a snazzy paper-weight. The 3-way shake-cancellation was the icing on the Sony cake.

Size / Comfort / Ergonomics
The camera is very compact, and one might be taken back by its small form factor. The hand strap is quite comfortable, adjustable, and secure. As expected the buttons to record, zoom, and swap between photo / videocamera mode are nicely placed for thumb and forefinger. I wonder, however, if someone with large hands may find the button manipulation a bit awkward - but that may be the case with most newer compact video cameras.

Camera / Image / Sound Quality
- I was impressed by the quality of the video, including the various HD options. Of course Standard Mode didn't look good on my HDTV, but it's nice to know that one can capture movies in lower quality if one is running low on memory. A min-HDMI cable can be used to view footage directly on a HDTV.
- There doesn't appear to be any distortion around the edges of the video footage.
- Low-light performance is spectacularly good, beating my expectations.
- The 12MP shots look crisp and even the 8.3MP pictures while shooting video look quite good. The flash is more powerful than most camcorders I considered.
- I would like to get a wide-screen lens but I'm unsure of which one to pick. Sony VCL-HGA07, Sony VCL-HGE07, or something else. Any recommendations?
- The zoom microphone is good and sensitive enough for home use.

Useful Features
- When I first showed my dad some freehand footage of my neighborhood, he thought I was using a tripod! That is how well the 3-way shake-cancellation feature performs. For novices, the 3-way feature operates in 3-dimensions (up and down, side to side, back and forth) and stabilizes any erratic, staccato movements. This feature becomes much less effective when fully zoomed in.
- The small wireless Remote Control is handy, but there isn't anything exceptional about it compared to other manufacturers.
- Instant start-up upon opening the LCD screen. Flash memory also makes the overall recording process very fast.
- The slow-motion capture allows a few seconds of video capture in, just that, "super slow motion." Makes sense for sporting / high speed events, where a parent can capture a child's new baseball swing or triple lutz in great detail
- "Face / Smile Detection" recognizes faces and even creates an index of faces on the LCD. Clicking on a person's face will take one directly to that person's scene in the video footage. Very nice when kids want to see themselves in a long video!
- "Face Priority" allows the user to prioritize a particular face with respect to focus / exposure. Haven't used it yet so can't comment further.
- GPS retains the geographic coordinates of the location (called "geotagging") where the picture / video was taken, and throws it onto a map viewable on the LCD or on your computer. It still feels a bit gimmicky but it can be quite useful for someone who travels a lot (especially on road-trips) and doesn't want to keep manual tabs on where the shots were taken.
- The Assignable Dial can be used to assign manual controls, and can be maniuplated by the right-hand thumb.
- One-touch disc burn requires a particular Sony DVD burner, which is an added expense.
- Haven't used the accessory shoe yet, but will update this review when I do.

Battery
The battery lasts about 90 minutes during continuous video capture from my experience, but this is, of course, dependent on all the features being used.

Software
The accompanying Picture Bridge software was quick and easy to install. It's not very useful beyond its most basic purpose - (1) to transfer content from camera to computer and (2) to convert video from AVCHD format (a compressed high def format that is Blu-ray compatible and has "m2ts" file extension) to more consumer-friendly formats like MPEG. Third-party video editing sofware (like Sony Vegas, Adobe Premiere, etc.) will be for anything fancier. If I were a Sony Marketing exec, I would have included a trial version of Sony Vegas in the box (to perpetuate the media brand synergy) instead of peddling unessential advertising materials. Silly.

Instruction Manual
The instruction manual is small but detailed, and can get the user up to speed very quickly. Even videocamera newbies will feel at ease after reading through 10 quick pages.

Other
- The camera's menu navigation isn't completely intuitive but it isn't nerve-wracking either.
- LCD screen icons are meaningful and can be turned off too.
- The touch-screen is not as sensitive as I would have liked, but it may be designed that way to reduce accidental touching of the LCD. Hence not a con.
- Night-vision is eerie but effective.
- The camera shell feels luxurious - nothing cheap about it.
- The dark gray gun-metal look is very attractive.
- The Sony HDR-CX520V Camcorder is identical to the CX500V with the exception of more memory - it has 64GB compared to 32GB for this model. For $100 - $200 more, it may be worth it to some.

Cons
- No viewfinder but I can live without it.
- Sony's Memory Cards can be quite pricey relative to the SD cards used in Canon video cameras. But as long as one keeps moving content off the camcorder and re-using the flash memory, it should not be an issue.
- Sony could have thrown in a basic camera case or a bloody Mini-HDMI cable for goodwill given the high price of this camera. Fret not though as there is a perfectly good cable on Amazon at a very fair price: Mediabridge HDMI to Mini-HDMI 10ft cable
- Sony Picture Bridge software isn't great, but I think it's better than Canon's Pixela suite. The process of transfering content to a computer still feels a bit cumbersome.
- LCD Screen stays on during content transfer (via included mini-USB), which is a waste of energy in my view.
- The operation tones used in the camera can either be on full-volume or switched off completely. Does anyone know how to manipulate its volume?

Summary
The Sony HDR-CX500V video camera is a fine piece of work from Sony, and aside from the small set of cons, I would recommend this product to anyone looking for a solid family and "prosumer" video camera. Have I mentioned that I love it?

Length:: 3:54 Mins

When shooting indoor family/people scenes, the CX500V delivers an impressive quality of video that I was never able to achieve with my previous HD camcorders. Gone is the orange-tinted graininess. In its place is an output that is smooth, well exposed, and exhibits a nice color balance. Yea!

Outdoor video results are also excellent but probably no better than the other current technology HD camcorders out there.

An unexpected bonus on the CX500V is the stabilization. It dampens ordinary handheld movements to such a degree that they are almost no longer a distraction factor. For "action" shooting it is amazing. For example, I recently shot some one-handed videos of my nephew "roller skiing" while riding alongside him on a bicycle (I know this sounds stupidly dangerous, but it was in a controlled area). The resulting video was so smooth it looked like the camera was on rails. Kudos to Sony engineers on this feature.

Here's my Pro/Con list...

Pro:
- superb low light/indoor performance
- ready to record almost instantly after flipping open the screen.
- amazing stabilization
- superb low light/indoor performance
- fully integrates with Sony DVD Direct units. I have an earlier VRD-MC5 that worked well with older, non-AVCHD formats. I plan to upgrade to the VRD-MC6 or VRD-MC10 for AVCHD compatibility.
- very good battery life with the standard (included) battery. Will probably buy a generic brand spare as a back-up.
- superb low light/indoor performance
- face detection... it really works well. Assures a nice exposure and crisp focus on the faces. Also, I get a kick out of seeing the little squares move around the screen while shooting.
- did I mention superb low light/indoor performance? :)

Con:
- the input timer on some touch-screen menu features (example: scroll) reverts too quickly for my taste. I wish this lag was user adjustable for slower brains and reflexes.
- Memory Sticks are the Betamax of flash memory. Come on Sony, just adapt SDHC so your customers only have to buy one type of memory for all their gadgets.
- I wish this had a headphone audio jack for playback listening or monitoring recording.
- the customizable roller wheel is on the left side of the battery making one-handed thumb adjustments impossible (unless you have a prehensile thumb).

In summary, the CX500V is a wonderful unit and its low light capabilities are best in class. I am very pleased with mine and would recommend it to others.

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Note: The "Nite Ize" Backbone case, model BB-20, ($19), fits the CX500V like a glove. See my video review for details on this case. It's available here on Amazon.

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UPDATE (November 29, 2009)
Purchased a Sony NP-FH70 battery to augment the supplied battery. Physically the same size as the supplied battery but with twice the life (4 hours vs. 2 hours).

I spent a ton of time shopping for an HD camcorder. In the end, I selected this one for its low light performance and great image stabilization.

Low light performance and good high bandwidth compression were key for me, because I wanted to make sure I could film my children's martial arts competition. On that, the camera delivers; the images are well lit with very little noise down to pretty dark settings, and if properly filmed (tripod, good panning technique) show no motion artifacts.

The image stabilization is amazing. I hand-held the camera today filming my 7 year old's first ski lesson, and the video is better than watchable -- it looks as if I had a monopod.

All that being said, the image is not as sharp as the Canon Vixia camcorders provide. I'm also disappointed with the lack of features. Zebra stripes would have been nice (although the camera does a good job and you can tweak as needed). Also, a camcorder in this range really should have 1080/24, no?

Of course, the videos are huge; I have two dedicated 1Tb drives for video (one is an identical copy of the other for backup). And they require lots of CPU power. I edit my videos on a Mac. I do my quick and dirty editing in iMovie (yes, it can be done in full HD; check out: [OK, for some reason Amazon removed the web link I had in here, even though it was not for a competitor or any kind of self promotion. If you want to find out how to generate top quality HD video out of iMovie, go to your favorite search engine and look for "David Glover" "Creating Higher Quality HD Video with iMovie '09"]) and my more serious editing in Final Cut. I burn ACHD DVDs using Toast Titanium and play them on a Blu-Ray player on my 60" plasma and they look brilliant. It's disappointing my AppleTV does not support 1080i60, but that's Apple for you (and that's coming from a die-hard Apple fan who loves Final Cut).

I also got a Sony VRD-MC6, which does a great job of getting me archive DVDs and AVCHD DVDs in a hurry (raw video).

So, if you consistently use a tripod and shoot well lit video, get a Vixia HFS100 or something like it. If you frequently shoot freehand and in less than optimal light, get this camera. They are each different trade-offs, and this one works for me, but it's not perfect.

The other reviews have covered the features in great detail, so I'll just list my likes and dislikes:

Like:
- power on when screen is opened; why doesn't everyone have this? Great feature.
- touch screen (I seem to be able to take a steadier movie when using controls on the touch screen vs. actually moving the finger of my right hand to reach the zoom or start/stop recording button.)
- steadyshot REALLY works well.
- nightshot is an interesting feature. Movies look like they were shot through night-vision goggles, but it is possible to film in total darkness with this feature.
- spot metering and focus by touching the intended area on the screen.
- customizable menu screen.

Dislike:
- short battery life with included battery. I sprung for an NP-FH70 and external charger when I ordered the camera, and I've already used it extensively.
- no included HDMI cable. I bought one from Amazon with the camera, but it was defective. I ended up spending 3x as much at Best Buy for another one. Sony should include one with the camera.
- no aperture priority or some of the other customizable modes offered by the competition. (For me, this is more than offset by the superior steadyshot and low-light performance.)

I bought a Canon FS100 (a non-HD camcorder) at the same time in order to compare. There really is no comparison between the two; the FS100 felt more like a toy, and the image quality - especially in low light - was almost painful to look at after using the Sony. I shot several clips inside the house at night with only normal room lighting; the difference between the two is really noticeable in those situations. The FS100 shots were grainy and noisy, while the CX500V produced movies that looked like you were standing in the room.

If you're on the fence wondering if HD is worth the extra cost, my experience says that it is.

My daughter got this camera a few days before Christmas. I put it through the paces since for many years my hobby was photography.

This is near perfect for a camcorder. Everything about it amazes me. It is very small and lightweight. The biggest plus is that it takes excellent indoor movies and stills without additional light. What you see with your naked eye, after ten minutes adjusting your eyes to room light, this camera will reproduce. I've never seen that before... especially with vivid colors. It does tend to lean a little on the yellow side in very low light, but that is very low light. We have incandescent, low energy fluorescent and LED lighting in the house. Actually we are moving very much into the newer low energy LED lighting (btw, isn't really ready for prime time yet for reliability) and maybe 70% LED indoor lighting.

You really need to think how you are going to use a camcorder. While beautiful photos of mountains, sunsets and the beach are breathtaking, the truth is that most of us want to capture moments indoors in our own home. And most likely of other people and pets. This camera does that very, very well.

Zoom works great but I wish it had a little wider angle lens. However, there is an adapter, I think made by Sony, that allows for wider angle (thinking the purchase info came with the paperwork).

My first outside images were at night of the Christmas lights in the neighborhood. I will say that I was able to take better images than I could see with my own eyes... and 'much' better images than the camera's own LCD display. What looked washed out by a major 1,500 lighted tree, gave a very nice view of how it looked naturally at night. And likewise the house with only a runner of single colored lights around the front yard, gave off enough lights to see the outline of the street, driveway and parts of the house.

And we were lucky enough to have a white Christmas... very white... some 4 foot drifts, so I got videos of my two grandsons making a snowman. Again, excellent images of bright white snow and cold red faced kids.

Unless you've been using this camera diligently for a few months, I doubt if you (including me) can give a good review of all the features, since there are so many. I've played with the night vision at length. This is a special feature and not in any way related to the indoor low lighting. It gives the typical police video green image. And yes, it sees things you don't see with your naked eye.

The GPS is a little extra toy, but I can see how it can be real helpful. Hopefully there is a standard where the data that is embedded into the video many be viewed many years later, pulling up the exact location of the shoot. Great-great-great-grandpa shot that little segment in Hawaii instead of Florida, for instance. And it is no different than your car GPS... the birds in the sky has to see you before it will update the location, so inside will not grab the location unless you have been outside for it to pick up 3 satellites previously.

Stills... this is very impressive. They are simply great. And yes, there is a flash with it. You can set the flash up for short and long distance. You might really have a hard argument taking this camera along with a still camera on vacation. This will do still shots very well... as well as most consumer still cameras in the 12 megapixel range.

Quick Positive Points:
Feels good; Controls are placed where they should be placed. Push a button on the top for a quick single snapshot and click another button nearby to go from moving to still pictures. Excellent motion and jitter control. Easily controlled 'slow' zoom or 'fast' zoom. Battery in the right location to add a bigger long capacity battery without changing the feel for the camera. It detects smiles well... got three faces squared in a split second during a pan. Large amount of internal memory... about 9 hours worth, I believe.

Cons:

Yes, there has to be some. With the above paragraph in mind, there is a "red eye" feature. It doesn't work well in my opinion. As always, if you're going to take stills even with a flash it's better to turn on as many lights as you can to keep the subject's pupils as small as possible. Their concept of redeye reduction is a little spazzy (is that a word?) as they do something like a triple flash to get those pupils contracted. It didn't work well for me at all and in my opinion, not worth setting it due to the distraction of the multiple flashes. IOW, clean up the red eye in editing that most software does pretty well today.

I agree with others... you will be using your finger "nail" to select things on the screen instead of your finger. And also the menus that you use most is not laid out very well, but in Sony's defense they do have a "my settings" so you can customize what you use most.

I'll also chime in with the rest about missing the HDMI cable... shame on your Sony... this is a $1K "High-Definition" camera. I would at least like to have seen them throw in an adapter for the miniature HDMI to standard size (which most have already connected to their existing equipment).

I personally didn't like the remote control. At least for viewing since you had to have it pointed directly at the camera or it wouldn't work. It's better to be above the camera pointing the remote in a downward direction to have each button respond as expected.

The final obvious negative that is inherent in this type of purchase. It's actually a question... can you go on vacation with a thousand dollar camera and not let its loss or theft be a concern? I have mixed feelings... bring a cheap-o on vacation and have bad photos, bring an expensive one with you and worry about it, or leave both at home and take in all the sights without digital memories. So far I've had two cameras stolen and a one very expensive Nikon telephoto lens over my lifetime so maybe I'm an anomaly.

Final thoughts. My daughter paid $899 at another place because Amazon was selling it for $999. Amazon recently went up on price right before Christmas. Interesting enough, most other retailers did the same thing. Best Buy had it at Amazons current price of $799 for their Black Friday, but most stayed around $999 until after Christmas. Maybe all high end cameras were going up and down during the holidays this year.

This is my third HD AVCHD Flash memory camcorder I have owned in the last two years and am very pleased with it. While this unit's video is not quite as crisp and vivid in color/clarity as the Canon and Panasonic units (95% as good), it more than makes up for it in image stabilization and low light performance which is second to none. I found that much of the footage taken with the Canon was unusable and difficult to watch due to the jerkiness of the video while panning or walking. HD camcorders seem to magnify any camera shake and exacerbate movement which the Canon does little to eliminate with it's stabilizer. The controls are a little limiting but I have found that leaving this unit on full auto will produce fabulous images you will cherish. Anyway, buy this camera if you want great usable (on the go) video or buy the Canon/Panasonic if you use a tripod most of the time.

The price is certainly right. I have owned several AVDHD flash-based HD camcorders - the CX500V has the best low-light performance, reasonable stills, smaller than most and way cheaper. Comparing this to my trusted Panasonic SD1, the CX500V was clearly better in low light, could shoot stills while filming, better macro, wonderful niteshot, and had built in 32Gb with fast USB xfer to a PC. Not usually mentioned, the xfer over the USB is much faster to my PC than transferring video from the SD! which uses removable SD cards. Finally, the steadyshot is the best I have ever seen - wow.

I had issues with the confusing and cramped touch screen nest of menus, and like the Sony touch screen cameras like my TX1, you often have to touch the button several times to register a hit. Way bad - not cool, Sony! Better than the infamous T500 touch screen camera but NO way near as sensitive as an iPhone for example. The fade-in and out was not easy to find - should be a dedicated button. Touching the screen of course jiggles the video - gRRRRR.

So, would I buy this again? Surely, the price is great for what you get. Would I love to change some key issues for me? Yes - see above.

Most noticeable the camera has no mechanical buttons around the display. Other than a half dozen buttons for 'record', 'zoom', etc, all input is with soft buttons on the LCD panel.
Easy to use, odd getting distortion when pressing the display.
Camera quality is better than the 7.3mp VC3 I upgraded from.
1080 video is very nice, made much better by the optical shake cancelling, on top of the standard signal processing SteadyShot.
Easy to transfer videos and pictures off.
You'll need Premier or Final Cut to really work with the video.

This is the last video/still camera that I will have to ever purchase. I am a Dad of 5 with an RV and go to Disney every other year for the past 20 yrs. I always had to take 2 cameras - one for video and then one for still. I started out with a VHS camera - 2 models - then went to 8MM - two models - and then MiniDV which was a combo video & still. (all sony) This was the best yet but I started to transfer the tape to DVD for long life. I put off buying a new camera - did not buy the DVD or HardDrive camera. Then this came along.

It is perfect but: As the above video cameras had a storage item (tape or film) the memory card camera needs for you to transfer the data to the computer or DVD ASAP. This is fine but you need to be a computer person to understand the process. The camera comes with fine Sony software to do this but TAKE A DAY to understand on how you will categorize everything and then put them on DVD with the proper labels otherwise you will have a mess with dates and not real names of events. Create your disks ASAP once you put them on the computer or do not take them off the camera until you so as you do not have a back up. I created different files (In Windows) for video and pictures by month or event for easy DVD transfer - do this or it will be a mess. Do a test with the transfer labeling first. You can add photos to CD until the CD is full but you cannot add more data to the DVD - FYI. I use CD media for Pictures and DVD for the video. Take an hour and go through the whole camera menu to understand the unit - increase the speed of the video for better quality. Use the video for video and the still for still - it changes the size of the still. Use Red Eye. Buy a small bag ASAP.

That is it but this is the last camera most people will ever need to buy.

Specs FYI: Perfect HD quality (amazing) - still and video. Battery lasts 1.5 hours. Camera storage is at 10 hours of video. 2500 pictures. I do not think you will ever need the 64GB. I did not get a memory card either.

Good Luck.