Customer Reviews

Sony VCL-HGE07TB Wide-End Conversion Lens for HDR-TG5V Camcorder with Quick Attach

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have the TG1 and my only real complaint was the lack of a wide angle attachment. I was excited about the announcement of this lens, but it's actually for the TG5/TG7 and I wasn't sure if it would fit the TG1. Then I ran across Techmoan's blog and he confirmed that it does fit. I just received it and I'm really impressed. It looks great! It just slides on, but it's a very snug fit. You don't have to worry about it falling off accidentally. It even comes with a dark brown leatherette case, which is just slightly darker than the normal case but still coordinates well. The only negative is that if I have the wide angle attachment on and I try to zoom, it gets to a certain point and then the camera can't seem to focus. But, I had the same problem with wide angle lenses on my CX7 as well. For me, this isn't a real issue because in situations where I need to use the wide-angle attachment, I won't be zooming in anyway. Yes, it means I can't leave it permanently attached, but it won't fit into it's normal case with the lens on anyway and at least it came with a pretty stylin' case for the lens too. Obviously, you can't use the flash with the wide angle lens on, but this wasn't a big deal for me. I'm just happy that I have a wide angle lens to use when I need it!

The lens was as advertised. Increases the ability to take close wide shots using the TG5V and TG1 handycams, (fits both). Easy to snap on and remove. Slides in the grove just behind the built in lens housing. Camera does not stay in focus when you zoom out more than 50%+- so you have to plan to only shoot close while the lens is on. But for close-ups. it is a must have for these cameras. This should really be included with the camera if you ask me.

I bought this at the same time I bought the Sony HDR-TG5V video camera. All video camera manufacturers seem fixated on zoom range and pay no attention to the performance at the wide end where I'll wager 75% of family moments are captured. I expected the same with the TG5V and boy was I right. It's field of view is narrower than some larger cameras. If you want to take shots indoors of say a kids birthday party in a 15 x 18 ft dining room, you'll want this lens. If you want to get a group shot of 15 - 20 coworkers at a company outing, you'll want this lens. Or, you can back up about 100 ft.

The lens comes in a stylish brown leather case that matches the case for the HDR-TG5V. The lens case velcros onto the camera handstrap and the lens itself has a leash that also attaches to the camera strap in case you want to pop it off fast and let it dangle while you capture a zoom shot. The whole system is very well engineered by Sony.

There's minimal distortion and what little there is seems an acceptable tradeoff in return for shots you wouldn't otherwise be able to capture.

This is one of the best quality converters I've used.
There's very little barrel distortion and no discernible increase in chromatic aberration.
The inability to zoom in very far with the lens on doesn't bother me as I'm always at wide angle anyway.
My only wish is that it could be more permanently attached to the camera.

While it is very nice to have a wider angle, the biggest limitation is that the design of this lens makes it incompatible with the flash. The lens sits right in front of the flash, which of course reflects back into the camera giving a snowed out image. This would not be such a bad thing except the camera does not autosense when the lens is on. Even after adding the conversion lens function to the my menu shortcut, it still takes 4 steps to turn on and off the conversion function. The lens works ok in regular mode in good lighting, and the main function of turning on the conversion seems to be to disable the flash. The other aspect is that things will not focus if you try to zoom. Thus this lens has very limited utility to videotaping in good lighting something that you do not need to zoom. On the plus side, it does have a nice little case with strap to attach to the camera so that it does not get dropped or lost. I found the velcro clip works better when fastened to the larger loop of the wrist strap, as it interferes with placement in the charger stand if clipped to the small thin loop as illustrated in the directions. To summarize, for the cost and the elegance of the main camera, I would have expected a better design that is compatible with flash for those group photos indoors or at dusk.