Don't Waste your money
Written: Jul 16 '00 (Updated Jul 17 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Lightweight, Big LCD Screen than most other
Cons: Blurry pictures, fuzzy video
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| harleyds's Full Review: Sony Handycam® CCD-TRV108 Hi-8 Analog Camcord... |
What a nightmare this camera is! I went on a quick trip to Orlando this weekend with some out of towner friends and able to coax my friend Sony DCR-TRV10 for the trip. For the money he paid for this thing, I could have bought two other cameras that I have tired and fared much better.
While the camera is full of great features, it makes it difficult to use them when you kill the battery after an hour of taping. Luckily, we stayed at a Resort Hotel nearby Universal so I was able to go home and charge it up during lunch and get going again, but what a pain that is. I ended up not using the video taping as a primary method of recording my vacation and resorted to using the digital camera feature. With a 64MB Memory stick loaded I was able to take well over 200 shots.
Sony’s NightShot feature was NOT a disappointment in either daylight or nighttime. When it started getting dark where a flash is needed for still shots, switching over to NightVision was excellent. I was able to see everyone in detail up to about 20-30 feet. After that, I think it was just my eyes that could not focus. The only problem is it can not produce NightShot photos or videos into color. It will only capture in MonoChrome.
Still Picture results
When I got home, my friend helped me transfer my videos and pictures onto my PC and even that was a small project. Many of the pictures came out slightly blurred or not at all. The majority of the still shots that came out “fuzzy” were the long distance shot with either Zoomed or not. The clearest pictures that came out were the close range pictures, mostly of our little group posing in front of various structures like the Universal Studios ride entrances. It’s a good thing we took a lot of pictures for our day trip otherwise we might have only ended up with one or two good shots worth keeping.
Video Results
The video was an even bigger disappointment. The video looked fine on the LCD, but once we were home and looked on the TV, it was a mess. All of the footage was almost smeared like and sometimes “snowy”. I didn’t connect the Sony to my TV via S-Connector mainly because my TV is about 8 years old, however I am able to watch DVD’s and Direct TV movies with excellent clarity. I definitely believe the problem lies within the camera.
Overall
I’m glad I borrowed this and didn’t lay out the cash myself. There was some things I did like about the Sony. It was lightweight compared to others and lugging it around all day was not a chore and even my GF didn’t mind holding it when we walked around. Trust me, if it was even near heavy, she wouldn’t even want to hold it to videotape or take pictures. The LCD screen is fairly larger than most others, my friend told me it is 4.5” viewable, but he wasn’t sure. It was nice being able to view some of our footage while on our trip, but I soon guessed that is why the battery drained so fast.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
harleyds
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Member: David
Location: Sunrise, FL
Reviews written: 39
Trusted by: 33 members
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