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First Look: Sony HVR Series

Jan 1, 2008 12:00 PM, By D.W. Leitner

Sony expands its HDV family with three new camcorders and a deck.

              

HVR-S270U with attached HVR-MRC1 Memory Recording Unit.

I typically do not describe new products by the batch, but what choice am I given when Sony simultaneously introduces three HDV camcorders and a deck, each with unprecedented attributes or capabilities? As if it were April in Las Vegas instead of November in New York?

I'm going to detail these items below, but the take-away is this: 1) the HVR-HD1000U is a shoulder-mount HDV camcorder — Sony's first — that's also well less than $2,000; 2) the Handycam-style HVR-Z7U elevates the best features of the HVR-Z1U into a new design that brings interchangeable lenses, hybrid tape/CompactFlash (CF) recording, and sensitivity matching Sony's benchmark PD150/170 series; 3) the HVR-S270U is a shoulder-mount version of the Z7; and 4) the HVR-M35U is an HDV deck with native progressive recording that also plays back Canon's 30/24F and, with limitations, JVC's 720/24p.

As of this writing, the HD1000 is available (see Jan Ozer's review), and the Z7, S270, and M35 will arrive in February. Note that these three HDV camcorders are joining Sony's existing Z1, HVR-A1U, and HVR-V1U lines, not replacing them.

(Regarding nomenclature: HVR stands for high-definition video recorder, and U means U.S. market.)

The entry-level HD1000 (MSRP $1,900, $1,600 at B&H Video) announced in August is based on the tiny single-CMOS consumer HDR-HC7 ($1,400 MSRP), which debuted last January at CES. (If you'll recall, the HC7 replaced the single-CMOS HDR-HC3, which in turn replaced the single-CMOS HDR-HC1 — still the basis of the professional A1.)

Specs shared with the HC7 include a single 1/2.9in., 2.28-megapixel (effective) ClearVid CMOS sensor — ClearVid, introduced in the V1, is Sony's unique CMOS architecture with pixels rotated 45 degrees for interpolated 1920×1080, low aliasing, and better sensitivity — a 123,000-pixel 16:9 color viewfinder; a 2.7in. 16:9 LCD; and a 5.4mm-54mm (10X) Carl Zeiss zoom with optical stabilization (slightly longer than the 5.1mm-51mm found in the HC1/A1, HC3, and HC5). Also carried over from the HC7 are Super Night Shot for infrared shooting and Smooth Slow Rec for genuinely overcranked (but lower-res) slo-mo.

Seemingly taking a cue from the Z1, the LCD screen is located at eye level and at the forefront of the HD1000 — in this case, atop the viewfinder — as opposed to the camcorder's midsection or rear. This novel configuration, which Sony calls “Dual Finder,” is virtually mandated, however, by the fact that the HD1000's LCD, like that of the HC7, is by necessity a touchscreen. Like the diminutive HC7, the HD1000 has only four buttons — Manual, Night Shot on/off, Back Light, and Batt Info — and all other menu selections are accessed by touchscreen. When the HD1000 is on the shoulder and in use, the touchscreen must be easily available to the operator.

I suppose such button minimalism creates a uniquely sleek and uncluttered look for the HD1000. At least as an alternative to focus control, the lens' camera control ring can also be programmed to control zoom, iris/gain, shutter speed, and other functions.

As with the HC7, only DV or 1080i are possible. No DVCAM. No 24p or 30p (although the ClearVid CMOS is intrinsically progressive). Only MiniDV cassettes are useable — no standard DV cassettes — despite the larger shoulder-mount body. Inputs and outputs match those of the HC7, too. There's HDMI and IEEE 1394 (both will output downconverted SD) but no balanced audio. In other words, no XLR inputs, only a stereo mini-jack for the supplied shotgun stereo mic. This will be a deal breaker for many. Thankfully, there is a headphone jack.

If you already own a Z1 or V1, hold off on extra batteries. The HD1000 uses the same InfoLithium L series batteries (NP-F570/F770/F970). A fat F970 will run this puppy for 10.5 hours, per Sony.

This is the same battery line for the remarkable handheld Z7 — which is about all the Z7 shares with the HD1000. Imagine a Z1 with interchangeable lenses — a first for any camcorder held in one hand — and true 24p. Now add three 1/3in. ClearVid CMOS sensors (the V1 uses 1/4in. ClearVids) to make the Z7 as sensitive to light as a DSR-PD150 or DSR-PD170, a stunning high-res color viewfinder and LCD, better ergonomics than the friendly Z1 (and way better than the Z7's cousin, the recently released PMW-EX1 XDCAM EX). And that's just for starters.

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