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Review Summary
2010-11-09T19:00:00
What I Like: The Stabilizer is very effective. The memory is enough to record 4 hours full HD. The slow motion option is very useful, but is recorded at lower quality, and only for 3 seconds. It has Manual WB and focus. It records Full HD BUT is very compressed. The low light performance is good, BUT the camera use up to 18 db Gain automatically. The camera has no moving parts and will last forever. It has night shot. What I dislike: The Manual exposure is a mixture between auto Iris, auto SS and auto Gain. It is not really Manual exposure. I feel that the camera is missing an optical ND filter. If you register this camera on the Sony SA website, you will not find this camera in the list. AVCHD is very compressed. Too expensive. What I want: Manual Iris Manual SS Manual gain Kelvin control for WB A Long life battery as standard. A higher bit rate with more memory. Manual sound Gain and mic input. Switchable modes between PAL and NTSC. A Wider lens. Why did I buy this Camera? I want to use it on a 35mm adapter. I though that is had Manual Iris, SS and gain. It will last forever. I got R 1000 discount because it was the last one.
Rainerfilm

2010-08-05T20:00:00
I bought this camera on Ebay brand new and have had for 5 months now. SOOOO nice! I had someone record my wedding in BLU RAY format and can watch it right on my Playstation 3! I also took it to Hawaii on my Honeymoon and the video quality is AMAZING! also, the 12MP picture quality is like nothing I have ever seen before. The focus sometimes was a littly screwy but if you auto focus a couple times and have some patience you will get an amazing quality shot EVERYTIME! I LOVE Sony and every product they release. I swear by Sony. I will recommend them til I am in my grave! Here is a sample pic of what the camera can do in low lit situations...its a pic of a duck nested next to a building in a nearby town where I live in NY. Buy this camera.....you wont need another for YEARS to come!
DJDubYa

2010-04-17T20:00:00
This thing is just awesome, video rec. and playback are superb in low light, even on your tv. You know your shooting in HD, pic quality is the best I've ever seen. I have pleanty assories which make it the ultimate camera. you will be amazed at all the features and quality of this camera. Maybe the last one you'll ever need at least for 7 or 8 years till they think something else up.
stereo949

2010-01-20T19:00:00
I bought this one after I another Sony HD which was a disaster under low light. On this one, the vedio looks good on playback mode on the LCD, when I hooked it up to HD TV. the lowlight problem came up. I adjusted the TV color etc ... still not satisfied. I do not think people who make these things understand why I wanted to buy the produst. It is to record my childern's growth at HOME. Make it work in low light.
Jagger

2010-01-03T19:00:00
This is THE best camcorder you can buy right now. It is first off compact and easy to handle and the picture is unreal. Crystal clear HD images and numerous gadgets on this thing make it the best. The only camcorder with nightvision and GPS and it is simply awesome! Hook this up to an HD TV or download images to a computer or the Sony HD Recorder and is is a snap. And yes it works great on iMovie on Imac.
mattliptak

2009-12-27T19:00:00
Hopefully a firmware upgrade would be made for these better cams from Sony. Perhaps a better menu system could be pushed out in this manner soon???
clr4tkf

2009-12-21T19:00:00
I am so happy with this camera. Awesome purchase! This camcorder fits perfectly in your hand. It is so light and with better quality image than its predecessors. My previous camera was a Sony HDR-SR11, here is a comparison The CX500V is: -Smaller and less bulky. It is easy to carry when going on vacation. This means less missed memories due to not carrying the camera due to the size. -Picture quality is improved. Big difference in low light condition. -Less noisy -It is easier to turn on. Just flip open. -Faster response when turned on since there is no hard drive. -HDR was more fragile because of the memory card and not a hard drive. -Bigger LCD Here are the cons: The only thing I really miss is the adaptor that made the connection with the computer so easily. Now I have to plug the AC adaptor and the USB cable separately. If you can afford it, go ahead. Make it yours!!!
Karlthereviewer

2009-12-08T19:00:00
This is the first camcorder I've ever had in my life. I bought this camcorder from Sony Style to take movies of my grandchildren and family, my reef fish tank and my guitar playing. I want to post them on You Tube. I have not been disappointed so far. By the way the Sony Style store matches the prices of any Camera store or big store like Best Buy, Compusa, Walmart etc, not online only stores that don't have a brick and morter building which is fair. It took a little detective work but I found a 2 stores in NYC that are on the web, B&H and J&R, Sony will match their prices just bring in a printout. I will admit I've only have the camcorder one week so far so I've been taking my time reading the manual which I got online at retrevo.com so it's easier to read. The manual is a little tricky because it bounces around but after a while I'm getting there. The sound on the cx500v is very good. The indoor movies are great and I haven't made any adjustments since I don't know better anyway. I will say that by going to avsforum.com for many weeks in advance it helped prepare me a lot. One little thing is the start/stop button for recording is tough to touch without shaking the camcorder. Sony added another way by having a red box on the left corner of the LCD to push without shaking the cam. Also I noticed the zoom in and out is also on the screen and zooms at a nicer pace to keep the focusing in tack. I bought an external hard drive for storage and I bought the Sony Vegas software for editing that I haven't received yet. Adjusting to your finger grip takes a while to get used to because the cam is so small. I was considering the XR500V because of that reason but with the ability to start and stop recording and the zoom right there it makes it a snap. Also when holding the LCD with your left hand you steady the cam better. So far so good, very impressive. A five star camcorder in my eyes.
Marlinman

2009-10-26T20:00:00
Flash memory camcordia is more reliable than hard disk recorder, as the storage system is more resistant to shock!
andremac

2009-10-03T20:00:00
This camera is small compact, and feature packed. There will be people who will claim that there isn't enough internal memory for filming. Unless you don't download or create the DVD video of what you are filming, then there is never enough memory. Easy to use, and the image stability is awesome. Full zoom on people and objects keeps image very stable. Great job Sony.
DVSD3873

2009-09-11T20:00:00
Outstanding low light performance and amazing shake reduction technology. If you need a high-end flash camcorder, this is the one! I returned my Canon Vixia HFS100 because this Sony is much better quality and value for the money!
VicI

2009-08-29T20:00:00
Sony has outdone themselves - this camcorder solves the 2 biggest issues - low light and stable image. You can walk around with this camera and it is like you are on roller skates - panning also seems much smoother - not jumpy. Low light is unreal - blacks are black - not washed out gray with noise. There is literally no noise with this thing. Smileshutter is cool but not always dead on. Size and weight ideal - fits in pocket but not so small and light that you lose control - no moving parts. Lens is tack sharp - bokeh is much improved over the older aperture blade configurations. Best new purchase in a long time - nothing ruins videos more than shaky hands and low light and this solves it. Kudos to Sony!
infousa

HD: MPEG4 AVC/H.264; SD: MPEG2
HD: 1920x1080/60i; SD: NTSC color, EIA standards
Yes
Yes
Auto
Memory Stick PRO Duo Media
Yes
1/2.88" "Exmor R" CMOS sensor
BIONZimage processor
6631K
3.0" wide touch panel Clear Photo Plus LCD display (230k pixels)
4150K Pixels (16:9), 3110K Pixels (4:3)
1920 x 1080
4500K Pixels (16:9), 6000K Pixels (4:3)
12 megapixel
32GB Non-Removable Flash memory; Memory Stick PRO DuoMedia (Sold Separately)
32GB Flash: High Definition (5.1ch): FH = up to 225 min., HQ = up to 455 min. SP = up to 575 min., LP = up to 740 min. Standard Definition (5.1ch): HQ = up to 460 min., SP = up to 680 min., LP = up to 1300 min.
InfoLITHIUM with AccuPowerMeter System (NP-FH60)
7.2V (battery pack); 8.4V (AC Adaptor)
3.6W
Yes
Dolby Digital 5.1
Built-in Zoom Microphone
Yes
Optical SteadyShotw/ Active Mode and 3-way Shake Cancellation
Yes
Yes
Power on by LCD
Yes
8.3 megapixel
JPEG
Yes
Auto, Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Sunrise & Sunset, Fireworks, Landscape, Portrait, Spotlight, Beach, Snow
Video / S Video / Audio / Component Out / Remote
Included (via A/V Remote Terminal)
HDMI
Hi-speed (2.0 compliant)
Supplied (via A/V Remote jack)
Yes (mini)
No
No
Sold separately (via A/V Remote jack)
Yes
G Lens
43 - 516mm (16:9), 52 - 624mm (4:3)
F1.8-3.4
150x
37mm
5.5 - 66.0mm
Full range Auto / Manual (Touch Panel)
Scene Selection, 1/8-1/725; STD, 1/60-1/725
STD, 11 lux (1/60 Shutter Speed); LOW LUX, 3 lux (Auto Slow Shutter ON, 1/30 Shutter Speed)
12x
Yes (Touch Panel)
12 megapixel still
NightShot
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Black, White
No
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
w/o battery: 13oz (370g), w/ battery: 1lb 0oz (450g)
2 1/2 x 2 5/8 x 5 3/8 inch (62 x 65 x 133mm)
Yes (Active Interface Shoe)
PMB Ver.4.2.14 Supported by Windows 2000 Professional Service Pack4 (SP4), Windows XP Service Pack3 (SP3)(32bit) Windows Vista Service Pack1 (SP1)(32bit). Not supported by Mac OS
Sony 1 year parts & 90 days labor limited warranty
The Sony HDR-CX500V 32GB Handycam Camcorder allows to shoot gorgeous 1920 x 1080 high-definition video and 12.0 megapixel still images. Boasting 32GB of embedded flash memory, the HDR-CX500V Handycam camcorder is outfitted with a professional-quality Sony G lens and a new, larger Exmor RCMOS image sensor for superior low-light performance.
This fully-loaded camcorder also features GPS capabilities, Face Detection with Face Touch and Smile Shutter technology. Plus, Optical SteadyShot image stabilization with Active Mode compensates for greater degrees of camera shake and provides a stunning level of image smoothness while 3-Way Shake-Canceling adds electronic roll stability for even smoother video capture