| | |  | Camcorders | Home » » » Sony HDR-HC7 6.1MP MiniDV High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom | | | | | | | Description: | | Sony's HDR-HC7 High Definition Handycam(R) Camcorder places the pinnacle of high definition in your hands. It's never been easier to capture the highest quality, high definition video possible on a MiniDV cassette. View the world through a professional grade Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T Lens with 10x optical/20x digital zoom and a 1/2.9" ClearVid CMOS Sensor. Take command of your pictures as you manually control focus, exposure, shutter speed, auto exposure shift and white balance shift. View everything you shoot on the 2.7" Touch Panel Swivel Screen. Super SteadyShot(R) technology and the Super NightShot(R) feature will help you capture videos you'll want to share with the world. 2.7 widescreen 16 - 9 hybrid LCD touch panel -- rotates up to 270 degrees for multiple viewing angles Smooth Slow Record - Increase the frame rate from 60fps to 240fps, capturing smooth slow motion Super SteadyShot(R) compensates for camera shake without compromising picture quality Record an audio track to narrate what is being seen in the video Cinematic Mode adds a frame film-like effect to video -- perfect for creating home movie masterpieces Tele Macro Function handles close-ups without casting a shadow on your subject One-touch wide angle shooting; manual focus; on screen zoom & record buttons Dual Recording - While you record high definition video, you can also capture 2.3 Megapixel still images directly to a Memory Stick(R) Duo (up to 2304 x 1728 resolution) i.LINK (IEEE1394) interface for easy connection to camcorders, digital VTRs, capture cards and PCs Built-in intelligent flash InfoLithium battery with AccuPower(TM) Meter System Manual focus Multilanguage menu Measurements - 3-1/4 x 3-1/4 x 5-1/2 (82 x 82 x 138mm) Weight - 1 lb. 6 oz. (650g) with tape & battery | | | Features: | |
• 3-megapixel ClearVid CMOS sensor; choose between HD & DV recording formats
• 6.1-megapixel still image capture; Super SteadyShot image stabilization
• 2.7-inch widescreen Clear Photo LCD Plus
• Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T lens; 10x optical zoom/20x digital zoom
• Memory Stick Duo media slot
| | | Product Details: | | | Package Length:
| 8.6 inches | | Package Width:
| 6.9 inches | | Package Height:
| 5.2 inches | | Package Weight:
| 3.4 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 49 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
 ( 49 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
86 of 90 found the following review helpful:
 Excellent for amateur like me -much like an upgraded HC90Mar 11, 2007
By Thomas Gull
"Tom Gull"
This just arrived Thursday so these comments come with minimal time on camera so far. I am also absolutely an amateur user of camcorders so I won't be able to comment on the quality of the manual controls, etc.
I agree closely with the other two reviews so I won't repeat their details. I'll try to hit a few other topics and also compare the HC7 to the Sony HC90, an earlier model that took 16:9 standard definition video with 3 MP stills.
I have taken about one hour of HD video so far, and have viewed it through an HDMI cable on a Sony 46" XBR LCD TV (1080p). I captured a few indoor scenes, a few neighborhood outdoor scenes, and some footage at Harper's Ferry in West Virginia - river, mountain, and two trains passing by at close range while I was at the railroad station there. I can say comfortably that you won't confuse the video from this camcorder with Standard Definition camcorder video - when they say High Definition, they aren't kidding. If your TV can show the video off to advantage and you've grown fond of HD, I think you'd be pleased with this camcorder. In my case, the overwhelming reason I upgraded camcorders was to get the HD video, so this has made it worth the steep expense. My second requirement is to have a camcorder that took decent stills so I only have to carry one piece of equipment around. I already had this in the Sony HC90 at 3MP, so going up to 6MP was desirable but not enough to make me buy something this expensive in itself.
My only output criticisms so far are that the West Virginia footage looks a little brighter and the water a little greener than I remember. I didn't play with any settings so take that with a grain of salt. These camcorders have a lot of manual adjustments you can make which I have not explored. One or more of them undoubtedly would have given me improved footage, and I'm not unhappy with what I think I noticed in the slightest.
The stills look very good to me so far, but I've only taken about 20 and viewed them on the TV. I normally view stills on a PC.
I don't have a telephoto lens yet so I can't report on the quality of the stabilization. I used a tripod today and that was readily apparent in the stability of the video. I was very pleased, by the way, with how well the camera did with the moving trains. Very crisp where I expected a fair bit of motion blur.
LCD size and controls have been mentioned in First Looks. I'm perfectly happy with a 2.7" LCD instead of the larger one in the UX7. So this wasn't a negative for me personally. The controls (menus) are highly similar to those of the Sony HC90 I already have. If you haven't seen them before, there's a learning curve. If you have the HC90 or another camcorder with those menus, you'll be right at home with the HC7. One note: you can configure P[ersonal]-Menus to include the things you use the most in your own order, in addition to the camcorder's menus. One thing I forgot is that each mode (video, camera, play/edit) has its own configurable personal menu. So I was looking for things to add to the Play/Edit personal menu that I was sure should be configurable, but couldn't find them. That was because they belonged only to the filming side, not to the playback side. So you've got three personal menus you can create, not one.
Battery: check the sizes on the batteries. The HC90 batteries were very thin. I think three of the batteries for the HC7 fit entirely within its case. The fourth and largest battery looked to be much bigger in one dimension such that I thought it would extend past the end of the camera 1/2" or so. The other three will fit flush into the back of the camera, though they're not behind a door or anything.
Battery life: my impression so far is that the battery life statements are accurate, but the batteries drain faster than that of the HC90. This is almost certainly a function of increased power load instead of the older batteries being better than the newer ones. The CCDs and the stills and everything are all "more" than in the HC90. So I think I'm fine with the battery life, but you'll need to watch it and definitely have more than one battery.
Size compared to the HC90: this struck me as being about 10-15% bigger overall than the HC90. It's maybe 1/2" longer front to back, and wider as well. I think the HC7 is one notch up in size from the average camcorder I see in Best Buy. But it's noticeably smaller than last year's SR1 Sony hard disk camcorder, say. I don't see dropping this one in a coat pocket like I did with the HC90, but it's pretty light and still fits in the case I used for the HC90 if I don't load other stuff in there.
Fit in the hand: I found a Best Buy with an HC5 and UX5 on hand and played with both at the same time. These have the same footprint as the HC7 and UX7 as far as I can tell. The HC5's tape case is maybe 3/8" wider than the UX5's DVD case. The UX5's DVD case is maybe 1/4" higher. So I found that my right-hand fingers curled nicely around the smaller but taller UX5 and it felt slightly more comfortable. However, I found that the HC5's extra width made me curl my palm slightly such that the base of the camcorder fit solidly on top of the ball of my thumb. As I played with this in the store, I realized it seemed like the HC5 actually was easier to hold stable because of this. Absolutely try these two out on your own instead of assuming this will be true for you. Just wanted to say that the two cases do differ a bit and will probably feel different to you at some level.
Tape vs DVD (really HDV vs AVCHD): I spent a lot of time wondering if the noise reported in last year's AVCHD UX camcorders would still be present, and if I would care in any case. The detailed reviews still aren't out, so I don't know whether there will be a noise problem there. But I can say I noticed nothing in the footage so far that I'd call noise, so my decision to go with the tape and HDV format looks very good to me right now. I have never had the problems people report with Mini-DV tapes, so that whole transport discussion (tape vs DVD) didn't weigh on me much. The noise discussion did have an effect on my decision, though.
Getting the video to your TV: "how much money do we have?", apparently. I played the tape back to the TV directly, but that's not a long-term solution. I have heard that you can capture the HDV video and then will be able to transform it on a PC to formats suitable for Blu-Ray or HDV burners, if you have the money. Then you need a Blu-Ray or HDV player attached to your TV. For now, it sounds like many people are archiving the HDV video to DVDs as data files. Then they burn playable DVDs where the HD is down-converted to standard definition video. So they get to see decent versions of the video now and can produce HD versions for playback in the future as technology changes and prices drop. One other HC7 reviewer also implied that HD files captured by Ulead software could be moved to a PS3 hard drive and played back to an HD TV from there. So far, the easy and cheap path we have for SD video to DVDs to TVs is not quite there for HD based on what I've read.
The one extra feature I wish the camcorder had was a built-in 20X optical zoom. I'm sure this would affect both the cost and the size of the barrel negatively, so I "understand". But that would be #1 on my wish list.
Overall, I am amazed at what camcorder manufacturers can pack into these shells now. I know we're talking computers that are way more powerful at image processing than anything that existed ten years ago. But it is still almost like magic to drag a camcorder of this size around, take some video, and then have play it back on a high-quality HD TV looking to me like it was taken with broadcast-level equipment. I know better intellectually, but it's really great to have a camcorder like this that marries up with the new TVs so beautifully.
49 of 50 found the following review helpful:
Buy it!Feb 28, 2007
By J. Boyd
This product, so far as I know, has not been available from Amazon since Jan. 8 as a comment claimed. It wasn't available on Feb. 19 when I ordered it from an Amazon competitor. It's now available (about March 1) at a very competitive price.
It is a fabulous video camera. Colors are accurate, low-light performance is amazing, video noise is non-existent, resolution will blow you away. The 2-hr battery provides a full 2 hours of recording. The camera is light, flexible, and intuitive to use.
The Sony miniDV tapes cost a reasonable $10 ea., and there are zero dropouts. Loading couldn't be easier. It'd be nice if Sony would stick to optical zoom specs (10X), since digital zoom can be anything (why stop at 20X? - go for broke, 1000X! Idiots.) Steadycam - optical stablization - seems to work very well. You can shut it off if you're using a tripod.
Audio is okay, but it could be much better. They provide a jack for an external mike and a powered shoe for a lamp. Video output is flexible - USB, iLink, component, S-video. Speaking of flexible, the user guide runs over 100 pages! There is useful content on every page - it'd take months to try all the options available!
Image quality is stunning, esp. considering the reasonable price. I've not tried the included software, but HDMI playback to my Panasonic 50" plasma is just like network HD! Fantastic! You won't be disappointed. (Okay, there is one little glitch. The zoom speed (rate) is not menu adjustable. There's variable zoom speed provided via a little lever, but you'd better be r e a l l y steady.)
Great camera overall.
18 of 18 found the following review helpful:
Stunning Footage...and works perfectly with Macbook!May 16, 2007
By Brian Charette
I purchased this camcorder in anticipation of the birth of my son last month. This is my first camcorder purchase and I am extremely impressed and happy with my purchase.
My goal was to make videos that I could watch in HD on my TV and also quickly edit on my macbook in iMovie and then burn to dvd or upload to youtube.com to share with family. In this regard it works flawlessly. The camcorder and my macbook play together beautifully and it is simple to get the footage off of the camcorder and into my macbook and then burned onto a dvd or uploaded to youtube.com. The footage is automatically adjusted to standard definition by iMovie but the tape in the camcorder retains the 1080i HD footage. This means that I can play it back on my TV in HD whenever I want and also save it for the future when I have an HD disc burner to make HD discs.
By the way I have never done ANY video editing of any kind prior to buying this camcorder and macbook. I am a complete amateur and the ease of which I can make decent home movies with titles and effects and then share them with family is nothing short of astounding!
The bonus is that I can also play the footage directly from the camcorder to my Sony XBR2 1080p TV using an HDMI cable and the picture quality is breathtaking, as clear and sharp as some of the network HD feeds I get through Comcast cable.
Video Quality: The color is very lifelike although tends to be a bit oversaturated. Some may prefer more subtle true lifelike colors that the Canon camcorders are known for. I like the Sony color however, because the colors seem to "pop" a bit more while still seeming natural. This camcorder utilizes Sony's new x.v. color which promises nearly twice the viewable color currently available. My HDTV does not support x.v. color so this feature is useless to me. From what I understand, very few HDTV's support x.v. color so for now this seems to me like marketing hype. The sharpness is absolutely amazing. When watching on my HDTV via HDMI cable, the image is in my eyes comparable to the prime time network HD shows through my cable provider.
Low light performance: When researching this camera, I read the camcorderinfo review which stated that this camcorder suffers from poor low light performance. I find that to be simply untrue. Based on that review I expected the low light footage to be bad and was delighted to find that the low light performance was quite good and more than adequate for my needs. I tested the low light ability at night in my living room with the 60 watt ceiling bulbs dimmed halfway and the video came out fine. The colors were a little muted which was expected but there was no graininess and the footage was sharp and detailed. For my needs I will be filming low light indoor scenes such as candle-lit birthday parties and Christmas morning present openings and I am quite happy with the camera's abilities in these types of low light situations. In outdoors in sunlight, the picture and color will take your breath away.
Ease of Use: My wife was quite intimidated by the thought of learning to use an HD camcorder. I was thrilled to find that the HC7 has an "easy" button. My wife and I got quite a laugh out of this but it really is a great addition. The "easy" button sets the camera to all automatic point and shoot mode and I have to say in this mode the video comes out amazing with no effort or manual adjustments on your part. Because of the "easy" button my wife is no longer afraid of the camera and is now filming as much as I am. In fact, we both use the camera primarily in the "easy" mode and the footage always comes out sharp and stunning (and I get to be in the footage with my son now that my wife shoots too).
For more experienced shooters, this camera has tons of manual controls which I will probably never use. The menu system is a bit awkward as you have to dig deep into nested folders to find some of the options you want. This is extremely frustrating when you are shooting and want to change something quickly. For example to change white balance or turn off optical image stablisation when using a tripod requires scrolling through mulitple folders to find the option you want - annoying. Although to be fair the instructions do say that you can set your most used manual controls on a custom touchscreen for easy access. I have yet to do this.
Batteries: The Sony Infolithium batteries give real time information on exactly how much time you have left to shoot. This is extremely helpful and I find the estimates to be incredibly accurate. You will have to purchase an additional battery however, as the one it comes with does not give you adequate shooting time before needing to be recharged.
Overall I am extremely happy with this camcorder and would absolutely recommend it. The stunning video quality, compatibility with my Macbook for making videos to share with extended family and incredible ease of use make this camera a winner. Throw in the fact that it has an "easy" button that allows my non-techie wife to take incredibly sharp, beautiful footage and be comfortable using the camera and enthusiastic about shooting, and you have the perfect camcorder for my family. Highly recommended!
40 of 45 found the following review helpful:
Initial Review- Very ImpressiveFeb 22, 2007
By awm
I received the Sony HDR-HC7 over two weeks ago. This HD camcorder is the 3rd and final piece of my HD makeover. The first component is the Sony KDS-R60XBR2 1080p TV, the second is a PS3, and now the new camcorder. One thing I noticed immediately upon playing my older home-made DV videos is that the big screen really amplifies the lower resolution (which is bad), and that the hand jitter of the home movies is more problematic as well to look at. Both of these deficiencies prompted me to go for this HD camcorder with optical stabilization. Impressions after using this camcorder in different locations (snow, indoor, and the beach):
Pros-
- The video is great, especially filling the 60 inch screen. The images look smooth, not always necessarily eye-popping sharp, but very pleasing. The clip of an arcade at the beach with its many sounds and especially the many bright colors made for a very rich video experience on the big screen.
- The still images are excellent. At 6.1 Megapixels, they are as good as any 6 MP still camera (I did the comparison). My test for still cameras is to print 8x10 glossies. When you do that, it is easy to judge excellent, good, and not-so-good. The 8x10 prints are excellent. Moreover, the camera has a 10x optical zoom, so that is a major advantage for still photography. The flash is surprisingly robust- better than most smaller still cameras. This camcorder truly opens up the possibility of leaving the still camera at home.
- The DV tape is a cost-effective convenience. I popped in a standard Sony Premium DV tape and everything's been fine. So far, I've not seen any evidence of frame dropping after 1 hour of HD videotaping. Everything has been smooth and very eye-pleasing. I carefully considered the other alternatives of HDD and DVD burners, but for overall ease-of-use, the DV is a proven cost-effective way to take a lot of videos and to store them conveniently.
- Sony offers a case for underwater video (Sony Camcorder Marine Case (SPK-HCB)). This case which is listed as an accessory offers good value considering that custom camcorder cases can run in excess of $1K. I bought one and had to custom-adapt a mounting plate because the hole pattern was not quite right. I used it while it was snowing on the beach and it worked very well (the case has its own stereo microphone). I'm planning to use it very soon for some snorkeling. Such underwater home footage should be very cool. The case really protects the camera from the elements. The case is surprisingly sophisticated. For example, it uses a mirror to access the camcorder display. It turns out that once connected properly, the image on the LCD display is backwards, so that it can be seen correctly when looking at the reflected image in the mirror. A well thought-out product indeed.
Cons-
- It is not the most elegant or stylish hardware.
- Does not have a neck strap.
- The audio is not its strong point- nothing bad, but not particularly compelling.
- I like to use the fader feature to separate the different tape segments, but accessing the fade button through the display touch-screen method takes too many strokes. Once I start to tape, it is bothersome to activate the fader function during taping.
- The on-the-fly stills are in 16:9 widescreen so that the overall resolution on printed paper is not as good as the stand-alone stills which are the standard 4:3.
- Naturally, with a substantial investment in the camcorder unit, comes the additional costs for options such as (1) stand-alone battery charger, (2) extra high-capacity battery, (3) better microphone, and (4) external light source for video and stills. I already have the external mike (Sony) and the double external light (still and video). I haven't used these enough yet to provide a proper review.
This early camcorder review would not be complete without mentioning the significant value added by using PlayStation 3. The camcorder video is stored in the DV tape in MPEG2 format. After recording, I simply transfer the video into my Ulead VideoStudio 10 Plus which handles HDV files. After that I copy the MPEG2 file into the hard drive of the PS3 using a transportable hard drive. Roughly speaking, one hour of HD recording takes up 10 GB of memory. One can then watch the HD video on the big screen using the handy remote ($25) for the PS3 with fast forward and such so that the overall operation is almost as convenient as if you had burned a BluRay DVD. Also, the fact that the SXRD TV has a 3rd HDMI input in the front makes connecting to the camcorder particularly convenient. Bottom line- the camcorder is very impressive. The picture on the 60" screen ranges from very good to eye-popping. The colors are very rich. I've primarily covered the basic functions so far but there's more to learn and to explore with this unit. The coupling of the 1080p TV and the PS3 with the camcorder results in a most enjoyable HD experience.
17 of 17 found the following review helpful:
A solid camcorderAug 08, 2007
By Bee whisperer
"bee hunter"
This is a somewhat specific review, but as a research
biologist I'm hoping it will be helpful for someone looking
to use this camera in a similar way.
I've owned the camera now for about one week and have been
using it daily to film animal behavior. My previous
research cameras have either been low end miniDV for basic
video capture or the Canon XL1 and its previous Hi8
incarnation.
Despite previous negative reviews, I decided to purchase
this model because of its ability to film in infrared light
and its ability to capture 3 sec of high speed video (250
frames/sec). I've been pleasantly surprised by the image
quality and functionality. Several reviewers have commented
negatively on the touch screen, but I find it quite a relief
from small buttons and joysticks. The big buttons are easy
to access and the customization ability is one of the first
things that I used, setting up my own custom menu. I have
had no fingerprint problems with this screen and, overall,
like how the controls can be accessed.
The ability to take up to 3 photos (at the 4.1 Megapixel
resolution) while filming is great for capturing images that
can appear as journal-quality figures. I have not yet
seriously used the high speed function, but it works well.
Several reviewers have criticized reduced resolution and need
for more light when using this function. However, I think
this is a bit unfair. High speed filming requires more
light and the reduced resolution produces an image that is
still much better than dedicated high speed video cameras
costing several thousand dollars more.
Finally, the ability to manually control audio recording
level is a very welcome feature on a camera of this price.
I'm quite satisfied the sound recording quality and would
definitely recommend this camera to anyone who needs to
record biological sounds.
In terms of what could be improved, I would prefer to adjust
my exposure levels using the more traditional f-stops rather
than how the camera does it, showing a graphical bar that
can be adjusted in small + or - levels. Also, I have not
found a way for the camera to display the date and time on
its screen while it is recording.
Overall, I think this is a good basic research camera. It
can be purchased for under $1000 with free shipping and no
tax. It is compact and has good image quality and excellent
control features. I have not compared it with other cameras
in terms of performance under lower light conditions and
understand it does more poorly. However, I believe that its
infrared and high speed capability compensate for this.
See all 49 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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