Hello...

I've been searching all over the web for information on Sony's HC1000. I had read all the reviews on the GS400 and the HC1000 and had my mind made up to buy the GS400.

Last night on the ride home from work I passed a store I thought might have the GS400 and decided to see if I could take a look at the real thing.

They had both the Panasonic and the Sony HC1000, and while I thought the GS400 felt ok, the salesman handed me the Sony and I have to say I was very impressed with the way it felt in my hands. So much so that this alone has me really reconsidering my decision and waiting until I can hopefully get a little information from somewhere other than the reviews online that have bashed this poor little camera from one end of the web to the other for its' touch-screen interface.

Unfortunately the battery on the unit in the store was ready for a recharge so I didn't get to play for very long, but I have to say, based on feel alone, the Sony blew away the Panasonic. The Sony's much heavier but in a good way in my opinion; it just felt well-built, solid, and I didn't want to put it down. The Panasonic GS400 felt like plastic junk (which of course I'm sure it's not).

Could someone here who owns the HC1000 please tell me if they're happy with it, hate it, have problems with it? I really am doing my due diligence and will continue to do so before purchasing but I'd love to be able to just get a little feedback from someone who actually owns the cam. I really appreciate it.

And- is there anywhere I can see some video online from the Sony? DVSpot doesn't have any up yet but they do have GS400 samples.

Thanks for such a great site.

The feel in your hand is a minor consideration for a higher performance camera. If it were not, they would not sell very many XL2s and VX2100s, would they? Manual controls (a HC1000 weakness), value/price, audio, and video quality are the major considerations.

I agree. But from what I keep reading here and other places, the HC1000 is getting trashed because of the touch-screen. A friend has a Sony camcorder (older compact model) and loves using the LCD panel to access everything. He says it's the greatest thing since sliced cheese.

So I guess I'd like to know how the HC1000 would have fared in these reviews if the touch-screen wasn't an issue? The closing summaries of all the reviews I've read all sound as though the Sony should be wiped from the face of the earth based mainly on the interface alone. And now that the price has dropped to under $1200 I'm wondering if anyone who has reviewed it would consider it a more worthwhile purchase.

And it's also a little confusing to read on the front page that the HC1000 is considered a great buy according to the heading and yet when you read the review the writer plainly states they are completely disappointed with it.

It is a bigger issue than just the touch screen. The way this camera is designed, things like metering, exposure, shutter speed, white balance, and all other critical manual control characteristics must be adjusted via the touch screen. Previous models (the 950, and 900) had such controls in the form of thumb wheels and buttons readily accessible by memory and touch. With a little practice, manual adjustments could be made during shooting without having the cameraperson shift attention and perspective away from the action to the camera. This is critical (and absent) on the hc1000 which makes it inconvenient, or impossible to maintain continuity during high level (pro/semipro) work. Perhaps the best served market segment for this line has been ignored and excluded, leaving these consumers looking elsewhere (ie Panasonics' GS400) for a usable camera to meet their needs.

I've owned a trv950 for a year now, and "feel" was a big factor for me. I fell in love with it as soon as I picked it up, and I know what you mean about it being heavy in a good way. I honestly think how much you like the feel of the camera will have a huge impact on how much use you'll get out of it.

So, if you won't be using the controls much--having most things on auto, most of the time--I'd say to go for it. $1200 is a good price for that kind of picture quality.

I am amazed at all the bashing the HC1000 gets, have any of these people even used this cam? I have had some amazing results with this cam. Most of the negatives seem to come down to comparing it with a Gl2 or VX2100 for handling (both of which I have) and the touch screen for manual control.
PLEASE- These are the facts!
-The colour is surpurb, much more saturated than the VX2100
- Its records in 5-1 sound, the only 3 chip that can!
- The sony case fits on to a belt so I can take it anywhere, ideal for holidays and vacations giving me much more opportunity to make quality 3 chip movies instead of leaving larger cams at home for the day
- You can change the menus around on the screen to suit your shooting style, as soon as I press menu on the touch screen I have colour balance - white balance - spot focus - spot exposure - manual exposure - all to hand on the screen at the same time, just as easy as trying to find odd buttons and levers all over a pro cam body!
- Perfect handling for a small cam, the twist action really helps to steady your hand , I had a 950 for a short while and always found it unbalanced and top heavy when hand holding for a while
- Good 16 x 9, much better than the gl2 and VX2100

So there you have it, a fantastic little 3 chip cam that holds its own against the big boys, yes I love my pro cams and tripods, but dont keep on bashing a perfectly good cam that deserves its own place in the market.

__________________
Paul

The reason for the "bashing" is that this product turns it's back on it's formerly loyal following by moving away from a semi pro intrument, and towards a amateur/tourist camcorder by omitting crucial manual controls and rendering the camera less than useful for many workhorse applications.

Just today I bought a DCR-HC1000 after a lot of research (including the reviews on this site, which were very helpful to show me what the issues were). The main things that steered me away from the GS-400 were the lack of a LANC port (and the proprietary wand cannot be used at the same time as an external mic - crazy!) and reportedly poor image stabilization. Other issues were:
* The video out is shared with the headphones, so you can't monitor your audio while doing a live feed (like to a projector, which is conceivable for me).
* I consider the 3.5 inch screen a minus - I'm concerned about battery drain and the added weight, and am used to 2.5.
* I think the swivel handgrip will come in handy (no pun intended!).

After reading all the criticism of the touch screen, I spent a LONG time playing with it in the store, and I do not find it objectionable. Yeah, it seems a bit gimicky, but it's functional, and in theory should be more reliable (no buttons to get flaky later on) and lighter. This is my second camera - my primary one is a GL2, and although I'm happy that it has buttons for all the important stuff, I often have to peer around behind the LCD to see where the one I want is (two years has not been enough to be able to find them quickly without looking). And I like the fact that on the HC1000 I can program what controls show up first on the menu - there isn't enough space on these smaller cameras to have as many buttons as my GL2, so some R&D guy would have to decide what is most important to me - this way I decide.

The biggest minus about the HC1000 is the fixed battery size, but I can live with that - other things were more important in my decision (the LANC/wand issue is practically a show-stopper - at least I can change batteries).

That's just my $0.02 at this point in time. If I have any regrets after I have used the camera awhile, I'll let you know.

Good Choice, I have just finished a Christmas vacation in Marco Island and shoot over 4 hours with the HC1000 and found myself actually making more manual adjustments than I would normally have done on this type of shoot with the touch screen without a second thought as to probably just pushing the white balance and ND button on the GL2.

__________________
Paul

I suppose you could become fascile at it (to some extent) however, you MUST visualize the screen which means taking your eye off the subject briefly (and then reorienting) a major detractor to serious pro/semipro camera people who go by feel and always have their eyes on the subject matter from a direct perspective (not via a 3.5 inch screen).

RICMOTIONPIC, thanks for the reassurance - it's nice to know that another GL2 user is happy with the HC1000. What we like in a camera varies dramatically by what we are used to from previous experience. Ah, yes, the ND button... that's definitely one I have to look to find, as I tend to go too far forward and hit MF instead. Filming in and out of shrines in Kyoto on New Years day, it seemed that I was turning ND on or off about once a minute. Too bad that's not a LANC function (well, at least it's not on my VariZoom).As I said, I haven't learned to work by feel on my GL2 anyway, and it seems to me that the main things one might change while the tape is actually rolling are zoom and focus, which are directly accessible without the touchscreen (if one changes exposure, ND, etc. while rolling, that moment of transition would be cutting floor material anyway). For me the biggest downside of the touchscreen isn't the need to look at it, but the need to have the LCD open - one can't operate it while using just the viewfinder. I haven't tried this camera in bright sunlight yet, but I hope I can see the display better than my GL2 (in Kyoto I had to use the viewfinder).

Anyway, there is no camera that is designed exactly the way you or I want it, because we all have different priorities. It's all a matter of tradeoffs unless we each can design our own dream camera. For a while I was wondering if I should wait a while to see if Canon would release a compact 3CCD model this spring (that seems to be a gap in their product line, and I tend to like Canon) as a third choice. But then I learned that I would really need a small camera for some travel I'm doing in February, so I decided it couldn't wait, and given the two choices available, I'd rather deal with the touchscreen than be unable to use my VariZoom (which requires LANC). To operate a camera this small on a lightweight tripod (carrying around a monster tripod would defeat the purpose of having a small camera), touching either buttons or screen would make it shake, so remote control is important in my opinion.

You are correct, none are perfectly designed. However, with a few cameras, I have found that the learning curve is nice and quick for operation by feel (vx series, and Canon XL1s come to mind).

This is a really interesting thread to me as I'm considering buying a GS400, but also keeping an eye on the HC1000.

I bought a Sony TRV33e 15 months ago which is a good camera, especially considering it's tiny lens. I'm amazed it records pictures at all sometimes.

However, the main problem I have is the excessive smearing from light sources. I understand this was introduced with the HAD type CCDs.

I also read the 950 had smearing problems (but whether they were as bad as on the 33 I don't know).

What I would like to know is whether the HC1000 suffers from these problems as well and if the GS400 is any better?

If anyone has compared a 33 (or similar Sony specifcation camera) against the HC1000 that would be a bonus.

[If it helps I can post examples of the smearing problems later]

Thanks


Jason

I don't know exactly what you mean by smearing, but the review on this site (http://www.camcorderinfo.com/conten...rder-Review.htm) includes quality comparisons between the HC1000, the GS400, and the GL2 (a little unfair, but the two smaller ones hold their own pretty well until the low light tests...). The review is very thorough, but she slams the touchscreen mercilessly - for balance, be sure to also read the reader comments below the review.

The HC1000 will smear with a brightly focused light source just as bad as the 950 (it has the same chips),
even the VX2100 will to a point, (perhaps the deeper lens hood is helping along with the bigger chips on the 2100)
Most times as with lens flare by changing your angle a touch or a tighter crop on the zoom it can be reduced or eleminated.

__________________
Paul