I've made my choice and am getting the HF100. I really like the SR11 but it's too much camera for me.

The best price I've found is 850$ at ABT....How fast did the HV20 or HG10 drop in price? Should I wait 1 month...or?

You can really see the advantage of 675(HF10/100) lines of resolution in this comparison:

Hi Eric,

Interesting! Finally a SR11/HF100 comparison. Where is this from?
It does match exactly what I'm seeing in my 3 comparisons so far that there's always some fine detail loss in low contrast areas:

http://lucienk.spaces.live.com/photos/cns!A4AE3FB12A26635!673

I found at buy.com the HF100 for $755 but it's now back up to $899. It may take though another 5 weeks before they get it. But it does tell me that it will drop again around that price once demand has been filled. It's hard to predict how long it will take. Completely depends on demand. I noticed for instance bhphotovideo.com selling the HG10 for $649 and then after couple of day it went all the way back up to $799.

I noticed that I had wrong deinterlacing settings and that fixed some of the issues I experienced. I have a feeling that majority of SR11 users will fall into that trap having a non-optimal codec unless they buy Sony Vegas which seems the only reliable editor so far.

I might be keeping the SR11 after all but I need bit more time to be sure. I've updated the comparisons and will post full review tomorrow on my blog.

I also did a surround test with a fixed audio source by turning 360 degrees. The channel seperation is poor but at least there's some. But don't expect miracles.

I fixed all issues and review is up:
http://lucienk.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!A4AE3FB12A26635!689.entry


Keep in mind this is not a professional review but it was useful to me to compare to the HV20.

Hi Luc,

Nice SR11 review! About what I expected, Sony shrunk the sensor and uses less of the chip for imaging. The image should be blurry compared to the HV20.

I found the images on this site:

http://trendy.nikkeibp.co.jp/article/special/20080221/1007329/

Thanks. To be fair I did find after fixing all the codec and deinterlacing issues that the SR11 resolution is actually very close to the HV20. I even found 1 instance where it was sharper.
But there are some annoyances like the indoor / dim light focus hunting which I already experienced with previous Sony's. I also personally prefer the rather warmer color temperature. All outdoor comparisons showed consistently a bluish cast (which is personal preference though). The Canon can get magenta sky's at times but it doesn't happen that much.

Well, the SR11/12 resolution SHOULD exceed the HV20, it's 6MP versus 3MP


This is the exact issue CCI/Steves digicam/dviinfo all discuss...shrinking the sensor and adding pixels almost always blurs the image.

The HF10/100 has a smaller sensor compared to the HV20, it has better resolution, but less light gathering ability and a loss of clarity.

I'm really curious to see what sensor the HG20 has.

Your last outside Vimeo video, it looks like the HV20 has a wideangle installed(video is distorted and soft)?

I fixed it, should now be sharp. Caused by codec hell after fixing SR11 issues:-). I wonder how an average user deals with this:-(.

Remember to use the original file download link on the right bottom. Streaming is only 1.5Mbps.

Looks like you have the Wide angle on the HV20? The wide angle adapter will make the HV20 fuzzy and warped.

Honestly, I'd like to see some RAW clips from both camera's, just 5 seconds of video each. (no wide angle adapter! )
I'm not going to buy the SR11/12, but Sony may put this sensor in the CX9 and if this sensor is *that* good...maybe I'll give it another look.

The comparisons were done without the (Canon 0.7x HQ) wide angle but vimeo isn't best for comparing. Also I noticed some fluctuations which caused the Sony sometimes to be sharper and sometimes to be more fuzzy.

The CX9 is certainly more interesting with less moving parts and no limitations that HDD has for shooting conditions. However having to buy all those memory sticks to be able to record about 4 hours will cost right now close to $400:-(. Unless you use your notebook or other to backup. 2x16GB SDHC cost now around $145.

I just noticed that the last framegrab comparison in my framegrab comparison gallery is flawed. Due to all the deinterlacing setup problems with SR11 it caused wrong deinterlace for the HV20 and therefore the image was softer (they both require a different deinterlace method).

I updated the image in the gallery (the one outdoor with the roof). This actually changes now my perception that the SR11 can have more resolution than the HV20 since this was the only time I found the SR11 to have more resolution. I think they are very close but I did notice in that example sharpening by the SR11 as you can see in the roof. This caused some faint smudging if you look closely. This also corresponds with the backyard comparison where the chair is sharper but looking closely it's a result of sharpening (and that can be increased on the HV20 if desired).

Prices on older models like the HG10 and HV20 seem to be on an upward trend. Not sure why, but it could be due to supply getting low.

Techdepot has the HF100 listed at $755 + shipping. ABT is back up to $899, as are most other sellers.

755$ wow! that's a great deal......very tempting.

Retail is 899$ So I expect the online prices to be 780-820$.

I'd like to have it by mid-April.....but waiting till June is okay.

I have the HF100 on order but I'll cancel it if I'm unable to get it before mid April (since I'm going on vacation then). I'll keep you up to date if I can test it before then.

I also noticed the BP-819 batteries are available now as well at various places. Must have considering included battery doesn't last long.

PS Just noticed on newegg.com they're selling 16GB SDHC Class 6 for $62 (+5 for shipping). Great deal:-).

Dell Small Business division is selling it (along with any Cam over $600) for $720. HV30 is selling for $800.

Save 20% on a purchase of $600 or more with coupon code: R6?V2J?RT2V$3V (before taxes, fees, shipping and handling) 250 redemptions available