Sony DCR-DVD108 Camcorder Reviewby David KenderPublished on Jun 18, 2007 9:12 AM
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Ease of Use (8.0)
Sony is positioned at the head of the user-friendly camcorder fleet, and their entry level DCR-DVD108 (Review, Specs, $339) could not be more simplified—unless Sony included a pocket-sized robot that jumps out to press the record start/stop button for you. Sandwiched in between the playback and backlight compensation buttons on the left side of the camcorder is the omniscient Easy button.
When pressed, the Easy button slips the DCR-DVD108 into a trance, enabling it to perform in full auto mode. The menu icons and fonts grow twice as large and the function menu takes a hike. In addition, the home menu is drastically stripped down to include only the bare essentials, such as clock/language and playback. All you have to do is press record—that’s why Sony is so popular amongst point-and-shooters.
Even when the DCR-DVD108 is not in Easy mode, camcorder operation is highly effortless. Sony’s magical menu is undemanding and provides soothing sounds, should you wish to keep the beeps on. The automatic controls work fairly well and it is a breeze to toggle between auto and manual settings. The only issue we had was with selecting a manual setting. Once chosen, you are required to press the OK button, which brings you right back to the main screen instead of the function menu. As a result, you must set each manual control independently, which gobbles up time.
Consumers love Sony’s touch screen menu for the instant power it brings to the fingertips. No joysticks to deal with, so side-mounted menu button messes. However, the touch screen does have its shortcomings. You’ll hear this in every one of our Sony reviews, so here it is again: the touch screen is susceptible to fingerprint smudges, which obstruct the view of a clean image. Try using spot focus when you can’t tell the difference between an unfocused portion of the screen and a cloudy mass of oil-induced haze. In addition, the touch screen makes sense on models with a bigger LCD screen, such as the Sony HDR-UX1 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $729.95) and HDR-SR1 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $1119.99)—both flaunt massive 3.5 inch screens. However, on the DCR-DVD108’s puny 2.5” LCD screen, anyone without chopsticks for fingers will find it difficult to press the onscreen buttons.
Now let’s get physical. The disc hatch takes way too long to open—expect an estimated wait time of 10 seconds. Also, the manual lens enclosure eliminates the need for an external lens cap, but relies on the user to remember to flip the switch after each shoot—the likelihood of that happening is almost nonexistent. Most moms and dads will chuck the DCR-DVD108 into their free PBS tote bags without even shutting it off.
Handling (5.0)
The Sony DCR-DVD108 feels great in the hand. The tall stature of DVD camcorder bodies provides a solid grip. Coupled with this is a very nice, padded grip. The result is that rare camcorder that does not tip over to the left as soon as you let go. Once in hand, the zoom toggle and shutter button are perfectly located. Too often, the zoom toggle falls under the middle finger. Here, it’s placed under the index finger, as it should be.
Aside from the touch screen (which we’ll get into in a minute), the only other possible construction problem is the placement of the top-mounted microphone. Unless you have incredibly long fingers, you won’t actually make contact with it, but the mic is likely to pick up fingers scraping across the plastic.
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The grommet on the hand strap can be noisy, but prevents the strap from getting in the way of the DVD bay. |
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A minor handling problem is the overall cheap construction of the DVD108. Of course, you get what you pay for, and we wouldn’t count on this camcorder surviving a drop onto concrete. The two port covers are probably the cheapest plastic we’ve ever seen. It’s pretty amazing. Sticks of gum are tougher than these flimsy, flapping bits of detritus, and you should anticipate breaking them very soon.
Menu (6.5)
The DCR-DVD108 features the new-ish “home menu” seen before on Sony’s DCR-SR300 (Review, Specs, $761.95), HDR-UX1, SR1, and brand new AVCHD models, the HDR-SR5, SR7 (Specs, Recent News, $1399), and CX7 (Specs, Recent News, $1199). It’s the magical mystery menu—no other camcorder comes equipped with such a therapeutic sound scheme. Aside from that, it’s probably the most straightforward menu on the market. If you can look beyond the folly of the minute, smudge-prone touch screen interface—most consumers will—you will find that Sony’s menu layout induces a user-friendly shooting experience. The main screen is comprised of three buttons—home (top left corner), function (bottom right corner), and playback (bottom left corner). There is also a permanent, real, plastic home button located on the edge of the LCD panel.
When the home button is pressed, a menu screen appears with a set of five tabs running horizontally along the bottom: camera, view images, others, manage disc memory, and settings. The “camera” tab simply allows you to manually toggle between video and camera modes, although this can be done instantly by shifting the mode dial. In “view images” you can access the visual index and the arrange playlists. “Others” is a bit of a free-for-all, composed of delete, edit, playlist edit, print, and computer settings. In “manage disc memory” you have access to the following tabs: finalize, disc select guide, format disc, format MemoryStick, unfinalize, and disc info. The “settings” tab offers more of what you’ll really need—movie settings. In movie settings, you can control the following options: record mode, NightShot light (although there’s a NightShot switch lodged within the crevice of the lens barrel and disc hatch ridge), wide select, digital zoom, steady shot, auto slow shutter, remaining recordable time, and sub-t date. The “settings” tab also offers control over photo settings, view image set, sound/display set, output settings, clock/language, and general settings.
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The Home menu button |
The Home menu in action |
The function menu is framed just like the home menu, only with four tabs running horizontally along the bottom. This menu is a little less involved than the home menu, and contains the manual controls that you’d want at your immediate disposal. The first tab offers control over focus, spot focus, and tele macro, the second tab is composed of exposure, spot meter, and scene selection settings, and the third tab includes white balance, color slow shutter, and Super NightShot Plus. In the fourth tab, you can apply faders, digital effects, and picture effects. The fifth and final tab lets you choose the recording quality and set the microphone level.
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The Function menu button |
The Function menu in action |
Overall, the menu is very simple. We do wish that the processor could generate the menu screens a little more quickly, particularly in the Home menu.
Portability (5.75)
The DCR-DVD108’s tall, thin frame will slip into any camera bag with room to spare. It measures a slender 54.5mm x 89mm x 130.5mm (2 1/4” x 3 5/8” x 5 1/4”). It’s also a lightweight, tipping the scale at 440g (15oz.). The DCR-DVD108 uses 8mm DVD discs with a maximum record time of 20 minutes on single layer discs in the highest quality setting (you’ll need the highest quality setting, trust us). Therefore, if you plan on full day’s worth of shooting, you’d better have a bounty of backup in the camera bag. You’ll also want a backup battery, too. The supplied NP-FH40 battery pack will last you a whopping 45 minutes during typical recording time, including starting, stopping, zooming, and using the menu.
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The small 2.5" LCD... |
At least the viewfinder extends |
LCD and Viewfinder (6.5)
The DCR-DVD108 is unfortunately saddled with a scrawny 2.5” 4:3 aspect ratio LCD screen. The screen extends 90 degrees from the body and vertically swivels a full 270 degrees. After the recent HD boom (HD is only 16:9), it is bizarre to see such a square monitor, but we will always hold a place in our hearts for the standard definition era. Nevertheless, the DCR-DVD108’s nostalgia-conjuring charm will not excuse its stunted 123,200 pixel resolution and washed-out picture. Also, tread lightly with the DCR-DVD108’s viewfinder—it’s feebly constructed and revolves on a twig-like LCD hinge. On the bright side, you’ve got a strip of controls running vertically on the left side of the LCD panel, consisting of “home,” zoom in, zoom out, and record start/stop.
The DCR-DVD108’s electric color viewfinder is fairly decent for an entry-level camcorder. It quashes Canon’s fixed plastic nub, extending a good inch out from the body. The eyecup is not rubberized though, so keep your distance—it’s hard to shoot with an eye patch. The viewfinder’s image looks crisper and more colorful—it proves to be a worthy alternative for power conservers. The dioptric adjuster is located on the right side of the viewfinder shaft for those with eyeglasses.
Battery Life (11.0)
We tested the DCR-DVD108’s battery life by recording continuously in full auto mode. Whenever the DVD-RW disc was full, the power supply was promptly connected to the camcorder and the disc was reformatted. The DCR-DVD108’s battery lasted a total of 110 minutes and 8 seconds, which is 15 minutes beyond the manual’s 95 minute estimation for continuous recording. This is a fairly decent performance for such a small battery pack, but it wouldn't hurt to purchase a backup for longer trips.
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