Sony HDR-TG5V

Motion (7.70)

The HDR-TG5V captured good motion in our test, but there are many similarly-priced camcorders out there that did better (the JVC GZ-X900 and Sanyo VPC-HD2000, for example). The HDR-TG5V records all HD video at 1920 × 1080 with a 60i frame rate. It does have a slow-motion option (Smooth Slow Record) that shoots at 240 frames per second, but the videos it produces are low quality and have strict, 3 second time constraints. More on how we test motion.

We compared the motion rendered by the TG5V to what we saw from the Samsung HMX-R10 and Panasonic HDC-TM10, which are two mid-range camcorders that retail for around $500. The HDR-TG5V’s motion videos did have slightly less artifacting and color blur than those two camcorders, but it also showed more motion trailing. The other thing to note is that both the Samsung HMX-R10 and Panasonic HDC-TM10 offer alternate frame rates for recording Full HD video (24p mode on the Panasonic and a 30p mode on the Samsung).

We liked how the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 motion and it offers a very unique set of frame rate options. It is one of the few consumer camcorders that can capture 1080/60p video, and it also has Full HD frame rates of 30p and 60i. The 60p mode rendered impeccably smooth motion, although the camcorder didn’t capture as sharp an image as we saw from other models. Still, the HD2000’s numerous frame rate options make it one of the best camcorders for capturing motion in 2009.

Not taking frame rate options into account, the JVC GZ-X900 captured the best motion of the camcorder’s we’ve tested so far. It rendered smooth, crisp motion that flowed extremely well and appeared very crisp when played back on numerous monitors. The GZ-X900’s motion test footage also had very little artifacting. Unfortunately, the GZ-X900 only records HD video at 1080/60i. Like the Sony, it does have some low-quality, slow-motion settings that use high-speed frame rates to record video.

The motion rendered by the Sony HDR-XR520V definitely looked better than the HDR-TG5V, but it wasn’t as big of a difference as we expected. The HDR-XR520V isn’t among the top echelon of performers when it comes to motion rendering, although it still does a very good job (comparable to the Panasonic HDC-HS300 and TM300). The high-end Canon (HF S11, HF S10, HF S100) and JVC camcorders (GZ-X900 and GZ-HM400) did the best job in our motion test. The HDR-XR520V records all HD video using a 60i frame rate (just like the HDR-TG5V).