/// HD Camcorder Comparison

Picture ?

Manufacturer

Sony

Panasonic

Name

HDR-CX305V

HDC-DX1

European name ?

HDR-CX305VE

HDC-DX1EG

US name ?

HDR-CX305V

HDC-DX1

lowest US price

(799) $

949 $

On the market since

March 2010

March 2007

Manufacturers URL

Test preview

slashCAM rating ?

Good

Satisfactory

test picture 1200 Lux

Test image 12 lux auto-mode

Video

Video formats ?

AVCHD
SD MPEG2

AVCHD

Recording Medium

SDHC card
Memory Stick PRO Duo
built-in flash memory

MiniDVD 8cm
MiniDVD-DL 8cm
MiniDVD RAM 8cm

video resolutions EU ?

AVCHD 1440 x 1080/50i
AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i
SD MPEG2 720 x 576

AVCHD 1440 x 1080/50i

video resolutions US ?

AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i
AVCHD 1440 x 1080/60i
SD MPEG2 720 x 480

AVCHD 1440 x 1080/60i

Max Bitrate ?

24 Mbit/s

13 Mbit/s

Compression format ?

MPEG2
MPEG4

MPEG4

on-board memory ?

16 GB

Optics

Optics Manufacturer ?

Sony

Leica

Optical Zoom ?

12 x

Wide Angle 16:9 ?

29,8 mm

38,5 mm

Filter diameter ?

30 mm

43 mm

Image Stabilization ?

optically and electronically

optical

ND Filter ?

Exchangable optics ?

Image Sensor

Number of sensors ?

Size of image sensor ?

1/4 inch

image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ?

520000 Pixel

Image Sensor Type ?

CMOS

CCD

Controls

White Balance ?

auto
manual
presets

Focus ?

auto
manual

Minimum shutter time ?

1/auto

1/8.000

Maximum shutter time ?

auto

1/50

Apperture control ?

auto
manual

Infrared recording ?

Expanded Focus ?

Peaking ?

Signal Processing

Zebra ?

Histogram ?

adjustable sharpness ?

Adjustable color ?

Cinegamma ?

Black Strech ?

Knee ?

Colorbars ?

Misc.

Shot Transition ?

Custom Presets ?

Set Time Code ?

Configuration

Connections

FBAS ?
synonymous: RCA, composite

Out

YC ?
synonymous: S-Video

About Special Equipment

YUV ?
synonymous: Component Signal

Out

HDMI ?

Out

DV / HDV (FireWire) ?
synonymous: ILink / IEEE-1394

USB ?

USB 2.0 OUT

USB 2.0

Microphone / Audio input ?

Mini-jack

Headphones ?

Lanc ?

Time-code interface ?

Genlock ?

Accessory shoe ?

HD-SDI ?

Misc.

Weight (without battery)

310 g

680 g

Weight (with battery)

360 g

800 g

Battery type

Sony NP-FV50

Battery capacity

980 mAh

Charger ?

internal

Remote control

Yes

Size

Height

52 mm

92 mm

Width

64 mm

91 mm

Depth

112 mm

163 mm

Relative Size ?

Viewfinder

Viewfinder available ?

Yes

Color Viewfinder ?

Color

Viewfinder format ?

Viewfinder pixels ?

183000 Pixel

Display

Display available ?

Yes

Color display ?

Color

Display size

2,7 Inch

3,0 Inch

Display format ?

16:9

Display pixels ?

230400 Pixel

251000 Pixel

Touch Screen ?

Yes

External controls

Manual Zoom ?

Rocker

Manual Focus ?

Manual Aperture ?

Focus switcher ?

ND Filter ?

Exp Lock ?

Gain ?

White balance ?

Push AF ?

Audio Levels ?

Custom Keys ?
synonymous: User buttons

Audio

Audio Formats ?

Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz

AC-3 Dolby Digital 5.1 640 kbit max.

Microphone ?

Stereo internal

Stereo internal
Mini-jack external

Audio Control ?

auto

Audio levels ?

Still

Recording Medium ?

Memory Stick Duo
built-in flash memory
SDHC card

SD Card

Medium included ?

Effective pixels ?

3540000 Pixel

Resolutions ?

2304 x 1728 - Max

1920x1080

Standard ?

JPEG Exif 2.2

Flash ?

Yes

Misc.

Specials

Product Shots

View 1

View 2

Test results

Test pictures

luminance resolution

chrominance resolution

lens distortion

test small ISO image

noise / internal microphone

test picture 1200 Lux

Test image 12 lux auto-mode ?

Test image 12 lux optimized ?

slashCAM rating

Lowlight ?

Good

Resolution ?

Good

Satisfactory

Color performance ?

Good

subj.Picture impression ?

Very good

Good

Optical Zoom ?

Sufficient

Wide Angle ?

Excellent

Satisfactory

Configuration / image ?

Sufficient

Satisfactory

Configuration / sound ?

Poor

Sufficient

Handling ?

Good

Satisfactory

Portability ?

Excellent

Good

Photo function ?

Satisfactory

Sufficient

Optics ?

Good

Dynamics ?

Good

Conclusion slashCAM

slashCAM rating ?

Good

Satisfactory

Total score ?
(maximal 570)

370

320

Pros

+ focus and exposure control via touchscreen works well
+ good low light performance

+ Acceptable wide-angle
+ Good lowlight characteristics

Cons

- no microphone and headphone jacks
- display resolution only average
- little manual control

- No FullHD
-3CCDs with pixelshif do not result in full sharpness
- MiniDVD

Conclusion

Too bad Sony still does not offer any manual control on their medium-class camcorders.Because the camera actually delivers an overall good image for this price range.The wide angle lens with its almost 29mm (kb) surely makes it attractive to some buyers, since competing models offer nothing of the sort.On the other hand the camera has a spicy price tag, which makes it look somewhat less good compared to the new Panasonic series (HDC-XX60).Hence, in its price range it recommends itself only to those who need a generous wide angle without any manual control or connectivity.

The MiniDVD as a recording medium does not strike us as particularly useful for HD , so the similar model SD1 is much more interesting.

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