| |
Model
|
| Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
| Picture ? | | |
| Manufacturer | Canon 
| Sony 
|
| Name | HF100 | HDR-CX520V |
| European name ? | HF100 | HDR-CX520VE |
| US name ? | VIXIA HF100 | HDR-CX520V |
| lowest US price | 745 $ | 951 $ |
| On the market since | April 2008 | August 2009 |
| Manufacturers URL | link to Canon | link to Sony |
|
|
Test preview
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
| slashCAM rating ? | Good
 | Satisfactory
 |
| test picture 1200 Lux | | |
| Test image 12 lux auto-mode | | |
Video
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
| Video formats ? | AVCHD
| AVCHD
|
| Recording Medium | SD Card SDHC card
| Memory Stick PRO Duo built-in flash memory
|
| video resolutions EU ? | AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i AVCHD 1920 x 1080/25p
| AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i
|
| video resolutions US ? | AVCHD 1920 x 1080/24p AVCHD 1280 x 720/60p AVCHD 1440 x 1080/60i AVCHD 1440 x 1080/24p AVCHD 1920 x 1080/30p AVCHD 1440 x 1080/30p
| AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i
|
| Max Bitrate ? | 17 Mbit/s | 16 Mbit/s |
| Compression format ? | MPEG4
| MPEG4
|
| on-board memory ? | | 64 GB |
| Optics |
| Optics Manufacturer ? | Canon
| Sony
|
| Optical Zoom ? | 12 x | 12 x |
| Wide Angle 16:9 ? | 42,9 mm | 42,9 mm |
| Filter diameter ? | 37 mm | 37 mm |
| Image Stabilization ? | optical
| optical
|
| ND Filter ? | No
| No
|
| Exchangable optics ? | No
| No
|
| Image Sensor |
| Number of sensors ? | 1 | 1 |
| Size of image sensor ? | 1/3,2 inch | 1/2,9 inch |
| image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ? | 2070000 Pixel | 4150000 Pixel |
| Image Sensor Type ? | CMOS
| CMOS
|
| Controls |
| White Balance ? | auto manual presets
| auto manual presets WB-Shift
|
| Focus ? | auto manual
| auto manual
|
| Minimum shutter time ? | 1/2.000 | 1/1000 |
| Maximum shutter time ? | 1/2 | 1/25 |
| Apperture control ? | auto manual AE-Shift
| auto manual AE-Shift
|
| Infrared recording ? | No
| Yes
|
| Expanded Focus ? | Yes
| No
|
| Peaking ? | No
| No
|
| Signal Processing |
| Zebra ? | No
| No
|
| Histogram ? | No
| No
|
| adjustable sharpness ? | Yes
| No
|
| Adjustable color ? | Yes
| No
|
| Cinegamma ? | Yes
| No
|
| Black Strech ? | No
| No
|
| Knee ? | No
| No
|
| Colorbars ? | No
| No
|
| Misc. |
| Shot Transition ? | No
| No
|
| Custom Presets ? | No
| No
|
| Set Time Code ? | No
| No
|
Configuration
|
| Connections |
| [ top ] | Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
FBAS ? synonymous: RCA, composite | Out
| Out
|
YC ? synonymous: S-Video | No
| About Special Equipment
|
YUV ? synonymous: Component Signal | Out
| Out
|
| HDMI ? | Out
| Out
|
DV / HDV (FireWire) ? synonymous: ILink / IEEE-1394 | - | - |
| USB ? | USB 2.0
| USB 2.0
|
| Microphone / Audio input ? | Mini-jack
| No
|
| Headphones ? | Mini-jack
| No
|
| Lanc ? | No
| No
|
| Time-code interface ? | No
| No
|
| Genlock ? | No
| No
|
| Accessory shoe ? | Advanced Mini
| AI
|
| HD-SDI ? | No
| No
|
| Misc. |
| Weight (without battery) | 380 g | 370 g |
| Weight (with battery) | | 450 g |
| Battery type | Canon BP-809
| Sony NP-FH60
|
| Battery capacity | | 1000 mAh |
| Charger ? | internal
| internal
|
| Remote control | Yes
| Yes
|
| Size |
| Height | 64 mm | 62 mm |
| Width | 73 mm | 65 mm |
| Depth | 129 mm | 125 mm |
| Relative Size ? | 6 | 5 |
| Viewfinder |
| Viewfinder available ? | No
| No
|
| Color Viewfinder ? | | - |
| Viewfinder format ? | | - |
| Viewfinder pixels ? | | |
| Display |
| Display available ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Color display ? | Color
| Color
|
| Display size | 2,7 Inch | 3,0 Inch |
| Display format ? | 16:9 | 16:9 |
| Display pixels ? | 211000 Pixel | 230000 Pixel |
| Touch Screen ? | No
| Yes
|
| External controls |
| Manual Zoom ? | Rocker
| Rocker
|
| Manual Focus ? | Joystick
| bi-functional focus or aperture wheel
|
| Manual Aperture ? | Joystick
| bi-functional focus or aperture wheel
|
| Focus switcher ? | No
| No
|
| ND Filter ? | No
| No
|
| Exp Lock ? | No
| No
|
| Gain ? | No
| No
|
| White balance ? | No
| No
|
| Push AF ? | No
| No
|
| Audio Levels ? | No
| No
|
Custom Keys ? synonymous: User buttons | No
| No
|
Audio
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
| Audio Formats ? | Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz
| AC-3 Dolby Digital 5.1 640 kbit max.
|
| Microphone ? | Stereo internal Mini-jack external
| 5.1 Internal
|
| Audio Control ? | auto manual
| auto
|
| Audio levels ? | Screen
| No
|
Still
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
| Recording Medium ? | SD Card
| Memory Stick Duo
|
| Medium included ? | No
| No
|
| Effective pixels ? | | 6631000 Pixel |
| Resolutions ? | 1920x1080 1440x1080 848x480 640x480 2048 x 1536 | 3640 x 2160 max
|
| Standard ? | JPEG Exif 2.2
| JPEG Exif 2.2
|
| Flash ? | Yes
| Yes
|
Misc.
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
| Specials | | -50 upscaling in playback mode - image stabilizator corrects hand rotations - GPS receiver built in
|
Product Shots
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
| View 1 | | |
| View 2 | | |
Test results
|
| Test pictures |
| [ top ] | Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
| 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 | Very good |
| Resolution ? | Very good | Good |
| Color performance ? | Very good | Good |
| subj.Picture impression ? | Very good | Very good |
| Optical Zoom ? | Sufficient | Sufficient |
| Wide Angle ? | Poor | Poor |
| Configuration / image ? | Satisfactory | Sufficient |
| Configuration / sound ? | Satisfactory | Poor |
| Handling ? | Sufficient | Good |
| Portability ? | Excellent | Very good |
| Photo function ? | Satisfactory | Satisfactory |
| Optics ? | Good | Good |
| Dynamics ? | Good | Very good |
| Conclusion slashCAM |
| slashCAM rating ? | Good
 | Satisfactory
 |
Total score ? (maximal 570) | 358 | 328 |
| Pros | + Best image quality is at the limit of FullHD + Many manual controls
| + multi functional ring + focus and exposure control via touchscreen works well + good lowlight sensibility + six freely configuarable display buttons
|
| Cons | - fiddly operation - too small wide-angle - No Zebra - Manual focus very poor
| - no microphone and headphone jacks + mediocre display resolution - upgradeable only with expensive and proprietary MemorySticks
|
| Conclusion | In this price class currently no rival offers better image quality and more controlsHowever, compromises must be made in terms of wide angle and in the handling, especially the focussing. | for now, the low-light image quality rules superior in the sub 1000 Euro camcorder class.The great dynamic range when using the factory settings as well as its abandonment of moving part makes this cam interesting for independent filmmakers.On the other hand there are some features missing, there is no histogram, no zebra, no exposure time control, no sharpness helper and no image adjustment. |
More information
|
| Reviews and Forums |
| [ top ] | Canon HF100 | Sony HDR-CX520V |
| slashCAM Review | | |
| external reviews/tests | | |
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