| |
Model
|
| Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
| Picture ? | | |
| Manufacturer | Canon 
| Sony 
|
| Name | HF S20 | HDR-TG3 |
| European name ? | Legria HF S20 | HDR-TG3E |
| US name ? | VIXIA HF S20 | HDR-TG3 |
| lowest US price | 848 $ | 979 $ |
| On the market since | April 2010 | May 2008 |
| Manufacturers URL | link to Canon | link to Sony |
|
|
Test preview
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
| slashCAM rating ? | Good
 | Satisfactory
 |
| test picture 1200 Lux | | |
| Test image 12 lux auto-mode | | |
Video
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
| Video formats ? | AVCHD
| AVCHD
|
| Recording Medium | SDHC card built-in flash memory
| Memory Stick PRO Duo
|
| video resolutions EU ? | AVCHD 1440 x 1080/50i AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i AVCHD 1920 x 1080/25p AVCHD 1440 x 1080/25p
| AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i
|
| video resolutions US ? | AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i AVCHD 1920 x 1080/24p AVCHD 1440 x 1080/60i AVCHD 1440 x 1080/24p AVCHD 1920 x 1080/30p
| AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i
|
| Max Bitrate ? | 24 Mbit/s | 16 Mbit/s |
| Compression format ? | MPEG4
| MPEG4
|
| on-board memory ? | 32 GB | |
| Optics |
| Optics Manufacturer ? | Canon
| Carl Zeiss
|
| Optical Zoom ? | 10 x | 10 x |
| Wide Angle 16:9 ? | 43,6 mm | 42,9 mm |
| Filter diameter ? | 58 mm | |
| Image Stabilization ? | optically and electronically
| electronical
|
| ND Filter ? | No
| No
|
| Exchangable optics ? | No
| No
|
| Image Sensor |
| Number of sensors ? | 1 | 1 |
| Size of image sensor ? | 1/2,6 inch | 1/5 inch |
| image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ? | 6010000 Pixel | 1430000 Pixel |
| Image Sensor Type ? | CMOS
| CMOS
|
| Controls |
| White Balance ? | auto manual presets
| auto manual
|
| Focus ? | auto manual
| auto manual
|
| Minimum shutter time ? | 1/2.000 | 1/auto
|
| Maximum shutter time ? | 1/2 | auto
|
| Apperture control ? | auto manual
| auto manual
|
| Infrared recording ? | No
| No
|
| Expanded Focus ? | Yes
| No
|
| Peaking ? | Yes
| No
|
| Signal Processing |
| Zebra ? | 70% 100% | 70% 100% |
| Histogram ? | No
| No
|
| adjustable sharpness ? | Yes
| No
|
| Adjustable color ? | Yes
| No
|
| Cinegamma ? | Yes
| No
|
| Black Strech ? | No
| No
|
| Knee ? | No
| No
|
| Colorbars ? | Yes
| No
|
| Misc. |
| Shot Transition ? | No
| No
|
| Custom Presets ? | Yes
| No
|
| Set Time Code ? | No
| No
|
Configuration
|
| Connections |
| [ top ] | Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
FBAS ? synonymous: RCA, composite | Out
| Out
|
YC ? synonymous: S-Video | No
| via accessories
|
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 ? | also AV-output
| No
|
| Lanc ? | Yes
| No
|
| Time-code interface ? | No
| No
|
| Genlock ? | No
| No
|
| Accessory shoe ? | Advanced Mini
| No
|
| HD-SDI ? | No
| No
|
| Misc. |
| Weight (without battery) | 470 g | 240 g |
| Weight (with battery) | 520 g | 300 g |
| Battery type | Canon BP-807
| Sony NP-FH50
|
| Battery capacity | 890 mAh | 900 mAh |
| Charger ? | internal
| internal
|
| Remote control | Yes
| No
|
| Size |
| Height | 75 mm | 32 mm |
| Width | 74 mm | 119 mm |
| Depth | 140 mm | 63 mm |
| Relative Size ? | 7 | 2 |
| Viewfinder |
| Viewfinder available ? | No
| No
|
| Color Viewfinder ? | - | - |
| Viewfinder format ? | - | - |
| Viewfinder pixels ? | | |
| Display |
| Display available ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Color display ? | Color
| Color
|
| Display size | 3,5 Inch | 2,7 Inch |
| Display format ? | 16:9 | 16:9 |
| Display pixels ? | 922000 Pixel | 211200 Pixel |
| Touch Screen ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| External controls |
| Manual Zoom ? | Rocker
| thumb wheel
|
| Manual Focus ? | Menu bi-functional focus or aperture wheel
| Menu
|
| Manual Aperture ? | Menu bi-functional focus or aperture wheel
| Menu
|
| Focus switcher ? | Yes
| 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 | 1 | No
|
Audio
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
| Audio Formats ? | Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz
| AC-3 Dolby Digital 5.1 640 kbit max. Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz
|
| Microphone ? | Stereo internal Mini-jack external
| 5.1 Internal
|
| Audio Control ? | auto manual
| auto
|
| Audio levels ? | Screen
| No
|
Still
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
| Recording Medium ? | built-in flash memory SDHC card
| Memory Stick Duo
|
| Medium included ? | No
| 4 GB
|
| Effective pixels ? | | |
| Resolutions ? | 3264 x 2448 3264 x 2456 max
| 2304x1728 |
| Standard ? | JPEG Exif 2.2
| JPEG Exif 2.2
|
| Flash ? | Yes
| Yes
|
Misc.
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
| Specials | 2 SDHC slots | Outside Europe the Cam is named Sony HDR-TG1 |
Product Shots
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
| View 1 | | |
| View 2 | | |
Test results
|
| Test pictures |
| [ top ] | Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
| 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 | Satisfactory |
| Resolution ? | Satisfactory | Satisfactory |
| Color performance ? | Very good | Good |
| subj.Picture impression ? | Very good | Good |
| Optical Zoom ? | Sufficient | Sufficient |
| Wide Angle ? | Poor | Poor |
| Configuration / image ? | Good | Sufficient |
| Configuration / sound ? | Satisfactory | Poor |
| Handling ? | Good | Satisfactory |
| Portability ? | Very good | Excellent |
| Photo function ? | Satisfactory | Sufficient |
| Optics ? | Good | Good |
| Dynamics ? | Good | Good |
| Conclusion slashCAM |
| slashCAM rating ? | Good
 | Satisfactory
 |
Total score ? (maximal 570) | 348 | 288 |
| Pros | + Many manual controls
| |
| Cons | - small wide angle
| |
| Conclusion | The sharpness is only slightly below what is possible in this price range and the options for manual control are also quite ok.The touchscreen is a real improvement, so the problems with focus setting we used to citizise are gone.Since Sony offers more manual in this price range than they did before and both Sony and Panasonic have more wide angle, the HF S models of 2010 appear a little overpriced. | While the new Exmor CMOS technology and the Bionz signal processor provide great results with the SR-12, their benefits are leveled by the smaller chip area of the TG3.Demanding filmmakers will find too many compromises in terms of lowlight, ports and manual controls, preventing them from using the camera seriously.Ambitious filmmakers on the other hand will like the nice interface via touch screen. |
More information
|
| Reviews and Forums |
| [ top ] | Canon HF S20 | Sony HDR-TG3 |
| slashCAM Review | | |
| external reviews/tests | | |
| Forum posts | Canon HF S20 convert files
| Buy TG3 camcorder or similar
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Successor to the Sony HDR-TG3
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