Product Description

HIGH DEF. 1080I MEMORY STICK DUAL SHOT 10XOPTICAL 20XDIGITAL NS

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #32965 in Consumer Electronics
• Brand: Sony
• Model: HDRCX6EK.CEH
• Released on: 2007-05-29
• Dimensions: .82 pounds

Manufacturer's Description
The world's smallest and lightest full-HD camcorder (as of April 2007, Sony research) is here, offering you the ability to film in the incredible 1080i HDTV format. Not only affordable, the HDR-CX6EK cuts out the hassle of tape and DVD, as it works to record on Sony Memory Stick, letting you potentially create up to 8GB of footage in a single session - just under three hours worth of recording! You can record up to 15 hours in a single session. Fitted with a precision-built Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T lens and a ClearVid CMOS sensor, you get the benfit of optimal picture quality.

Equipped with a HDMI output, you can bring the amazing High Definition pictures to your HD-ready television. The Sony HDR-CX6EK HandyCam features an x.v.Colour mode for producing more vivid and life-life colour in your filming. Browsing is quick and simple with new intelligent search functions such as film roll index, face index and highlight index. An incredible 10 x optical zoom lets you pick up exceptional close-up detail without quality loss. Don't worry about camera-wobble, the Super SteadyShot technology is on-board to ensure your footage comes out looking professional!

Appending to the multimedia functions and complementing the next-generation HD technology, you get a Dolby Digital 5.1 channel surround sound creator, complete with built-in microphone.

Feel the advantage of touch-screen control thanks to the 2.7" wide ClearPhoto LCD Plus screen, allowing you to peruse through the amazing options on offer, such as the Smooth Slow Rec mode for advanced slow motion footage. The easy-to-use menu and guide functions make this Sony HD camcorder a breeze to use. For computer editing, simply hook up with your system's USB port for editing - the camera and computer work together in harmony, sending picture and sound information to and from each other! True widescreen filming in 1080i HD can now fit into your hand!

Box Contents

Customer Reviews

Does what it says on the tin - with a few caveats
I bought this because I wanted a tiny, HD camcorder. I also wanted to forget about tapes and be able to play back the results through my PS3 to my 1080 LCD. This completely fits the bill and I'm pretty happy with it.

Stills are surprisingly good - I didn't expect much and it is fairly decent for 'snapshot' pictures. The menus are easy to use and the controls are sparse and easy to use. If you want manual control and high-end features this isn't the cam for you.

Build quality is good - the camera is light but feels very solid and definitely worthy of the Sony brand. Component video direct into a small LCD screen shows very good results - colours bright and vivid as expected but good sharpness while the light is good.

However...

Low light performance is poor - there is a lot of noise. My 5yr old Sony DV cam gives better results. If you want to shoot low light videos then definitely try before you buy. 'Nightshot' mode is fine if you like green-scale images.

The 'slow motion' feature is rubbish - it's a nice idea but the compression seems to be maxed out and the results are blocky and frankly lousy.

The wide-angle doesn't seem very wide, which might be an issue for indoor users.

Stunning technology, easy, brilliant
I've watched in horror as flashcards have doubled in size and halved in price on a regular basis over the last few years. So it was quite far-sighted of me to consider buying this Handycam.

Preempting the day when 1Tb flashcards are the norm and hard disks are a thing of the past, I acquired the HDR-CX6E from Amazon 2 weeks ago. There are several aspects of this camera that I can recommend:

The weight and balance of the device is just right for easy handling, no heavy and bulky HDD or DVD recording technology, just a sliver of plastic holding 4Gb (supplied).

The touch-screen is easy to use, of a high image quality and includes zoom and stop/start buttons for easy control.

The options are broad and rich.

The supplied battery is suggesting it will last 115 mins which exceeds my expectations. And at the highest quality setting I can get over 30 minutes of High Definition footage on to the 4Gb card which isn't really a problem as it used to take me a month to fill a 1 hour DV tape.

The bundled software is excellent and is now my default picture browser.

And finally, the images recorded are stunning on either computer or true HD TV.

Enjoy.

Sony HDR-CX6 Review
What can I say..... Wow!

Intro:
This is Sony's latest HD camcorder. Instead of DV tape or hard drive, this model saves AVCHD video onto Memory Stick which is currently available up to 8Gb.

Build Quality:
This tiny little camcorder is the most high quality gadget I have ever seen. When you pick it up you just can't put it down..... gadget collectors will know what I mean here :-) There is not a single ounce of cheapness about this camera. The camcorder does not have a view finder but I can't remember ever using the ones my other camcorders came with so this is not an issue for me.

Included Accessories:
Luckily here in the UK we get a 4Gb Memory Stick with the camera. The American model (HDR-CX7) comes without any Memory Stick. You also get a handy docking station which connects Component Video, USB and mains charger in one go. I find this really handy as it saves continuously plugging in wires. You get one battery which lasts well over an hour. The camera is HDMI equiped but doesn't come with a cable. The required cable is a mini to standard HDMI cable. I did not have an issue with this as the quality is extremely high from the component output. A component cable is included along with mains charger and USB cable.

Performance:
I have chosen to keep mine on the highest quality which gives you about 65 minutes on an 8Gb stick. The quality of the video recordings is simply stunning through my 42" Panasonic 720p plasma TV. Colours are very accurate and the camera doesn't get confused by strange shades of orange and red (most camcorders fall down here). Words cannot describe how sharp the videos are. If you've ever viewed high quality photos on your computer through your TV, the quality is similar with huge amounts of detail. Low light filming does introduce noise but no where near as much as my last Sony camcorder. There is an amazing slow record feature that captures video at 4 x the normal frame rate for 3 seconds. This plays back mega smooth slow motion over 12 seconds. I spent hours filming waves crashing over the rocks - amazing! The only down side with this feature is that the quality seems very compressed when using this feature.

Convenience:
I will never go back to tape! As there are no moving parts (apart from the lens mechanisms), the camera is really tiny (but not too tiny), and really quiet. This also allows for a higher battery life as there's no tape mechanism or hard drives to power. The main convenience has to be the ability to copy a full 8Gb card full of full quality HD video to the computer in just a few minutes. DV camcorders have to play the video into your firewire port in real time to extract the video. I have been using Pinnacle Studio 11 to edit the video which works fine with the AVCHD files.

Buy one of these - you will not be disappointed!