Sony's HDR-HC1: See yourself in hi-def

By on 12 October 2005, 10:56am

We're on a mission to kick-start the high-definition revolution over here at Crave, and to convince any laggards out there, we offer you the Sony HDR-HC1 high-def camcorder. Already reviewed on the site, we've decided to pair it up with the excellent Samsung LE40R51B 40-inch LCD TV to create the sort of perfect union not seen since Lennon and McCartney.

While not completely living up to the musical legends, our taster of HD home movies was enough to make us dread turning back to standard definition. The 3CCD lens on Sony's HDR-HC1 captures video at an unbelievably high 1,920x1080 pixels. Let's put some perspective on that -- there's only a handful of TVs in the world that can match that, and even Samsung's TV has to scale it down to 720p. But is it worth its £1,500 price tag?

While the jump in definition frankly isn't enough to make us part with that much of our own cash, Sony's camcorder is amazingly adept at picking up details from individual objects and in backgrounds -- you can easily read small print from over 10m away. While HD movies may impress Crave, which lives to stay ahead of Johnny Old-School, those without the money to invest in an HD Ready flat screen should save themselves a lot of cash.

As our resident video editor says, most people would be better off with a high-quality regular DV camcorder, which will save you nearly £1,000. Is he right, or are his thoughts merely the inane ramblings of a hide-bound traditionalist? Check out our full review of the camcorder to find out. -GC