Product Description

Take the next step in home video recording with the DCR-SR300 Handycam camcorder. The internal 40GB hard disk drive stores up to 28 hours of video (LP) and easily transfers it to your PC, giving you the freedom to capture more video, easier than ever before. And, you can take amazing 6.1 megapixel still images when you're not shooting video. The 3 megapixel ClearVid CMOS Sensor and Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T Lens with 10x optical/20x digital zoom provide outstanding image quality. And Super SteadyShot optical stabilization reduces blur, giving you crisper pictures. Connect the camcorder to a Handycam Station and you'll be impressed by a new level of multimedia sharing that allows you to download and share video with a TV or PC via a number of interface ports. Or just hit one button and the one touch disc burning transfers your footage to DVD. The DCR-SR300 is more than a camcorder - it's the future of home video recording.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4251 in Camera & Photo
• Brand: Sony
• Model: SR300
• Dimensions: 3.60 pounds
• Display size: 2.7

Features

• 40 GB HDD stores up to 28 hours of video
• 3.0-megapixel ClearVid CMOS sensor for crystal-clear video and still images
• 10x optical zoom; Dolby Digital 5.1-channel audio recording
• 2.7-inch widescreen touch-panel Clear Photo LCD Plus display
• Handycam Station included

Manufacturer Description
With a 40 GB built-in HDD and 3-megapixel ClearVid CMOS sensor, the DCR-SR300 captures and contains up to 20 hours of video (in LP mode). The Still Image Capture mode takes up to 6.1-megapixel still images. A number of interface ports make it simple to transfer and share your videos and still images to a PC.

DCR-SR300 Highlights

3-megapixel ClearVid CMOS sensor A 1/2.9-inch ClearVid CMOS sensor with 3040K effective pixels provides stunning detail and clarity with exceptional video (up to 530 lines of horizontal resolution) and still image performance. The Megapixel technology enhances your digital videos and digital still photography performance.

10x optical/20x digital zoom The optical zoom helps to bring the action close up from far away. In addition, the Digital Zoom interpolation means that extreme digital zooming is clearer, with less distortion than previous types of digital zooms.

Professional-quality Carl Zeiss Vario- Sonnar T* lens Carl Zeiss lenses have an advanced optical multi-layer coating for increased contrast. This results in vivid image brilliance, true-tolife color saturation and perfect renditions of subtle tones. The additional T* coating on the lens further reduces unwanted glare and flare.

Dolby Digital 5.1-channel recording The DCR-SR300 will record in Dolby Digital 5.1-channel surround sound with a built-in microphone. By recording in 5.1-channels, you can now experience your home movies with active sounds coming from all directions. Enjoy your personal home movies the way you experienced them while recording.

2.7-inch widescreen touch-panel Clear Photo Plus LCD The 2.7-inch 16:9 LCD screen provides excellent viewing clarity with improved resolution. The high-resolution 211K pixel LCD screen rotates up to 270 degrees for multiple viewing angles and sharp, detailed images for monitoring or playback. The widescreen format makes shooting in 16:9 mode and composing shots even easier.

Smooth slow recording By increasing the record rate from 60 fields per second (fps) to 240 fps for 3 seconds allowing you to capture 3 seconds of fast motion and play the video back in 12 seconds. This is great for analyzing a golf swing or a viewing a bird in flight. In addition, record an audio track to narrate what is being seen during the video.

Memory Stick Duo media slot Capture still images up to 2848 x 2136 resolution directly onto Memory Stick Duo Media for easy transfer to PCs and emailing, printing or sharing with other compatible Memory Stick media devices.

Super SteadyShot (Optical) Image Stabilization system An advanced form of Sony's SteadyShot Image Stabilization system that controls an even higher range of shake and vibration frequencies. This optical stabilization system achieves an even higher level of smoothness without degradation of video like some digital stabilization systems.

On-screen zoom and record buttons For additional control of the camcorder, the DCR-SR300 features zoom and record buttons on the frame of the LCD screen. This allows the user more flexibility when holding the camcorder, especially in overhead or low angle shots.

One-touch wide-angle shooting Easily switch between 16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratios for shooting, with just the touch of a button.

USB 2.0 interface USB 2.0 interface provides an easy way to connect your Hard Disk Drive Handycam to the computer for fast transfer of video and still images to your computer for editing. The camcorder can also be used as an external DVD burner, convenient for making copies of your DVDs or burning edited movies.

Handycam Station Simply placing the camcorder on the supplied Handycam Station provides quick connections to a TV fro viewing or a PC for editing and sharing, all while charging the battery so your camcorder is always ready to go.

DVDirect compatibility The DVDirect system allows for easy transfer to a stand-alone DVD burner via USB 2.0. The VRD-VC30 allows for easy transfer of video for DVD burning, while the VRD-MC3 allows for seamless transfer of both video and still images for archiving on a DVD.

Progressive shutter system A mechanical shutter system that provides progressive scan performance while utilizing an interlaced scanning system. Digital still images will be sharp and clear with excellent definition.

One-touch disc burn Easily burn a DVD copy of your footage using the supplied software. Simply connect the DCR-SR300 to your PC via the Handycam Station and supplied USB cable and press the Disc Burn button.

Additional Features

• Easy PC backup
• HDD Smart Protection
• Active interface shoe
• Super NightShot infrared system
• InfoLithium battery with AccuPower meter system
• Manual focus
• Scene selection modes
• Picture effects
• Fader effects
• Battery information

Customer Reviews

Great Camcorder
Pros: Excellent picture quality! Ease of use, convenient 4 mega pixel still while in video mode, easy connect base, and mpg video format right from the camera!

Cons: Easy connect base (good and bad news), flash disabled with filters or lens, and a little slow to connect to the PC.

I wanted ease of use, high quality picture, and good still performance - I got it all.

I did the tech research on picture quality and the SR300 seemed to be rated the best by most of the experts. The CMOS capture device is what is used in very high end cameras, so I was expecting a decent picture.

Here is the non-tech evaluation of the picture: on my Hi Def TV the picture quality from this camcorder is much better than normal TV picture and not quite as good as a high quality progressive scan DVD. It is better than I expected and I am VERY happy with the picture quality.

The SR300 is easy to use and that is what I wanted. Point it and shoot. In video mode, it does 4 mega pixel pictures. While recording, you can capture 3 stills only. If you are in video mode and not recording, you can capture as many as you like up to the limit of the hard drive and/or memory stick. In straight still mode, it is a 6 mega pixel camera. If you are looking for super high quality still camera, this is not it. I went from a 2 mega pixel camera to this, so I am pleased with the quality and I don't have to always carry two cameras around. I am using this to capture kids and this is just what I need.

The camera will record stills to the hard drive, so you do not need to have a memory stick. I purchased a 2 gig ultra II, kind of a waste since the camcorder can't write to the stick as fast as the stick operates, I could have saved some $$ with a less expensive stick, or no stick at all. A 2 gig stick gives you 600 pictures at 4 mega pixel.

I like the base, it makes it easy to have the camera ready to use. The thing I don't like is that you must use it to transfer video and stills to your computer from the hard drive (cable included). This can be a pain. You can connect the camera directly to the TV to watch video (cable included).

When you attach a filter or an auxiliary lens, I bought a wide angle lens, the flash is disabled. This I do not like.

Video from this camera is in mpg format, the same used for DVDs, so your DVD software does not have to convert the files. Also, this camera will write directly to a DVD recorder. I created a DVD with my , directly from the camera using the Disc Burn button and it included both video and pictures.

I am able to quickly make DVDs using Nero without converting the files. This cam also connects directly to a printer using Pict Bridge feature.

This is an expensive camera that had everything I wanted: easy to use; good quality video; compact size; and good still pictures. Sometimes you need to spend the extra to get what you want.

I also bought the Sony ACC-FH60 accessory kit that includes a camera case and a second battery, check it out.

Excellent first impressions
I've been using it for a couple of days, and I love it. The harddisk is a gift, once you get used to it, you'll never want to use tape again. The USB 2.0 transfer to your computer works like a charm and it's pretty quick even for very large files, also because the video file types are mpeg, dvd authoring software doesn't take forever to compile a dvd, it's very quick.

There are a couple of simple, yet powerful editing features using the camcorder itself. The interface is pretty intuitive, and the touch screen is very accessible even for my thick thumbs. The video picture quality is excellent in medium light, but weak in low light still 'far better than my previous Canon ZR70 though'. The stand still camera is not that good, compared to my current Sony P8.

I love the slow motion feature, unfortunately it can only capture 6 seconds, also taking photos while you're video taping is an excellent feature, but you can only take 3 photos during shooting videos. All in all, I'm very happy with all it's features, also the surround sound works pretty well.

I didn't give it 5 stars because the camera doesn't come with a USB port, or video output options on the camera itself, I have to dock it in the docking station and then connect it to my PC, which leaves me with a choice to either put the docking station beside my PC to move the files, or beside my HD TV to watch the movies on the Camera, not sure why Sony at least didn't put a USB port on the camera directly, pretty annoying! Also, there is no way to capture video using this camera, although that was kind of a standard feature in any cheap mini DV cameras, now I have to think of getting a video capture card for my computer if I need to copy any of my recorder programs from my DVRs or previous tapes to DVD!

Worth every penny
I'm not a professional, so this camcorder is the best thing since sliced bread.

I'd rather write a review that someone can actually read and get some value from, so if you're one of those people that insists on comparing everything to an extremely expensive pro camcorder, just stop reading now and go away.

If you want something that will shoot crisp clear video footage of your family and life experiences, this is the camcorder for you. No, it's not HD but I honestly don't feel that it's worth paying 2x as much for the marginal (if even noticeable since this camcorder shoots video at 3.1 megapixels) difference in video quality. 6.1 megapixel stills are the icing on the cake, and I have yet to deplete the battery (if you're planning on shooting hours and hours of video, just get an adapter or the optional battery that will give you up to 6 hours of life).