Sony HVR-V1U

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By: Lori Grunin
Post date: 9/19/2006

Sony HVR-V1U's audio controls compared to FX7's
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Sony HVR-V1U's eye cup compared to FX7's
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Sony HVR-V1U
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As has become Sony tradition, the company follows up a consumer camcorder announcement with a pro version of the same model. In this case, the Sony HVR-V1U builds on the $3,500 HDR-FX7. It uses the same trio of 1/4-inch, 1-megapixel ClearVid CMOS sensors and 20X zoom lens, housed in a similar chassis about the size of the VX2100.

The biggest feature you pay for with the extra $1,300--the V1U will run $4,800 when it ships in December--is progressive-scan support. That's for 1080 24p recording, however, not 720p or 1080p; like the FX7, the V1U records HDV 1080i footage.

The V1U also offers far more extensive audio controls, plus two XLR inputs and a bundled shotgun microphone. It also allows you to save custom settings to a Memory Stick for transfer to another camcorder; the FX7 can save them only to internal memory.

At its price, the V1U faces some interesting competition: the forthcoming, less expensive Canon XH A1 and the slightly more expensive but 1080p-capable Panasonic Panasonic AG-HVX200 . Sony also plans to ship the HVR-DR60, an optional, $1,800 60GB add-on for recording directly to a hard disk.

 

Basic Specs

Product Specifications:
Product Description: Sony HVR-V1U - Camcorder - Professional - Mini DV (HDV)
Product Type: Camcorder - Professional - Yes
Dimensions (WxDxH): 5.7 in x 17 in x 7.2 in
Sensor Resolution: 1.12 megapixels
Effective Sensor Resolution: Video: 1.04 megapixels
Shooting Modes: Normal movie mode
Focal Length: 3.9 mm - 78 mm
Microphone: Microphone - Detachable - Electret condenser - Stereo
Viewfinder: LCD - 0.44 in - Color - 16:9
Display: LCD display - LCD passive matrix - 3.5 in - Color
Supported Battery: 1 x Li-ion rechargeable battery - 2200 mAh ( Included )
Product Basic Spec:
Video input type: Camcorder
Digital Zoom: 1.5 x
Optical Zoom: 20 x
Effective sensor resolution: 1.04 megapixels
Optical sensor size: 1/4 in
Optical sensor type: 3 ClearVid CMOS
Min illumination: 4 lux
Analog Video Format: NTSC
Lens Aperture: F/1.6-2.8
Focus Adjustment: Manual , Automatic
Media Type: Mini DV (HDV)
Display type: 3.5 in LCD display
Display resolution: 211,200 pixels
Audio input type: Microphone
Microphone operation mode: Stereo
Connections: 1 x IEEE 1394 (FireWire/i.LINK) , 1 x Audio input , 1 x Headphones , 1 x Control-L (LANC) , 1 x USB , 1 x HDMI output , 1 x Composite video/audio output , 1 x S-Video output , 1 x Component video output , 1 x DC power input
Battery type: - Lithium ion
Weight: 3.3 lbs