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Sony DCR-TRV480 Digital8 Handycam Camcorder w/20x Optical Zoom
 
Manufacturer: Sony
Customer Rating:
 
List Price: $349.99
Sale Price: $879.99
Availibility: View Product Availability
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Product Description
DCR-TRV480 features a 2.5-inch Touch Panel LCD and backward compatibility. Other new benefits include Analog Input with A/D Conversion capabilities a Memory Stick Media Slot that lets the camcorder double as a camera with the optional Memory Stick media Remote Control. So you want to go digital, but you still want to keep all your old videotapes. The versatile DCR-TRV480 allows you to play all of your old 8mm and Hi8 videotapes. For all your video-recording needs, the DCR-TRV480 captures digital video on Digital8 media for sharp, high-quality recordings and MPEG Movie EX mode video on standard Memory Stick media for compact MPEG-1 movies. Explore all that digital video recording has to offer with high-quality features such as a high-resolution CCD imager, 20x optical zoom lens, and Super Nightshot Plus low-light recording. The Digital Zoom captures and enhances distant subjects, and the SteadyShot Picture-Stabilization system makes recording smoother. The 2.5-inch LCD Display makes it easy to view and record even from the most difficult angles. Features of the Sony DCR-TRV480Digital8 Recording The Digital8 recording format delivers three times the color bandwidth of VHS with significantly less video noise.

Product Details
  • 1/6-inch CCD imager with 460K (gross) resolution
  • Digital8 format records digital audio and video comparable to MiniDV on affordable Hi8 tapes
  • 20x optical zoom with SteadyShot picture-stabilization system
  • 2.5-inch SwivelScreen touch-panel LCD
  • Super NightShot Plus Infrared System captures natural-looking video in low light

Video Reviews
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Customer Reviews
NICE DEAL FOR THE MONEY
 
Review Date: August 2, 2005
Reviewer: Winfred Farrell, Austin, TX USA
When my 12-year-old Hi8 Sony went out on me recently I started shopping around. I had narrowed my search to the miniDV HC90 or the DVD403 model. I was leaning towards the HC90 simply because I liked the longer recording option that tape offers and the fact that both offer a 16:9 aspect ratio. I have a 70-inch HDTV and wanted something to fill the screen. However, the $900 price of those cameras was causing me to consider the new HD Sony camcorder with its $1900 price. I really wasn't ready financially to make such a big leap and wasn't too thrilled with the idea of spending $900 while knowing eventually I'd still want the HD when I was able to drop the bucks.

Thankfully I stumbled upon this TRV480 model. Not only is this Digital8 model compatible with the Hi8 tapes I already own, but it also includes a 16:9 aspect ratio recording option which was essential for me. Best of all, the $350 price made me very comfortable using this camera as a stepping stone until I am ready for the move to HD.

I paid over $1,000 for the old Hi8 and was curious to see how this $350 camera could possibly stack up. There are definitely some short-cuts taken. No automatic lens cap for instance. But the touch-screen LCD was an unexpected plus. The biggest challenge was transferring movies to the PC for burning to DVD. I had been using a Pinnacle PCTV to capture video from the old camera with an S-video output and an audio cable from the camera's headphone jack. (There is no S-video output on this camera nor is there a headphone output.) As another reviewer pointed out correctly, the software provided by SONY is basically useless you own a Vaio. Furthermore when trying to capture video with Sonic RecordNow using the supplied USB cable, I was getting video but no audio. Purchasing a $30 IEEE 1394 cable did the trick. I can now transfer video from camera to PC without using the Pinnacle video capture hardware. The Sonic software works fine for this purpose.

I was very surprised at the quality of the picture on my 70" TV with the 16:9 aspect ratio. Granted, it's nowhere near HDTV but this camera exceeded my expectations and the video quality is at least as good as my old camera, maybe even better. For $350 and for what I wanted out of this camera, I could not be more satisfied.
gets the job done.
 
Review Date: July 19, 2005
Reviewer: Robert Hester,
I grabbed this camcorder so I could convert 8mm videos over to DVD. This is the only one on the market I found that would play back 8mm and Hi8 tapes. It does it through the firewire so transferring to DVD was cake. Nice zoom, steadyshot is decent, battery life is pretty impressive, the digital camera part is useless but it is there if you want to play with it.
Great Camcorder
 
Review Date: January 1, 2006
Reviewer: Matthew Frey, Parma Heights, OH USA
My old 8mm Sony Handycam from the 80s recently died and I am glad that I bought this camcorder. The DCR-TRV480 is great because it is able to read all my old 8mm tapes. If you have a Mac, you will love it. With iMovie and iDVD all you have to do is connect the camcorder to a firewire port and click import, it's that easy. Then just add chapter markers and click on the iDVD button within iMovie and iDVD opens and starts encoding the video. Depending upon your processor speed, your DVD will be done in an hour or two.

This camcorder also has another great feature which allows you to connect an analog VCR to the camcorder. Now you can transfer your old VHS tapes to DVD.
I love my handycam
 
Review Date: March 28, 2006
Reviewer: Barry K. Burr, St. George, UT USA
My favorite feature of the 480 is the touch screen. I bought a little touch pen for like a dollar and it works great, no fingerprints. The menus are really convenient, and some of the features have multiple paths in case your having trouble finding them. The only problem i have with my handycam is there is so many features the manual doesn't explain what everything does, so I had to play around with my camera to figure a lot of that out . That is just the more complicated features though, for normal use the handycam is very user friendly. Its's small, the picture quality is excelent, and with a memory card the still shot feature is very cool. You can use the handycams zoom with your still shots so it makes it a very practical digital camera.
Many features, few cons
 
Review Date: December 9, 2006
Reviewer: R. E. Floyd, Afton, Wyoming USA
I have tried to use as many features of my camera as i can so that I can make sure that I have gotten my money's worth from the purchase and i have much in the way of unexplored territory left with my camera. This is a fine example of a high quality Sony product that is certainly worth the higher price tag that you find on it. The features included make for convenient video editing on your pc with excellent picture quality and sound in a very lightweight package that, for me, is just the right size and weight. If you do not want to go with the high definition or hard drive camcorder expense and technology yet but want about as good as it can get with Digital8, this is perhaps one of the best choices out there. I looked for several months before choosing this one and would certainly hope that others look around extensively as well since this is certainly no drop in the bucket for most people. It does very well for our family needs at special occasions and gatherings, kids' games, and trips.
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