Choosing the right media for you

The type of recording medium you want will depend on how you plan to use the material. If you don’t have time to edit your movies into a masterpiece and want to simply record, play back and share your memories with family and friends – then DVD is the way to go.

Do you need long recording time for the events that go for hours and hours? Then the Hard Disk Drive Handycam is a good option. Or do you just want to capture your precious memories in the finest detail? High definition on any format is available too.

To help you find the perfect model, jump online and check out Sony’s Handycams at sony.com.au. Here’s the lowdown on the two major formats:

D805

DVD

What’s it got to offer?

The DVD Handycam range stores video on 8cm DVD discs, which can store between 20 minutes and 120 minutes of video, depending on the recording quality selected and if double sided discs are used. You can buy either write once (DVD-R) or rewritable (DVD+RW/-RW) discs. Rewritable discs can be written on roughly 1000 times.

Who does it suit?

The beauty of DVD is that you can take your recorded video straight out of your Handycam and play back on any DVD player, even your PlayStation®2 console – no PC-based editing is required. This makes it a great choice for people who simply don’t have the time to transfer the video to a PC and edit it. If you just want to record and share the footage with friends and family this is the optimum choice. Shoot, eject, play – simple! DVD also gives you the choice to do a simple edit in camera with -RW discs. Most people have a DVD player, making it the ideal medium for sharing your video memories.

Hard disk drive (HDD)

What’s it got to offer?

This recording method will store your footage on a fixed hard disk drive inside the Handycam. This provides the camera with an extraordinary recording time. For example, the DCRSR80 Handycam (pictured above), has a 60GB hard disk which can record up to a massive 40 hours of record time before you have to copy the video from the hard disk to a PC.

Who does it suit?

If you want to go out and film all day long, this is the way to go.

The HDD Handycam also has a great capacity for fast transfers to PCs for editing and backup and it gives you fine control over quality and capacity balance too. Practically, it means you don’t have to cart around spare media with you when you are out and about or travelling.

You’ll need a computer for editing and transferring video to a final media such as DVD Unlike DVD Handycam, you can’t just take the hard disk out and put in another. On the flip side, you will get hour after hour of recording time for events that require recording stamina.

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EASY BUY GUIDE

DVD

Pros: Portable, very affordable, readily available, can be easily shared with friends and family. Flexible recording options

Great for: People who don’t have the time or desire to edit on a PC. You can use recorded video as is, taking the DVD out of the Handycam and playing it on a regular DVD player

HDD

Pros: Hour after hour of recording time, no need to carry media around

Great for: PC-savvy people, recording events which require long recording time such as sports matches or long vacations

High Definition

Pros: Captures every detail with stunning picture clarity comparable to real life images. Ensures your memories will be ready for the HD future (which is where technology is headed)

Great for: People who want the very best quality video images, amateur film makers and enthusiasts

Sony Pulse 17

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