My videoreview on the Sony Handycam.
Lately I found interest in watching and collecting movies on VHS, so I explored our apartment and found a working high quality VCR player, with quite a few cassettes and another little curiosity that really intrigued me... a 20 year old Sony Handycam.
So I dug it out, charged it a bit and turned it on to try it out and after quite a bit of testing, I can safely say that this camcorder should not be underestimated.
The camcorder in question, a CCD - R713E PAL.
The Features
This Sony Handycam can shoot on Hi8 cassettes, an improved version of the video8 cassette, and it has quite a few neat features. For one, you can hook up your camera to an AV converter and directly record the live video to your PC, no cassette required, but there are many more features this particular camera has.
The InfoLithium battery
The Sony Handycam models use InfoLithium batteries, which show you exactly how much batterylife is left for the camcorder. When you charge the camera, you can see an icon appear on the little display on the side of the camera, that indicates that the battery is charging. Next to this icon you can read how many minutes this camera lasts in standby mode (in my case its 1500 - 1700 minutes).
When in use, you can see for how many minutes the camera can be used when you look into the viewfinder on the top left (in my case the time ranges from 600 - 800 minutes).
This system is very accurate and very convenient and I wonder why not more modern devices can do this.
The Zoom is ridiculous
During testing two days ago at night, we zoomed all the way into the full moon, to see how the 330x digital zoom performs, and we were really surprised. When zoomed in, you can make out quite a few details, you can see the craters and with a manually adjusted exposure setting, the moon isnt even too bright.
The zoom isn't only good for recording the moon though. Overall, when you zoom into something, the picture doesn't distort too much and the recording looks very good in motion.
The zooming capabilities of this camera are impressive for its age.
Shooting in low light
This camcorder is equipped with a flashlight and a so called ''Night Shot'' mode. Those two tools are very good for making dark shots visible, for one you can turn on the flashlight, or set it on automatic, so the flashlight switches on when you need light on its own. The ''Night Shot'' mode utilizes an infrared spotlight that is already integrated into the camera. With this mode you can see quite a bit of stuff at night in short to medium distance and you can even see people and structures that are more distant to the camcorder.
The infrared feature is not present on most cameras today, even camcorders, most likely due to one reason. There was a controversy over a decade ago about ''X-Ray cameras''. The problem is the following: An infrared camera with adjusted exposure settings, can see through clothing to a certain extent. This is why all infrared equipped cameras after the controversy happened, can only adjust the exposure automatically in Night Shot mode.
From a test video seeing how the camera performs in Night Shot mode.
On a side note: please use the Night Shot mode how its intended to be used. Don't be a creep, its illegal.
Camera but also... cassette player?!?
Remember that you can connect this camcorder to your PC? This is not the only device you can hook it up on. As long as you can convert the analog signal into a digital one, or the monitor you hook it up to supports composite video, you can watch your cassettes on the big screen, even with sound.
Analog camcorders had a fully integrated player built into them. The standard VCR player controls are present, you can start, pause and stop, fast forward and backward. Since you can power the camcorder only by hooking it up to the power supply, it can be used as a rather capable video8 player. What makes this even better, is that you can use the cassette player with a remote control that was shipped with the camcorder.
Drawbacks
I am really impressed with this camcorder and invested quite a bit of money into it so I can use it again, but there are a few drawbacks that I want to adress. For one, the viewfinder is completely in black and white. This camcorder was released in the early days of digital viewfinders, so it only supports a black and white image. Later camcorders gradually integrated viewfinders that support color.
What can also complicate things, is that there is no flip out display. This is bad due to two reasons: For one, you constantly have to look into the viewfinder to see what you are recording, and second, you cannot adjust the brightness of the viewfinder anywhere (at least I didn't find an option that allows that). It is very tiring to use the viewfinder of this device since its so bright.
The following is not an issue with the device in itself, but rather with the format: The cassettes can be really expensive. Overall I had quite a hard time to find two cassettes in my online searches. Many video8 and Hi8 cassettes sell for ridiculous prices that I was not willing to spend money for. My tip is: Always stay patient and keep looking for good deals when buying obsolete media devices and dataformats. Someone, somewhere wants to get rid of old stuff they don't care about. Also, ask your local Hi Fi shop if they sell cassettes and wether suppliers still have something in stock. You might get really good deals and simoltaneously support your local economy!
Conclusion
Is it worth it to buy a vintage Hi8 camcorder today?
Yes... but not to the average camera user.
This format has a very special aesthetic to it and mostly the people that grew up with VHS and other old tape formats will really appreciate the look this tape can provide. You have to keep some important things in mind though:
- Buying, using and especially recording on obsolete media can be very expensive
- Do not expect amazing sound and visuals
- You most likely will face some inconveniances
From my own experience I can safely say that this camera is perfect for people that like to shoot video fast and effectively, with a retro look and feel. The camcorder was designed in a way that makes it possible to use it with only one hand in automatic mode. The camera is very powerful in low and no light scenarios and the reusable cassettes enable you to shoot many videos on just one cassette.
If you have a love for obsolete media or tapes specifically and want to shoot videos that are stylistically very distinct and different, by all means, try out a Hi8 camcorder!