DCR TRV10 is an Exceptional Mini DV Camcorder
Written: Jan 03 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Small size, lightweight, Memory Stick. SONY quality
Cons: Heavier than the PC1, maximum resolution is 640X480 (72 dpi) - great for electronic use ( a monitor can only display 72 dpi!) and images up to about 4X5, but most print houses squawk about anything less than 300 dpi. SONY price
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| mkaar's Full Review: Sony Handycam® CCD-TRV108 Hi-8 Analog Camcord... |
I have been using the DCR TRV10 for about six months now, and have found it to be superior in features, usability, and flexibility.
We use digital images quite a bit for training and documentation purposes...the costs (in monetary, time, and space terms) of maintaining a slide or photographic library long ago led us to embrace digital photography. Our first digital camera (about three years ago) was a Sony Mavica, which took pictures to floppy disk. We still use it frequently, but, if a picture is worth a thousand words, we have found that video is worth a million.
The first digital video camera we purchased was the Sony DCR PC1 - a great little machine that literally fit in the palm of your hand. Unfortunately, this unit was stolen during a presentation in New York - and since it has been discontinued, we purchased the TRV10 as its replacement.
The TRV10 is a strictly digital camera (Mini DV), unlike the other DCR cameras listed here, which will record digitally to Hi8 film. Although more expensive to purchase (both the unit and the tapes for it), the use of digital media has (for us anyway) allowed us to maximize quality, and minimize the "stuff" we carry around with us on jobsites...every ounce counts, and we don't want to be seen as creating a documentary - a simple unobtrusive camera is a must.
The TRV 10, when measured with the supplied FM-50 Li-ion battery (about 60 minutes of record time)is about 6" long, 4" high, and 2.5 inches thick...and weighs about a pound or so. In perspective, it fits quite nicely in a "fanny pack", even with an extra tape and battery. At first, I was concerned about the "extra" size (the PC1 was 4" high, 3" deep and about 1.5 inches thick), but I soon found that the MUCH larger LCD screen (nearly 3" versus 1.3" diagonal) along with improved battery capacity and the ***BONUS*** Memory Stick capability, made this unit much easier to use and more responsive to the type of use that we put it to: we may perform 3-5 jobsite visits a day, and will mix video images with still shots quite frequently. Charging the batteries could be a problem (if we didn't have inverters in our vehicles), but the Sony "M" series batteries offer up to 8 hours of standby time - more than enough for a full day of shooting, since the unit will power down after 3 minutes of non-use. The larger LCD means less eye strain, and better composition...along with the ability to make better use of the exposure adjustments that are available (especially important when filming indoors or action shots)
The Memory Stick capability is an INCREDIBLE "WOW Factor", as well as being extremely handy. About the size of a stick of gum, these sticks hold up to 64 MEGABYTES of information (640 images!)(the 64 meg stick was just recently released). The camera can take pictures to the sticks directly (typical posed shots), or "grab" stills from the video (you can also save still shots to the tape, but they can be a bit more time consuming to retrieve). Sony's VAIO series of computers have stick slots built in, but they bundle a serial port adapter for use with any other computer. We opted for the $100 PC-Card adapter (including a 4 meg Stick), which allows us to read the stick just like a hard drive in our laptops.
Sony is pursuing the Memory Stick technology aggressively, and has even licensed its use to other manufacturers (things like MP3 players, voice recorders, etc). We found that the system is very adaptable, and limited only by your imagination: when a fellow presenter arrived at a conference without his laptop/monitor cable (a proprietary Toshiba cable) OR a floppy drive to copy the presentation to another computer, I installed the PC card adapter into his machine (Windows 95 and 98 recognize the adapter automatically), he loaded the presentation onto the stick, we swapped the adapter to my laptop, and he presented from my computer...
The TRV 10 has Carl Zeiss lenses, which offer up to 120X digital zoom capacity (we have it set to max out at 30X optical zoom, as the images seem to get pixelated over that) which allows us to video or photograph many aspects of a jobsite from afar (away from danger!), as well as offering decent macro photography within about 2" of an object (great for detail of cracked crane hooks, or your youngsters' first tooth).
The TRV also offers a broad range of digital effects (most of which are also included in other Sony cameras) such as "Old Movie" (sepia), B&W, reverse color, still, flash (like a strobe effect), luminescence, titling, and stereo sound. The nice thing about digital is you can add the effects AFTER filming, when you either show the digital tape or record to VHS. You don't have to worry so much about setting up the shot, or "ruining" it by filming in sepia (everyone has their own tastes!)
The TRV 10 uses an RCA adapter jack to hook up to your TV or VCR, or you can buy the optional "Laser Link" infrared receiver (beam your video to the output!.. it works GREAT, even with stereo sound)...OR, you can get a "Firewire" cable (IEEE 1394, or Sony's trade nemed I-Link) that transfers data at up to 400 megabytes/second (USB is about 10, I believe) if your computer supports it. My most recent Gateway laptop does, but both the Sony and Gateway documentation are so sparse on this new technology that it IS NOT easy to configure. Digital video editing software is still not cheap, and is quirky (we'll do a review of ULead's VideoStudio soon), but if you were to use this camera with a VAIO computer, you probably wouldn't have many problems. Gee, it sure will be nice when everyone can COMMUNICATE! We have plugged the unit into our van-mounted TV's and have done impromptu presentations immediately following an inspection...it's a nice way to get the safety message across quickly, address immediate concerns, as well as creating a conversation piece that few workers will forget: "Hey, someone cares enough about us to buy and use all this cool stuff to help us out" and, of course, "boy, that sure would be nice at my house!"
Included in the package:
Camera
60 minute battery
Battery Charger/AC adapter (really silly, you have to have the battery attached to the camera to charge it! Opt for the (you guessed it!) $200 standalone charger
Serial port adapter for Memory Sticks
Imaging Software (lame)
RCA adapter cord (3')
One 4 meg Memory Stick
Remote Control (zoom, still, slow, slide show, take a picture, etc)
NO TAPE (we harangued our salesman, hey, we're spending $1500! the LEAST you could do is throw in a tape! (they made it a box of five)
Options we bought direct from Sony:
PC Card adapter (included an additional 4 meg stick - be sure to ask for the bundle, some salespeople aren't aware of its availability and will only send the adapter - FOR THE SAME PRICE!) $100
Standalone Charger $200 (must have if you are using more than one battery, as far as I am concerned)
8 meg Stick $75 (I think you can get a 32 meg for about $100 at CompUSA now)
6 hour battery $200
What we'll purchase next:
Sony "Sport Pack" for the camera which protects it more from dust and water...not sure how much
Other things to consider:
Fanny Pack (leather, $19 at Wilson's)
Tripod (Fry's has a cool "Videomate TP 1 Table Pod" that folds to just larger than a deck of cards - $29)
Carrying Case for all the "stuff" (the fanny pack is like a day bag, you still need something for all the cables, tapes, extra battery, etc) We bought a BucketBoss GateMouth 2-pack at Home Depot for $30, and use the small bag for the camera. The whole deal weighs about 5-6 pounds when loaded)
Tapes: anywhere from $10-18 for a 60 minute Mini DV, you should definitely SHOP. We buy in bulk (well, 10 at a time) from HB Communications in North Haven, CT for about $10 each
Good Luck!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
mkaar
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Member: Marko Kaar
Location: Connecticut
Reviews written: 13
Trusted by: 15 members
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