For 2009, Sony has jacked up their top-tier 1920 x 1080 HD camcorders with GPS geo-tagging using Navteq maps, doubled HDD capacities and back-illuminated CMOS sensors that promise an enhanced low light performance. After playing around with these solid blocks of high-definition goodness at a Sony press event, we noticed that the new Sony HDR-XR520V and Sony HDR-XR500V are smaller than their predecessors, the HDR-SR12 and HDR-SR11.
We also noticed that Sony carried over the Cam Control dial, a feature we loved on the HDR-SR12 for its exceptional manual control navigation. The Sony HDR-XR520V has a mammoth 240GB HDD while the Sony HDR-XR500V contains a 120GB HDD, which is still pretty massive. At Sony's rate, it's only a matter of time until we see Terabyte Handycams.
With geo-tagging, the Sony HDR-XR520V and Sony HDR-XR500V enable shooters to track exactly where a particular video clip was captured on a global map. Sony's demonstration of this feature looked enticing, and we were jazzed about the fact that we could record anywhere in the world and be able to nail down the location to a set of coordinates.
We were also floored with Sony's back-illuminated CMOS sensor presentation, which compared the low light capabilities of the Sony HDR-SR12 to the new Sony HDR-XR520V via sample footage of New York City at night. To our eyes, the exposure and noise reductions were substantial, but we'll see if it's worthy of the official infoSync stamp of approval as soon as we get our hands on an Sony HDR-XR520V.
Other ancillary additives include improved Optical Image Stabilization, Smile Shutter and Face Detection, which is capable of detecting up to 8 faces at once. The Sony HDR-XR520V ($1500) and Sony HDR-XR500V ($1300) are two HD cams we can't wait to fiddle with before their release in March.
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