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  • Performance

  • Format

  • Auto / Manual Controls

  • Still Features

  • Handling and Use

  • Audio / Playback / Connectivity

  • Other Features

  • Comparisons / Conclusion

  • Photo Gallery

  • Performance
  • Format
  • Auto / Manual Controls
  • Still Features
  • Handling and Use
  • Audio / Playback / Connectivity
  • Other Features
  • Comparisons / Conclusion
  • Photo Gallery

Performance

The Sony HDR-HC9 shares identical specs with the HDR-HC7. Both imagers measure 1/2.9-inches, with a gross pixel count of 3,200,000. The effective pixel count in 16:9 is 2,280,000, and in 4:3 the effective pixel count is 1,710,000.

Every other high definition consumer camcorder in Sony’s 2008 line-up was upgraded with the new Exmor sensors and Bionz processors, technology borrowed from Sony’s professional camcorders and its DSLR still camera lines. Sony claims camcorders using this system reduce noise, even as surface area on the imaging chip shrinks. Unfortunately, none of the Exmor camcorders are yet available, but you can bet we’ll have those reviews soon.

It should come as no surprise that the performance between the two camcorders is identical. We did extensive testing with the HDR-HC7 last year, including a full review and the Great HD Shootout between the HC7, the Canon HV20, the Panasonic HDC-SD1, and the JVC GZ-HD7. The HC7, and again the HC9, produce a very good looking image. The color balance and resolution are very good, particularly when compared to AVCHD camcorders. However, we still insist that the Canon HV20, and now HV30, look better. The Sony has that unmistakable "video" look – a combination of oversharpening and color – that Canon manages to side-step. Believe us, the margin of victory is not large, but it’s there.

One of the HDR-HC9’s strengths is the level of control you have over sharpness and saturation. The controls, described in more detail later in the review (Other Manual Control), are similar to what Canon offers. Decreasing the sharpness by two increments can rid the image of the camcorder’s standard oversharpening. A -4 setting is a bit too much. Bumping the sharpness up is not advised, as it increases the awareness of noise. See the +4 setting to see how bad it can get.

The Camera Color setting will help your video look more professional. Most consumer camcorders, including the HC9, oversaturate images to satiate color-hungry owners. Dialing down the saturation with this very tool is the best way to combat neon-like colors.

Video Resolution* (18.9)*

The video resolution of the Sony HDR-HC9 was tested by shooting a DSC Labs video resolution chart at an even, bright light, then watching playback footage on an HD monitor. This system of testing measures the resolution of the actual outputted video as consumers will view it, rather than the theoretical resolutions of the chip sets. At best, the Sony HDR-HC9 was able to produce approximately 650 lines of horizontal resolution and 580 lines of vertical resolution, the same as last year’s HDR-HC7.

Low Light Performance* (2.9)*

The low light performance of the Sony HDR-HC9, like the Video Performance section above, was identical to the Sony HDR-HC7. As with so many Sony camcorders, we saw the return of blue noise, most evident in the darker and neutral areas of the chart. The image appears slightly brighter than the Canon HV30 (in 1080/60i mode), which could indicate that the Sony boosted the auto gain higher, which could explain some of the noise. It didn’t do them much good, however. The Canon HV30 absolutely devastated the HC9 in sensitivity, which had a major impact on the overall score in this section (more on sensitivity later in this section).

The Canon HV30 produces a much cleaner looking image than the Sony HDR-HC9 at 60 lux. However, the noise scores between the two camcorders tested nearly identical, according to Imatest imaging software. This brings up an interesting question as to how noise is produced in a camcorder. Take a look at the images below.  

In a side-by-side, the Canon looks better. Yet the tests tell us the same noise is there. The difference, we believe, is in the tone of the noise. The lighter-colored noise in the Sony is more apparent to the eye. In the black areas, the blue noise is the problem. Canon manages to appear much cleaner. We’re hoping the new Sony Exmor/Bionz system in its other HD camcorders will help to address some of these issues.

The Sony HDR-HC9 offers manual shutter speed control, one of the few Sonys to do so. The 60 lux image at 1/30 boosts saturation and gives the appearance of less noise.

At 15 lux in auto shutter, the camcorder loses a great deal of color information and fine detail. Noise shoots through the roof, though the tone of the noise is largely black – as opposed to cheaper Sonys that tend to see a surge in blue noise. It is commendable that the HC9 manages to achieve a fairly accurate manual white balance at this light. Many camcorders, even HD models, can have trouble doing so.

At 15 lux with the shutter speed reduced to 1/30, the blue noise increases a great deal.

The second stage of our test determines sensitivity. We slowly and steadily lower the light while keeping an eye on a waveform monitor, looking for the light level at which the camcorder can produce a maximum of 50 IRE. The HDR-HC9 is able to achieve 50 IRE at 17 lux in Auto mode, far poorer than its closest competitor, the Canon HV30. Canon produces 50 IRE at 9 lux in 1080/60i mode, and 3 lux in 1080/24P. That means that even when shooting in identical modes, the Sony requires nearly twice as much light to produce a modest exposure level in low light environments.

Finally, we shoot an X-Rite Color Checker chart at 60 lux, then export frame grabs to Imatest imaging software to determine color accuracy, noise, and saturation. The Sony HDR-HC7 produces a color error of 11, identical to the HDR-HC7. The Canon HV30 in 1080/60i actually scored worse, with a color error of 14, but brought it very close to Sony in 30P and 24P shooting modes with a score of 9.93. The noise scores slightly higher at 3.01 percent, though still statistically within the region of the HC7. As we mentioned earlier in this section, the Canon HV30 produced a similar score, yet managed to look less noisy. *The saturation was nearly identical, at 74.82 percent.*

Overall, the Sony HDR-HC7 is a decent low light performer, but is clearly outclassed by the Canon HV20 and HV30.

Stabilization* (8.03)*

The HDR-HC9 is equipped with Super SteadyShot Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), a system that functions by isolating the lens from the body of the camcorder. OIS is the best shake reduction system out there for consumer camcorders because it has proven to be significantly effective and doesn’t sacrifice pixels the way Electronic Image Stabilization (EIS) systems do. EIS works by creating a digital buffer around the recorded frame.

We tested the HDR-HC9’s resistance to shake using our custom-built camcorder shake emulator at two speeds—Speed One and Speed Two. Speed One is equivalent to typical stationary handheld shake while Speed Two is closer to a light jog or jolty car ride with the camcorder. At Speed One, the HDR-HC9 displayed an 80 percent shake reduction and an 81.25 percent reduction at Speed 2. This is one of the best showings we’ve seen in a long time.

Wide Angle* (10.0)*

We tested the HDR-HC9’s maximum field of view using a vertical laser at both left and right angles. The camcorder was tested with OIS disabled and the zoom pulled back fully. The HDR-HC9 displays a wide angle measurement of 50 degrees, right on par with the HDR-HC7.

 

 

 

 

Format

Compression* (7.0)*

The Sony HDR-HC9 records video in the HDV format, which is a version of MPEG-2. Many companies, including Sony, are moving away from MPEG-2 variants in the consumer space, and increasingly toward AVCHD, which uses an MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 codec. AVCHD has several benefits over HDV: it’s more space efficient, it can be recorded to non-tape media like HDD and flash memory, and hence it allows random access to footage.

However, HDV still maintains a number of advantages. Most importantly, we have yet to see an AVCHD camcorder that can match the overall video quality of HDV. Specifically, while color and/or resolution may be equal or even excel on a model per model basis, the compression artifacts of AVCHD always look worse. Secondly, if you’re into editing – and at the $1,000 mark, we hope you are at least trying – HDV camcorders are much less taxing on your processor. Sure, as computers mature, editing AVCHD will get easier. Right now, though, it’s a hard road.

Unlike AVCHD camcorders, which can do multiple bit rate options, HDV is fixed at 25 Mbps. On the downside, this means there’s no way to squeeze extra video onto a tape at a lower quality. On the plus side, you know there’s no way to accidentally record in a lower quality. HDV records in 1440 x 1080, and it then anamorphically stretched to 1920 x 1080. 2008 saw the increase of the AVCHD bit rate to 17 Mbps (with an eventual ceiling of 24 Mbps), now capable of full 1920 x 1080 recording. We have yet to review these new camcorders, and it may be enough to finally put AVCHD over the top in terms of quality.

The Sony HDR-HC9 is also capable of recording standard definition video in the DV format. In this mode, you can fit either 60 minutes in SP mode or 90 minutes in LP mode. HDV and DV video can be used interchangeably on the same tape.

Media* (6.0)*

The Sony HDR-HC9 records HDV and DV video to MiniDV tape. These are widely available in any store that carries blank media of any kind. MiniDV is instantly archived, relatively sturdy, inexpensive, and replaceable. However, unlike non-linear media like HDD and flash memory, you’re required to fast forward and rewind through scenes to find the one you want. When transferring video to a computer, tape also demands realtime capture – 60 minutes of recorded video takes 60 minutes to transfer.

Editing* (7.0)*

Nearly all consumer video editing software release in 2007 or later can capture and work natively with HDV video. Once, a monster computer was needed to work with HDV; that headache has now fallen to AVCHD.

The Sony HDR-HC9 ships with Picture Motion Browser Ver.2.0.17. This is a basic program for importing, editing, and outputting your videos.

 

 

 

 

Auto / Manual Controls

Picture & Manual Control
Automatic Control (8.0)

The Sony HDR-HC9 is similar to its predecessor, the HDR-HC7, in so many ways. Nearly all the automatic and manual controls are identical.

Sony has always done a good job with creating easy-to-use camcorders that can satisfy the needs of the most green point-and-shooter, including great automatic controls. The Easy mode on the HDR-HC9 will restrict a lot of the controls on the menu, a kind of idiot-proofing that hands over exposure, shutter, and white balance decisions to the camcorder.

The best automatic controls are the exposure and white balance. The auto exposure is very fast and accurate, but doesn’t "leap" to adjust. It gives just the right adjustment curve for a consumer camcorder, taking about 2 to 4 seconds for major transitions. A slow pan, tilt, or zoom is treated so well that you probably won’t even see the exposure change happen.

The auto white balance is nearly as good. General indoor and outdoor lighting prove to be no problem. Only very yellow incandescent light cannot be adjusted for very well, requiring a manual setting.

The manual focus is good, but not great. Typically, we saw the HC9 overshoot the proper focal length, then back up. With the wrong kind of shot, like macro shooting, this can look very bad. It doesn’t help that the tiny Cam Control dial is too small and inaccurate for repeatable rack focusing.

The HDR-HC9 comes equipped with a number of one-touch auto features that allow some small degree of user decision making, but aren’t "traditional" manual controls. The Scene modes are the most straightforward, spelling out exactly when to use them: Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Candle, Sunrise & Sunset, Fireworks, Landscape, Portrait, Spotlight, Beach, and Snow.

There are also offers a number of Sony-specials that brand loyalists have come to love. Spot Focus and Spot Meter are two separate functions that work nearly identically. When activated, a frame is drawn around the LCD screen. Simply touch the area of the screen that you want exposed or focused properly and the camcorder does the rest. It doesn’t work for finely-detailed or small areas, but larger subjects are easy. New on the HDR-HC9 is the Spot Meter + Focus feature, which combines both tools in one.

Overall Manual Control (8.0)

Manual control is vital for a lot of consumers in the high def market, particularly the HDV format, which draws more video enthusiasts than point-and-shooters. The Canon HV30 and the Sony HDR-HC9 are in a close race for best manual controls. We did extensive comparisons of their predecessors, the Canon HV20 and Sony HDR-HC7, last year. Canon came out ahead, mainly due to Canon’s rear-mounted joystick and superior focus controls. The Sony touch screen and sub-par focus controls were not enough to satisfy. For 2008, Canon made some great additions, but left manual controls alone. Sony, on the other hand, added just enough to make the race even tighter.

There are two important new features on the HDR-HC9. First is the addition of peaking, which creates a fuzzy discoloration in the areas that are in focus. This is an invaluable tool for focusing when you’re forced to rely on the small, low-res LCD screen. The second addition, Spot Meter + Focus, is less vital, but useful nonetheless. This one-touch control combines the Spot Meter and Spot Focus features in one tool. There’s little fine control here, but it can be useful for on-the-go shooting.

Most of the manual control interface is split between the touch-screen LCD and the Cam Control dial on the left side. Both of these draw some deserved criticism. The touch-screen control is great for infrequent users, but power users will accumulate greasy fingerprints very quickly. This is especially difficult for evaluating manual focus. Touch screens also require large touch-friendly buttons, which inflates the overall size of the menu.

The Cam Control dial is too small. For some reason, each side is buffered by a fat ridge that prevents you from finding a good grip. Also, just like the similar dial on the Canon HV20 and HV30, it’s poorly placed. If the LCD panel is tilted up or down it blocks the dial. Sony blocks it even more than Canon. Why, oh why, did Sony downgrade from the full-sized lens ring on the first generation HDR-HC1?

Zoom (6.0)

The zoom toggle on the Sony HDR-HC9 feels great, much smoother and studier than the Canon HV30, even after its improvements since the HV20. Depending on finger pressure, we were able to achieve three distinct zoom speeds. The slowest crawl is too fast, and the HV30 tops it in this capacity. Also, all Canon camcorders offer the option to lock the zoom speed to three different settings, regardless of finger pressure.

When zooming, a scale appears in the upper left corner to indicate where in the zoom range you are. However, there is no numerical information provided, making it hard to duplicate a shot. Canon has the same problem.

Zoom Power Ratio (10.0)

The optical zoom extends to 10x, the standard for most consumer HD camcorders. The digital zoom, which can be turned on and off, reaches to 20x. The Canon HV20 and HV30 has a longer digital zoom, with settings at 40x and 200x. Offering a better digital zoom is hardly an upgrade. We’ll consider this tied with an even optical zoom and ignore digital zoom completely.

Focus (7.5)

The manual focus system has been improved since last year’s HDR-HC7, but Canon still holds the advantage. Both camcorders offer two methods. Canon has the joystick and the left-mounted dial. Sony has the touch screen and left-mounted dial. Here’s why we like Canon:

First, the joystick works better for focusing than the touch screen, which is prone to finger smudges that blur the very image you’re trying to gauge. Secondly, the Canon dial is slightly better engineered. It’s easier to grip, and the LCD panel doesn’t block it quite as much at angles.

Finally, and most importantly, Canon offers better "helper features" for manual focusing. We’re very happy to see Sony has added peaking this year, an option that creates a false, colored fuzz around the edges of objects that are in focus. What’s more, Sony pilfered from the best focus system– JVC’s – by allowing the peaking areas to appear in multiple colors. By choosing white, yellow, or red, you can still find the in-focus area regardless of the tones in your shot. However, the peaking tool is buried deep in the menu. Yes, you can move it to the top level of the menu, but Canon beats Sony with an external "Focus Assist" button on the LCD. At the touch of the Canon button, peaking and an instant digital zoom are engaged, making it even easier to see your subject. While Canon’s peaking is not multi-colored, its accessibility and combination with instant zoom make it the more powerful choice.

The manual focus as it appears during touch screen adjustments

Sony retains the distinction of providing numerical info as to the focal length, in meters, rounded to the nearest tenth. This certainly aids in recreating a shot. When tallying up all the factors, Sony and Canon are nearly tied in overall manual focus, with a slight edge to Canon. Of course, any of these elements depend on the needs of the shooter.

Manual focus as it appears when using the Cam Control dial

Exposure & Aperture (6.0)

The Sony HDR-HC9 offers multiple exposure tools, but no direct control over the aperture. The simplest and most straightforward is called Exposure, which can be adjusted either with the touch screen or the Cam Control dial. The touch screen offers a finer control. When activated, a scale appears in the center of the screen with plus and minus buttons on either end. In total, there are 30 increments. The problem here is that the screen becomes terribly cluttered with graphics and buttons – so much so that it’s hard to see what you’re trying to meter. When used with the Cam Control dial, the scale is much smaller, but harder to gauge.

The primary exposure control

The second control is the AE Shift. It looks similar to the Exposure control, but the degree of change is much finer. The scale only has nine increments.

The third, previously mentioned, is Spot Meter. This allows you to tap the area of the screen you want metered properly. The fourth, closely related, is the Spot Meter + Focus, which combines the effects of Spot Meter and Spot Focus.

Shutter Speed (8.5)

The shutter control is located deep in the Main menu. Manual settings are 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/90, 1/100, 1/125, 1/180, 1/250, 1/350, 1/500, 1/725, 1/1000, 1/1500, 1/2000, 1/3000, 1/4000, 1/6000, and 1/10000. This is a great range of options, and it should not go overlooked that it comes from Sony, a company typically loathe to offer shutter control. The shutter options that dip below 1/60 are particularly useful for low-light shooting. Shutter speed can be changed either using the LCD touch screen or the Cam Control dial.

White Balance (6.5)

The white balance options on the HDR-HC9 are bulked up compared to the average Sony camcorder. In the standard set, you’ll find presets for Auto, Outdoor, Indoor, and One Push (Manual). Making a manual adjustment is very easy.

The second control is the WB Shift, which allows you to dial up a slightly warmer or cooler look. Like a lot of controls on this camcorder, the WB Shift can be altered via the touch screen or the Cam Control dial.

The WB Shift control in action using the Cam Control dial

Gain (0.0)

There is no manual gain control on the Sony HDR-HC9.

Other Manual Controls (9.0)

Sharpness - The Sharpness control allows you to control the degree of in-camera sharpening. The control appears as a scale with eight increments. The default setting is four. Sharpening is a normal in-camera function that boosts contrast along edges to increase perceived resolution. Too much sharpening looks bad.
*

Camera Color* - Camera Color gives you some control over color saturation. When activated, you’ll see a scale of eight increments. The default setting is four. Pro camcorders tend to saturate much less than consumer camcorders, so feel free to bump it down a few notches if you want the pro look.
*

Tele Macro* - Tele Macro is used for getting a tight focus on small subjects while blurring out the background. On Sony camcorders, this means the zoom is automatically extended to its full range when activated. Any lowering of the zoom disengages the feature. There are lots of other ways to get this effect if you play around with the camcorder, even though there is no direct aperture control.
*

Zebra Pattern* - When this feature is activated, overexposed areas are marked with black and white stripes to draw out the problem. The tolerance can be set at either 70 IRE or 100 IRE. For reference, 100 IRE is the upper legal limit for broadcast standards. Seventy IRE is quite conservative.
*

Histogram* - A live histogram is a great tool for serious shooters. Appearing in the lower left corner, a histogram gives a pixel-for-pixel diagram of exposure values. The left side of the histogram is shadows, and the right is highlights. In most instances, you want the main grouping in the middle – healthy midtones.
*

Conversion Lens* - This feature is strictly for those adding a lens to the HDR-HC9. There are two options, one for wide angle lenses and one for telephoto lenses.
*

Guideframe* - The Guideframe option creates two horizontal and two vertical lines on screen, dividing it into a 9-sector grid. This does not appear on your final footage.
*

Center Marker* - The Center Marker creates a cross in the center of the screen to help you set up a shot. This does not appear on your final footage.
*

Color Bars* - Engaging this option creates SMPTE (or at least, SMPTE-like) color bars to help you calibrate your screen.
*

x.v.Color* - This is an emerging color standard for HD recording and display components. In order to get the benefit of recording in x.v.Color, you’ll need an HDMI cable and an HDTV that can support it. Read here for more info**.**

 

 

 

 

Still Features

Still Features* (8.75)*

The HDR-HC9 has a modest set of still features, most notably dominated by the breadth of image sizes this camcorder is capable of capturing. The HDR-HC9 has the ability to capture still images in the following sizes: Photo mode—6.1MP (2848 x 2136, 4:3), 4.6MP (2848 x 1602, 16:9), 3.1MP (2048 x 1536, 4:3), and VGA (640 x 480, 4:3); Video Mode—4.6MP (2848 x 1602, 16:9), 3.4MP (2136 x 1602, 4:3), 2.3MP (2016 x 1134, 16:9), and 1.7MP (1512 x 1134, 4:3); Play/Edit Mode—1.2MP (1440 x 810, 16:9), VGA (640 x 480, 4:3), and 0.2MP (640 x 360, 16:9). Images can be captured in Fine or Standard quality.

Sony’s Dual-Record mode allows shooters to capture stills while in Video mode and screen grabs can also be captured to MemoryStick while in Playback mode. An onboard flash is located next to the lens, but be wary of using it while the lens hood is attached. Due to the off-center placement of the flash, the hood will block the light on anything closer than a foot from the camera.

A histogram is available to display exposure levels faintly similar to the Levels control in Photoshop. The HDR-HC9’s histogram is a bit vague though, with no information to indicate exposure values. Histogram readings on the left indicate black and right indicates white. As you move the camcorder, the levels shift based on the exposure levels, but it’s difficult to attain a truly accurate reading.

The P-Menu in Photo mode

You can record a series of images in intervals of 1, 5, or 10 minutes by selecting Int. Rec-Stl. This will come in handy for a stop motion interpretation of a sunrise or short film entitled "Progress of the Slug." All manual controls are available in Photo mode, in addition to Picture Effects.

The Photo menu is accessed by selecting Menu from the P-Menu. The Photo menu contains the following items:

Still Performance* (9.49)*

The still performance of the Sony HDR-HC9 was tested by shooting an X-Rite Color Checker chart at an even, bright light, then running the stills through Imatest imaging software. At best, the Sony HDR-HC9 produces a color error of 6.32, which is quite good compared to the competition. The noise measures 1.7125 percent, also a good score, though the noise is primarily in the blue channel, which skews the cross-channel average. The saturation measures 106.8 percent.

In order to get this best score, the camcorder had to be taken out of Auto mode and the exposure adjusted to -1, which corresponds to an aperture of f/4.0 and a shutter speed of 1/60.

Shooting outside the lab, the stills look pretty good. The noise is low, overall, though not as good as a solid point-and-shoot still camera under the right settings. Sharpness and color balance are decent.

Still Resolution* (29.48)*

The still resolution was tested by shooting an Applied Image ISO 12233 resolution chart at an even, bright light, then running the images through Imatest imaging software. At best, the Sony HDR-HC7 produces a horizontal resolution of 1487 line widths per picture height (lw/ph) – with a 1.17 percent black clipping and a 6.92 percent undersharpening – and a vertical resolution of 1185 lw/ph – with a 0.83 percent clipping and a 12.3 percent undersharpening.

In order to get this best score, we had to raise the exposure to +1, which shifted the aperture to f/4.8 and a shutter speed of 1/60.

 

 

 

 

Handling and Use

Ease of Use* (7.5)*

Nothing says easy like Sony’s Easy mode. Easy mode covers a lot of ground for Sony, allowing inexperienced shooters to behold the power of HDV, yet on a simplified scale. The HDR-HC9’s menus are intimidating and scroll on for what seems like eons. However, one press of the Easy button sends you to Basic Town. The menu shrinks down to just four buttons—Record Format, Beep, Clock Set, and Display Guide—and all manual controls are disabled. The Guide is also available, which is really a set of quick tutorials that expound on subjects like how to add an effect and how to connect your camcorder to an external monitor. Anyone who has never touched a camcorder before will be an expert in Easy mode.

If Easy mode is just not fun anymore and you want to throw some spice into your cinematography, you will be greeted with an extensive menu system that is miles away from the organizational bliss of Sony’s popular "Home" menu. The HDR-HC9’s menu just rambles on and on. There are too many options in the Camera Settings tab, and SteadyShot control is buried at the bottom of the list. Audio levels are also hiding out in the Standard Settings tab. Fortunately, the HDR-HC9 includes a sub menu, called the P-Menu. The P-Menu is three pages long and composed of the most popular menu selections, such as Focus, Exposure, and White Balance—basically all your manual controls. You can also customize the P-Menu to include all of your favorites, which will save you lots of time.

We all know that HDD and flash camcorders are the easiest to shoot with and import. They can also store hours of footage and are highly durable. Tape-based camcorders are not so easy to deal with because they function just like a mini VCR. You have to rewind and fast forward. If you want to import your footage into your favorite NLE, capturing is real-time, which means you have to wait for the entire portion of footage to play at regular speed while the program interprets the data. DVD camcorders are the worst choices for editing because they hold the least amount of footage, are susceptible to scratches, and require abnormal amounts of time to Finalize. At least you get a solid hour out of a tape. Just be prepared for those long capture times.

**Handling ***(6.0)*

Handling the HDR-HC9 has not changed at all since last year’s HCD-HC7. The camcorder feels very well made, there’s no doubt about that. It feels great in the hand, and the build quality feels much more solid than the Canon HV20 or HV30. The mode dial and zoom toggle are well placed. The HC9 has the one of the most comfortable hand straps we’ve seen, a soft pad with breathable mesh, and it’s fully adjustable for the smallest to the largest hands. The port covers are all sturdy.

So that’s the good news. The bad news is that the methods for making manual adjustments could have been improved since last year, but Sony chose not to invest in HDV (no surprises). The touch-screen LCD, which is the primary interface device, will always have its fans and its detractors. On the whole, touch screens seem to be good for point-and-shooters and those who only need to make occasional adjustments. Frequent use leads to greasy fingerprints, which can be problematic, especially when manually focusing. And because all menu items need to be large enough to touch, the menu is very large and lengthy.

The Cam Control dial on the left side of the camcorder is a good idea, but poorly executed. There are several problems with this, any of which could have been avoided by retaining the full lens ring from the first generation Sony HDV camcorder, the HDC-HC1. But this small dial is what we have to work with here. One issue is that each side of the dial is buffered by two hard, plastic humps that make it difficult to maneuver. Second, the dial has no resistance when you turn it, making it difficult to make fine adjustments (especially focus) without overshooting your target. We love the fact that it can be used to adjust so many picture elements – focus, exposure, shutter speed, AE Shift, and WB Shift – but the lackluster feel of the dial definitely costs the camcorder some points.

Cam Control dial menu in action

Menu* (6.0)*

The menu interface on the HDR-HC9 is mediocre. First off, you’ve got a touch screen, which accumulates smudges and clouds the screen, making it particularly difficult to focus accurately. In addition, the HDR-HC9 is the only high-end Sony not to employ the user-friendly "Home menu" style (seen on the HDR-UX7 and others). The Home menu organizationally excels by using a tabbed menu structure, which reduces long, scrolling lists. The HDR-HC9’s menu, on the other hand, is chock full of long, scrolling lists. The Cam Control dial and P-Menu reduce cut a few corners, but the Camera Set menu still contains 25 items. You can fix this problem by customizing the P-Menu. We recommend doing this right out of the box.

In order to access the P-Menu, press the P-Menu button located in the bottom right corner of the LCD screen. The P-Menu contains the following default options:

 

The P-Menu

Press the menu button to cue the Main menu. Here, you’ll find the master reel of options:

 

The main menu

Portability* (5.5)*

The HDR-HC9 is not the most compact camcorder on the block, but it won’t make you feel like a pack mule. With measurements of 3 1/4 x 3 1/4 x 5 1/2 inches (82 x 82 x 138mm) and a weight of 1 pound, 6 ounces (650 grams), you’ll need a medium-sized camcorder bag with plenty of zip pouches told hold MiniDV tapes, backup batteries, and necessary cables. The good news is that the HDR-HC9 is a golden handler—this camcorder feels great and will not strain you during a long day of shooting. The Canon HV30, on the other hand, will dig into your hand and require breaks. Also, the HV30’s construction does not match the rugged architecture of the HDR-HC9, so expect this camcorder to last.

LCD and Viewfinder* (7.5)*

The HDR-HC9 is equipped with a 2.7-inch LCD screen with a 211,200 pixel count. Sony has increased the pixel count from the HDR-HC7 and branded the new display as a Photo LCD Plus screen. The new LCD screen flips out 90 degrees from the body of the camcorder, and rotates up to 270 degrees. The picture is crisp and resists solarization at steep angles. A vertical strip of controls align the left side of the LCD panel—Zoom In, Zoom Out, and Record Start/Stop. This aids two-handed shooting and makes life easier for LCD lovers.

**

 **The HDR-HC9 is also equipped with a wide, rubberized viewfinder that extends a full inch from the back of the camcorder. Sony has completely trumped the HV30 here by implementing a quality alternative monitor on its top-end HDV. The HV30’s viewfinder is not rubberized, does not extend, and is too small and buried into the back of the camcorder to use with comfort. In an age where viewfinders are diminishing, it’s nice to see a camcorder with a quality eye piece. The dioptric adjuster is located on the right side of the viewfinder’s shaft.

Battery Life* (10.6)*

The Sony HDR-HC9 ships with the NP-FH60 battery pack. The battery tucks nicely into the body, yet the camcorder allows for extended life batteries, if desired. We tested the battery for longevity by recording continuously. The LCD was open, and no manual controls were engaged. The battery held out for quite awhile before finally kicking the bucket at 106 minutes and 2 seconds (1 hour, 46 minutes, and 2 seconds).

 

 

 

 

Audio / Playback / Connectivity

Audio* (8.0)*

Like nearly all consumer camcorders, the HDR-HC9’s audio recording options are not adequate for most power shooters. Therefore, a boom mic would be a wise investment, and the HDR-HC9 is equipped with a hot shoe and mic jack to make that happen. Unfortunately, Sony’s Active Interface Shoe (AIS) is only compatible with Sony products, but there are aftermarket adapters that allow for third-party mics to be attached.

The built-in microphone has manual level control, which allows you to accommodate for soft and loud sounds. The manual level control is found in Standard Settings and features a 32-notch bar that enables you to set the decibel level by pressing the + or – buttons. You can also keep the levels in auto, which adjust automatically.

The HDR-HC9 also includes a headphone jack, which will work great coupled with a nice boom mic.

Playback* (5.5)*

Playback on a tape camcorder is very straightforward. If you’ve owned a VCR, you know how this works: fast forward, rewind, etc. The big limitation of tape is that you can’t jump around from scene to scene like you can with DVD, HDD, and flash media. The VCR buttons appear on the LCD as touch-screen controls.

The playback controls as they appear onscreen

During playback, the zoom toggle can apply a digital zoom of up to 5x. But with the zoom toggle tied up serving this function, the volume control had to be buried in the menu. The HDR-C9 offers variables-speed playback, which can perform slow motion or go frame by frame.

Connectivity* (11.0)*

The HDR-HC9 is stocked with a well rounded arsenal of ports. Next to the microphone in front is a mic jack, housed by a thin plastic cover. On top is Sony’s proprietary Active Interface Shoe (AIS), which supports—you guessed it—Sony products. If you plan on using a third-party boom mic or video light, there are adapters on the market that enable compatibility.

On the left side of the HDR-HC9 is where most of the terminals hide. A rugged plastic door swings down beneath the LCD screen to reveal the LANC (tripod remote), iLink, component out, A/V-out, and headphone jacks. Organization here is superb, but cables might prove to be a hindrance when attempting to review footage on the LCD screen.

In back you’ll find the HDMI terminal and DC input covered by thick plastic shields. One thing Sony has excelled at with the HDR-HC9 is craftsmanship. While most camcorders, especially the Canon HV30, tend to skimp on port covers, Sony’s can take a beating.

 

 

 

Other Features

What’s in the Box?

The Sony HDR-HC9 ships with the following items:

  • AC Adapter

  • Power Cord

  • Wireless Remote Commander

  • A/V Connecting Cable

  • Component Video Cable

  • i.LINK Cable

  • USB Cable

  • NP-FH60 Rechargeable Battery Pack

  • Lens Hood

MiniDV Tapes and a backup battery will be good items to pack in your camera bag, along with a Memory Stick PRO Duo if you plan on capturing still images. You’ll have to buy your own HDMI cable, though.

Other Features* (4.0)*

*Smooth Slow Record - *The Smooth Slow Record is a Sony-only feature that allows for three seconds of recording. This gets slowed down by a factor of four, to create a 12-second clip.

*Super NightShot - *The Super NightShot gives that distinctive "stolen celebrity tape" look to your video. The tool is great for recording in zero light because the camcorder creates its own infrared light, even though the video is green monochrome.

*Fades - *The HDR-HC9 can be set to add a fade effect every time you press the record button. The options are White Fader, Black Fader, Mosaic Fader, and Monotone.

 

 

 

 

Comparisons / Conclusion

Comparison
Sony HDR-HC7
While Sony went ahead and threw updated Exmor imagers and Bionz processors on nearly all of its new HD camcorders, the HDR-HC9 was left with the same 1/2.7-inch CMOS chip found on the HDR-HC7 ($1,399 MSRP). (We must, of course, remain professionally skeptical as to whether the new fancy-sounding chips and processors will make any difference.) The HC9 received only five upgrades: Manual Focus Peaking in red, yellow, or green, Spot Focus + Meter (which merely combines Spot Focus and Spot Meter), a center marker, a lens hood, and a dangerous all-black finish. Sony also slashed the HDR-HC9’s MSRP back to a respectable $1,099, though - $200 less than the initial price of the HC7.

Canon HV30
"I can do anything you can do better." The HV30 also received an all-black jacket, as well as adding 30P recording (in addition to 60i and 24P). This single improvement over last year’s HV20 is quite nearly enough to put it over the top against the Sony HC9. While Canon takes the cake in terms of image quality, Sony’s handling and construction far surpasses the amateur-grade plastic and wonky grip of the HV30. The HV30 also has peaking, but Sony’s enhanced focusing tools give it a slight edge. Stick with the HV30 and save 100 bucks.

JVC GZ-HD7
The GZ-HD7 ($1,699.95 MSRP, now down to nearly $1,000 on the street) certainly looks like a formidable beast, but its mediocre video performance belied the pro aspirations. The all-black body, focus ring, focus assist button, and external aperture and shutter buttons are hard to beat. But when it comes to video quality, the GZ-HD7 fails to please. Specifically, color and compression artifacts left too much to be desired. The Sony HDR-HC9 is a big winner in this challenge.

Canon HF10
Perhaps the most exciting release of the year, the Canon HF10 ($1099 MSRP) will either explode on the scene or wither like a dud bottle rocket. We got a chance to play with this tiny HD nymph at CES, and from what we saw, the image looks comparable to the HV30. However, testing will reveal all, so don’t get too hopeful just yet. The HF10 is minute—it’s basically a lens barrel with a hand strap. This little AVCHD bugger also shoots full 1920 x 1080 HD video and has a maximum data rate of 17 Mbps. Very interesting … the HDR-HC9 is a handling champ, but will its video match the mysterious HF10? We’ll let you know soon.

Who It’s For
Point-and-Shooters

Easy mode is a godsend for beginners. Those who desire a tad more control but are still new to camcorder shooting shouldn’t have too hard a time. There are an abundance of options in the menu, but the menu is structured simply enough (too simply for some) to find what you need.

Budget Consumers

Sony slashed the price a couple hundred bucks from the HDR-HC7, but $1,099 is still breaking the bank. The HV30 offers more quality features and slides in at just under a grand.

Still Photo / Video Camera Hybrid

The still feature set on the HDR-HC9 is quite extensive, with the ability to capture stills in all three shooting modes. Just don’t use the flash with the lens hood or your images will be partly engulfed in black.

Gadget Freaks

That all-black coat is sick! Check out that killer lens hood! Wait, it’s tape?

*Manual Control Freaks
*The HDR-HC9 has it all (aside from Gain). Focus, Shutter Speed, and Exposure are readily available in the Cam Control dial menu, in addition to White Balance Shift and Exposure Shift.  There’s a lot to play with here.

Pros / Serious Hobbyists

If you shoot b-roll in perfect lighting with limited motion, the HDR-HC9 just might make it for a couple of scenes. The HV30 is more apt to make its way into the amateur filmmaker’s toolbox.

Conclusion

The Sony HDR-HC9 is a good high definition camcorder. It’s also Sony’s only 2008 HDV model, so your only other choice is to go back to 2007 or earlier if you want to stay in the Sony family (our standing recommendation is the 2005 HDR-HC1).

The range of choices in high definition is growing every year. The serious shooter will likely want to stay with HDV over the other formats, as it continues to offer the highest video quality and editing options. Sony and others are clearly putting the marketing push on newer media like flash and HDD. These are undeniably more convenient for the majority of camcorder owners who are not serious editors. The important thing for a consumer to decide is how they intend to use their camcorder.

We’ve already tested and reviewed Canon’s HDV offering for the year, the HV30, and once again Canon has bested Sony in overall video quality. This should come as no surprise, as very little has changed in either camcorder from last year. Sony continues to offer the better quality build and will likely stand up to more abuse. However, it’s hard to argue with video quality. For intense side-by-side comparisons, we recommend reading last year’s Great HD Shootout. Most of the information, especially performance, is still relevant

If Sony has pleased you in the past, the HDR-HC9 will please you again. For those who are serious about having the best video quality, consider the Canon HV30. If you want to wash your hands of tape camcorders forever, look to high definition flash media, such as the Panasonic HDC-SD9 or Canon HF10. Hold off on Sony’s HDR-CX7, as it’s due for a replacement soon.

 

 

 

Meet the tester

David Kender

David Kender

Editor in Chief

@davekender

David Kender oversees content at Reviewed as the Editor in Chief. He served as managing editor and editor in chief of Reviewed's ancestor, CamcorderInfo.com, helping to grow the company from a tiny staff to one of the most influential online review resources. In his time at Reviewed, David has helped to launch over 100 product categories and written too many articles to count.

See all of David Kender's reviews

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