Greater Choice

Nice Surprise from Hitachi

In its defence, a Blu-ray disc is supplied in the box (thankfully given the frighteningly off-putting price of this format). In the same way, numerous accessories are supplied in the bundle including a remote control and a HDMI cable which allows you to directly link your camcorder to a HD screen. Throw a remote control into the mix and the Camcorder goes some way towards redeeming itself. Finally, the Sony HDR-CX6 works with a MMS Pro Duo memory card. This is a format owned by Sony that we find in its cameras, in its PSPs, its PS3s... The first point of comparison is that the HDR-CX6 and the Panasonic seem to have both come from the same mould. They both have a compact look and a carefully laid out design. That said, the Sony is a bit larger. The plastics are also easy on the eye. An interesting feature we noticed was the presence of a clamp on the top of the camcorder which allows you to equip it with a microphone or a flashlight.

A Fairly run-of-the-mill bundle

Just like the Panasonic, the HDR-CX6’s pack is very very well-rounded. It includes a memory card, all the necessary cables and a, very useful, separate battery block. Sony even thought to integrate , a stand (on the top of the remote control) which groups all the camcorder’s connections together and allows you to recharge it via a mains plug.

Canon: Greater Choice

The Canon feels good in your hands. The essential buttons for browsing menus are placed just beside your thumb and right next to the record button. Thus it is possible to use the camcorder with one hand. It’s not all good news though. The off button is placed just below the thumb and could be activated easily by mistake.. If you’ve already made your mind up on this camcorder be sure to keep this little flaw in mind.

We also noted the presence of a colour viewfinder. A good initiative on Canon’s part, but this one is much too small. This makes it not a very exciting feature. Turning the camera off and on is easy. The first thing we noticed was that each DVD must be calibrated to SD or HD. You will be asked to format it before you begin. Be careful though, if you make a mistake this step is irreversible. You will then need to change disc to change the resolution (SD or HD). We should point out that four different quality levels are available for the HD mode ranging between 5 and 12 Mbps.

The 2.7 inch screen has an excellent resolution and offers an impressively clear picture. You can change its orientation completely and it has an anti-reflection screen. (We were literally amazed by the quality of colour resolution on the screen but we will come back to it later in more detail).