Sony HDR-XR550V

Many of the digital camcorders that are available in the market today are all HD, making it a bit tough to make your next choice. If a camcorder that has a high storage capacity for hours of video to be stored is needed, the choice can be heavily filtered. It is wise to choose a product like the Sony HDR-XR550V that has some extra features to back its large capacity to make it more worth the purchase.

Sony HDR-XR550V

Design

The Sony HDR-XR550V shares many similarities to the HDR-CX350V in looks, maintaining its small profile even though it has a hard drive built inside. It is by no means a pocket camera, but it doesn’t weigh that much, weighing a little over 1 pound with the battery inside. The LCD display is just right, measuring 3.7″ and having a 921k pixel resolution while being backed up with TruBlack technology for displaying vivid visuals.

When the device isn’t in use, the lens cover automatically closes for added protection. When the display is closed, the adjustable .27″ color viewfinder can be used instead. Powering it on is as easy as opening the LCD display.

Main Features

The Sony HDR-XR550V is more than just a camcorder with 240 GB worth of many to spare. It has support for the very high quality AVCHD 24 Mbps format which shares compatibility with Blu-ray formats. Full HD resolution is supported even under low-light sensitivities, thanks to the “Exmor R” CMOS sensor. The Wide Angle G-Lens is built for the professionals that want to use the wide-angle to take better outdoor video.

It is also the camcorder of choice when recording people as it uses Face Detection Technology to naturalize the appearance of faces. It uses Face Priority and Smile Shutter technologies to make sure the faces stand out. Better control is granted as it has the Optical SteadyShot image stabilization to eliminate the bad effects caused by camera shake and have the camcorder function as a telephoto as well.

The zoom options are a bit weak for its price, supporting up to 10x optical zoom but there is very little distortion and the 120x digital zoom may help if the subject really needs to be close. The BIONZ Image Processor does a great job in making sure that the image quality is superb by combining the ClearVid array technology for clear imaging with the Dynamic Range Optimizer for good contrast and exposure.

Other Features

The Sony HDR-XR550V functions as a fully-featured digital camera capable of taking 12-megapixel photos. It even has a built-in flash which can help in low-light scenarios and uses the Smile Shutter technology the same way Sony’s digital cameras do. It can also take 8.3-megapixel still photos while recording video so the modes do not have to be switched.

If 240 GB isn’t enough space, Memory Stick PRO Duo media can be used by the Hybrid Recording feature for easy transferring of content for backup. The video and images can also be transferred to the PC via USB or can be played back on a 1080p TV through HDMI. The Sony Picture Motion Browser software can be used to conveniently view the contents of the camcorder.

There are some advanced recording and playback features as well, including the Smooth Slow Record which records video in 240 frames per second which is good for analyzing high speed motion. Golfers will find it useful in analyzing a golf swing because there is a Golf Shot capture mode which gets up to 22 images that can be displayed or printed for better analysis. Professional users can use the assignable dial to set some of the manual controls including the focus, white balance, exposure, and iris.

Geotagging is also supported as it makes use of a built-in GPS receiver with NAVTEQ support. Both videos and images can be tagged and read using the previously mentioned Picture Motion Browser software.

Bottom Line

The Sony HDR-XR550V comes at a heavy cost being priced at around $1,400. There are some cheaper models that have better optical zoom, but all of the other features are strong and more slated for outdoor usage. It doubles as a great digital camera as well and the high storage capacity means days of content to be stored before any transfer is necessary.

More user reviews:

• “The HDR-XR550V takes absolutely stunning HD video and stills. I owned the HDR-XR500V which I absolutely loved. In addition to all the great features on the HDR-XR500V, the HDR-XR550V includes an electronic viewfinder and also provides manual shutter speed control. It also offers a non-native 60p output option and in-camera standard definition downconversion. The latter is an especially welcome addition, giving users the ability to record and archive their footage in the highest quality, then export and edit with the smaller, more manageable MPEG-2 files.

Perhaps the most exciting new feature on the HDR-XR550V is the new memory card slot: a single slot that is compatible with both Memory Stick PRO Duo cards and traditional SD/SDHC cards. This new slot will be featured on Sony’s entire Handycam lineup this year, giving users unprecedented flexibility in sticking with Sony’s proprietary memory format or opting for the more universal SD/SDHC cards.

I personally love the GPS tagging feature, although I wish it would offer more detailed maps. The HDR-XR550V has increased hard drive capacity to 240GB, which gives me plenty of recording time.” – M.Stran (MA,USA)

• “After waiting for nearly 2 months for the prices to come down, we finally took the plunge. We decided to replace our HDR-XR520v which we had purchased last year, because although an excellent camera, the lens was just not wide enough. We tried using wide angle converters, however no matter which one we used, the image quality was noticeably affected. So far we just love the XR-550v, the lens is soooo much better.” – G.Mitch(NY,USA)

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