Customer Rating:  
Summary: Great overall package killed by poor video quality
Comment: Our 1995 Sony camcorder finally bit the dust so it was time for a new one. We only use the camcorder for personal use so we were looking for another basic, easy-to-use camcorder in the $250 range. After spending some time researching camcorders the Sony DCR-SX44 camcorder seemed like a perfect fit.
PROS:
Extremely lightweight and small
Internal memory with optional memory slot
60x optical zoom
Built in lens cover
The menu and controls are pretty intuitive as well, you will be shooting video in no time. This unit is so small that it's almost too small for large hands to comfortably operate. Fortunately the somewhat small grip is offset by the light weight, which makes extended filming less shaky and fatigue free. I also like the onboard memory as well as the option to use SD/SDHC cards. The zoom was very well done, it's amazing how close you can get. I appreciate the variable zoom as well, it's easy to control whether you zoom slow or fast. The one knock on the zoom is that you will need a tripod if you expect to zoom in alot, there is no way a living breathing human can hold this still when zoomed all the way. That's more a compliment to the 60x than lack of stabilization though. When not zoomed in the stabilization is fine, not great but adequate enough for a budget camcorder.
CONS:
Video quality
Light for low light conditions looks cool but is basically useless
The first thing I did was set the camera to auto and put it on the highest video quality. After recording a video indoors I played it back on the TV. Not good. Very grainy, out of focus, and dark. I knew low light indoors video would be a problem, so I went outside in full sunlight and played around. Back to the TV and again, not good. All the images in the video were soft with no sharp lines and appeared to be slightly out of focus. At this point I knew I had to be doing something wrong so I started over.
I recorded a multi-situation video (including full sunlight, shade, indoors lit, and indoors low light conditions) using each and every camcorder setting available. I then played these directly to the TV, burned them to a DVD, and downloaded them directly to my computer to view. All versions were soft and fuzzy. I then compared the video quality to DVD's I burned from videos made by our 15 year old Sony tape camcorder. The Sony DCR-SX44 had worse overall video quality (indoor and outdoor) than our old middle of the road camcorder.
(Please note, I have an HD capable TV but do not have HD service, so I do not watch, am not spoiled by, and am not expecting HD quality video)
CONCLUSION:
I wanted to like this camcorder as the brand, style, options, cost, and ease of use matched everything I was looking for. However a camcorder with bad video quality is fatally flawed in my book. It is possible I got a defective unit, but I returned this camcorder and got my money back. After doing some more research it appears that for another $50-$100 or so I can make the monumental jump to HD and skip the dying technology that is standard definition.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Poor Video Quality
Comment: I've used Sony products for years and this is the first time I had to return one. This camera was very disappointing. I shot video at the highest quality level and it was still fuzzy and the audio was out of synch when I downloaded it into my computer. I wanted to replace my Sony Mini-DV camera with this one, but the mini-dv is 10 times better than this one. I didn't expect high definition, but this was very bad.
Also the software included was very difficult to use, but probably would have been better if I had used it for a while.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Review of the Sony DCR-SX44 Camcorder
Comment: I have used the Sony DCR-SX44 Camcorder only for a few weeks and have found it to be very user friendly. The small size is a large plus and the capabilities of the camera are impressive. I would consider this camcorder to be any excellent purchase for the non-professional.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Nice Camera
Comment: A very nice camera. Sometimes hard to set up but once set up it works well. Only problem is takeing pictures in bright sunlight. Cannot what you are takeing in the finder. Have to download owners manual to ujnderstand some of the commands. Overall except for the bright sun part it is great.
Customer Rating:
Summary: I love this litle camera
Comment: I've searched online for a new video camera for weeks. I'm so happy I chose this camera. I have 3 small children and wanted a simple, small camera that took great video and this is it. Camera is compact and very easy to use. I didn't even need to read the manual to start shooting. Takes great video and easy to download onto a computer. This is the perfect camera for a family wanting to take video of the kids.
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