Customer Reviews
Daniel González from Venezuela 
2008-01-30
After viewing a few camcord information, I found the Sony DCR-SR300 a wonderfull video camara. As soon I got it in my hands, I started doing some films. The picture cuality is very very good. This video camara gives you good films even without light. I love it I recomend this 100%
More Than Pleased 2008-01-21
The camera takes nice, sharp video and can survive a 60-70mph downhill skiing journey at 10 degrees F (not sure what the windchill was, but it was cold!) and still function like a champ. If I had to choose one feature to complain about, it would be the auto-focus...blurs the image too often and takes 10-45 seconds to clear up in some situations. Our video of Xmas morning was quite blurry at times (as were my eyes : )...but overall I truly am more than pleased with the camera in manual mode. The touchscreen LCD panel is an awesome touch : ) and is easy to use.
I recommend purchasing a tripod/lense/cleaner kit as well if you don't already have the equipment, especially the carrying bag...don't want anything to happen to my new favorite camera.
So far, so good 
2008-01-18
Very light weight, easy to use. I was a little surprized that I would have to turn a knob in order to do still photos, (and hence exit video mode,) but otherwise, it's been good. Haven't really tested the still photo feature since it is somewhat inconvenient, and I haven't gotten used to it yet. Am having difficulty with the auto focus feature, not focusing all the time in the "easy" mode. Sound is good, though I noticed that if people turn their head away from the camera, they can't be heard nearly as well, and in some cases, can't be heard at all if they are "soft spoken." Rechargeable battery is rather large (more box shaped than rectangular, therefore, less easy to stow away in a camera bag) but gives a good 90 minutes of use before needing recharge. I like that it segments each video whenever the pause button/record mode button is pushed..as this allows me to delete the not-so-great parts.
bad quality 
2008-01-18
The still images the camera takes look very nice, but I have problems with the movies it records. I finally got past the mpeg2 problem by buying the mpeg 2 quicktime plugin from Apple ($20) although iMovie 08 could import them too. No matter what I do the image quality of the movies is very grainy when run at full screen. I thought it was the conversion that imoview was doing so thats why i bought the quicktime plugin. Now there is no conversion at all, i can play the movies directly in quicktime. when i play the movie at a size suitable for web pages they look great, but if i play them at full screen, they look horrible.
SAVE YOUR MONEY AND BUY A minDV recorder! the image quality on those recorders is SO MUCH BETTER.
Good Overall Camcorder 2008-01-07
Pros:-
Delivered ontime and in perfect condition.
Easy to use touch screen interface.
Hard disk makes tapes and dvd's unnessesary.
Good picture in night mode.
Egonomically the camcorder is very nice. Comfortable to hold.
Records in standard mpeg format so transfering and playing files is easy.
Supplied software cataloges all media in monitored folders and shows them in calender format. Very nice to finding the files you want.
Cons:-
Low light shooting isnt as good as with my old sony 405 dvd camcorder.
Picture isnt as good as with the sony 405 dvd camcorder. Its still a good picture though.
Minor Annoyances:-
Now view finder so you have to use the screen to record.
The battery that comes with the camcorder only lasts about 90 mins. This doesnt sound to bad but when recording your kids opening presents on christmas day beleive me you wish you had more battery life.
You need the supplied docking station to charge the camcorder and to connect to the pc to transfer file off.
superb for standard def!! 2008-06-23
I've had this camcorder for 6 months now. Video is excellent even on my 52inch LCD HD TV!! Pleasantly surprised. Sony does not sell them anymore, not sure why. I paid under $800 for mine.
You wont regret the quality. Easy to author dvds (NO CONVERSION needed). Takes me 20 min to make a FULL dual layer dvd.
The new HD camcorders are tough, the new HD form at needs to be converted which takes HOURS/DAYS to make one Video DVD.
You wont be dissapointed.
Good video quality 2008-06-19
I have been using my Handycam for a year now and I still love it. Just like most Sony products, it has great sound quality. I would never buy a camcorder based on its ability to take still pictures (because I have another camera for that) but I have to say that the still shots are pretty good. Transferring video to my laptop is simple and the 40 Gig is a huge hard drive! This has been a great camcorder for home videos. Only problem I have had is if I put it on a tripod and try to leave it to shoot on it's own, it does not refocus quickly leaving some scenes blurry for up to a full minute. Because of that I dropped a 'star' from the rating.
Elegent choice 2008-04-11
Excellent choice
Video - great
still photos - very good
40GB Hard Disk - Cool
Display, Touch Screen - nice...
Battery could have given which can last bit more. Currently it lasts for 100 - 120 mins
Sony SR300 Review 2008-03-26
Camera is easy to use. Takes great pics and video. Pics during filiming are not as clear as choosing to take pics only. The 6.1 pix pics look great. Shutter speed is good. Transfers media easily to the computer. I have not used the camera DVD burn option yet. The software the comes with the camers looks like it will make the burning easy.
great camera! 2008-03-19
I have had this camera for over four months. I bought it primarily to record my daughter's various performances. I was concerned about recording in low light, the sound quality and ease of downloading, as well as the actual quality of the video. I would give it 5 stars for everything, except the sound quality, which is good, but not great. I don't think you can expect the quality to be great without separate recording equipment. "High quality" footage is surprisingly filmlike. The camera is very easy to use - I've only had to refer to the documentation a couple of times, for instance to download. Making a DVD is a snap. I like the touchscreen and don't mind the docking station. I'd rather have the camera be as small as it is so I can throw it in my purse. And it is light enough to shoot a two hour show without a tripod if you have a steady enough hand. I never thought it would substitute for my point and shoot digital, but the pictures are good enough to do that, as well. I would definitely spend the money again, if I had it to do over.
