Sony HVR-A1U HDV Camcorder

Product Review: Page (3) of 3 - 08/05/05

Sony HVR-A1U HDV Camcorder Spot takes a first look at a pre-production model Pretty Pictures
The HVR-A1U also offers abilities to capture stills, either while video is being shot, or separately. The stills are stored on a typical memory stick. One thing that stands out; this camera does not hesitate to take the still shot like so many video cameras do. Press the button, and the viewfinder immediately displays the still it's taken and a shutter-like graphic shift in the viewfinder that indicates the shot has been taken. The sampling space is different in still image mode than it is in video, as it uses the entire area available to the sensors rather than being an anamorphic image. The table below indicates the various resolutions of the camcorder mode, memory card mode, and display modes.

Pictures can be recalled via USB 2 plug on the side of the camcorder, or the memory stick may be removed from the camcorder and inserted to a card reader.

Output
The A1U camcorder offers four outputs; an iLink/1394 output, a USB output, an RGB component output, and an auxiliary output for composite video and video. Note to the right of the Auxiliary output, is the DC input. This is where you charge the battery. Following the trend of lower cost camcorders, there is no charging base that accompanies the camcorder. The battery is charged on the camera itself. There are third party battery charge bases available if you need to charge multiple batteries. This is a feature that may be viewed as a shortcoming of the camcorder; professionals generally will need more than one battery for their productions. This camcorder can downsample the HDV to DV on the output, or send a 1080i stream directly to hardware if that's what you'd prefer to do in the recording stage. Imagine being able to take a low-cost HDV camcorder like the HVR-A1U and connect it to an HD/SDI converting system, recording HD/SDI straight into a computer or deck! Of course, like all its predecessors, the A1U also is capable of shooting DV. Just like it's bigger and slightly older brother, the A1U can also acquire in DVCAM, making this even more accessible to professional shooters.

There are a few shortcomings with this camcorder from my view. The bottom-load tape mechanism is challenging for those who would use this camcorder with a tripod. There are stand-off devices, but this could have been better thought out. This same issue applies with the battery release switch. Additionally, it seems that Sony could have provided a better microphone that comes as an external mic. In my tests, I removed the Sony mic and replaced it with a more appropriate hypercardioid, and that made a tremendous difference in the quality of sound I was able to achieve. It was tough to ascertain the audio quality of the balanced inputs and overall audio tools using the shotgun that comes in the box. However, I'm happy to say that with the hypercardioid in place, the audio features definitely passed muster.

All things considered, this camcorder is a great value, and no different than any of the other offerings from Sony's HDV team in terms of bang-for-the-buck. The few things that I'd wish were part of the package are minor in nature, excepting the bottom load for tape. I see this as a major challenge for pros that want to mount this camcorder to a tripod, jib, camera stabilizer, or other device. Aside from that small annoyance, for use as a helmet or crash cam, or for use as a second camera in an already-existing HDV production rig, this camcorder is choice. As an entry-level HDV camcorder, this also is a great option. The quality of image is not quite up to par with that of the bigger, more expensive HVR-Z1U, while the HDV quality beats any DV camera by a fair amount. With a little color correction, it's not difficult to marry images captured with the A1U to images captured with the Z1U. Monitoring shots from both professional cameras via Serious Magic DV Rack with HD PowerPak, the scopes show exactly where these two cameras differ, and while they are indeed different, they aren't so far apart that color correction won't bring them together quickly.
The small size also proves to be challenging for less experienced camera operators, and getting the shot held smoothly can be difficult, due entirely to the small size. However, this is one of the most interesting aspects of the camera; it's small size.
More noteworthy is that by removing the audio unit from the top of the A1U and by removing the lens hood, the A1U could easily pass as a sneak-cam, or high definition nanny-cam. It's not intimidating at all, and could easily be carried into museums, sporting events, or other locations where a more professional camera might stick out or be refused entirely.

Good things can come in small packages, and this newest offering from Sony's professional division is no different. This is the sort of camcorder that can be handed to television reporters to take home for those late-night calls and a camera crew might be taking a while to get to the scene, or perhaps used for corporate production.

With a street price of around US$2700.00, this isn't the cheapest camcorder on the block, but it's to date the least expensive HDV camcorder available, and best of all, it's coming in at 1080i, which suggests Sony is very future-looking to the time when all television is 1080. The small package will pack well, and it's small size makes it perfect for mounting on the front of a car, motorcycle, or parachute helmet. The low cost makes it perfect as a crash-cam or high-risk camera where a more expensive camera might be too risky to place.

What's hot? CineGamma, Black Stretch, small size, great audio package for the price of a lower-end DV camcorder. Dual viewfinder and LCD screen are nice as well.
What's not? Bottom load tape mechanism plus small size make it less than tripod friendly.

Happy shooting,

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More tutorials and reviews by Douglas Spotted Eagle may be found here on the DMN Forums or on the VASST website, home of the shared veg files and other training media. "Spot" is the author of more than a dozen books on the subject of DV, audio for video, DVD authoring, and Sony Vegas. He is the co-author of "HDV-What You NEED to Know."

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