Sony camcorder photos at CES 2009

Sony's lineup for the first half of 2009 spans a wide variety of target markets.

Lori Grunin

I've been reviewing hardware and software, devising testing methodology and handed out buying advice for what seems like forever; I'm currently absorbed by computers and gaming hardware, but previously spent many years concentrating on cameras. I've also volunteered with a cat rescue for over 15 years doing adoptions, designing marketing materials, managing volunteers and, of course, photographing cats.

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Lori Grunin

Jan. 9, 2009 12:41 p.m. PT

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Sony Handycam HDR-XR520V

The definite high point of Sony's prosumer line are the XR520V and XR500V, AVCHD camcorders that incorporate new back-illuminated CMOS technology--the company's new Exmor-R sensors--as well as geotagging capabilities. The lower-end models, the XR100 and XR200V, still seem to provide a reason to buy this year's models instead of last year's.

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Sony Handycam DCR-DVD850

The company's DVD lineup shows little significant differentiation from previous years, except for the 60x zoom lens that you could live without. We keep waiting for this technology to die.

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Sony Handycam DCR-SR87

This year's models are pretty much the same as last year's; smaller, lighter, and an extra 20GB on the hard drive on each comparable model seems to be the biggest difference.

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Sony Handycam DCR-SX60

Sony finally launches a flash-based standard definition product line, the SX series. The products within the line differ by the amount of built-in memory; you're usually better off buying the cheapest rather than the one with lots of internal memory, since memory-card prices--in this case, the price of Memory Stick Duo--tend to drop a lot faster.

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Sony Handycam HDR-CX100

Sony adds a low-end HD model to its AVCHD Memory Stick-recording lineup, a more mainstream offering than the current CX12.

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Sony MHS-CM1

One of Sony's 2 "Webbie HD" models, this vertically oriented flash-recording model is targeted to the cheap, compact, direct-to-YouTube crowd. It offers a 5x zoom, which is unusual at its price.