Home > Consumer Reviews > Sony DCR-DVD201E DVD Camcorder - USB2.0, Analogue-In, Widescreen, 1 Megapixel

Top Camera! This little gem is small, light and simple to use! My local Sony Centre supplied me with a couple of mini DVD-RW's (none available on line) and off I went.

The Zoom is incredible with the assistance of Super still shot. The still picture mode does require a steady hand though as still shot does not appear to be available when taking still photo's.

Hooking the 201 up to a computer was simple with the step by step guide. (Simple that is, once I realised the camera needed to be in 'Play back' mode before the computer could pick it up!)

The night shot facility is clever enough to eak out the last remnants of natural light before it looses colours and fades to black and white. Even at this point, Sony have fitted Super Night Shot plus that attempts to create colours when filming in the darkest of conditions. This is clever but cannot run steady shot mode simultaneously.

Never again do i have to say 'Hang on, i need to wind the video on/back', as the camera always returns to the next available space automatically. With its clear picture and quality sound, I would recommend this camera to anyone.

Delivery of the Camera and NP-QM71D extra life battery was very good (3 days!). The supplier 'DigiFocus' kept me informed of status at every stage after despatch.

However i am still waiting for delivery of a fast charger! So far i have been waiting one month! Come on Amazon, chase your sub contractor suppliers, It's your name that gets tarnished!

I love this camcorder. It looks stylish, and it gets the job done. Easy to use, even for a beginner, it can also shoot photographs as well as high-quality movies. It also has 2 great nightshot modes (invaluable for shooting at night) and a fully rotatable LCD monitor. Also, the camera can zoom up to 120 times! However, the instruction booklet tends to go on , and the video-making software isn't very detailed, but it does get the job done. Still, this is a great little package: why would you need a different camcorder for home movies? It has everything you need to develop quality movies! Buy, buy, buy! (And if the price is putting you off, go for the 101E, it's almost as good!)

This is a brilliant piece of kit and with the free case promo (make sure you use the promo code) this is a great deal.

It's small, compact, light weight and realy easy to use. The 120x zoom lens is incredible.

The only down-side at the moment is that Sony appear to have a backlog of orders for the RW dics and so there aren't any around at the moment. There's plenty of the R discs available but you'll need at least one RW to get real effieciency out of this machine.

I'm yet to link the machine up to my PC but you get everything you need including the software to able to do this.

All in all, I'm glad I spent the extra cash for the 201 model.

Dummy. Thats exactly how I came into the world of camcorders. Having crossed the rubicon and purchased a Sony digital camera earlier in the year, I felt it was time to do the same, and treat myself to a digital camcorder. I knew I wanted a Sony, I'd always trusted the make, and friends who were more technically adept than me recommended them.

But I went into this, as the title suggests, totally and utterly naive to this medium. Didn't even know the difference between a DVD-RW and a DVD-R, so if you're coming at the topic from this perspective read on!

So. big box arrives. Full of stuff. Ignore that, go straight to the main event. Beautifully crafted, small, aesthetically pleasing camcorder. Cautiously look for manual (usually written by geeks, for geeks)-easy to understand, fitting battery-no problem, turning it on (don't laugh!) -simple. Loading the DVD-RW and viewing the display, easy, simple menu system that talks you through it. Instruction manual continues to confound with its easy approach, although it would be nice if things were laid out in the order you'd look to do them-but a minor quibble.

The CD's have to be formatted before you can use them. No idea why, seems pointless, but easy enough to do-took seconds and, again, clearly explained and accessed. So, literally 15-20 mins after opening the box, ready for a trial film, and out in the garden. SO easy to film, to zoom, to follow your subject. Using the LCD screen takes up more battery juice, but its so easy to use, forget the viewfinder! Seven minutes of outdoor film later, ready to view. You have to "formalize" the DVD first however, if you want to watch it on your DVD player or PC. But yet again, quick and easy to do.

Wonderful results. Picture very sharp, sound (including background of bird song etc) clear, images, even on a close zoom have a defined and "real life" clarity. Colours are true, no fade or "glare". Hugely impressed. Impressed that, from opening the box as a complete novice to easy and confident filming and viewing took no more than half an hour. Have barely touched the surface of what this camcorder can do, but now excited by the possibilities. Read the manual in bed last night-how sad is that? But a sure sign of satisfaction and wanting more! An excellent purchase, am delighted. If, like me, you are reading this as a camcorder virgin, then make those first fumbling steps and purchase this model. You won't regret it.

What a nifty little thing this is! Small enough to fit in your pocket, but with all the power you need. The Zeiss lens gives crystal clarity to both moving and still images and Super NightShot Plus picks up images, that can barely be seen with the naked eye, in complete blackness thanks to infrared technology. I have only one complaint, and that is the price and availability of the 8cm DVD-RW discs. I bought a 5-pack of TDK ones which are easier to get hold of, then I use the simple USB PC connection to burn to standard DVD-Rs, so hopefully I should never need more than those 5. The supplied editing software is also pretty good. Shame it doesn't have a built-in zoom mic, but the ECM HS1 doesn't cost the earth, so that'll be my next purchase. Do I sound like a sales rep? I'm not, I'm just one extremely happy owner.