Sony DCR-PC55 review

The DCR-PC55 includes the typical array of automatic exposure modes, including Spotlight, Portrait, Sports, Beach & Ski, Sunset & Moon, and Landscape. You'll also find a series of built-in faders and an assortment of gimmicky digital effects such as Old Movie, Pastel and Mosaic. Sony's trademark infrared Night Shot modes are absent here; the only low-light option is a Color Slow Shutter mode.

The camcorder shoots still images at VGA (640x480) resolution and can capture MPEG movies at 320x240 or 160x120 pixels. A 16MB Memory Stick Duo card is included for saving stills and video clips. There's no built-in flash, but you can attach an external flash or flash/video-light combo to the camcorder's accessory shoe.

A small camera means a small battery; expect about an hour of recording time. Because the battery is mounted inside the camera, larger, extended-capacity batteries aren't available

Performance
The DCR-PC55's automatic modes perform well in most shooting conditions. Auto white balance and autoexposure are very quick, autofocus is snappy and the camera quickly adjusts to fast changes in lighting conditions. The digital image stabiliser fares less well, with very noticeable camera shake when using the zoom. This is probably more a result of the camera's awkward-to-hold-steady shape making the stabiliser work extra hard than any deficiency with the stabiliser itself.

Manual controls are a mixed bag. Manual focus is time-consuming and imprecise using the touch screen, but the spot-metering and focus functions that let you touch the portion of the frame you want to use as a reference work very well.

The LCD provides a clear, bright picture and, at 76mm (3 inches), is quite large for such a tiny camcorder. It works well in bright light, which is good, since there's no viewfinder to fall back on.

The stereo microphone worked well, picking up subtle noises without recording the sound of the camera motor. Its placement on top of the camera makes it more sensitive to the shooter's voice than the subject's, however, and the lack of a wind-filter function made for some noisy outdoor shots in our testing on a breezy day.

Image quality
While Sony didn't compromise many features in making the Handycam DCR-PC55 small, we can't say the same about image quality. The video quality is among the poorest we've seen for a model in this price range. No matter how good the lighting, we saw noticeable video noise in our shots, both indoors and out. There's also a noticeable lack of resolution. Footage lacks detail, and objects such as rooflines have a very noticeable stair-step effect.

Colour on our bright, outdoor shots looked accurate and saturated, but both indoors and in dimly lit situations, colour faded out very noticeably while video noise increased dramatically. This camcorder is definitely best suited for outdoor shooting. The Color Slow Shutter mode brings colours out more in dark situations, but at the expense of a very slow frame rate and blurry panning shots. Furthermore, in situations with extremes of exposure -- such as a lamp in a very dim room -- the lighted area blows out while the dark areas remain underexposed.

Still pictures use mere VGA resolution and thus lack detail. Brightly lit outdoor images are okay for basic Web or email use, but indoor shots are very muddy. This definitely isn't a viable substitute for a dedicated still camera.

Edited by Lori Grunin
Additional editing by Nick Hide