Sony HDR-XR500 Series GPS-Enabled CMOS Camcorder

Sony has introduced the Handycam HDR-XR500 series which consists of two models – HDR-XR500 and HDR-XR520. The cameras support 12 megapixel still photographs and 8.3 megapixel still photos when in dual recording mode. The HDR-XR520 is now Sony’s latest high-end HD hard disc drive camcorder. The internal HDD gives you an impressive 240GB of storage space yielding up to 92 hours of video.

The HDR-XR500 in contrast comes with only 120GB of storage capacity. Apart from this distinction in storage capacities both models offer pretty much the same features. These include a 37mm G-lens with six-blade aperture, GPS geo-tagging, a 3.2-inch, 921,000-pixel touch screen LCD, better optical image stabilization, microphone and headphone jacks, viewfinder, and much more.

Low-light performance has never really been a strong feature of camcorders and Sony has endeavored to improve it with the help of a 1/3.15-inch back-illuminated Exmor-R CMOS sensor. An 8dB increase in sensitivity leads to a 50 percent noise reduction which offers clearer and sharper pictures free from color speckles.