Panasonic HDC-SD5 or Sony HDR-SR7 ??

[Vinni Vega]

Hi all,im new to this forum and the camcorder market and to be honest the last time i filmed anything i had to carry VHS cassettes around with me..How we have moved on! So, i have between £800 and a £1000 to spend and im not sure wich one to go for,Panasonic HDC-SD5 or Sony HDR-SR7. I understand that the Sony has more megapixels for still shots and this could sway my purchase.
Any help with my decision would be fantastic,as at the moment i feel like im going round in circles.

Many thanks
vinni vega

[redsox_mark]

In terms of video quality I don’t think there is much difference. With the previous models (Sony SR1 and Panasonic SD1), the Sony generally had the edge in reviews; I’ve not seen a direct comparison of the SR7 and SD5. The Panasonic has 3 small CCDs, the Sony one large CMOS… the Sony should be better in low light, the Panasonic more accurate colours.

In terms of function, the main difference is the Sony is a HDD cam and the Panasonic uses SD cards. There are pros and cons there. I use tape (HDV) myself, but if I was to get a AVCHD cam I’m partial to the memory card based models, as I like the idea of no moving parts, and have some fear of HDD failure.

You are correct that the Sony has high resolution stills, the SD5 stills are at the 1920x1080 resolution only.

Lastly, don't overlook HDV cams, the Canon HV20 is better than any of the above in terms of video quality.

[Vinni Vega]

Thanks so much for the swift reply.I will let you know my final decision.
Thanks again,
vinni vega

[rhubarbe]

Really, you know that the competitor to the HDC-SD5 is the Sony HDR-CX6 and not the SD7. There isn't a Panasonic HDD HD camcorder but if you want an HDD cam look at the Canon HG10 which the reviewers are still slavering over. A little cheaper than the Sonys to if you shop around.