Camcorder Review:
Sony HDR-UX1 AVCHD

Mark Montgomery
January 2007

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DVD camcorders have historically not been the ideal format for many intermediate level videographers, due to the lack of manual controls and difficulty in editing DVD footage. Sony's HDR-UX1 shatters the DVD cam stereotype, offering more features on its semi-pro body.

What does it take to entirely change the perception of DVD camcorders? The HDR-UX1 starts where no DVD cam has gone before: a new recording format that records 1080i. AVCHD (Advanced Video Codec High Definition) offers HDV-like image quality, with increased encoding efficiency. In other words, AVCHD can store more visual information with less data. If you're a beginning or intermediate shooter looking for a new camcorder with some manual controls and big time resolution, the HDR-UX1 is shaping up to be a leader in the HD revolution.

After taking the unit out of the box, one of our first impressions, other than it being a very nice looking camcorder, was its heaviness. It's not too heavy (i.e., your arms won't tire out quickly), but it's certainly not as lightweight as most camcorders of the same size. Its weight gives it a solid, durable feeling, like something that could take some abuse. Furthermore, the HDR-UX1 is built fairly big, too.

One of the most noticeable of the oversized features is the lens barrel, much larger than the 30mm lens itself. This larger barrel gives you more room and control to manipulate the focus/exposure ring. This was one of our favorite features on the camcorder. The traditional focus ring has been enhanced so that it can adjust either the focus (obviously), the exposure, white balance and/or the AE shift.

The next oversized, jaw-dropping feature is the 3.5" widescreen LCD. If seeing is believing, then we believe this is one of the sharpest and easy-to-shoot-with LCD screens. The menu system is controlled using this same screen, which is somewhat unfortunate, now that you'll cloud up the clarity of the LCD screen with your greasy fingertips, but the menu is sharp looking and impressive.

Unhappily, there is no quick way to change between focus and exposure on the focus/exposure ring.

The camcorder includes mic and headphone jacks. Unfortunately, there are no manual audio controls, so you'll have to trust the AGC to record your sound accurately. The HDR-UX1 has a hot shoe on its top-front, allowing easy attachment of a variety of Sony accessories, including a 5.1-channel microphone. Overall, the onboard mic can pick up sounds from 20 feet away, but a shotgun is recommended for longer shots.

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