Sony HandyCam HDR-TG1 : Sony HandyCam HDR-TG1 (TG3 in Europe): The Stylish Video Camera for your Summer Vacation (Hands-on)

Yeah I know, July and August are still far far away, but if you want your summer vacation to be perfect you’d better prepare LONG in advance! Here's the HandyCam HDR-TG1 from Sony (HDR-TG3 in Europe), a new compact size full HD camera (1080i) which includes an 8GB memory stick and weights only 300g at 32x119x63mm.

The codec used here is the AVCHD, really great for family video and great holiday footage. With a stylish titanium body, Sony offers a strong and robust camera which will surely attract fashionable users. For those looking for quality, our HDR-TG1 features the Clear Bit CMOS Sensor and Exmor technology (the exact same technology found on the α700).

Expect something like 1h50min of recording time on a 16GB memory stick in full quality (1920x1080i at 16Mbps) or 5h55min in HDV (1440x1080i at 5mbps) also on a 16GB memory stick.

David, our excellent photographer, is now at the Sony press conference and will soon bring back some live pictures of this new little wonder! Meanwhile here's the official video... (sorry for Sony's crappy choice of music...)

****UPDATE*****

David is back from the press conference and was STUNNED by this new HandyCam. Video is great and crystal clear... it looks like Sanyo will have to work hard in to keep its lead. Huge live photo gallery after the press release !



SAN DIEGO, Apr. 2, 2008 – The new pocket-sized Sony HDR-TG1 Handycam® camcorder's weighty high-definition capability will appeal to vacationers who prefer to "travel light."

This diminutive camcorder weighs in at only ten ounces. It has an ultra-portable body measuring just 1.3-inches wide by 4.7-inches tall by 2.5-inches deep.

It is a full-featured camcorder that can record 1920 x 1080 HD video and 4-megapixel digital photos directly to Sony Memory Stick PRO Duo™ or PRO Duo Mark2 media cards. Its size and full recording capability makes it the world's smallest full HD camcorder.

Another bonus for any traveler is the camcorder's durable titanium body and premium hard coating that makes it highly resistant to scratches and quite fashionable.

It ships with a supplied 4GB PRO Duo Mark2 media card so it's ready to go straight out of the box and you don't have to make space in your travel bag for extra discs or tapes.

"Sony was the first to introduce a travel-sized camcorder with 8 mm technology in the 1980's, and it revolutionized the travel and electronics industries," said Kelly Davis, director of camcorder marketing at Sony Electronics. "This new model is a great example of our expertise in miniaturization, as well as advanced imaging technologies with features like face detection."

Face Detection for the Best Possible Picture

This new model incorporates face detection technology for both video and still images, a technology also shared with select Sony Cyber-shot® digital cameras. It can identify up to eight faces in the camcorder's 2.7-inch touch panel LCD screen, and automatically adjust focus, exposure, color control for natural-looking skin tones, and when photos are taken, flash control.

The model also allocates more encoding bits to a detected face during the encoding process for the best possible picture when people are the subjects.

Not Just Another Pretty Face

The camcorder features advanced video and aud