Yes, I know; the HX100v is not a video camera but it does shoot video. And from what I have been able to ascertain the sensor might be the same as in the CX700v, or similar, and the highest bit rate is also up there at 28mbps (Sony New Zealand website).

But the numbers that caught my eye are the zoom, 30x (versus 10x for the CX700v), and the price, &449.99 (versus $1298.00 for the CX700v) US dollars at B&H.

I’m not suggesting the HX100v will replace my EX1 but rather be a useful tool for when I want to capture the mating behavior of the Great Crested Grebe who almost invariably modestly perform on the far, and inaccessible, side of the lake.

I’m optimistic enough to think the video output from the HX100v will sit comfortably on the Vegas Pro 10 timeline with the EX1 footage too, or am I dreaming do you think?

Three times the zoom and less than half the price has to make one wonder, or am I missing something altogether?

The HX100 certainly is intrigueing feature wise. I suspect it will have a 30 minute clip limit, but other than that, it may be a pretty nice little combo still/video camera. I liked the HX1 (it's predecessor), but the video was only 30p, and to me was too choppy, plus it didn't match the light sensitivity and low noice of the higher end contemporary Handycams. Wasn't "bad", but wasn't quite as good either.

We will really have to see how the 16.2Mpixel chip performs - it's in almost all the top of the line Sony P&S cameras for this year, in half a dozen different configurations. It appears to be a "new" EXMOR R CMOS, so it's got promise, just have to see how well it delivers.

I will get the HX9 when it appears next month as a camera to carry around most of the time. It too has similar specs but 10x zoom and is small.

Ron Evans

I'm very much looking at the new top of the line Sony still cams. I liked the HX1 very much, but the video was a bit too weak performance for my tastes - usable, but was the weakest camera in my fleet, so it went towards one of the new SLT's...

I am pretty happy with the TX9 (and the predecessor TX7), find it to be a very usable pocket camera (big touch screen!), and more and more that's the "take it with" camera. Somehow I like the TX's for size, but they don't have much zoom range, the HX9 is on the radar, as I liked the HX5 aside from the mics overloading too easily in loud environments (the TX's seem to handle volume better for some reason).

It's all going to come down to how good the video is from this new sensor, I think the stills will be great, but I know even the 2Mpixel bump between the TX7 and the TX9 caused slightly more noisy video and a noticeable drop in low light performance in my casual testing. Wasn't "big", but noticeable. I'm hoping Sony dialed in this new sensor a bit better.

"HD video" is now pretty much a "gotta be on the feature list" marketing bullet point. The scary thing is when some of the specs begin to match or better much more expensive devices AND the performance is more than acceptable for many uses, AND they stick in your pocket...

Of course the HX100 won't stick in the average pocket, but sure has a nice lens range, not bad for most people's needs - those that don't want to go to an SLR/SLT anyway!

The HX1 has been my main take-it-everywhere still camera and based on the specs and Sony’s track record I plan to purchase the HX100v as an upgrade. I’m with you, Dave, the HX1 video was of very limited use. I have an old HVR-V1P sitting unused these days (I should sell it while it still has some value) and my day-to-day video camera is the EX1.

But times they are a changing. For one, I’m getting older and lugging my EX1 half-way up Mt Somers is extremely hard work, in fact lugging just myself up there has become a stretch so these new cameras weighing around 0.5 kg (versus the EX1 almost 3 kg) saves the day. And who would have thought just a couple of years ago that cameras with specs like the HX100v and the CX700v would become available so soon.

I was planning on acquiring the CX700v, especially after reading Ron Evan’s most helpful comments on this camera, but now I plan to wait until I get the HX100v and determine if the 28mbps AVCHD codex produced is almost as good as the 35mbps data stream produced by the EX1. I know all else is not equal by any means but wouldn’t it be neat if I could comfortably pop the files from both cameras, the EX1 and the HX100v, on the same timeline in Vegas. If so I would postpone purchasing the CX700v until the dust settles regarding all the new product introductions and I can make an informed decision.