Sony Handycam® DCR-HC40 Mini DV Camcorder

Pros: Image quality; build quality; ease of operation; brilliant LCD; true widescreen
Cons: night mode only good at very close range;software very dated and limited

This is a brilliant camera. The Zeiss lens and relatively large CCD pick up colours and details very well indeed. The True Widescreen Mode enabled me to produce sensational, full-quality 16:9 movies. It is so easy to use and connects into popular editing software like Pinnacle 9 (which by the way is very temperamental software) without difficulty. The LCD is brilliant, being visible in full daylight even in the Australian Outback! I wanted to buy the Panasonic GS120 for the 3CCDs, but it doesn't offer Widescreen and its LCD is very poor, even under shop lights. I bought the Sony for $1200 Australian Dollars (911$US) including a Sony $150 cashback in the major store chain Harvey Norman, making it a sensational buy. Some have mentioned motor noise, which is certainly present but negligible on the final recorded tape. I filmed Koalas, snakes and Tree Kangaroos in a virtually silent Queensland rainforest all week and can't hear any noise on the final DVDs I produce. Insist on an extra battery, as with all camcorders. The supplied ones are okay, but small capacity. Overall: brilliant camera, recommended very highly.

Pros: Camera has a good balance of features vs. usability
Cons: Camera has apparent design flaws which Sony refuses to manage/own

Man, am I disappointed in Sony! I would love to use harsher words and foul language, but fear that my review may be struck down as a result. I would rather get my message out, that yet another HC40 is a dud. Same problems as others:
1. Battery drains quickly
2. Charging problems
3. Mem Stick Duo LED light blinks incessantly
4. Pushing the RECORD button has the unfortunate effect of switching the camera between Tape/Memory (record modes) and Playback.

I'm about to contact Sony CustServ, but all the horror stories on this site and Camcorderinfo.com already make me regret my decision to buy this camera.
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Update:
I did contact Sony Customer Support. They refused to acknowledge that this is a known issue. They insisted I pay almost $300 for repairs to fix something that's not my fault.

I am disappointed and angry at Sony! Why should I quietly accept that a camcorder may malfunction after less than 20 hours of use, and that I'm responsible for repairs. That's bad business! Shame on Sony!!

Pros: Easy to use
Cons: One defect makes this model useless

This camcorder has a defect which makes this model useless.
1) Battery drains quickly
2) The power light doesnt go on on battery charging.

Just go on google.com and type : " HC40 battery drain" and you will see how many people have this problem.

I'm an owner of this model and want to confirm this defect in this model.

Pros: easy to use,16:9,i-link(firewire),very small,
Cons: comes with no carrycase, tape makes slight buzz(big deal!)

i spent about 2 weeks looking at all the mini dv camcorders on the market and found it very hard to choose

i finally decided on this one
and all i can say is i'm over the moon with it,

NO battery drain rubbish

the quailty is amazing i put my footage on my pc using firewire then burnt it to dvd and the picture is as good as any hollywood movie

but it now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pros: easy of use, touch screen, very small size, light weight,nice casing
Cons: quality of picture, colors seem to be washed out, too pricey,

With the great disappointment I gave up with my attempts to tape the rainbow with DCR-HC40 because nothing appeared neither on the LCD display nor even in the viewfinder. I tried to do the same shot with my old Sony camcorder (HI8) manufactured over 6 years ago and got an excellent result.