Sony HDR-SR12 / SR12E

477 reviews

Nov, 2024

Positive
usability (269)
image quality (167)
portability (76)
price (69)
size (59)

Negative
memory (21)

General overview
Price comparison

alaTest has collected and analyzed 477 reviews of Sony HDR-SR12 / SR12E. The average rating for this product is 4.3/5, compared to an average rating of 4.0/5 for other Camcorders for all reviews. Views about the size and price are on the whole positive. The portability and image quality also get good reviews, but comments about the memory and battery are different.

usability, image quality, portability, price, size

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other Camcorders the Sony HDR-SR12 / SR12E is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 90/100 = Excellent quality.

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Review analysis

(Based on 477 reviews)

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Review Ratings

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Showing 1 - 288 of 415 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (59)

Consumer review (amazon.co.uk)

Amazon.co.uk review summary for Sony HDR-SR12 / SR12E

alaTest has collected and analyzed 68 user reviews of Sony HDR-SR12 / SR12E from Amazon.co.uk. The average user rating for this product is 4.6/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.0/5 for other Camcorders on Amazon.co.uk. Reviewers really like the durability and price. The portability and image quality are also appreciated, whereas there are some less positive reviews about the memory.

usability, image quality, portability, price, durability

memory

100% of the reviews on Amazon.co.uk give this product a positive rating.

Nov, 2024

Consumer review (amazon.com)

Amazon.com review summary for Sony HDR-SR12 / SR12E

alaTest has collected and analyzed 210 user reviews of Sony HDR-SR12 / SR12E from Amazon.com. The average user rating for this product is 4.2/5, compared to an average user rating of 3.9/5 for other Camcorders on Amazon.com. Reviewers really like the size and durability. The price and image quality also get good comments. There are some less positive views about the viewfinder and memory. There are some mixed views about the portability.

usability, image quality, price, durability, size

color, memory, viewfinder

90% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

Nov, 2024

Expert review by : James Morris (trustedreviews.com)

Sony HDR-SR12E

The HDR-SR12E is the latest HD camcorder to join Sony's hard disk-based range - and we like it!

The HDR-SR12E exudes quality. It has Sony's characteristically solid build and is packed with clever design features. We still love Canon's HF10 for its smaller size, lower price and use of convenient flash memory. It also has a few more manual...

May, 2008

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Expert review by : Jim Feeley (techadvisor.co.uk)

Sony Handycam HDR-SR12 review

The Sony Handycam HDR-SR12's big differentiator is its built-in 120GB hard drive, which holds more than 14 hours of video at its highest quality setting. Both the image quality and the storage capacity are impressive, but unless you need to record...

Although the Sony Handycam HDR-SR12 is a very good HD camcorder, it costs far more than HD camcorders that deliver similar quality and features. The key question for potential buyers is whether massive storage capacity and great-quality video hold...

Oct, 2008

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Expert review by (stuff.tv)

Sony HDR-SR12E review

Want to shoot 15 hours of Full HD video at a stretch? You'll be needing Sony's 120GB camcording beast then, wont you?

The marker has been laid down. Sony's pulled off another AVCHD stunner that will be hard to beat this year

Jul, 2008

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Expert review by : Phil Ryan (cnet.co.uk)

Sony Handycam HDR-SR12 review

I used to think that hard-drive models would take over the camcorder market as miniDV slowly faded into the horizon. I've since changed my tune after using flash-based models, especially those that include some onboard memory. However, if you shoot a...

Excellent video and performance; impressive still photos for a camcorder; adequate manual controls; nice CAM CTL dial; docking station included.

No wind filter; doesn't include mini HDMI cable.

Sony's Handycam HDR-SR11 and SR12 60GB hard-drive-based AVCHD camcorders deliver top notch performance and image quality.

Apr, 2008

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Expert review by : Andrew Gould (techsmart.co.za)

Sony Handycam HDR-SR12

A very attractive HD video camera with lots of recording space thanks to the 120GB hard-disk.

Attractive look, 120GB hard-disk space.

Not much really, although it is expensive, but one expects that.

Jan, 2009

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Expert review by : Jim Feeley (techworld.com)

Sony Handycam HDR-SR12 review

The Sony Handycam HDR-SR12 can record over a dozen hours of great-looking AVCHD video onto its 120GB hard drive, but it comes at a hefty price.

Oct, 2008

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Expert review by (channel5.com)

Sony HDR-SR12E

The Sony HDR-SR12E is a full HD video recorder with a high bit rate at 16Mbps that can take up to 48 hours of video recording. It contains a 120 GB hard drive and is fitted with a Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* lens with 12x optical zoom. Users also get to...

A stomping great video monster that packs more memory than a herd of elephants into a beautifully crafted shell lighter than an aardvark (as long as aardvarks weighs 561g or more). Pure class. Sony HDR-SR12E has no tags.

Sep, 2008

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Expert review by : Colin Barrett (macuser.co.uk)

Sony HDR-SR12 AVCHD Camcorder

As AVCHD grabs an increasing share of the HD camcorder market, it's encouraging to see Sony providing the HDR-SR12 with a microphone input and dedicated headphone output, in addition to enabling full specification 1920 x 1080i high-definition video...

What is strange, however, is Sony's continued use of only 50i interlaced frame scanning rather than the 25p progressive frame scan preferred by more discriminating users. It's a key feature that other makers - Canon and Panasonic, in particular - have...

Jul, 2008

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Expert review by : CB (simplydv.co.uk)

SimplyDV Review: Sony HDR-SR12 AVCHD High Definition Camcorder

Sony's impressive HD cam has pretty much everything a serious user might need - great handling, dual-media recording, HDMI, mic input, headphone output and a viewfinder as well as touch-screen LCD. So why the absense of a 1080p Progressive mode?

The HDR-SR12 (like is lesser-endowed SR11 sibling) is a fabulous HD camcorder that generates hugely impressive full-specification 1920x1080 HD video pictures using the revolutionary AVCHD (MPEG-4 AVC/H.264) compression system. Switch off the auto mode...

Jun, 2008

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Expert review by : Chris Jager (goodgearguide.com.au)

Sony HDR-SR12E

The hard disk-based HDR-SR12E is the star attraction of Sony's 2008 handycam line-up. With its huge 120GB capacity and maximum video resolution of 192...

120GB inbuilt hard drive, memory stick slot for additional recording, vibrant high-definition video quality, 10.1Mp stills mode, solid picture quality in dim lighting

Price

The HDR-SR12E may be a little more expensive than most of its rivals, but it represents a bargain nonetheless. It ticks all the major boxes that make a great camcorder; including superb image quality and ease-of-use.

Apr, 2008

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