The current crop of ultra-compact digital still cameras can all shoot video clips, and the Sony Xacti VPC-C6E is no exception. It can take both video and stills, but here the emphasis is on shooting video with a solid stills capability.
Designed to be held upright in one hand, its body houses a flip-out 2” LCD, which also serves as a switch to take the camera in and out of standby mode.
Upon opening the screen, the camera is ready to shoot in well under two seconds. In its default configuration an enthusiastic female voice greets you with helpful hints on how to get started. Thankfully, this can be turned off.
All camera controls have been placed to fall conveniently under the thumb. Individual buttons activate video recording and shoot stills, and a zoom slider sits between them.
With the Xacti CPV-C6E there’s no need to interrupt video recording to take a still. Unlike its bigger brother, the Xacti VPC-HD1E, this model isn’t able to record high-definition video. Instead, the maximum resolution is 640×480 at 30fps (frames per second) – the same as that offered by most digicams. You can fit an hour of footage on the supplied 1Gb card in high-quality mode, which matches up well with a 60-minute battery life.
Unlike some digital camcorders, the VPC-C6E offers full 6-megapixel resolution images with a selection of stills-shooting modes and a built-in flash.
A docking station provides easy PC and TV connectivity so you can dump your recordings directly onto video tape or a DVD recorder, or copy your recorded MPEG4 files and JPEGs directly to your PC.
With high-quality video and photos, the VPC-6CE is an impressive piece of kit.
Verdict 5 stars
Ideal for those who shoot more video than photos but still want good-quality stills.
Price: €1,036
Contact: Power City Stores nationwide
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