Sony HDR-CX550VE

Low Light Sensitivity (2.49)

The Sony HDR-CX550V did a very poor job in our low light sensitivity test. The camcorder required 41 lux of light to reach 50 IRE on the waveform monitor during our test. This is far more light than the Sony HDR-CX500V required last year, and it is more than nearly all high-end HD camcorders we've tested. (More on how we test low light sensitivity.)

Required Illumination *

* the lower the lux required, the better the performance

Part of the reason the Sony did so poorly on our sensitivity test is due to its new wide angle lens. The lens has such a wide angle that when we framed our test chart the camcorder's aperture closed to an f-stop of around f/2.8. Usually when we test camcorders they are able to keep their aperture around f/2 or wider during our testing, which allows more light to enter the lens and hit the camcorder's sensor. So, if we tested the HDR-CX550V with its aperture fully opened its sensitivity would likely be much better than 41 lux (Sony claims the camcorder's low light sensitivity is around 11 lux). We had to test the Sony HDR-CX550V the same way we test all our camcorders, however, which is why the model registered such a poor score on this test.

Note: Due to the problems raised in our low light sensitivity testing with the HDR-CX550V and its wide angle lens, we have adjusted the low light sensitivity score for the camcorder. We tested the camcorder using numerous methods (including doing a test without using any optical zoom) and came to the conclusion that the camcorder should receive a higher score than it originally earned. This score has been updated and the camcorder's new overall score has also been changed on our ratings page.

Low Light Colour (5.83)

The HDR-CX550V produced some disappointing results in our low light colour test, but its numbers weren't much different than what we saw from the competition. The camcorder earned a colour error of 6.08 and a saturation level of 60.49% in this test. (More on how we test low light colour.)

Auto Low Light Colour Performance
Colour Test Chart (above), Colour Error Map (right)
The Sony HDR-CX550V produced a colour error of 6.08 and a saturation level of 60.49% in our low light colour testing. (The map on the right is a diagram of the colour error. The length and direction of each line indicates how the camcorder processed each particular colour.)

You can see the HDR-CX550V's image  looks rather washed out when it is compared side-by-side with the Panasonic HDC-TM700. However, the other two camcorders in this set, the Canon HF S21 and the JVC GZ-HM1, managed similar saturation levels and colour error scores to the Sony HDR-CX550V.

Low Light Comparison
Sony HDR-CX550V	Panasonic HDC-TM700
Canon HF S21	JVC GZ-HM1

Low Light Colour Score Comparison		Compare the Sony HDR-CX550V to the Panasonic HDC-TM700
		Compare the Sony HDR-CX550V to the Canon HF S21
		Compare the Sony HDR-CX550V to the JVC GZ-HM1

Low Light Noise (11.09)

The CX550V put on a solid noise performance in our low light test with the camcorder averaging 1.175% noise. Yes, this is a good deal more noise than the Panasonic HDC-TM700 registered, but it is still a good score (the JVC GZ-HM1 had nearly the same amount of noise as the Sony). (More on how we test low light noise.)

Noise at 60 lux Auto
Sony HDR-CX550V 100% Crop	Panasonic HDC-TM700 100% Crop	Canon HF S21 100% Crop	JVC GZ-HM1 100% Crop

You can see from the crop above that the Sony also maintained a rather sharp image when the lights went dim. You can see some fine specks of noise on the Canon HF S21's image above and the JVC GZ-HM1 shows a bit of pixelation and artefacting in its low light crop. The Panasonic HDC-TM700 was the clear-cut champ when it came to overall low light performance among the camcorders in this testing set.

Low Light Noise Score Comparison		Compare the Sony HDR-CX550V to the Panasonic HDC-TM700
		Compare the Sony HDR-CX550V to the Canon HF S21
		Compare the Sony HDR-CX550V to the JVC GZ-HM1