Whatever the reason for the current interest in all things high definition, it's ushered in a wave of affordable high-def camcorders for home users.

In an effort to grab some of this lucrative market, Sony pushed its impressive new HDR-HC7 into the spotlight only a few weeks before Canon's HV20 model; uncannily, not only do they look very similar, but their specification lists also have an extraordinary number of common features. That, at least, will make it easy to compare the two. Or will it?

Design and layout

These camcorders have so many similarities it's spooky. One plus point for both models is their chunkiness, which leads to improved stability when recording on and off a good tripod.

Both have a comprehensive set of accessible controls, divided between physical buttons and virtual buttons embedded into the graphical menu systems. HDV or DV tapes are top-loaded on both models, so you can change tapes with the unit still attached to a tripod.

In both cases, buttons and connectors are where they should be for efficient operation and the many connectors required for digital and analogue signal transfers are conveniently concealed behind plastic doors and flaps. Also welcome are the LCD frame-side controls on both models that, in the case of the Sony, are complemented by touch-screen control icons.

The HV20's functions are largely controlled by a mini joystick positioned at the rear of the main body and supplemented by simple tape transport controls mounted on the lower edge of the LCD frame. Both models have a small 0.7in colour viewfinder; the Sony's pulls out horizontally whereas the Canon's is fixed and, on first impressions, not that practical.

Features

Both models offer HDV or DV recording and playback modes and use FireWire to connect to either a Windows, Vista or Apple Mac computer for editing and exporting as full-HD 1920 x 1080 resolution.

You have the added benefit of analogue-to-digital signal conversion in each case (to DV only). When recording standard DV, traditional 4:3 and widescreen 16:9 modes are available. Both models have a full range of manual control options.

Where they differ is in the means by which adjustments are made while recording is in progress; the Sony requires the use of the LCD's touchscreen panel to alter values, whereas Canon gives you the facility to press the Function button and navigate the well-designed menu system using a mini joystick at the rear of the cam. Both models use CMOS, rather than CCD, chips to resolve their images.

The HV20 uses a 1/2.7in chip against the Sony's marginally bigger 1/2.9in. In terms of effective resolution it's the Sony that has the upper hand again by employing 2.28 million pixels in 16:9 movie mode against the Canon's 2.07 million.

Optical zoom ratios are a respectable 10:1 in each case, with the Sony having the widest lens at 5.1mm against the Canon's 6.1mm. In the digital stills department, the Canon has a slot for a MiniSD card, whereas Sony encourages users to use MemoryStick Duo.

In either case it's possible to record movie clips either to tape or memory card, too. Connectivity is excellent in both cases. Each provides not just HDMI connectivity for HD TVs but also Component connectors for those devices that require the older-style inputs.

Not only that, but two-way FireWire (in and out for HDV and DV), composite analogue inputs/outputs and USB 2.0 Mini-B connectors are there as well. Even better is that both camcorders not only have headphone outputs (combined with the menu-switchable AV out on the HV20) but also mic inputs.

This will please would-be users seeking external microphone connectivity for more serious sound recording. Intelligent accessory shoes and LED video lights (doubling as flash for stills work) are ready and waiting, too.

One thing that many video enthusiasts will be looking for is the ability to shoot Progressive Scan at 25P in high definition - and in this respect only the Canon comes up with the goods.

Progressive scan is widely regarded as being essential when showing on larger LCD displays simply because the 50 interlaced fi elds (PAL 50i) frame display often produces unacceptable jitter when showing on anything other than good old-fashioned CRT (cathode ray tube) displays.

LCD and Plasma screens really need progressive scan frame sequences that produce 25 single frames per second (in PAL, at least). Also exclusive to the Canon is a 70 per cent and 100 per cent zebra pattern generator (helpful graphical exposure guides that are overlayed on the monitor picture). Could these provide the match points for Canon?

Only the Sony does, however, offer full colour bars for visual calibration of display devices. Another of the HV20's appealing features is the choice of three zoom settings, each designed to give you a slightly different speed when using the tiny zoom toggle on the top of the body. The No.1 setting gives a nice smooth start and stop to zoom motion, for instance.

Performance

Strangely enough, deciding which is the winning camcorder might be determined by something as simple as whether or not you like touchscreen LCD controls - some love them; others hate them.

They can be very handy during playback operations as it's a lot easier to select functions with your index fi nger than it is to toggle a mini-joystick and press it in every time you wish to make a routine selection. But mucky fi ngers make for mucky LCDs that require constant cleaning, so the detractors also have a point.

That said, the Sony menu system is dead easy to use - and pressing either a ' ' or '-' button to increase or decrease an exposure, white balance, shutter speed or sound level is quick and responsive. We also like the Spot control - such as the ability to point to a part of the picture and register the focus at that position.

However, the Canon menu is pretty neat in that you get a screen display of the precise values (focal length, aperture, WB setting, etc) as they're changing. Choosing between these two models isn't easy! Let's have a look at the footage, then.

The Canon has a slightly different method of manually adjusting things such as aperture (the amount of light coming in through the lens), white balance (setting the camcorder to react properly to the incoming light - whether outdoor or indoor) and electronic shutter speed.

It uses a feature that has been employed by Canon for many years, which is to offer either Aperture Priority or Shutter Priority when making manual adjustments. If you select Aperture Priority you're asking the camcorder to calculate the optimum electronic shutter speed as appropriate to the scene.

However should you decide to select Shutter Priority the Aperture (exposure) will be automatically calculated. Not only is this extremely useful, but it's possible to override even these settings and get what you want by clever use of the available options and this is made more impressive by the fact that these can be adjusted with a reasonable degree of control even while recording.

Associated with the HV20's priority settings is a mode called Cine Mode which modifies the images very subtly to give them a film-like look and feel - a feature sought after by serious digital movie-makers who lust after fi lm but can only afford video.

It has to be used with a 25P mode to be effective, even if it's a feature that will remain unused by many who can't relate to the 'film look' at all. So how do the camcorders perform in everyday situations? For a start it should be said that they both shoot footage that looks and sounds great, in both HDV and DV modes and at both 16:9 (widescreen) and 4:3 image ratios.

As you'd expect, the 1920 x 1080 HDV sequences are superb when shooting under controlled conditions in optimum light. Image detail coming off both models when viewed on a substantial HDTV display is very impressive indeed, even when viewing material in which objects (such as vehicles) are moving through the shot.

There's a distinct advantage to shooting in 25P mode if you plan to view on a largish HD LCD display via either HDMI or Component Digital connections, and that's where the Canon HV20 comes into its own.

Audio quality is good, too, despite the mic being upward facing on the HV20. Serious users will almost certainly want to avail themselves of the external mic jack, of course, but even so the standard stereo audio is fine when there's either no wind or very little. The intelligent accessory shoe on each model enables the use of optional 5.1 Surround mics, too.

Conclusion

You can't help but be impressed by the quality of video from both cameras. When shooting fully auto, the Canon did have the slight edge over the Sony, which tended to overcook the highlights slightly.

Under manual control, and even in lowish light, the Sony produces images that are slightly grainier than the Canon. Colour is generally superb on both models - especially in good lighting - as is manual controllability overall.

However, there's no doubt that the Canon has the slight edge. Not only is its manner of manually controlling functions slightly easier to use when recording, but the pictures produced by the HV20 have that certain edge.

It has to be said that this is a very subjective judgement, but on that level the Canon's pictures are beautifully resolved, crisp and well-balanced when viewed on a medium-sized HDTV screen. Not only does the cam's 25P utility give it an edge in respect of movement onscreen, but the pictures just look better to the untrained - not to mention the trained - eye.

The Canon, therefore, makes it to the finishing line first. But only just!