Customer Ratings & Reviews

I really love this cam corder, but wished it came with an SD card

i bought this camera and and i am trying to record 4k but it keeps rebooting when i hit the record button. i use SanDisk Extreme PLUS 150MB/s SD XC Card. Any idea why this is happening or should i return it?

It is lighter ,It does not have the great viewfinder or large sensor ,or the manual controls,,It is lighter and just as good in low light ,,The microphone is super sound and of course the optical steady shot is perfect,side note,.,.,the rmt-835 remote works with this have to turn remote on in menu,,also the hand held remote tripod gpvp11 works great..,takes some time to learn correct ways to use controls and the menu,,once you do no probs,,Amazing pics,, and the play memories home software works great,,have to adjust in settings for HD playback,,only thing i wish it had is the line for playback that panasonic has instead of the fast forward etc,,you can not pinpoint the part you want to see..but works on computer with software,.,

This will be a fantastic camera for those who will simply capture family memorize in 4K. Picture is nice in all modes. Lowlight mode is effective ( better in HD than in 4K ... Go figure.) All cords and connections are supplied... But they are each like 3ft max... So you won't really be able to set this on a 5' tripod while connected to A/C main. This will NOT be a camera for true videographers, though. Videographers need access to all manual tools while shooting. Unfortunately, you cannot access the manual features without touching the monitor. But touching the monitor while it's on a tripod or steady surface (steady cam feature on or off same result), the floating mechanism magnifies all vibrations and the video becomes extremely shaky...) Using this wirelessly would solve that problem... Except that the wireless function only allows you to zoom and start/ stop recording (or snap the photo). No other options are available in wireless mode. What's worse, when in wireless, the video screen is not accessible. (It then only shows "using wireless". So, to access the exposure controls, you have to turn off the wireless ... Which turns off the recording.) So, again, if you simply want to point and shoot, or set it on a tripod and record without accessing any features you'll simply love this camera. Videographers... I'd have to say, this camera isn't ready for pro-am users.

I do not use 4k setting, but it takes great 1080p video and still photos.

I read a full reviews that claimed this camcorder wouldn’t record in 4K. I thought it had to be the buyers’ fault for one reason or another but, the is not the case. I attempted to record in 4K using the most expensive memory cards, non worked, including Sony’s fast memory card recommended on their website. Maybe I was unlucky but, I wouldn’t purchase this model based on many similar reviews.

I really like this video camera have 3 now would buy again.

Worst service ever. I don’t know how your company is still in existence. I have advised a lot of friends and family of my experience with your company and I guarantee they will not step foot in your store.

The FDR-AX53 is nice, but complicated. Will take time.

Having trouble transferring video to CD. There is no handbook which explains it. The help line was not there. The online printout was 100s of pages and still no help. Very disappointing that cannot transfer to disc. How are we supposed to archive the video??

It kept shutting down while I was trying to record. After reviewing the instructions, reaching out to Sony and Best Buy it still wouldn't operate or record. Returned after 2 weeks. You tube showed people having the same error message with no solution. Junk!!

I purchased this as an open box item because it looked like a good deal. When I put the memory card in and hit record the camcorder would shut off. Shows you they don’t test the open box merchandise. Buyer beware!

I've become a Sony camera fan since purchasing my first action camera, and then stepped up my game with an a7, and now the FDR AX53 video camera. I purchased the AX53 for the primary purpose of filming my son's music performances. The overall picture quality and features are top notch and user friendly. One of the most outstanding features is the BOSS stabilization feature. I was first sold on Sony's stabilization features with my action cam as it provided nice shots on rugged terrain. My first shoot with the AX53 was an outdoor solo drum performance for my son. I anchored the camera tripod to a chainlink fence prior to filming in order to stabilize the tripod. About halfway through my son's performance I noticed a group of kids shaking the fence very excitedly with the music. To my dismay, the fence shaking was frantic and forceful enough that the camera was bouncing rapidly on a vertical axis with the movement. The "bouncing" was such that the camera lens was rapidly moving up and down enough that it clearly appeared to be pointing skyward and then to the ground. I "knew" the footage was trashed because the camera shaking was so severe, and removed the camera from the tripod to hand shoot the remaining of his performance. I was SHOCKED to find the footage was steady with virtually no detectable movement from the fence shaking. In fact, the only discernible movement came from my hand shots after I removed the camera from the tripod! I was immediately grateful for the BOSS stabilization system. The only reason I gave this four stars rather than five is due to the nature of my shooting live music. The camera has a good internal mic for everyday footage, but it falls way short if you need high-quality audio typically required from shooting music. I've tried several different manual audio settings and EQing to fine tune the audio, but it just doesn't cut it for the demanding needs of music. I'm still a fan of the camera, and will figure out an external micing option that will work.

Bought camera for trip. Charged it up, and it didn't record movies

Okay, so instead of trusting the reviews I had listened to a good friend who has one of these and he had nothing but good to say about it. I had to shoot some high speed video that we were going to analyze in slow motion. After buying it I had buyer's remorse and I read some reviews and it was still good to go. Then it arrived and I got it on the job and it works just as my friend had described and it captures great quality high speed recorded video but not at 4K. Yes, the 4K is great but what we needed was the speed. 4K at high speed can be had from Sony but at incredibly high prices. This unit does everything we needed.

I bought the CC on Ebay using BB's Ebay store. The CC was on sale because it was a open box item. Saved a $100 and it came with a full warranty. I wanted to upgrade from HD to 4K and I watched hours of YouTub video about the different CC's out there. Sony seemed to be the better bang for the buck. After only using it for a few days I love the CC. It does just what I needed done. The only down side to the CC was that Sony does not include a batter charger. To charge the CC you have to use a power brick to the CC. I then invested in a 3rd party charger and one extra battery. The CC also does not come with a lens hood like other CC's on the market. Again something extra to buy. That being said the CC is so good I still gave it 5 star's.

Light weight, small, great sound, excellent picture for beginner, can fit everything in one small bag

It’s a great camera. The picture is amazing and the zoom is really impressive. I love it

I loved this camera until it broke. Best buy did a good job helping me

This is a great camera. The image quality is very clear and it works great at low light levels as well as pitch black darkness.