Sony - Handycam AX43 4K Camcorder - Black

GOOD – BUT MOST WILL WANT THE NEXT MODEL UP REVIEW: Sony - Handycam AX43 4K Camcorder - Black Best Buy Tech Insider Network SUMMARY: Overall the AX43 has very good image quality and great zoom with fantastic image stabilization, but it is missing some features that I expected at this price point. Almost all the missing features I wanted are on the next model up AX53 for only a little more money. Mechanically, except for the missing features, they are the same, so this review should mostly work for the AX53 as well. POSITIVES: Good Battery Life, Relatively Compact (but bigger than I expected), Hot Shoe Accessories, External MIC Capable, Good to Great Images in bright to dim lighting (not 0 LUX). SHORTCOMINGS (most fixed on AX53): No Viewfinder, No Night Vision, Poor Viewing Angles on Screen, No Remote Control Included, No Live Streaming, Limited Photo Modes. Low (0 Lux) light is poor. I can recommend the AX series, but if any of these shortcomings above are important to you, then spend a little bit more and get the upgraded AX53 instead. UNBOXING: (see picture) INITIAL IMPRESSIONS: Typical Sony Camera Packaging, no surprises, well packaged, everything nice and secure. Easy to open, easy to unbox, easy to set up. The camera feels a little more fragile than my Sony Cameras of the past. It is also larger than I expected in this age of miniaturization and this price point (see pics). Nevertheless, it was easy to use without the manual. The Photo button is not in a good place, thus it necessitates two hands to use if you want to hold the camera steady while clicking. IMAGE QUALITY: Here is what you really bought the Video Camera for. At 8MP (mega pixels) it is more than enough for 4K Video, and while it also does a good job at snapshots, it won’t be the same as your 20MP DSLR. I took some video and stills with both my Sony 20MP RX100-VA and the AX43 to compare side by side. To the naked eye, there is little difference. The AX wins hands down on zoom (20X optical vs 3X optical) so I was able to get incredible closeup images from far away. Though I could get slightly better images with the RX camera I had to be right on top of the subject, which is rarely possible. The gimbal based Image Stabilization is amazing and probably the feature most worth the investment. Note: This does not shoot HDR video, in case that matters to you. Again, I would have expected it at this price point. EASE OF USE: Overall, the AX43 is very easy to use, I only have a few minor complaints. The VIEWING ANGLE of the screen is very small. This means you need to be looking at it head on. It swivels, so you would think this would not be a problem, but it is. I find that I have to use 2 hands all the time. One on the view screen and one holding up the camera. The reason is that I have to change the angle of the view screen constantly as I move the camera around. The AX53 has an improved screen, maybe that is not a problem on that unit. The PHOTO BUTTON is in an awkward place which again means you have to use 2 hands to hold the camera steady when taking a photo. There is no hard or soft “stop” when transitioning from Optical to Digital Zoom. I understand this on the video side of things as 4K is smaller than 8MP so there is some buffer to spare. But in photo mode you usually don’t want to exceed the optical limits. These are minor things for most people, and they are for me as well. They don’t take away from any of the other quality features. I’m just more used to other Sony products being so perfect ergonomically these stood out a little to me. FEATURES: You can read the feature list for yourself. What I appreciate the most are many of the little touches like all the ports have sliding covers. I like that is has a hot shoe mount for accessories like an external microphone. I like that the screen is touch screen. I’ve used the wifi remote app (memories) to transmit images to the phone or computer. The app is OK if you need to quickly get something to your phone to share, but I usually have to spend a few minutes fussing with the apps and wifi settings to make it work each time, while my spouse rolls her eyes for me taking too long to text the picture to her so she can share it. My biggest disappointment and my bad assumption was that I could use this as a webcam for live streaming. The AX53 says it supports live streaming the AX43 does not. Most of the last few Sony Video Cameras I owned had this feature, I just assumed it would be there since they promote the as a VLOGGING platform. This means instead of using it every day, it goes back in the box until I go on my next vacation. On the plus side I’ve never seen video stabilization this good. SIDE NOTE: Why not just use my point and shoot RX100 for video? I can’t say enough good things about the RX100 line of cameras, but they are not video cameras. The RX is used for photos and the occasionally video while the AX is used primarily for video and the occasional snapshot. Why drive a truck vs a sedan, they are both vehicles but specialize in different things. For one, the RX100Va and below have a short zoom 3x vs 20x. Also, the RX sensor is much larger, draws a lot of power, and can only shoot 4K video for about 5 minutes before it overheats. It also does not have a shoe mount or external mic input (though later models do). I tried to use only my RX on my last vacation and I missed a lot of great shots and videos that would have been better on a Camcorder like the AX. I could have recorded our entire private opera performance with the AX at 4K. Instead I had to record it at 1080p and only for 30 minutes instead of an hour because of the heating issue on the RX. They are just built for different purposes. You need them both! SUMMARY: Overall, the AX-43 is a good quality camera with all the basic features you typically would need. For my tastes I would upgrade to the AX-53 with more features. I’m more of the “rather have them and not use them” kind of person. Case in point, 6 months ago I would not care if I could use this as a Webcam. 4 Months into the COVID lockdown and I really need a better webcam than the one built into the laptop. I’m still rating this 5 stars for what it is, as I don’t believe in taking away stars for what it is not. It does everything it says it does, it does it well, and with high quality. You can't go wrong with Sony Camera / Video Gear.

The Sony FDR-AX43 enters a world you’d think wouldn’t see the camcorder as a viable product. However, with the explosion of content creation, video cameras have entered a new life. While action cameras, and even Sony’s own lineup of mirror-less cameras have become popular in this space, Sony knows that packing a good sensor, excellent glass, and microphones into the well honed form-factor of a camcorder has worked for generations. In a camcorder, you get more of everything, and if your focus is video production, the AX43 delivers in spades. First of all, Sony markets this camera to vloggers and content creators. Don’t let that fool you into thinking this isn’t an excellent piece of kit to record family activities, sporting events or special events. In fact, the built in gimbal - what Sony call’s the “Balanced Optical SteadyShot w/ Intelligent Active mode” (whew that’s a mouthful!) - makes this one of the best hand held cameras for this sort of shooting - especially while utilizing zoom. The AX43 was designed to be used on the move, and records professionally smooth video while walking and moving about. This produces movies that are far less distracting than those even taken with the highest end smartphones, action cams, DSLR or mirrorless cameras. This is also a perfect feature for vloggers keeping video production high quality. It is however creepy how the lens follows you during movement - just fair warning. It’s like the camera has an eye ball rolling around in the body. Video quality is great with this camera. Out of the box in low-light, the AX43 outperforms my A6000 in movie mode easily. Auto focus is solid and flexible with minimal hunting. Zoom is quiet with no discernible noise. There is zebra and peaking settings to help understand real-time shooting information which is helpful. The lens/sensor combo does a great job and offers both a wide angle and great zoom. Video is 4K/30fps or 1080p60 with a 120fps option. Feature wise, filters/lens hoods of 55mm are able to be attached. There is a door at the top that reveals the hot shoe mount. A 3.5mm microphone jack is hidden behind a door on the left side, along with the multi-connector which is micro-usb. Opening the screen exposes the SD card slot and micro-HDMI connector hiding behind their own doors. The almost ubiquitous layout of zoom control at the top with a photo button behind the rocker with a record button in thumb’s reach on the backside is present. There is a large microphone array near the from lens which is directionally aware. There is a feature to allow the camera man’s voice to be muted which is nice if you are a small time production with a camera man. Hiding near the front lower left is another door revealing a 3.5mm headphone jack - ostensibly for editing on the go. Physically it’s a pretty sleek package save the battery hanging off the back - which is especially noticeable on the AX43 vs the AX33 and AX53 with viewfinders. Software wise on the camera, the menu system is quick and responsive. It’s initial setup is easy enough, but the menus are laid out about as well as any camera from the past 15 years - which is to say abysmal, but usable. Options are grouped according to task, which sometimes leaves them hard to find. Advanced options are all hiding behind arcane naming that has long since scared away a majority of users who will leave everything on auto and pray. Options such as facial recognition that will automatically take still photos when smiles are detected are what I would file under interesting if slightly creepy. There are limited editing capabilities with simple effects. There is the option to set your videos to six different “music” which hilariously all sound like MIDI synthesized generic background music from different genres. The Action Cam Movie Creator software is not the easiest to use either, so you may want to invest in some software if video production is your intent. If you want to use the AX43 for live video streaming, you’ll need a capture device. Luckily I had an AverMedia capture device and was highly impressed at the quality in this role. The HDMI connection worked without any adjustments and offered both video and audio that blew away my mid-range webcam. It’s obvious overkill for Zoom meetings, but for live streaming in even low-light it performed quite well. I do wish the USB connection would have natively offered to be a capture device, so do be aware there’s another $100+ investment in a good capture device to use it like this. The biggest problem I have with the AX43 is the fact that it delivers much of the value of the AX53, but for a price that’s too close for the compromises to make sense. You get a much lower screen resolution, you lose the optical view finder (especially helpful for framing outdoor shots on sunny days), the more advanced manual features, and the 0 lux night shot. Other than those differences, the AX43 is near identical to its bigger AX53 brother, yet only $100 separates them in price. Perhaps none of these features mean anything to you, but overall the compromises make the AX43 less versatile than it could have been. I lament the loss of the optical view finder the most. This does feel like a model specifically designed by Sony to capitalize on the content creator explosion, deliver what it thinks that audience wants while trimming the features of the AX53 to maximize profits. The problem? I think most vloggers will just go straight to the AX53 for the additional flexibility it offers. Any model criticism aside - the AX43 packs all the core tools for producing excellent video. From smooth video, noise/voice cancelling, attachment mounting - the core feature set to deliver a flexible platform is here. The lens and sensor have outstanding performance you’d expect from Sony. If you can live with the compromises found here, the AX43 is an excellent camera.

It does what it's supposed to! Quality footage and images with multiple shooting options.

I have been using this camera for a little over a week now and i can say i am liking it. I have used video cameras since they were VHS and its been crazy to see the evolution of the tech. There are 3 main reasons why i like this camera and rate it highly. It's capture quality, it's design and its durability. First of all, the capture quality of this video camera is high, as in 4k high. The 4k capture paired with the onboard internal stabilizing mechanism assures anyone from vloggers to outdoor enthusiasts to even anyone recording friends and family will have a near wiggle/wobble free shot. The stabilizing feature is one of those thing that you wont quite realize the benefit until you see a side by side. This paired with the extra long battery life and companion app life will assure a high quality experience and production value. Design and Durability are the other primary reasons i like this video camera. Camera's ive used in the past are all made of the super slippers hard plastic on the exterior shell. Well, one thing that i noticed immediately was the built in grip which is placed where your hand goes when recording, This assures a reduce chance of slippage by hugging your record hand securely. The compactness of this video camera is also akin of a a helmet cam of some sort...not in the face that its small, but in the way of how much tech is squeezed into such a small frame. All in all, I love this 4k beast. Its ahead of its time and is in a different category of its competitors due to its output quality, design and durability.

after looking into a lot of cameras and camcorders, for what we needed this not only fit the price but had a lot of features we wanted. I have had the ax43 for about two weeks now and i am still loven the camcorder so much that i want to get one more. The only thing that would be better is the 6600 for the XT4, witch cost more and at the time are not out yet.

Overpriced. Yes nice quality lens. The bad it doesn’t record 5.1 surround in 4k filming. Only 2.0 stereo

I haven’t had a dedicated camcorder in quite some time, but the Sony Handycam has been a well known brand since the 80’s. I really had high expectations for the FDR-AX43 being a 4K camcorder with a gimbal mechanism built in. However, I don’t feel it is everything I had imagined it to be. First off, I’m not saying this is a bad camcorder. It does record nice quality video and photos, much better than my phone has over the past few years. The 20x optical zoom, 30x(4K)/40x(HD) clear image zoom is pretty amazing when looking down on the city (image attached from photo mode reduced for upload size). The built in microphones provide pretty decent audio quality, as well as an audio zoom when enabled. When in AVCHD format it also provides 5.1 surround recording. There is also room for expansion to include external microphone, handheld grip and interchangeable battery. There are various shooting modes depending on the format set and different quality settings for higher bit rate and frame rate. However, you have to change each of these settings in order for the specific options to appear, not auto selected when you pick a shooting mode like one would expect. Example being the High Speed Rec shooting mode only being available if you are in the XAVC S HD format which can only be changed while in the movie shooting mode. The good thing is, the touch screen is really responsive and gets through the menus quickly. The built in gimbal does reduce the common hand shake, however, it does not have the full benefit of a real gimbal, such as rotation, and when zoomed in seems to create a slight mechanical looking shake of its own. Quality of the video is decent, but I felt that some of the colors looked washed out and faded, especially when zoomed in. I also noticed a lot of blurring in any motion when recording in XAVC 4K movie mode which can be reduced in higher modes with higher frame rates, but then it appears to introduce grain. Another feature when recording in specific formats is simultaneous recording for sharing and highlights. This is so that you can quickly share a 720p video that will be about 5% that in storage size of the 4K video file for faster download and share of the video. However, the quality is pretty bad with lots of digital noise. There are three different apps that you can use to connect to the camera via your phone, all named differently so that it makes it difficult to find till you organize them. Each provides their own function such as controlling the camera remotely, transferring images and editing. Why they couldn’t combine most of those functions into one app so you're not connecting/disconnecting, changing WiFi direct and data connections multiple times is beyond me. I really feel like they tried to make an all in one feature packed camera, but didn’t make it exceptional in any particular one of those features.

This Camcorder is perfect for me on the go with the kids and the dog. The fact it can double as a camera and takes excellent pictures. In fact because of the optical stabilization it takes great pictures without a tripod and a nice optical zoom it makes it really cool. I've included an example of a picture taken in a poorly lit room from a distance of my keyboard. Did a nice job. I like the fact it was also easy to pair with my phone for remote control of recording/pictures and send them to the phone. Otherwise taking videos of the kids was really easy and have been coming out great even as they move and run. Also it had a mode to take stop motion, which I've always wanted to do and that was cool. Basically this is a cool camcorder with better image you can get from a phone and easy to use. I do highly recommend you follow the recommendations for an SD card for recording. The battery seems to last enough to get me through what I need. I honestly admit I haven't stressed it trying to get 160 minutes of video in one shot, but getting a bunch 10 minute videos/pictures I can get through the day without issue. I've been very happy to carry this around to capture memories of my kids and the video looks great that makes the grandparents who are remote being able to enjoy it on the TV with great clarity. It is really easy and if you need a camera to capture pictures and take videos this definitely seems to be the one.