Sony has introduced three new high-definition camcorders that are making shooting 1080 HD video more affordable than ever.

The Handycam HDR-CX7 model is the world’s smallest and lightest AVCHD high-definition camcorder. It can record nearly three hours of full HD 1080 video on an 8-GB Memory Stick PRO Duo media card (LP mode).

The HDR-SR7 AVCHD high-definition camcorder can record more than 22 hours of full HD 1080 video on a built-in 60GB hard disk drive, while the HDR-SR5 model’s 40GB hard drive can hold more than 15 hours of footage (LP modes).

“Camcorder users are quickly embracing non-linear camcorder formats, such as hard disk drive and flash media, because they make it easy for anyone to view and access footage quickly,” said Linda Vuolo, director of camcorder marketing at Sony Electronics. “Our models offer the added advantages of superior high-definition picture quality.”

Features:

The HDR-CX7 and HDR-SR7 models utilize Sony’s 3-megapixel sensor for full HD 1080 video and 6-megapixel digital still photos. They are also equipped with Super SteadyShot optical image stabilization to produce smooth video results, as well as virtually blur-free photos. The HDR-SR5 model integrates a 2-megapixel sensor for full HD 1080 video and produces a 4-megapixel photo.

Additionally, all models benefit from Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* optics for increased contrast and true-to-life color saturation.

With Sony’s x.v.Color technology, based on the new international xvYCC color standard, the new camcorders reproduce a much wider data range of colors than the conventional sRGB standard. When connected to a compatible HDTV via the camcorders’ HDMI outputs, home videos sparkle with vivid, natural-looking results.

The new models support the AVCHD camcorder recording format based on the MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 codec for video compression and Dolby digital audio. In addition to high-quality video, they provide an exceptional audio experience with built-in Dolby Digital 5.1-channel surround sound recording.

The HDR-SR5, HDR-CX7 and HDR-SR7 camcorders will ship in June for about $1,100, $1,200 and $1,400, respectively, with an array of optional accessories.