Sony CCD-TRVx5 Series

The CCD-TRVx5 series is a series of 8mm camcorders produced by Sony in 1998. The series included twelve analog units, all of which were XR, seven of which supported Hi8.

Overview
The camcorders in the CCD-TRVx5 series all share the common "camera-in-palm" design. All are equipped with LCDs and B&W CRT viewfinders that tilt but do not telescope. The only exception is the CCD-TRV93, which includes a color viewfinder.

Models
Sony split the CCD-TRVx5 series in two, the "upper" models and "lower" models. Each sect has its own manual. They are listed here as "ranked" by Sony.

NTSC
Lower Models: Upper Models:
 * CCD-TRV15
 * CCD-TRV25/215
 * CCD-TRV35/315
 * CCD-TRV65/615
 * CCD-TRV75/715
 * CCD-TRV85/815
 * CCD-TRV93

PAL
The counterpart series got a different split - the CCD-TRV45E and 55E have their own manual while the other models all share one.
 * CCD-TRV3E
 * CCD-TRV15E
 * CCD-TRV23E
 * CCD-TRV35E
 * CCD-TRV45E
 * CCD-TRV55E
 * CCD-TRV65E

All Models

 * All upper members (and the TRV65/615) have an amber-backlit auxiliary LCD. The others have the same auxiliary LCD with no backlight.
 * All members have a record button that can operate in three ways: The traditional start/stop press-and-release, constant pressure, and recording for five seconds when pressed
 * The shutter and power switch are connected mechanically on all members.
 * Somewhere above or surrounding the auxiliary LCD, there is a piece of black trim with the Video(Hi)8 XR logo on it.
 * All members support XR recording and playback.
 * The higher-end members are made of a darker silver plastic than models of other series.

By Model
The models whose numbers have a "1" in the middle include a AA battery case so that the unit can run on AA batteries.

A/V Peripherals
The Hi8-supporting models have an S-Video jack that can be used as an input or an output. All models use RCA for their A/V peripherals, and they have a 5VDC output for an RF modulator (for connection to a TV with no A/V jacks). The monaural models have a mono earphone jack while the stereo models have a stereo headphone jack.

PAL CCD-TRVx5E Series
The CCD-TRVx5E series drops the models higher than the CCD-TRV65 and adds the middle-of-the-road CCD-TRV45E and 55E, with a similar form to the higher models, which introduce a few features not present on the NTSC series. None of the models have Super Laser Link.

Compatibility
It can be assumed that the NTSC TRVx5 camcorders cannot play back PAL recordings. The PAL TRVx5E models, however, have the ability to play SP NTSC recordings, with some limitations. The video output can be NTSC-4.43 or PAL-60, whichever is selected by the user.