My application uses two HDMI cameras to feed a live video switcher (Cerevo Livewedge). I purchased both the Cannon HF R700 and the Sony HDCRX 405 to compare and evaluate. I ended up returning the Sony and getting a second Cannon HF R700 instead. The Cannon is a bit more expensive, but slightly better built and better matched to my application. If you are using the camera as a normal portable Camcorder, the Sony is a bit less expensive and would probably work for you. See below for details.

While both the Sony and the Cannon can be operated to produce a live feed via the HDMI output port, there are numerous advantages to the Cannon. First, the Cannon can be operated without the battery being present using the supplied AC adapter. The Sony can be powered via an extension USB cable plugged into the supplied USB brink, but the battery must always be present. In my environment I wanted to be able to just turn the power on and off using a plug strip that turns all the video equipment on and off. When the power to the Sony was turned off, the camera continued to run on battery power. To turn it off you needed to unplug the HDMI cable and close the fold out screen. There is no power switch on the Sony.

Second, the Sony micro HDMI connector on the camera was very flimsy. If I moved the camera slightly with the HDMI cable connected, the video would often drop out and come back as the cable was wiggled.

Finally the Sony has a slightly inferior picture quality when compared to the Cannon. This is more noticeable in low light conditions. (Nether camera does very well in low light, but the Sony does have a bit more noise.)

The Sony does have one advantage. It has an optical zoom of 60x, whereas the Cannon optical zoom is only 32x. When zoomed all the way in the Sony is slightly closer to the subject and when zoomed all the way out it has a somewhat wider field of view. This may be an important advantage for some users.

Both cameras have the ability to turn off any automatic power saving (so you can keep it running when on external power). Both have the ability to turn off the on-scree-display for the HDMI output port, but the Sony hides this feature by calling it "HDMI Control" instead of the obvious "On-Screen-Display".

The Cannon is slightly heavier and feels a bit more substantial. Both cameras have reasonable optical image stabilization, though when zoomed all the way in, neither is quite up to the task.

I had been using my DSLR camera for shooting some video, with a phone camera to get a 2nd camera angle, but I concluded that a phone camera is barely usable for shooting video, and even my nice Moto X Pure, which has a nice camera, falls short in so many ways. I looked into getting a backup DSLR on Ebay (such as canon T3i, or EOS-M) but the DSLR has several downsides too, such as recording time-limits (due to overheating) and poor and noisy auto-focus (unless you have a newer STM lens)

I concluded that it was best to buy one of today's camcorders. Consumer camcorders have a much smaller sensor than a DSLR, so you can't get a good Bokeh effect, but there are several reasons to consider a Camcorder. You can shoot for hours non-stop, good and fast auto-focus, some manual control over shooting parameters, video output via HDMI, 60fps and slo-mo shooting, long long zoom lens, image-stabilization, external audio, remote capture over USB or Wifi, and more.

But this Camcorder has all that other stuff, and at about $250 is the cheapest camcorder that has an external microphone input. Score!
A step up in quality would come from Panasonic and at about $450, the HC-V770 with manual focus, better image quality, and more manual control.

My setup is to use a video capture device to record the video directly to computer via HDMI cable (provided by Canon) which is the best way to get clean uncompressed video, and then choose exactly how it should be recorded to disk.

This might be a premature review. I don't use avchd because I can't find anything to open it with on my windows ten comp, so please comment if you know how I'm supposed to use those files. I don't like you always have tons of icons on the view screen and it's so small. It's the simplelist camera I've ever used. My youtube videos are coming out amazing with the light set up I have on it. It also has a mic input which is a plus some don't have. Video so far is crystal clear even in low light I've been impressed. I don't like the shutter switch on the right side, I forget to use it ad it's hard to reach when it's on your hand. Battery lasts forever for just small videos like I do. It doesn't come with a wall plug in charger cradle, you must connect camera to wall to charge so spend the forty for two batteries and a quick charge wall plug thingy, it will save you from always having your camera as the charger, especially since it takes like six to eight hours to charge one batter, just crazy. OH, it's tiny like really tiny and makes battery seem huge. Sound is really good without a mic, but playback sound on the unit is bad and barely heard at high volume, must use your comp for trueness of sound quality and video. Overall it's a great little camcorder and white is pretty. Oh might want to invest in wide angle lens kit if you plan on youtube videos with this, just so you know.

The media could not be loaded. UPDATE - 10 months later - My apologies for the minor profanity at the beginning of the video clip. You can turn the volume off and watch to see the zoom feature and how close I was able to get to a whale breaching off the coast of Baja Sur. When I reviewed the video just now, it was very pixilated. The original is as clear as can be on my laptop or on my TV, so it must be the download from Amazon interferring with the picture quality.

I do have one complaint about this camera - the video view finder is highly reflective and in the wrong lighting, you cannot see the content you are filming. I would suggest some form of hood, or shade to block out light behind you while filming. END OF UPDATE

I have been playing with this camera for about 2 weeks now and I am very satisfied.

I have not tried any of the editing functions available in the camera. Soon!

As far as filming goes, the pictures are fantastic. The still photos are very sharp. The zoom is almost beyond belief and almost beyond useable. When you zoom out to maximum telephoto length, you better be on a tripod, or leaning the camera against a solid structure of some form or other. At maximum zoom, small little movements of the camera translate to losing your subject!

Yesterday, I was filming from the balcony of our time share. With the naked eye, I could tell that a small sailing vessel was under motor power and motoring past our resort. Under maximum zoom, I could see two people sitting on the fore-deck and the captain of the vessel steering the vessel, and determine that it was good-sized catamaran that was sailing by. All the while, holding the camera on the railing of our unit to stabilize the view.

Amazing camcorder, plenty of functions, easy to understand and use. Very light, but not in a bad way, just makes it easier to carry around all day without it becoming a burden. The lcd is bright and very responsive. The amount of options is amazing, low light, action, too many to list. The battery lasts longer than any previous camcorder I have owned. Can take it out to family functions without worrying about the battery dying too fast and missing important events. The camcorder is a nice glossy true black finish, and there is a button to push to operate the lens cover. I love this because I never have to worry about loosing the lens cover with this cam. The picture quality is amazing, very true colors, no distortions. Uploading videos to pc, etc is a breeze. Very simple user interface with minimal learning curve. It also has a audio jack that many of the more expensive professional camcorders have, but is usually lacking in cams in this price range. Has headset jack as well. Some reviews on sites has complained about not being able to see the lcd screen outdoors, but I have not experienced this problem. Easy to see and use indoors as well as outdoors. The record button is placed perfectly and the strap fits around hands nicely and is secure, and can hit the record button with your thumb. Love the design of this camcorder. Plus there is many additional products for this camcorder you can purchase to suit every need. I know this is considered a more of a "budget" camcorder, but in my opinion it goes beyond that and worth every penny. This is a great camcorder and I have no complaints so far, would highly recommend to friends.