Sony FDR-AX43 | Ultra HD (UHD) 4K Compact Camcorder | 5-Axis Balanced Optical SteadyShot™ | 20x Optical Zoom | Flip screen

I have spent many months searching for a good multi purpose camcorder for high quality videos and livestreams, and this was what I chose. I have to say I am very impressed by the quality and ease of use, in full auto this camera does an amazing job of capturing the moment in stunning quality, even in low light! It's so intuitive to use that I can let other people use it after a very quick tutorial. The built in gimbal also blows my mind, it works very effectively and isn't just a gimmick. I also love how adaptable and customisable this camera is, there are inputs and outputs all over it hidden neatly behind little doors. In terms of using the camera for livestreaming, the camera puts out a very nice high quality image over HDMI (it is clean HDMI by default which saves a lot of hassle and time) and the fact that a power adapter and HDMI cable are included is fantastic. A review was made about the quality of the on board microphone being poor, I would disagree. The mic is very sensitive and records in stereo. There are plenty of settings for adjusting the mic level, and if required you can use an external mic connected to either the 3.5mm jack or Sony's proprietary multi interface cold shoe adapter. My only tiny little quibble is that the video files are saved in a fairly illogically named folder on the SD card which means that it does take a bit of time to find them the first time, I'm sure this isn't an issue if you're using Sony's software to download footage/pictures. Be aware that the camera only comes with one battery (which lasts about 3 hours), not two batteries as listed at the time of this review).

Zoom is good as is stabilization but that's not why your considering this. DO NOT BUY if you want smooth 4k hand held footage, it's that simple. Stationery footage is great though and handheld 4K footage direct from the camera to TV is good but if you try and edit, you'll get poor results. Consider something like the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K or another camera that does 30fps for better, smoother results.

A quality product apart from the microphone which is only just okay.