Sony Corp. said the 500 gram (18 ounces) 13.9 centimeter (5.5 inches) long HDR-HC3, set to go on sale next month in Japan for 160,000 yen (US$1,300; euro1,100) and in April in the United States for US$1,700.

It is 26 percent more compact than the predecessor model.

High-definition TVs, which are increasingly popular around the world, have more lines of light running across the monitor to relay clearer and more vivid images than old-style TVs.

Home videos taken with the new camcorder will be high-definition quality - as long as you own one of those new TVs.

"People are more savvy about high-definition television, have experienced its visual impact, and now they want the same 'wow factor' for their own home movies," Linda Vuolo of Sony Electronics said in a news release.

The machine's smaller size was achieved by decreasing the size of the lens and combining three computer chips into one, according to the Tokyo-based electronics and entertainment company.

Sony officials in Tokyo said the product is more likely to sell in Japan, where people are willing to pay for fancy gadgets. The company has taken a lead in high-defintion camcorders by offering the first high-vision Handycam camcorder in 2004, they said.

By: DocMemory
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