Sony AX43 review: the last vlogging handycam with big zoom appeal

The Sony AX43 is only four years old, but in many ways, it harks back to another era. Before the term vlogging became mainstream, there was filmmaking (or moviemaking depending on your region), and for that, you needed one of the best camcorders. New camcorder releases might be few and far between, but the AX43 has hung on, and it's one of Sony's last Handycams on sale. So what, if anything, sets this last cam standing apart?

Sony undoubtedly makes some of the best cameras for vlogging, with models for total content newbies through to master YouTubers. There's the Sony ZV-1F, a pocketable fixed-lens model with better image quality than the average smartphone, and the small Sony ZV-E10 II, which has advanced focus features and video formats to help with post-production editing.

Camcorders like the AX43, with their barrel-shaped form, couldn't be more different from these mirrorless miniatures, but that's no bad thing. People still buy them in today's crowded video market because of their impressive built-in zoom lenses and easy-to-use functionality. 

If you're a hobbyist wanting to get closer to subjects than your phone, want a decent built-in mic and a big zoom lens, but definitely don't need the codecs and confusing jargon of the best cinema cameras or best camera for video, the Sony FDR-AX43 might make sense to you. I tested it out for a month to find out who this camcorder is for, and whether its tech is too outdated to recommend for videographers and creators.

Sony FDR-AX43: What's new?

The Sony FDR-AX43 was launched in Europe in 2020, aimed mainly at content creators wanting the all-in-one form factor of a camcorder over the company's compact Sony ZV-1. The AX43, as its name suggests, slotted between the more expensive Sony AX53 – a fantastic model I tested earlier this year - and the cheaper AX33 in Sony's amateur range. These two adjacent models have since been discontinued, making the AX43 the only Sony option readily available for hobbyists.

The AX43 looks and feels similar to the AX53 Handycam, with 4K video quality, a maximum 20x optical zoom (250x digital zoom) and the same modestly-sized 1/2.5-inch Exmor R CMOS sensor. The main difference is that the AX53 had a viewfinder, while with the AX43 there's only a 3-inch tilting LCD touchscreen for framing, focusing and reviewing footage.

When it comes to video settings, you can change the video recording format, the resolution, and the video recording rate. But you won't see options like Sony's S-Log recording, found in its more expensive camcorders to maximise the sensor's performance and allow for more advanced color grading and post-production.

The shooting features are mostly beginner-level, aimed at making it easy for all types of videographers to get good footage. Motion Shot Video creates stills of motion sequences, Time-lapse Capture takes stills over intervals, and high frame rate capture can record up to 100fps/120fps in Full HD. Nine scene selection modes can also be selected to help the camcorder adjust to environments like night or snow. The AX43 is truly video-first, but if you want to take the occasional still you can do so in 8.29-megapixel resolution.

Sony AX43: Design & Handling

The AX43 is designed to be turned on and used straightaway without any lengthy learning curve. My first experience of using it involved slotting the battery in, opening out the LCD to power it up and hitting record (which all took less than ten seconds). Power-up is generally rapid, and there's no lens cap or cover to slow you down or get lost. Instead, flaps open automatically once the camcorder turns on to reveal the lens. The only downside is that once or twice during testing, I noticed they hadn't closed again, leaving the lens exposed to any dust and debris in my camera bag.

The AX43 isn’t the most compact camcorder I’ve ever used (that accolade goes to the Sony HDR-CX405) but I found it small enough to be carried in a satchel or camera pouch; even a coat pocket at times. Unlike professional camcorders – all buttons, modules and handles – its round exterior is smooth and interrupted, save for the battery pack. The plastic build quality doesn't feel cheap, but if you're looking to film outside a lot, note that it isn't waterproof or officially built to resist dust and dirt damage.  

As you'd expect for an entry-level camcorder, the AX43's button and port layout are straightforward and minimal. Underneath, there's a 3.5mm tripod thread, while on the right-hand side, there’s a stereo minijack headphone port nearer the lens, a mic input minijack, and multi-connector back right, plus a charging indicator, start/stop record button and DC power back-right.

I like that all of these ports are covered by a flap to protect them when not in use. I also found that the mic and headphone ports are far enough away that the cables don’t get tangled when both are in use – not always the case with camcorder design.

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A 5.1-channel zoom microphone sits flush on top of this camcorder, with a hotshoe behind and underneath the chassis for attaching an external microphone. Behind this, a rectangular zoom rocker and a raised photo button to snap stills. Pulling out the 460K-dot, 16:9 LCD touchscreen reveals an SD card slot, a separate power button, plus playback and a highlight movie maker button. And that's it. While simplicity is key here, I would have loved a few buttons such as record or playback dotted around the display, as I've found these much easier to use with a left hand while your right is hovering over the record button.

As I mentioned earlier, the big difference between the AX53 and the AX43 is that there's no viewfinder. The same can be said for many vlogging cameras and smartphones, of course. While relying on the LCD is fine if you're just recording clips to the camera, I found tracking any moving subjects like planes or birds more difficult this way. The screen, which happily rotates 360 degrees, also has a lot of glare in brighter light, especially when it's pointed up toward the sky for low shots.

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And what about interesting camera angles? As there’s no handle on the top of the AX43 (again, not to be expected at this price point) getting stable and well-balanced shots from lower angles is less straightforward. The side strap is flexible and can be adjusted to suit different-sized hands, but I'd like it to be more substantial, as I found my smaller hands couldn’t always get enough of a tight hold. If you are mostly an out-and-about vlogger, I suggest getting Sony's shooting grip (GP-VPT1) for a better handheld experience.

One of the things I dislike about camcorders is their bulky, protruding batteries. The AX43 is no different, with a chunky lithium-ion pack that slots into the back of the unit. On the one hand, it gives your thumb something to rest against when it’s against the record button, but it also blocks access to that button from different angles. Generally, though, filming is comfortable; with your index finger on the zoom and thumb on the red record button, which is raised so that you can find it without looking, or pressing it accidentally.

Sony FDR-AX43: Performance

I found the AX43's video performance pleasantly surprising – in decent daylight, that is. You can delve into the menus, and in fact, you have to delve into the menus, to take control of the exposure and white balance settings manually. But the AX43 shines brightest in Sony's Intelligent Auto Mode, where it effectively adapts to the closeness and brightness of subjects. 

I kept the camcorder in auto for 90% of testing and found that it was able to change to the best mode for the subject – from Macro to Low Light to Walk – in seconds. It's hard to measure how effective these modes are, though, as the results don't seem to drastically change between them. 

Overall, the AX43's video quality is undoubtedly best when you're in an evenly lit and relatively still setup such as vlogging at home in front of your computer. The Sony AX43 has a 1/2.5 type sensor, and this is much smaller than the 1-type you'd find in the Sony ZV-1F, and smaller still than a full-frame model. That makes its light-gathering abilities fairly poor, and I found that the shadow areas became noticeably noisy in low light levels, including during a pretty city sunset or even inside my house (on a dark winter's day).

Generally speaking, the higher a video's bitrate, the better its quality. The AX43 maxes out at 100Mbps, and Sony uses the XAVC S file format because it compresses files efficiently for easily manageable file sizes. It's a bonus having smaller file sizes if you've got an old PC or limited editing software, and I found an average 10-second video clip was just 3MB. However, I noticed so many compression artifacts in the video files that brought down the overall quality of the results.

One of the big selling points of the AX43 is its gimbal system that floats around the lens and results in stable footage when you're walking around. The intelligent mode continues for stabilization, and I was able to keep the picture pretty shake-free while trekking on bumpy ground, and over cobbles. I don't think you'd want to run with this camera as Sony's marketing suggests you can, though.

In my day-to-day life, I use an iPhone 15 Pro and a Canon EOS R6 Mark II for photography and videography; the Apple phone is a compact companion for taking silly reels of my dog and friends, and the mirrorless camera for professional-quality video at weddings. The AX43 camcorder sits somewhere between these two, with a huge zoom range (equivalent to 26.8-536 mm focal length on a full-frame camera) to help it carve a niche all of its own. It's another major selling point over a newer compact vlogging camera.

During testing, I started filming the wildlife on countryside walks, as well as the birds in my garden. The camcorder's 20x optical zoom was big enough to bring the leaves of distant trees into frame-filling proportions, make a tiny Robin the star of the shot bring out all the imperfections in the crystal decorations on my Christmas tree, and follow a plane in the sky hundreds of miles away. 

Although I sometimes found it hard to track fast-moving subjects without a viewfinder, honing in and out with the zoom rocker is a smooth operation, and I like that the camera keeps your zoom position fixed in place even if you turn the camcorder off. Unfortunately, if you head past 20x optical zoom the digital zoom kicks in, and that's where the picture quality degrades beyond anything I'd recommend. 250x digital zoom? Forget it.

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I think you could get better image quality from pretty much any modern smartphone compared to the AX43, which gives flat and muddy results at best (see above). Given that it's not why you'd buy this camcorder, I'm not going to mark it down too harshly because of that or linger too long on the subject. 

Frustratingly, the AX43's 4K footage is limited to 25fps, and you can’t access smooth slow motion (120fps) at the best-quality 4K video setting. Dropping down to HD unlocks this mode (basically the same as the slow-mo setting on a smartphone) and it's more of a gimmick than anything, but it does work if you want to create a fun effect. Unlike the Sony AX53, the AX43 doesn't have an infrared light-based Night Shot mode – a loss for the ghost hunting or wildlife tracking community, but not a dealbreaker for most users.

I haven't talked much about focusing in this review, and that's because the AX43 mostly just works as it should. Tapping on a subject on the screen will lock on and follow it for the duration of filming, but you should know this is a very basic box-type focus, rather than the sometimes scarily-accurate eye-detection or animal detections of the latest mirrorless cameras. Focus transitions while zooming with the AX43 are painless, unless you zoom in very far, very quickly, or very close – then it takes a few seconds to catch up.

Last but not least, what is the audio like? Given how important sound is to video productions, I'm pleased to say that the AX43's 5.1-channel microphone is ace. Its wind-reduction setting worked well on a blustery dog walk, it picked up my voice clearly and warmly while in my home studio and on location, and for wildlife and ambient sounds, it caught the songs and calls of birds excellently. There is a little background hum in some outdoor clips, but you could easily edit these out with the right software.

Sony FDR-AX53: Sample video

Above: sample video show with Sony AX43

I used the Sony AX43 every day for several weeks, giving me enough time to test the different video modes, assess its performance in different lights and environments, and how its handling and design contributed to a good (or poor) experience.

All the sample clips were recorded using the in-built microphone and the highest quality video setting of XAVC S 4K 100MB/s unless otherwise stated.

Sony FDR-AX43: Final Verdict

I was quite impressed with Sony’s previous AX53 camcorder, although it did have some handling niggles, including an outdated menu system and hard-to-see screen. Unfortunately, I can't see that Sony has addressed any of these complaints in the Sony AX43 more than four years later, but that doesn't mean the camcorder is a flop.

If you're shooting in decent light, the AX43 offers okay-quality 4K video with continuous recording. It won't overheat and you'll only be limited by the size of your memory card and the battery (the high-capacity battery back gives you enough life to record, uninterrupted, for a good hour or more). The built-in microphone is rich and crisp when you're talking to camera and picks up ambient noise well (sometimes too well). On the whole, I also found that the gimbal stabilizes shots effectively, but you'll want a tripod for long-range zoom and any work at night.

Although focus tracking for fast-moving subjects is light years behind the latest AI-powered systems in Sony's mirrorless cameras, focus finding for static subjects is quite accurate until you reach the end of the 20x optical zoom range. And that zoom range is impressive and versatile, although without being able to change the lens, there’s no way to change your aperture and take greater cinematic control over the visuals.

The AX43 has a few limitations. Despite being able to shoot stills, I wouldn’t recommend its photo function to anyone serious about image quality. And its small sensor means grainy video in low-light conditions. If you're a modern streamer used to your smartphone, the AX43 isn't particularly dynamic or well-connected either, but it offers an easy-to-use LCD touch interface and a mainly grab-and-go approach to shooting. You could stick this camcorder in Intelligent Auto mode and never touch the settings again if you didn't want to.

While the AX43 isn't the perfect all-rounder, it's simple to use, helpful in loads of different settings and affordable for what you get. If you’re looking for a video recorder you can turn on and use straightaway – for home videos, vlogs or even travel diaries – the AX43 is a brilliantly dependable device. But if you want the latest autofocus technology and features, or best-in-class cinematic visuals, it's best to keep searching.

Alternatives

Canon Legria HF G70: Having tested the HF G70, I think it's a better option for aspiring filmmakers who have more to spend. You get a viewfinder, better handling, and an extra inch of LCD. The 20x optical zoom is the same as the Sony AX43, but there's (bafflingly) no Wi-Fi for quick sharing.

Sony ZV-1F: If you want to start vlogging for social platforms and mainly plan to talk to the camera up close and at home, you won't need the form factor or long zoom of the AX43. The ZV-1F is super small and light, with accurate eye-detect autofocus to keep that area sharp.

Checkout our complete guide to the best camcorders, and for an introduction to video-making options look at our guide to the best camera for video