I wish there was a good, detailed breakdown of the model history of camcorder models from the major players. I love shit like that.
I'm also EXTREMELY curious what was going on in the mid 90s with Sony. The TR200 feels like a slightly earlier version of the TR500, while the TR400 feels like it was made by an entirely different department. The TR100 and TR600 are a tiny refresh of the TR400.
The model numbers are generally all over the place but I believe these all came out between 92-94. I'd love to know where they sat in the lineup and how everything evolved.
I've found that in japan, the model names made a bit more sense.
TR200 > TR2
TR500 > TR3
And there's a very TR200 model called the TR1 as well.
We're working on final fantasy timelines here. :(