 "Nice! Nice!" | 2009-11-05 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1BUBRL6AJKP7X |
Yes, this is a terrific camcorder, like most of the other reviewers have said. I've had it now for a few weeks and here's what I have noticed:
1. I have never had a Canon before, so the menu took a little getting used to, but it all makes sense once you start using it.
2. The stills taken as photos and taken from video are outstanding, even though the camera is only rated at 3 megs. I've enlarged several of them and they are as good if not better than my 10 megapixal still camera. Very happy with that, because you can get some amazing shots from the video.
3. Wind noise is a problem even using the wind filter. I'm thinking of buying a seperate microphone, it's that bad.
4. The included software is not as bad as everyone has said. I think a lot of them are too lazy to sit down and figure it out. It seems to do everything that it says it should do. I've heard that with Windows Media Player 12 it will recognize the avchd file system. I hope so.
5. I bought a 16 gig flash drive and so far I'm not anywhere close to filling it. Batteries are a problem though. The suppled battery only last little more than an hour, if you're lucky. I bought an aftermarket battery and a little question mark remains in the upper right hand corner, which drives me crazy. Canon should have supplied a better battery. I also don't like the way the larger battery sticks out.
6. All in all I'm very happy with the camera and can't wait to use it on vacation. |
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| "Really nice camera" | 2009-11-05 |
| - Reviewed By tillig |
We bought this so we could start taking home movies. We wanted something that would do a good quality HD picture and had decent image stabilization.
We've used it around the house and on trips and the picture is great, even when it's not using the highest settings. We've watched the output on a 52" 1080p HDTV and it's really brilliant.
There are a ton of options on this - a TON - and that makes operation a little overwhelming at first. You can definitely just point-and-shoot with it, but if you want to use the light on the front for a night shot or if you want to change the settings so you can do low lighting or faster action or whatever... it's not the most straightforward thing. You'll definitely want to take the manual with you if you travel so if you decide to run around with the camera you can quickly look to see how to change relevant settings you think you'll need before you leave the hotel.
The software that comes with the camera is garbage. Cumbersome, not easy to use, not too straightforward. It also doesn't do a whole lot beyond getting the film off the camera and onto your computer. I ended up getting a copy of Sony Vegas to do editing.
The expandability of the memory using SD/SDHC cards is great and one of the reasons I picked this model over one that didn't have expandable memory. Run out of space on a trip? No problem, put a new card in and keep running.
Do be warned that HD video eats space for breakfast. I was unaware of how big HD video files really were until I got this. You'll want to do some test shoots to see how big the files are vs. where you're planning on storing them long-term. You could easily make some videos that might be too big to burn onto a DVD for archiving.
You'll also find that, at least for PC folks, Windows computers before Windows 7 don't play AVCHD files (the kind of files this records) out of the box. You have to install either the garbage software they provide or something else to view these on your computer. You can, of course, play the videos directly off the camera to your TV, but that would mean you've kept all your home movies on your camera. You're going to have to pull them off sometime.
Battery life is decent, but not extravagant. You'll get between two and four hours of shooting between charges, pending on how much you zoom and whether you turn the camera off between shots to conserve power.
All in all, though, I'm pleased with the camera. It gives me somewhere to start, and when I get more pro about things I have the additional options to use. The quality is great regardless of whether you're just running around town doing some video or trying for something more "artistic." Given the choice, I'd totally buy this again. |
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 "Canon HF200 and Sony HDR-XR100 dilemmas ....." | 2009-11-02 |
| - Reviewed By User: A224SFN6S3O7P |
Although I am a fan of SONY camcorders is I choose Canon.
I had the pleasure to play for a while of SONY HDR XR100 However, after many internal dilemmas and guided myself by the voice of rationality I chose the Canon.
Why?
Firstly.
Despite the high capacity HDD in SONY Cannon's memory card, are almost equally effective and contain no mechanical parts exposed to shock and possible damage during normal use. (It will turn up, tap, etc. during normal usage of camcorder)
HF200 does not have built-in memory as such so you need to consider spent additional amount of money for SD Card, which is not quite expensive but anyway is necessary.
I have tested 32GB SDHC memory card and it is sufficient for almost 2h 55min recording material with the highest quality which fit my needs just perfectly.
Battery life is comparable in both camcorders, but at once from my own experience, I strongly recommend to buy spare battery whether use Sony or Canon.
Secondly - Optics!
Sony is usually equipped with Carl Zeiss lens but ... Exactly! Compared with the Canon image quality SONY is much worst! Optical zoom is higher in Canon 15x to Sony's 10x and on the digital result Cannon 300x beat SONY 120x.
Canon rose to the occasion and has provided a very nice webcam lenses, designed for HD recording, which combined with excellent matrix gives a sensational effect.
Thirdly - is matrix
And here again a nod to Canon. Much better cope with dim lighting, although there is no revelation. Still after play with manual settings (in both camcorders), the video picture looks better in Cannon without "noise"
To illuminate Canon has been equipped with a little LED however, in this case I prefer Night Shot from Sony even if this is battery consuming.
In addition, HF200 can record at much higher resolution of 2304 x 1296 compared to 1920 x 1080 offered by SONY.
Fourth - recording format and software attached
Sony has the ability to record in MPEG2 format, where apart from AVCHD in Canon that does not exist. I confess that have not tested the software included in SONY package. The only think that I can say is Cannon's software called Pixela is ...hmmm... sort of misunderstanding!
I cannot reach an agreement with Pixela and besides it is in conflict with previously installed codec pack, and it is hard to edit and prepare video material.
Nevertheless, using the popular software for video processing can be done much easier than with the proposed set.
Fifthly - the sound
Well... here peremptorily SONY leads with its built-in Dolby 5.1. Canon recorded in Dolby Stereo only but the sound recorded is in very good quality. In SONY the 5,1 effect is amazing, and if someone is more geared to listening to the sounds of it will definitely recommend SONY!
The conclusion
I will say that since the price of SONY HDR XR100 is similar to the Canon HF200 and quite often higher than that, considering all technical parameters Canon is much better toy for a lower price.
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| "My first camcorder" | 2009-10-29 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2U42TM7RO127U |
I got it couple of days back. Haven't checked out all the features yet, so giving it four stars to begin with. Will add or deduct based on my experience. This is my first camcorder, but have been using Canon still cameras for years. They have brilliant good light performance but act poorly as light goes down, amount of exposure not withstanding. I think same is true for this, but I have just watched small test videos on the LCD screen itself till now. Will shoot a formal video in 2-3 days and then will be in a better shape to comment on image quality.
I have seen other camcorders, and when I received it, I was amazed by its small size. It is just slightly bigger then my P&S camera. Has a very nice grip to hold it, and being left-handed I love the control placement. For right-handers may need some getting used to. Can't comment on battery and software yet, will add that to my review once I shoot something of significance. One thing I don't like is that the construction feels a bit cheap. Its all plastic and things don't fit snugly. My canon P&S cameras on the other hand always looked expensive. |
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| "Looks great so far" | 2009-10-28 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2CZOVWIPFZR4R |
| I've had my HF200 for about 3 weeks now. So far the video looks great. The menu's are very easy to navigate. I've been able to discover most of the features without the manual. The manual is a little hard to read. I bought if for kids events like hockey games, soccer games, plays, etc and it has produced great video. I have taken just a few photos. So far the photos have been OK in lower light. I need to take some more to get a better feel for how it does with photos. I expect to buy another battery and memory card. I'm a little disappointed that the battery does not last much more than an hour. I expect I will buy a non-Canon battery as this camcorder was expensive to start with. This is compounded by the fact that I cannot get the software to work. I was able to export files to the PC but the software just locked up every time I tried to do anything with them. I called Pixela and ended up removing some other software. This allowed me to get a little farther into the program but it still locked up before I could do much. I am trialing the Cyberlink Power Director software and so far it works well and is fairly easy to use. |
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Expedited Available
