Canon VIXIA HF10 Flash Memory High Definition Camcorder with 16 GB Internal Flash Memory and 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom by Canon
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Digital camera reviews of Canon VIXIA HF10 Flash Memory High Definition Camcorder with 16 GB Internal Flash Memory and 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
Digital camera Review: A very good camera with a couple issues for some
Summary: 4 Stars
The camera is a dream: small (maybe too small?): fits in the palm of your hand. Pure memory storage of video is relaly quite nice, but have a large hard drive ready. Now that drives are cheap and plentiful, no problem. You will need a good software set to work the HD well, not to mention a fast processor. I got Sony's Vegas suite: works well. Still images with the camera are fine, though this is not a still camera with all the features you'd expect from one. Focus is great, auto exposure settings work fine, the display is great. Battery life is fine, though I did pick up an extra larger battery for field work. Works ok at night. Works better during daytime. Audio is ok for field work though wind sensative. Useful in many ways.Digital camera Review: Amazing camera...and some love for the software
Summary: 5 Stars
I have had this camera for almost a year now and love it. I can echo all of the other great things said about his unit by others, but the bottom line is that it takes incredible hi-def video, it's easy to use, and it's small enough to fit in a closed hand.
I use this camera primarily to record my two teenage children's rock concerts. Most of this is done in low light, and the sound quality (I did invest in their external microphone which sits nicely in the shoe on top) and video are stunning in hi-def. I copy the videos to a 1TB drive on my home network and access them through the PS3 player and show them on a 60 inch plasma. It is truly amazing and people who see it can't believe I took the videos myself.
The software provided by PIXELA, ImageMixer 3SE, gets a very bad rap in all the reviews I have seen on Amazon. However, if you are like me and want to a) export video to .mov files for posting on YouTube, b) want to do minor edits/splicing of files together, and c) burn DVDs to give to family, friends, etc, this software works fine. Of course the raw video AVCHD is difficult to work with and it takes a couple of hours to burn a DVD for the first time (which is true of any software you use), but I find this software highly intuitive and not difficult to use for the above tasks. If you take the time to run through the software manual, which is as good as any I've seen for such software, you can be doing the three functions above in no time. Now if you want to get fancy around menus, effects, etc, then of course you need to invest in some other high powered application, but frankly I think there are diminishing returns on that investment. Most people who are not professionals want DVDs that can play in any DVD player or computer, with a simple main menu and no fuss or complications. This software delivers that. Another thing is does very well and easily is allow you to capture frames into .jpg files. I don't think these are "print worthy" photos, but they are more than adequate for posting on-line, and the software allows you to move frame by frame to capture exact seconds in your video.
Full disclosure--I have no affiliation or allegiance to PIXELA, in fact I have never heard of them before I bought this camera.
All in all, this is camera is huge winner.
Digital camera Review: Amazing little camera with excellent video quality
Summary: 5 Stars
The Canon HF10 is on amazing piece of technology wrapped up in a small and very versatile camera body. This camera along with a Mac will make you into a very proficient video artist.
Hardware:
From the start having a flash based camera is a tremendous advantage over the HDD and tape based cameras simply because of speed and reliability. Not to mention you don't have that annoying humming sound in your videos. More importantly, if you're going to take this with you on trips, you will drop your camera...but with a flash based camera it's no big deal, just dust it off and start shooting again. Lastly, you can record to the on board memory (16GB) or you can record to SD memory cards...instant expandability!
Video Quality:
I was extremely impressed with this consumer focused camera that shot very well for a 'point and shoot' camcorder. The cinema mode (24p) comes out very crystal clear and looks great on any HDTV (via HDMI or Component cables).
Software:
The PC Software is OK, but thankfully it works like a charm with my Mac and iMovie. It's basically plug, play and create a movie. It doesn't get any easier than this combination. Yes, it will take some time to export this in full HD format, but you get a great video that you can burn to DVD and share. Additionally you can export to a smaller resolution and post it on YouTube, or have it export to your iPod.
Overall:
This camera is great if you're going on a trip and want to take stunning video and have a simple way to share it. For this price point (~$680) this is a very good camera and performs unbelievably well. You will NOT have any buyers regret after you buy and use this camera.
Other Cameras:
I looked at the FlipVideo and the Kodak Zi6 but decided to spend a little more for a camera with Image Stabilization and a good (12x) zoom.
Digital camera Review: Amazing video quality, great usability, average software.
Summary: 5 Stars
I was waiting a long time for a camera capable of recording 1920x1080, good video quality, small size, no tapes, ...
This is it!
Much of it is derived from the HV and HG series, so it is not version 1.
The videos I have taken so far are at par with the quality I get from FIOS TV HD channels.
The only drawback is the sotware. It does not work well with vista. I can only retrieve the content from the camera, but not play, the software hangs. M2TS files play well with PowerDVD 8, so it is ok for now.
The software works ok on XP, but my XP PC does not have the horse power.
The camera itself plays the videos best when directly linked to the TV with HDMI. HDMI is much better that component cable.
The battery is not enough to shoot and fill the 16GB, so I bought the 819, but for now it does last as long as they say in the specs.
I would recommend to invest in the clear filter, because the worst damage you can do to the camera, is get a spec or a scratch on the lens. You can live with scratches and dings on the camera body, but guard that lens like your own eyes. You can zoom and see dust from 20 feet away, that is how detailed the video is, imagine a spec on the lens.
The usability of the camera is great. I am amazed how they managed to pack all of the connections and buttons on that little body. You need to hold the camera on you hands to appreciate how small and funtional it is.
Pictures online would not do.
The video quality is great, indoors and outdoors. Indoors, I was surprised how well the video looked with just a couple of 60Watt bulbs in the room. I found that the CINE mode makes the video better indoors where the sensor tends to show atrifacts due to the low light. But outdoors it does not do much. The 24p and 30p modes need a tripod and very slow panning of the camera, otherwise the video seems blurry. But it may be because of seetings that I have yet to try.
I always shoot in the FXP mode, 1920x1080, I do not see a reason to use the 1440x1080.
The files are AVCHD (*.m2ts), and the from what I read online is a blue-ray related format. I save the files to hard disk and when software gets better with AVCHD, they can be burned to DVDs and played by blu-ray players. So it is a kind of future-proof.
I would definatelly recommend this camera. Most of the negative reviews are focused on specific features, like bad sofware, etc. You have to judge on the big picture, and the picture is crystal clear, 1920x1080, brilliant colors, that makes 1080p TV I bought a few months ago, even more worth it.
Digital camera Review: An Okay Camara, with Some Usability Issues
Summary: 3 Stars
I bought the camara, and found that it is fairly easy to use.
I have some troubles with its software and manual.
1) The Manual cannot be openned up easily by Adobe PDF Reader 9.0, and got stuck constantly. As a result, I have to download another reader from other software vender to read manual.
2) I had a hard time to upload the video records from the camara to my PC, until I did a lot of research over Internet to find that I have to use AC power instead of battery to upload the recording.
I wasted about 6 hours to address these two issues. Other than that, everything seems working out okay.
Another complaint is that the battery life is too short (about 90 minutes).