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  DIGITAL CAMCORDERS

Canon Vixia HF100

EDITORS RATING
8.0
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 12 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

Excellent video quality; fast focus; compact, attractive, and comfortable design.

THE BAD

Wind filter not as dependable as previous Canon models; manual focus pretty useless.

THE BOTTOM LINE

One of a pair of Canon's first flash-based camcorders, the Canon Vixia HF100, delivers excellent HD video quality and performance in a tiny package.

REVIEWED: 16-Apr-2008 10:02 AM PDT
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Sony Handycam HDR-SR12

EDITORS RATING
8.0
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 12 x, Hard disk drive

THE GOOD

Excellent video and performance; impressive still photos for a camcorder; adequate manual controls; nice CAM CTL dial; docking station included.

THE BAD

No wind filter; doesn't include mini HDMI cable.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Sony's Handycam HDR-SR11 and SR12 60GB hard-drive-based AVCHD camcorders deliver top notch performance and image quality.

REVIEWED: 10-Apr-2008 12:40 PM PDT
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Sony Handycam HDR-SR11

EDITORS RATING
8.0
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 12 x, Hard disk drive

THE GOOD

Excellent video and performance; impressive still photos for a camcorder; adequate manual controls; nice CAM CTL dial; docking station included.

THE BAD

No wind filter; doesn't include mini HDMI cable.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Sony's Handycam HDR-SR11 and SR12 60GB hard-drive-based AVCHD camcorders deliver top notch performance and image quality.

REVIEWED: 10-Apr-2008 12:40 PM PDT
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Canon Vixia HF10

EDITORS RATING
8.0
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 12 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

Excellent video quality; fast focus; compact, attractive, and comfortable design.

THE BAD

Wind filter not as dependable as previous Canon models; manual focus pretty useless.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Canon's first flash-based camcorder, the Canon Vixia HF10, delivers excellent HD video quality and performance in a tiny package.

REVIEWED: 03-Mar-2008 01:31 PM PST
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Canon Vixia HV30

EDITORS RATING
8.0
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 10 x, Mini DV (HDV)

THE GOOD

Generally excellent video quality; solid feature set for its class; well designed

THE BAD

Tape housing feels a bit flimsy; fixed eye-level viewfinder needs a better eye cup; manual focus dial a bit loose

THE BOTTOM LINE

An extremely minor upgrade from the HV20, the Canon Vixia HV30 remains a quality HDV camcorder with a couple of performance issues.

REVIEWED: 25-Feb-2008 03:14 PM PST
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Flip Video Mino (white)

EDITORS RATING
7.8
SPECS
THE GOOD

Ultraslim yet functional design; easy to use; relatively high-quality sound and video for its class; one-touch video uploading to YouTube and AOL.

THE BAD

A bit expensive; no SD/MMC card expansion slot; rechargeable battery isn't removable or replaceable.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Despite some minor flaws, Pure Digital's Flip Video Mino is the best mini camcorder for straight-to-Web video currently available--but it also costs more, and it can't match the features of a video-savvy point-and-shoot camera.

REVIEWED: 09-Jun-2008 11:29 AM PDT
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Flip Video Mino (black)

EDITORS RATING
7.8
SPECS
THE GOOD

Ultraslim yet functional design; easy to use; relatively high-quality sound and video for its class; one-touch video uploading to YouTube and AOL.

THE BAD

A bit expensive; no SD/MMC card expansion slot; rechargeable battery isn't removable or replaceable.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Despite some minor flaws, Pure Digital's Flip Video Mino is the best mini camcorder for straight-to-Web video currently available--but it also costs more, and it can't match the features of a video-savvy point-and-shoot camera.

REVIEWED: 09-Jun-2008 11:29 AM PDT
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Canon FS10

EDITORS RATING
7.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 37 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

Compact, attractive design; mic input.

THE BAD

No optical image stabilization; ineffective wind filter; no headphone jack; modest video quality.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Convenient, well-designed camcorders that look pricier than they are, models in the Canon FS series--FS11, FS10, and FS100--nevertheless deliver typical budget video in line with their budget price tags.

REVIEWED: 30-Jun-2008 11:17 AM PDT
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Canon FS100 (silver)

EDITORS RATING
7.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 37 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

Compact, attractive design; mic input.

THE BAD

No optical image stabilization; ineffective wind filter; no headphone jack; modest video quality.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Convenient, well-designed camcorders that look pricier than they are, models in the Canon FS series--FS11, FS10, and FS100--nevertheless deliver typical budget video in line with their budget price tags.

REVIEWED: 30-Jun-2008 11:17 AM PDT
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Canon FS11

EDITORS RATING
7.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 37 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

Compact, attractive design; mic input.

THE BAD

No optical image stabilization; ineffective wind filter; no headphone jack; modest video quality.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Convenient, well-designed camcorders that look pricier than they are, models in the Canon FS series--FS11, FS10, and FS100--nevertheless deliver typical budget video in line with their budget price tags.

REVIEWED: 30-Jun-2008 11:17 AM PDT
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Canon FS100 (garnet wine)

EDITORS RATING
7.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 37 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

Compact, attractive design; mic input.

THE BAD

No optical image stabilization; ineffective wind filter; no headphone jack; modest video quality.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Convenient, well-designed camcorders that look pricier than they are, models in the Canon FS series--FS11, FS10, and FS100--nevertheless deliver typical budget video in line with their budget price tags.

REVIEWED: 30-Jun-2008 11:17 AM PDT
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Canon FS100 (sapphire blue)

EDITORS RATING
7.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 37 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

Compact, attractive design; mic input.

THE BAD

No optical image stabilization; ineffective wind filter; no headphone jack; modest video quality.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Convenient, well-designed camcorders that look pricier than they are, models in the Canon FS series--FS11, FS10, and FS100--nevertheless deliver typical budget video in line with their budget price tags.

REVIEWED: 30-Jun-2008 11:17 AM PDT
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Panasonic AG-HSC1U

EDITORS RATING
7.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 12 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

High-quality 1080i video; tiny; easy to use; tapeless; bundled card reader/backup drive.

THE BAD

Impractical manual controls; lacks a viewfinder, progressive video recording, and headphone jack

THE BOTTOM LINE

Though it delivers good video with excellent color, the Panasonic AG-HSC1U falls short of its "professional" aspirations in most other ways.

REVIEWED: 19-Feb-2008 12:29 PM PST
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Panasonic HDC-SD9

EDITORS RATING
7.2
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 10 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

Compact and lightweight; saturated colors.

THE BAD

Moderate to low-light videos look cloudy; some awkward design choices; smallish LCD with terrible color reproduction; awful bundled software.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Despite its trio of CCDs, the video quality and performance of the Panasonic HDC-SD9 are a bit too inconsistent.

REVIEWED: 17-Mar-2008 11:51 AM PDT
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Samsung SC-HMX10

EDITORS RATING
6.7
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 10 x, Flash card

THE GOOD

Relatively sharp video; manual exposure controls; can focus fairly closely.

THE BAD

Sluggish autofocus; exposure problems; mediocre low-light quality and performance; no hardware image stabilization; annoying touch screen; potential software problems.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Despite an attractive price and some decent features, the frustrations of the Samsung SC-HMX10 outnumber its rewards.

REVIEWED: 23-Apr-2008 09:33 AM PDT
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JVC Everio GZ-MG330 (30GB, silver)

EDITORS RATING
6.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 35 x, Hard disk drive

THE GOOD

Attractive price; compact design; holds hours of video.

THE BAD

No eye-level viewfinder, mic input, or headphone jack; persistent video compression artifacts.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The near-identical models of the JVC Everio GZ-MG300 series--the MG330, MG335, MG360 and MG365--are budget-priced, hard-drive-based camcorders that are nice enough, but produce typical low-budget video.

REVIEWED: 23-Jul-2008 10:04 AM PDT
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JVC Everio GZ-MG330 (30GB, blue)

EDITORS RATING
6.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 35 x, Hard disk drive

THE GOOD

Attractive price; compact design; holds hours of video.

THE BAD

No eye-level viewfinder, mic input, or headphone jack; persistent video compression artifacts.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The near-identical models of the JVC Everio GZ-MG300 series--the MG330, MG335, MG360 and MG365--are budget-priced, hard-drive-based camcorders that are nice enough, but produce typical low-budget video.

REVIEWED: 23-Jul-2008 10:04 AM PDT
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JVC Everio GZ-MG330 (30GB, red)

EDITORS RATING
6.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 35 x, Hard disk drive

THE GOOD

Attractive price; compact design; holds hours of video.

THE BAD

No eye-level viewfinder, mic input, or headphone jack; persistent video compression artifacts.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The near-identical models of the JVC Everio GZ-MG300 series--the MG330, MG335, MG360 and MG365--are budget-priced, hard-drive-based camcorders that are nice enough, but produce typical low-budget video.

REVIEWED: 23-Jul-2008 10:04 AM PDT
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JVC Everio GZ-MG335 (silver)

EDITORS RATING
6.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 35 x, Hard disk drive

THE GOOD

Attractive price; compact design; holds hours of video.

THE BAD

No eye-level viewfinder, mic input, or headphone jack; persistent video compression artifacts.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The near-identical models of the JVC Everio GZ-MG300 series--the MG330, MG335, MG360 and MG365--are budget-priced, hard-drive-based camcorders that are nice enough, but produce typical low-budget video.

REVIEWED: 23-Jul-2008 10:04 AM PDT
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JVC Everio GZ-MG360

EDITORS RATING
6.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 35 x, Hard disk drive

THE GOOD

Attractive price; compact design; holds hours of video.

THE BAD

No eye-level viewfinder, mic input, or headphone jack; persistent video compression artifacts.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The near-identical models of the JVC Everio GZ-MG300 series--the MG330, MG335, MG360 and MG365--are budget-priced, hard-drive-based camcorders that are nice enough, but produce typical low-budget video.

REVIEWED: 23-Jul-2008 10:04 AM PDT
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JVC Everio GZ-MG365

EDITORS RATING
6.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 35 x, Flash card, Hard disk drive

THE GOOD

Attractive price; compact design; holds hours of video.

THE BAD

No eye-level viewfinder, mic input, or headphone jack; persistent video compression artifacts.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The near-identical models of the JVC Everio GZ-MG300 series--the MG330, MG335, MG360 and MG365--are budget-priced, hard-drive-based camcorders that are nice enough, but produce typical low-budget video.

REVIEWED: 23-Jul-2008 10:04 AM PDT
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JVC Everio GZ-MG335 (white)

EDITORS RATING
6.4
VALUE WATCH RATING
Poor value
SPECS

Camcorder, 35 x, Flash card, Hard disk drive

THE GOOD

Attractive price; compact design; holds hours of video.

THE BAD

No eye-level viewfinder, mic input, or headphone jack; persistent video compression artifacts.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The near-identical models of the JVC Everio GZ-MG300 series--the MG330, MG335, MG360 and MG365--are budget-priced, hard-drive-based camcorders that are nice enough, but produce typical low-budget video.

REVIEWED: 23-Jul-2008 10:04 AM PDT
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RCA Small Wonder EZ200

EDITORS RATING
6.2
SPECS
THE GOOD

Improved low-light performance over its predecessor; flip-out LCD; ships with a removable 1GB memory card.

THE BAD

Design isn't as slick as its competitors; no rechargeable battery; video quality is still fairly mediocre; bundled software isn't Mac compatible.

THE BOTTOM LINE

RCA's Small Wonder Pocket EZ205 has some significant advantages over its competitors--but it has a lot more drawbacks.

REVIEWED: 20-Jun-2008 01:06 PM PDT
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RCA Small Wonder EZ205

EDITORS RATING
6.2
SPECS
THE GOOD

Improved low-light performance over its predecessor; flip-out LCD; ships with a removable 1GB memory card.

THE BAD

Design isn't as slick as its competitors; no rechargeable battery; video quality is still fairly mediocre; bundled software isn't Mac compatible.

THE BOTTOM LINE

RCA's Small Wonder Pocket EZ205 has some significant advantages over its competitors--but it has a lot more drawbacks.

REVIEWED: 16-Jun-2008 10:46 AM PDT
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RCA Small Wonder EZ210

EDITORS RATING
5.8
SPECS
THE GOOD

Ruggedized exterior; large 2.5-inch LCD; includes a 2GB removable SD memory card; affordably priced.

THE BAD

Relatively bulky; some odd design choices; bundled software isn't Mac compatible; not water resistant.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The RCA Small Wonder Traveler EZ210 is an oddly designed minicamcorder--but anyone with poor eyesight and poor hand coordination will find its large LCD and operational buttons appealing.

REVIEWED: 19-Jun-2008 11:24 AM PDT
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