Strengths: Image Quality in normal lighting is beyond anything I have ever seen in HDTV! Plenty of PortsUses Mini DV CassettesGood Image Stabilization24P modeImage quality is absolutely amazing!!!!!

Weaknesses: Moderate to poor footage in low light situationsSomewhat awkward handling when using zoom.

Summary: This is camcorder of the year 2008 according to camcorder info. This little camera packs quite a punch. The Image quality is absolutely amazing, beyond anything I have ever seen in HDTV. The only drawback is poor to moderate low light performance < 30 lux and the zoom button feels awkward. I give it 4 1/2 stars. For this price $710 with a 4yr warranty it is by far the best deal out there.

Strengths: Clarity and quality of picture is excellent; good basic functions; miniSD & miniDV formats

Weaknesses: feels cheap, thumb menu functions difficult to use with one hand

Summary: I had demo different HD camcorders and this HD camcorder is a great value when compared to it's competitors. The quality was just as good if not better. The cheaper feel to the case and buttons keeps the weight down but would be doomed it is dropped. The glass lens has an automatic cover which is a nice feature to keep it clean. The various ways to export video/picture is a big plus. There is HDMI to the HD TV and minSD card, USB, HD/DV terminal to computer or printer. Even though the light source for video or flash is weak, it is better than none compared to its competitors. Overall I am very satisfied.

Strengths: Good HD pictures, very easy to use.

Weaknesses: Occasionally awkward going through the menus.I wish manual focus was easier.

Summary: Although bigger than the pocket camcorder I had been using, this takes excellent pictures and has generally been a pleasure to us. Pictures in low light have been pretty good, too.

Strengths: 24p, ture HD sensor, amzing image quality

Weaknesses: tape noise

Summary: I love my new HV20 from Circuit City. This camera offers amazing resolution, with a sensor picking up a full 1920x1080 lines of resolution. Because it uses optical image stabilization (OIS) instead of digital manipulation, there is no degradation in picture quality when shooting hand-held. The output on my 1080i HDTV (which can be done via component or HDMI) is stunning. It?s also capable of recording in 1080p using the 24p mode. 24p has never before been available on a camcorder anywhere near this price point! For the serious user, 24p allows for a true film-like effect. For the more casual user, 24p allows for some amazing shooting in low light. The HV20 has the manual controls and features of a camera typically costing several times as much. Although the auto settings and pre-programmed scenes allow an amateur user to begin shooting great-looking footage right out of the box, you can spend months mastering the various manual controls to get the most out of this camcorder. It's a very popularcamera, so its not too hard to get a great deal - just don't spend too much timing shopping around, since that's less quality time with the HV20.

Strengths: Excellent image quality, manual controls, good color reproduction, HDMI and firewire connections.

Weaknesses: Cheap feel. A bit pricy. Loose fitting tape door.

Summary: Overall, I am very happy with this camcorder. I love the HD output, especially when played back while the camcorder is connected to a HDTV using the HDMI output. Alot sharper than my standard def DV camcorder. There are also alot of manual settings available, which I am still learning. I also liked how I was able to use my battery from my Rebel XTi camera as an emergency backup. I am disappointed with the build quality. The camcorder looks like it is just another $400 cheapie. The design is nothing special at all, especially for the price. The tape door is loose, and if you are not careful, it will rattle, and may be picked up while recording. Even with the disappointing build quality, I don't regret purchasing this camcorder.

Strengths: Fantastic image quality; great auto-focus; true 24p capture mode; HDMI out; external mic and headphone jacks; built-in 3 MP still camera

Weaknesses: Build quality a little cheap; LCD washes out too easily in bright light

Summary: Have been a happy user of a very basic 8mm cam (Canon ES50) for the past few years but finally decided that it was time for an upgrade. The Canon HV10 had initially caught my attention due to a great price (under $500 refurb) on that model but after doing some research, I found too many things I did not like about it so continued looking. I really wanted a hi-def model to be more future proof and the cost of the good standard def models was only a couple of hundred less so seemed like an easy decision.After hours of research on various websites and newsgroups, I narrowed my choices down to the HV20 and a Sony hi-def model. They both received great reviews and each had strong points but the Canon got slightly better marks for image quality and the price was around $200 less so that was the final tipping point for me. Even though I got a great deal, I have never spent anywhere close to $1000 for a camcorder so this was a huge purchase but after using it for a couple of weeks, I am very happy with my decision.The video quality, in a word: AMAZING! When played back through the onboard HMDI port to a high-def TV, you will think you are watching a professional broadcast. All colors are vibrant and true to life; details in clothing and furniture, even faces, are clearly visible. I have never seen video of this quality level on any consumer camcorder.Since I am a novice user, I mostly leave the cam on auto pilot and it does a great job with focus and exposure. There are a couple of much hyped features which would come in handy if you want a little more control or aspire to capture more than family vacation moments. The 24p recording mode is supposed to give a film-like appearance and great low light performance but I have not tested it yet so cannot comment. There are also jacks for an external microphone and a set of headphones, which could come in handy even for home videos. Although I have been strictly using the built-in microphone and have no problems with the audio thus far. Everything comes across crystal clear, though voices across a room do have a slight hollowness to them; but great performance for a built-in mic.The only minor complaints I have are that the build quality does seem a little cheap for a cam in this price range. Everything is made of grey plastic and you would have a hard time distinguishing this model from a basic $300 standard def model based on exterior styling. The Sony model was actually better in this respect, with a metal barrel and much tighter fit and finish. Also, the LCD screen tends to wash out in bright sunlight or at even slight angles. You basically have to view it straight on to see anything.Some people have complained that this is a MiniDV model versus hard drive or flash card, but my research revealed that MiniDV is still the best format for image quality and you automatically get a backup copy of all your footage. Plus, you don't have to worry about running out of space in the middle of a shoot; just pop in another tape! It's a little more trouble to do editing but I thought it was worth the sacrifice.Overall, I rate this product a great purchase. It has all the features a normal user would ever want and even a few that would be useful to professionals. You can't beat the image quality without spending thousands more. If you are in the market for a new cam, do yourself a favor and check this one out.

Strengths: Easy to use; beautiful videos

Weaknesses: Takes a second to focus; a little heavy and somewhat awkward to turn on/off with one hand; should have come with memory card for still pictures (had to buy it separately)

Summary: I used this camcorder for a recent trip to Turkey and Greece. It was Very intuitive to shoot video and figured out still shots relatively easily. Easy to zoom. Haven't yet uploaded to CD or TV. Reasonable price for the quality.

Strengths: Small, Light weight, HDMI output

Weaknesses: A bit pricey

Summary: This time I made a shift from Sony to Canon. When compared the two camcorders, I found Canon to have much more features (HDMI output) than the Sony equivalent.If you ignore the price, this would be the best buy for the buck.HDMI output gives HD to TV straight away.Other outputs include component and composite. A longer battery life would be better. But you can also buy them separately. The LCD screen is very cool.

Strengths: Image quality, low light performance, 24p mode, microphone jack

Weaknesses: cheap body

Summary: I replaced my sony TRV-22 DV camcorder with this one and I am very happy with it. The HD image quality is outstanding. so is the low light performance. The best in this size and this class cameras. More than that the ability to shoot at 24p film mode is great and results are unbelievable. On the downside, the body is made of cheap plastic. The LCD had one dead pixel. But for the price and for the features it has you cannot expect more.

Strengths: super sharp images, ease of use

Weaknesses: n/a

Summary: I had a Canon mini DV (105). I always liked it until I play with this High definition Camcorder. This is awesome. Everything you shoot and play on TV just like watching HDTV. Never been happier.

Strengths: Image Quality, Image Quality, Image Quality!! HDMI out, external Mic. plug. Sensitive inbuilt microphone. Super Still shots for your 16x9 HDTV

Weaknesses: Handling and holding. NO 1980x1080 video capture in Pinnacle.

Summary: HV20 is compact and feature rich! After recording and processing 3-4 hrs. of full HD video I found that HV20 is a good 'pro-sumer' camcorder. Video quality is great. No doubts. 24p mode is hard but useful if you want to give your video a movie effect. Still pictures are best plus with this camcorder. Use it to take snaps on the miniSDcard and you will feel really proud when you view those on your 16x9 HDTV!!

Strengths: Excellent image quality, very fast focusing, good low light performance for a consumer camcorder, full manual control, optical image stabilization, and -real- 24p frame rate.

Weaknesses: Horrible build quality, poor handling, --PATHETIC-- LCD screen, fast focus not always accurate.

Summary: I had high hopes for the Canon HV20. On paper, it was looking like a real winner. Unfortunately, in the real world, things are not so wonderful.Let?s start with the good news. Image quality is excellent, and low light performance is also excellent for a consumer level camera. The camcorder does have full manual control for those who like to tweak things a bit, and Canon?s external focus sensor really ?snaps? things into focus quickly ? but there is a bad side to that as well, which I?ll cover in a moment.The bad news is, well, rather extensive! This does not feel like a $1000 camcorder. It feels cheap and plasticy like a third world knock-off. Parts don?t fit well, and straight out of the box, the LCD screen on my copy didn?t sit flush with the camera body when closed. The zoom control is without a doubt the worst I?ve ever seen ? it is positioned poorly thus making it inconvenient to use, and it is very difficult to operate because of it?s tiny and cheap design. If the HV20 was a car, it would be a Lada, a Chevette, or a Yugo!The next piece of bad news (and it?s very bad) is the LCD screen. The LCD screen on the HV20 is a small 2.8?, has an incredibly narrow viewing angle both horizontally and vertically, pathetic color rendition, and a feeble backlight that leaves you looking at a black screen when outside in even moderately bright light. To put it another way, the LCD only gives you the vaguest of ideas of what your footage might look like on a TV or computer, and then only if you are indoors, or outside in shade. This is particularly disappointing considering that trans-reflective technology LCDs are commonly available (on competing products) that allow for near perfect viewing even under a tropical noonday sun, and from a wide range of viewing angles. Bottom line is that if you adjust your video based on what you see on the HV20?s screen, you are almost certainly headed for disappointment at best, and disaster at worst. Be SURE to make your adjustments from actual test footage viewed on a good HD TV or monitor before shooting an important event!As mentioned above, the Canon external focus sensor gives this camcorder exceptionally rapid focusing capabilities. You?ve never seen a consumer camcorder snap into focus like this one will. But there?s bad news here also. If you are shooting a scene with a rather low contrast subject, and a very high contrast background, the external focus sensor will tend to pull the focus off the subject and onto the background. Thanks to the pathetic LCD screen, you may not even realize this is happening, and you will thus end up with large amounts of back focused footage. A good example of this would be trying to film a solid color, low contrast object (a flower, for example) with grass or leafy trees behind it ? the lines of the leaves or grass stems create a very appealing, contrasty target for the external focus sensor, and you can easily find yourself with a great shot of a forest or lawn that includes an out of focus subject in the foreground, instead of what you really intended. So if you are buying this camcorder for a family camping vacation, make sure you get plaid shirts for the whole family ? LOL! (or understand when to turn off the external focus)Battery life ? the included battery is miserable, and even the big OEM and aftermarket batteries aren?t what they could be, so make sure you get a few extras, otherwise you?ll find yourself carrying around a dead camcorder for half the day. Once you install an extended battery, you can forget about using the electronic view finder, it?s almost impossible to get your eye to it. What a quandary ? a pocket full of small batteries so you can use the EVF, and actually see what you are shooting in bright sunlight ? OR ? a couple of big batteries, use the LCD screen, and hope for the best. Did the Canon engineers ever take the HV20 out of the lab to test it in the real world? Sure doesn?t look that way.The camera has good manual control for the tweakers, but of course given the LCD screen, it all going to be guess work. I?m personally not keen on the adjustment mechanism, a menu button and a 5 way joy stick. With this system is virtually impossible to make any adjustment without jiggling the camera if you are recording hand held. Overall, I found manual adjustment balky, with buttons sometimes working in reverse to expected directions, and menus being difficult to adjust quickly during action.My final rating for this camera is just 2 stars. It?s simply not enough to only provide good image quality; Canon needs to improve the overall quality of the whole camera. I would have happily paid a couple hundred dollars more for this camera with a good trans-reflective LCD, and a true, high quality fit and finish. As it is, it?s not really worth the asking price.