Product Description: The Canon HG10 AVCHD Format Hard Disk Drive Camcorder delivers high definition technology with the effortless ease of recording video directly onto a hard disk. Incorporating the latest AVCHD (Advanced Video Codec High Definition) format, it puts superb image reproduction and advanced features at your fingertips in a compact AVCHD Format HDD camcorder, which means you'll carry it everywhere you want to capture the special moments in your life in true HD. Among the Canon Exclusive features on the HG10 are Canon's own Full HD CMOS sensor and advanced DIGIC DV II image processor. More exclusives are SuperRange Optical Image Stabilization, Instant Auto Focus and our new 2.7" Widescreen Multi-Angle Vivid LCD. With the Genuine Canon 10x HD video zoom lens and a host of other advanced features the HG10 is the right choice in HDD camcorders. Zoom Ratio 10x Optical/200x Digital - Focal Length 6.1-61mm Canon Exclusive - DIGIC DV II Canon SuperRange Optical Image Stabilization Canon Exclusive - Instant AF 24 fps Cinema Mode HDD Photo Grab from Video 2.7 Multi-Angle Vivid Widescreen LCD Superb Shooting Control Advanced Photo Features to 3 Megapixel Programmed AutoExposure modes Minimum Focusing Distance 10 mm (wide)/ 1m (tele) White Balance - Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H Image Stabilization - SuperRange Optical (lens shift) Viewfinder - Widescreen 0.27 Color Viewfinder/ (Approx. 123,000 pixels) Recording Media - Hard Disk Drive 40 GB (Internal) Audio - HD - Dolby Digital 2ch (AC-3 2ch) Effective Pixels - Movies (HDD) - Approx 2.07 Megapixels (1920 x 1080); Still Images (Card) - 4 - 3 mode - Approx 2.76 Megapixels (1920 x 1440); 16 - 9 mode - 2.07 Megapixels (1920 x 1080) Lens accepts optional 43mm filters Dimensions - (WxHxD) 3.2 x 3.0 x 5.1 inch; Weight (not including lens and battery pack) 1.1 lbs.
Ruined our trip to Paris!!! My wife and I purchased this camera with the intention of using it for our upcoming trip to France. We had a Sony camcorder that we liked, but was getting to be outdated. So, we wanted to upgrade to the HD quality and a hard disk so we wouldn't have to haul a bunch of tapes with us. Well...the quality of the camcorder and ease of use was great! However, during our second day in Paris, it decided to stop working! It said "Access Error". We had no way to capture and document the last 8 days of our vacation because this brand new camcorder stopped working! We couldn't even access the footage we had taken! So, it is at Canon as we speak for repairs under warranty, but even upon getting it back I'll probably never use it for a big trip like that again for fear that it may happen a second time. I called Canon Customer Care to try and get some sort of compensation for our trouble, and they didn't do a thing for us! I would strongly discourage anyone from purchasing this camcorder if they are planning on using it for documenting anything major in their lives. BE WARNED!!!!
Canon Hg-10 camcorder The camera is great, easy to use, the zoom is high quality, couldn't be a better camera. But, the software is terrible. I have yet to make one movie from my vacation, Honeymoon, or my kids soccer game because the software does not work. When trying to piece together diffiernt scenes it just won't do it. Get the camera but plan on getting seperate vidieo software.
User-friendly, high-quality, light & compact: perfect for anyone who wants to film! This is the first camcorder I have ever owned as well as operated in my life. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'm not an electronics expert, so I won't write a very technical review as many others have. I will just tell you what I would want to know if I considered buying this item: I think it's great, it works, it's easy to use (there are many more functions I haven't even explored yet, but if you're a more experienced cinematographer I'm sure you can find them helpful), it shoots great footage (also in HD if you want). An "unsung" attribute that this camcorder has is that is also takes amazing photos! The colors it captures are bright, great contrast, and you don't need to correct them in Photoshop! The camcorder is MAC compatible and the battery life is also very very good. The only thing that constitutes a slight inconvenience is that in order to download the footage on your computer, you must have the camcorder's power cable hooked up. Besides that I can say that I'm very happy with it and the quality of the video.
Great Product, features and use I've been using videocams since the betamax tapes first came out, and I've upgraded throughout the years as the technology advanced. I wanted a well priced product, HD, and stop depending on tapes or discs... I did my homework, and finally purchased the HG10. I've been using it for a couple months now, and am extremely pleased with the performance.
PROS: - EXCELENT VIDEO QUALITY: performs true to HD quality - Great size for travelling - 40GB Hard Drive more than enough space, even for extended vacation times - Good size LCD screen
CONS: - Ergonimics could be better - Sound quality is merely OK. - Editing video software is extremely basic, and unless you have a VERY POWERFUL PC, don't even try editing these HD videos... my Sony Vaio stalled ALL the time.
You must purchase the HD cable separately, and an extra battery (the one that comes with the camera lasts only two hours). When at home, I hook up the camera to our Sony 42" LCD with the HD cable, and people are blown away by the quality. In conclusion, I'd buy this camera 10 times over.
HD camcorder with great picture I am by no means a camcorder expert, but I am a videophile and a Canon fan, so that's why I chose this camera. It does not disappoint! While 1080p would have been great, the birth of my son wasn't going to wait for technology to catch up to the top format.
It has been great capturing all of the big "firsts" in high-def! I rest easy knowing that it won't end up like my honeymoon footage that is grainy, lacks definition and, *gasp*, is in analog format on tapes! I love the hard drive...it seemed the obvious choice over straight-to-dvd or memory card recording for so many reasons--no media to keep up with, speed and flexibility, and unmatched storage capacity...
The 'usability' of the camera is good, but not great. The menus are easy to understand like my Canon digital camera. However, the scrolling wheel can be tough to control. It is easy to get stuck in ff or rewind mode by accident. After not using the camcorder for a while, I forgot how to turn on the light, so it would be nice to have a few more dedicated buttons. It's not like there isn't room, even on the tiny device. None of this would be a problem if I used it more often.
Anyways, people have talked about the software ad nauseam...so I won't get into that, except to say that the lack of available software to watch AVCHD files is frustrating, at best.
The bottom line is that the HG10 excels at what a budget HD camcorder should--great video quality and (virtually) unlimited storage. Where it lacks (usability, adjustments, etc) it more than makes up for it in the video quality department--and that's what matters most, right?
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Trevor
