Canon VIXIA HV30 MiniDV High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom

I really like this camcorder. I researched camcorders of all formats, on the internet, in mags, word of mouth before deciding to purchase this Canon.

I had previously owned a camcorder (JVC) with a hard drive, and while the convenience of not having to buy tapes was very nice, running out of room on the hard drive was not. Video files are huge, and so when I transfered videos from my old camcorder to my computer to clear out my camcorder, the computer became overburdened with video files. Sure I could have burned them to a DVD and removed them from my computer, but that takes time, and the energy to want to do it. I like the fact that when I want to record something new, I can just pop a new tape in, and if I am on vacation, and run out of tape, I can run to the nearest Target and buy another one - I am not chained to the computer. Also the editing part of it can be done when I am ready to do it.

Anyway - I tape my family events, my daughter's basketball games, son's gymanastics. I have never had a problem with blurring. The picture is crystal clear, and the color is wonderful. I am taping inside a gym most times. My last camcorder had a yellowish cast on everything, so I was very excited at the picture quality. I have not noticed a problem with noise or rattling on the camcorder - of course I am mostly taping noisy events so it could just be drowned out by the background stuff going on.

The buttons are in a little awkward positions. The first time I used the camcorder, I kept pressing the little toggle button, and wondering why my camera wouldn't turn on! (haha) When you get used to the placement, its really no big deal.

As far as playback, just plug in a cable into one of the numerous ports available, plug the other end to your tv, and its all set to go. The picture is amazing on my Sony 46" tv. Canon does not provide a battery with the remote - which I thought was pretty cheap considering how much I paid for it. You need a 2025.

The hand grip is not the greatest either. Its not like its going to fall out of your hand, but it does not feel very natural. Not sure if the handle is too low on my hand or what. I have tried tightening, and loosening, but still have not found the "perfect" spot.

Those are very minor nitpicky stuff. The camera is very easy to operate, takes great videos, having the camera feature is very nice also. Not into night shooting, so do not know about that. Transfer is very easy also.

You won't regret buying this camera!

I like this camcorder! It's not bulky but fits on all hand sizes. The function button is a little bit hard to get while using the camera and the videocassette cover is as on all the reviews a little bit loose. It doesn't have the night shot function also as on other brands but it has a LED light that helps shoot at night to small distances. Despide this little flaws I like the HD camcorder.

Wrestled with this decision for a long time. Reviews were so helpful, I decided to post mine. I will try to address the main things that concerned me from other reviews before I purchased.

Battery Life: I bought the extended battery, but probably wouldn't do that again if I had a do-over. Battery life is fine for my needs (couple hours of clock time, 60-90 min recording time). Try it yourself before you buy the extended one if you're looking to save $.

Start/Stop Record Button Location: The location of the start/stop record button, but to me it feels very natural in it's location. The "joystick" is a bit weak feeling, but not to the point where it annoys me.

Sound/Mic: Just not a problem at all for me. I'm a consumer-level person who makes family videos in Final Cut Express, and the sound quality is no better/worse than the last three camcorders I've owned. It was nice to know, however, that I can attach a directional mic if it ever becomes a problem.

Rattle Noise: I am VERY glad I read the reviews on this or it would have freaked me out. The thing does rattle when you move it around and boy does it sound like something is broken. It is not. Others have explained what it is, but suffice it to say, it saved me some panic time knowing it was there in advance.

Only complaint I have (and boy is this a small nitpick) is that the cover to the component jacks doesn't easily go back into place nice and tight. I feel like one day this is going to break or lose its tight fit, but hopefully not.

So far, so good. Quality is great. Final Cut Express recognized it right away. Imports fine in both SD and HD recordings. One thing you may want to be aware of is that when you import into FCE, your sequence settings will show 1440x1080, not 1920x1080 as you may have thought. There are TONS of info on this on the forums, but again, it is normal. MiniDV tape requires 1440x1080 anamorphic to fit on the medium. I didn't know that when I bought, but now am very glad it is like that because FCE handles 1440x1080 without any issues, which isn't true of 1920x1080. So it turned out to be a blessing. Very happy so far. All the features I need, and nice that it came with the component cables when I want to plug right into an HDTV for playback before editing. Used the light to film the kids goig to sleep on our vacation in a dark room and was just enough light for a cool "bedtime" effect. Good stuff. Hope this helps. Good luck.

I bought got the HV30 on Amazon about a week ago and the camera was exactly what I hoped for. When I first shot in HD I never thought it would turn out the way it did. Its INCREDIBLE. I play xbox regulary in HD and have a lot of knowledge when it comes to picture quality and all I have to say is holy $#it. Amazing. Its easy to use and sexy looking, small sleek. The led light is cool too, nice and bright!. You dont need HD miniDV for high def, normal ones work. Be sure you have a firewire cable and a firewire port on your computer for the DV and HDV. Keep in mind there are certain programs that dont let you edit HD video, but the ones I am sure of are Sony Vegas and Pinnacle Studio. Be sure to check the system specification if you want to edit HD footage, you are gonna need a fairly buff computer.

The only downside if any, and im really prying here, would be that, unlike sony, there is no nightshot, nightvison that i could find. however, it does shoot awesome inn low light and have the 24p and 30p which are stunning. so i say BUY IT

I have been taking family/travel DV for the last 5 years on a Canon ZR50MC, processing it on a PC and burning it to DVDs. I had this work flow down to a fine art. I replaced that (now worn out) camera with the HV30 about 5 months ago. It has been a 5 month learning experience (with a pretty steep curve).

The HV30 is deceptively powerful and complex camera. It has the potential in the right hands to film jaw droppingly good footage. Canon have included some pretty advanced features in the camera, but have omitted to explain the pros and cons of some of these features in the manual. This can lead to a lot of hair pulling and anger management classes, and frustratingly sub par footage. This is NOT a standard issue DV camcorder like the ZR50. It is waaaay more powerful, and can get you into trouble much more easily. You will need this website: hv20.com.

In full auto mode this camera shoots fantastic "local-news" style super sharp HD video - and if that's all you want then you will be one happy camper!!! My camera is also close to silent compared to the old ZR50MC - a big improvement.

However, if you want (like me) to dig into the progressive film modes (24p and 30p) things can get pretty weird, pretty quick. This film-ish HDV is somewhat prone to frame jitter / judder / shudder, MUCH more so than SDV. This is not a fault with the camera, but you could say it was unexpected and unwanted baggage. Jitter is when the edges of frame jump irregularly and potentially make the viewer feel somewhat seasick (not good). It becomes difficult to focus on elements in the picture. This is generally caused by pans and movement with an uneven or variable rate. Pans and movement must be very smooth, much more so than SDV. Smooth/even rate of change is more important than slow - for example filming through a speeding car windscreen is low jitter.
You might find yourself reading up on how frame rates and shutter speeds work to solve common judder and jitter problems with the HV30. The manual does not mention these very common problems. I can say you almost always need a tripod or a steadicam to get good low jitter footage, with the optical image stabiliser (OIS) turned OFF. However, the OIS is quite good when you are actually filming a static thing, but do not happen have a tripod in your pocket at that moment. Image stabiliser + any movement = Jittery Footage (bad). Hand held in general is really not a good idea. The manual does not address any of these subtle (but vital to success) points.

This brings us to pulldown removal and interlacing. This can get seriously weird. Again, it is not a fault with the camera - but it is yet ANOTHER issue to learn all about. The manual does not mention it. I can say that I now avoid 24p due to this problem - even on some TVs (which are meant to deal with this automatically) I can see interlace artifacts. After 5 months I am thinking that life is too short for amateurs to deal with this. Plus it gives me a headache.

Another important point is that you cannot faithfully assess this HDV footage on a PC. I have a dual core E6600 and a P4 - they both can add an additional layer of judder to the footage, since they cannot play it smooth enough. I use sensible settings in Vegas Pro for preview. To properly assess the footage you must use a TV. That was unexpected! Also there are major performance differences for mp4 video playback between the current media players. Something that plays/looks great in Quicktime will suck in VLC - yet more detailed trivia to be figured out.

All in all - this is great camera, but if you want to use it to its full potential, then you will be paying your dues for the next 6 months. It comes with A LOT of hidden baggage. If somebody could do a 1 hour training video, or an idiots guide on how to use it, I think it would be a much more appealing product (with hindsight). I will not be selling my HV30 due to the time invested; but I will never ever be upgrading a camera again.