Save Canon VIXIA HF200 HD Flash Memory Camcorder with 15x Optical Zoom

I'm not a pro-videographer, however, i know my way around a video camera. I own a Canon 40D digital SLR camera, so i expected to buy similiar video quality from this "HD" video camera.

Talk about MAJOR disappointment.

We have a 3 month old that we wanted to capture, and started taking videos inside with all the lights on and windows open. We played them back on my 1080p plasma TV. I had better results with my MiniDV HD JVC camera that was like a couple years old. I Love the memory stick idea, but the camera stinks!

The images were grainy, and blotchy on the 50" TV. This alone should be the reason why you don't buy this camera.

Doesn't shoot in 1080P.

The lens doesn't have a low enough aperture! So the images are dark indoors.

The white balance on the camera just isn't up to Canon expected quality (makes images look dull), unless you define/set it in custom mode.

Canon didn't include a HDMI cable.

Canon didn't include a battery charger. You have to charge with the Camera or buy a seperate charger.

If you shoot in the highest video quality mode, you can't use Canon's burner to create DVD's.

So i have this $600 camera, that i'm using as a camcorder, a video player, and charging station. That was a great idea! (going to the S100 doesn't fix any of these problems either, but you get better image quality).

To be honest, i don't even feel like listing all my complaints because i'm so disappointed with Canon. This is the worst camera I have ever bought. My uncle just recently bought a $300 Sony and the images were far superior.

Nobody cares for a video camera that can play MP3's, and add stupid effects. Thats why we have computers for. However, the videos from this camera are so bad you won't even want to edit on your computer.

This is a straight step forward to 1985 video quality.

In short, stick to Canon's for digital cameras and Sony's for Digital Video Cameras.

I returned this camera and bought the HFS100, which is approx $300-$400 more and although much better than this camera, it's still not "awesome". I didn't go with the Sony myself ONLY cause i don't want to deal with their proprietary memory system

I just posted pictures, so you can see the difference between the HFS100 and this garbage camera.Get more detail about Canon VIXIA HF200 HD Flash Memory Camcorder with 15x Optical Zoom.