What to Look for in an HD Video Camera Review

The internet holds a vast source of HD video camera reviews. Unfortunately though, not all of these reviews are given in correct and actual detail.
Reading internet reviews is, nonetheless, helpful provided that you know what you should look for in a review. This is because the Internet is very easy to access. A few of the people who own models of different HD video cameras tend to write their opinions about a certain product most especially if they are more than satisfied with their video camera.
That leads us to tip no. 1. Look for video cameras that have a lot of reviews. You don't want to buy a camera that has just been newly released. Wait for other people's reviews and opinions on the camera to prevent you from making any regrets or wrong decisions in the future.
You can always opt for a techie magazine and technology sections of papers. You'll be likely to find a review, but nothing beats the accessibility and the updates of the internet. Once you already have your reviews - read them. Don't just skim through the lines, read them thoroughly. An HD video camera is not just another bracelet that you can buy easily even without your month's salary. Because they are expensive, knowing the specs of each HD video camera is important in buying one.
Look for product specs in your reviews. Specs are the different details and information of a certain model. For those who are not into technology, let me help you with some words that you might encounter.
- Specs - short for specifications
- Digital Video Format - This is the core of the camera - the "operating system". AVCHD are usually good video formats for cameras.
- Image Stabilizers or ISO - This talks about the camera's capability to record and prevent unnecessary movements like hand shaking, breathing, and the like.
- Programs - Usually this pertains to the different modes that your camera can change to. For example night mode, close up mode, snow, sunny, etc.
- Mic Zoom - A microphone zoom is very useful in when you're zooming in and out. This prevents your camera from recording sounds near you while shooting a scene that is a few meters away. A mic zoom will also record the sounds that is created in the scene which you are shooting.
- Media - cameras use different types of media such as tapes, disks, and cards. Cards are usually preferred by consumers rather than tapes. Expect cameras that use disks to be slightly bigger since they have to accommodate one disk into the camera.
So far these are the common terms that you may see in an HD video camera review. Remember to always read other users opinions on a certain camera to help you make your final decision on which HD video camera you should buy.

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Canon HD Camcorders 2010 models

Canon HD Camcorders 2010 models

   

Canon FS300 Flash Memory Camcorder (Blue) - 2010 MODEL
List Price: $299.00

Price: $233.72 Free Shipping
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Technical Details
Color: Blue
Records video directly to removable SD memory cards
Ultra-Sleek, Compact and Lightweight Design (7.9 oz)
Genuine Canon 41x Advanced Zoom
Canon DIGIC DV II Image Processor
Dynamic IS stabilizes a wide range of movements

The word out there is:
The picture and sound quality are good. The price is right. I recommend this camera for the convenience and price. Unless of course the best picture and sound available is what you want, then more expensive cameras are available worthy of a five star review. For most purposes, this camera can't be beat for its convenience and therefore the greater chance of actually having it on hand when needed
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Canon VIXIA HF M30 Dual Flash Memory Camcorder - 2010 MODEL
List Price: $699.00
Price: $549.00 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. 
You Save: $150.00 (21%)
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• Technical Details
• Records up to 3 hours of crisp high definition video to an 8GB internal flash drive or directly to removable SD memory cards
• Genuine Canon 15x HD Video Lens delivers unsurpassed image quality
• Canon 3.89-Megapixel Full HD CMOS Image Sensor captures video at 1920 x 1080 resolution
• Canon DIGIC DV III Image Processor provides the ultimate in color and imaging performance
• Dynamic SuperRange OIS corrects a full range of motion

The word out there is:
I love the manual focus of Vixa HF M30 some owner of HF200 complained about the manual focus of HF200. Canon is concerned more about their new models than their old model that's why they are giving constant firmware updates for HF M30 on the other hand HF200 has no firmware update available since its release
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Canon VIXIA HF M31 Dual Flash Memory Camcorder - 2010 MODEL
List Price: $799.00

Price: $644.90 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. 
You Save: $154.10 (19%)

Technical Details

• Records up to 12 hours of crisp high definition video to a 32GB internal flash drive or directly to removable SD memory cards
• Genuine Canon 15x HD Video Lens delivers unsurpassed image quality
• Canon 3.89-Megapixel Full HD CMOS Image Sensor captures video at 1920 x 1080 resolution
• Canon DIGIC DV III Image Processor provides the ultimate in color and imaging performance
• Dynamic SuperRange OIS corrects a full range of motion

The word out  there is:
The quality of the video is spectacular, especially when in a well lit environment or outdoors.

The 15X zoom is pretty impressive. I also like how the zoom speed varies depending on how much pressure is applied to the control. I can make it slowly zoom in/out or quickly...full control. Definitely a plus.
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Canon VIXIA HF M32 Dual Flash Memory Camcorder - 2010 MODEL
List Price: $1,099.00

Price: $999.00 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. Details
You Save: $100.00 (9%)
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Technical Details

• Record High Definition Video to a 64GB Internal Flash Drive or Directly to Removable SD Memory Cards
• Genuine Canon 15x HD Video Lens
• Canon 3.89 Megapixel Full HD CMOS Image Sensor
• Canon DIGIC DV III Image Processor
• Dynamic SuperRange OIS

The word out there is:
The Canon Vixia HF M32 represents the top of Canon's middle-of-the-road camcorder lineup, but because the company has released so many models since last year, it now competes with the upper-level Canon Vixia HF S100 regarding price
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Canon VIXIA HF M300 Flash Memory Camcorder - 2010 MODEL
List Price: $679.00

Price: $456.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping.
You Save: $222.01 (33%)
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Technical Details

• Records crisp high definition video directly to removable SD memory cards
• Genuine Canon 15x HD Video Lens delivers unsurpassed image quality
• Canon 3.89-Megapixel Full HD CMOS Image Sensor captures video at 1920 x 1080 resolution
• Canon DIGIC DV III Image Processor provides the ultimate in color and imaging performance
• Dynamic SuperRange OIS corrects a full range of motion

The word out there:
The camera is feature rich with so many options, that I am not likely to use many of them. Having enjoyed the quality of Canon in my DSLR, this seemed like the logical choice. Overall, this is a very nice video recorder that turns out quality videos each time. My only problem real problem is with the graininess of low light videos
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What are people Using Camcorder for?

Camcorders have found use in nearly all corners of electronic media, from electronic news organizations to TV/current-affairs productions. In locations away from a distribution infrastructure, camcorders are invaluable for initial video acquisition. Subsequently, the video is transmitted electronically to a studio/production center for broadcast. Scheduled events such as official press conferences, where a video infrastructure is readily available or can be feasibly deployed in advance, are still covered by studio-type video cameras (tethered to "production trucks.")


Home video
For casual use, camcorders often cover weddings, birthdays, graduation ceremonies, kids growing up, and other personal events. The rise of the consumer camcorder in the mid to late '80s led to the creation of shows such as the long-running America's Funniest Home Videos, where people could showcase homemade video footage.

Politics
Political protestors who have capitalized on the value of media coverage use camcorders to film things they believe to be unjust. Animal rights protesters who break into factory farms and animal testing labs use camcorders to film the conditions the animals are living in. Anti-hunting protesters film fox hunts. Tax protesters provide live coverage of anti-tax demonstrations and protests. Anti-globalization protesters film the police to deter police brutality. If the police do use violence there will be evidence on video. Activist videos often appear on Indymedia.

Police
The police use camcorders to film riots, protests and the crowds at sporting events. The film can be used to spot and pick out troublemakers, who can then be prosecuted in court.

Entertainment and movies
Camcorders are often used in the production of low-budget TV shows where the production crew does not have access to more expensive equipment. There are even examples of movies shot entirely on consumer camcorder equipment (such as The Blair Witch Project and 28 Days Later). In addition, many academic filmmaking programs have switched from 16mm film to digital video, due to the vastly reduced expense and ease of editing of the digital medium as well as the increasing scarcity of film stock and equipment. Some camcorder manufacturers cater to this market, particularly Canon and Panasonic, who both support "24p" (24 frame/s, progressive scan; same frame rate as standard cinema film) video in some of their high-end models for easy film conversion.

High-Budget Cinema
Even high-budget cinema is done using camcorders in some cases; George Lucas used Sony CineAlta camcorders in two of his three Star Wars prequel movies. This process is referred to as digital cinematography.

Understand your Camcorder functions

Camcorders contain 3 major components: lens, imager, and recorder. The lens gathers and focuses light on the imager. The imager (usually a CCD or CMOS sensor on modern camcorders; earlier examples often used vidicon tubes) converts incident light into an electrical signal. Finally, the recorder converts the electric signal into digital video and encodes it into a storable form. More commonly, the optics and imager are referred to as the camera section.

Lens

The lens is the first component in the light path. The camcorder's optics generally have one or more of the following adjustments:

aperture or iris to regulate the exposure and to control depth of field;

zoom to control the focal length and angle of view;

shutter speed to regulate the exposure and to maintain desired motion portrayal;

gain to amplify signal strength in low-light conditions;

neutral density filter to regulate the exposure.

In consumer units, the above adjustments are often automatically controlled by the camcorder's electronics, but can be adjusted manually if desired. Professional units offer direct user control of all major optical functions.

 Imager
The imager converts light into electric signal. The camera lens projects an image onto the imager surface, exposing the photosensitive array to light. The light exposure is converted into electrical charge. At the end of the timed exposure, the imager converts the accumulated charge into a continuous analog voltage at the imager's output terminals. After scan-out is complete, the photosites are reset to start the exposure-process for the next video frame.



Recorder
The third section, the recorder, is responsible for writing the video-signal onto a recording medium (such as magnetic videotape.) The record function involves many signal-processing steps, and historically, the recording-process introduced some distortion and noise into the stored video, such that playback of the stored-signal may not retain the same characteristics/detail as the live video feed.



All but the most primitive camcorders imaginable also need to have a recorder-controlling section which allows the user to control the camcorder, switch the recorder into playback mode for reviewing the recorded footage and an image control section which controls exposure, focus and white-balance.



The image recorded need not be limited to what appeared in the viewfinder. For documentation of events, such as used by police, the field of view overlays such things as the time and date of the recording along the top and bottom of the image. Such things as the police car or constable to which the recorder has been allotted may also appear; also the speed of the car at the time of recording. Compass direction at time of recording and geographical coordinates may also be possible. These are not kept to world-standard fields; "month/day/year" may be seen, as well as "day/month/year", besides the ISO standard "year-month-day".

A Camcorder is a Portable Device with Video and Recording functions

A camcorder (video camera recorder) is an electronic device that combines a video camera and a video recorder all into one unit.  Manufacturers of the Equipment do not seem to have strict intructive lines for the term usage. Marketing materials may present a video recording device as a camcorder, but the posted package would call content a video camera recorder.


In order to differentiate a camcorder from other devices that are capable of recording video, like cell phones and compact digital cameras, a camcorder is generally identified as a portable device having video capture and recording as its primary function.

The earliest camcorders employed analog recording onto videotape. Since the 1990s digital recording has become the norm, but tape remained the primary recording media. Starting from early 2000s tape has been gradually replaced with other storage media including optical disks, hard disk drives and flash memory.

All tape-based camcorders use removable media in form of video cassettes. Camcorders that do not use magnetic tape are often called tapeless camcorders and may use optical discs (removable), solid-state flash memory (removable or built-in) or a hard disk drive (removable or built-in).

Camcorders that permit using more than one type of media, like built-in hard disk drive and memory card, are often called hybrid camcorders