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Canon VIXIA HF100 Flash Memory High Definition Camcorder with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom | 
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| Brand: Canon
Category: Photography
Buy New: See price in cart
Rating:  92 reviews
Sales Rank: 57
Media: Electronics
Batteries Included: No
Floppy Disk Drive: None
Monitor Size: 270
Includes Software: Yes
Optical Zoom: 12
Digital Zoom: 200
Display Size: 2.7
Maximum Focal Length: 57
Minimum Focal Length: 4.8
Maximum Resolution: 2070000
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 5.1 x 2.9 x 2.5
nv:Size: 1/3.2-inch
Image Resolution: 1920 x 1080
Movie Resolution: 1920 x 1080
Storage Media: SD/SDHC Memory Card
Compressed Format: DPOF
Compressed Format: DCF Exif 2.2
Movie File Format: MPEG-4
Movie File Format: AVCHD (HD)
Optical Zoom: 12x
Digital Zoom: 200x
Focal Length: f=4.8-57.6 mm
LCD Monitor: 2.7-inches
LCD Pixels: 211,000 pixels
LCD Coverage: 100%
Maximum Aperture: f 1.8 - 3.0
White Balance Control: Auto
White Balance Control: Daylight
White Balance Control: Cloudy
Warranty: 1 year warranty
MPN: HF100
Model: HF100
UPC: 013803092004
EAN: 0013803092004
ASIN: B00114162K
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Features:
| • | Capture high-definition video to flash memory | | • | 12x optical zoom; SuperRange Optical Image Stabilizer | | • | 24p Cinema Mode; 30p Progressive Mode | | • | 2.7-inch widescreen Multi-Angle Vivid LCD | | • | Simultaneous photo capture |
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Product Description
Now that you've upgraded your TV to an HDTV widescreen, doesn't it make sense to consider a Hi-Def Camcorder? The Canon VIXIA HF100 captures videos at 1920x1080 for true 1080i display. There are no tapes or discs to concern yourself with. It has an SD SDHC slot for video storage. So let your videos fill your new TV screen. Use the VIXIA from Canon. DIGIC DV II Image Processor SuperRange Optical Image Stabilization Instant AF (Auto Focus) 2.7 Multi-Angle Vivid Widescreen LCD Superb Shooting Control 24p Cinema Mode / 30p Progressive Mode Stunning Digital Photography Focusing System - Instant AF, Through the Lens/Manual Focusing Possible Auto and Manual exposure modes; Programmed AE - Auto, Program, Av, Tv, CINEMA, Portrait, Sports, Night, Snow, Beach, Sunset, Spotlight, Fireworks Recording Media - SD/SDHC Memory Card (not supplied) Audio - Dolby Digital 2ch (AC-3 2 ch) HDMI Terminal Type C 480i/480p/1080I Format Supported Microphone Terminal - 3.5 mm Stereo Mini-jack Mini HDMI Terminal and Mini Advanced Accessory Shoe Dimensions (WxHxD) 2.9 x 2.5 x 5.1 in (73x64x129mm); Weight (not including lens and battery pack) 13.4 oz (380g)
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| Customer Reviews: Read 87 more reviews...
 Great camcorder for the price; IMHO Sony CX12 better overall August 20, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I have a Sony standard definition miniDV camcorder, and also bought the HF100 and the Sony CX12, both flash camcorders.
I found the Canon to be the better value: good to great video and audio quality in good lighting conditions, better user interface, and standard SD cards will save you money and hassle vs. the Sony CX12.
If you're not sensitive to a few hundred extra bucks (for the CX12 and overpriced Sony Memory Sticks), you get the following additional features: much better low-light performance (by low-light I mean indoor night-time videos of kids with under ordinary incandescent lighting (without lots of halogens)). Build quality is a little higher (LCD joints stiffer, battery/inputs door covers more firmly attached). Slightly better audio (I noticed you could sometimes hear "clicks" from the Canon's zoom button). Sony DVD HD DVD burner is more flexible than Canon's, for example, you can shoot video in HD, and burn a standard DVD for people w/o HDTVs and Blu-ray. I understand to do this on the Canon burner, you need to record in standard definition to begin with.
 Excellent August 17, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
One of the best HD camcorder with such a great price compared with the functions it offers. I really recommend this for all camcorder lovers.
very nifty little camera August 16, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
Its very small.
High quality wide screen movies.
It also takes great photos.
Very pleased August 15, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The Vixia HX100 is my 5th camcorder, the first AVCHD, and the first that records directly to SDHC media. To date I have shot about 50 GB of video, all of it youth sports, most of it at 1440 x 1080 HD resolution, and about 100 still shots using the cam's max resolution. The cam works flawlessly at even the highest video resolution using 16GB Transcend speed class 6 SDHC cards. I have filmed in bright Southern Cal sunlight and under baseball lights with good results. I use a 37mm haze filter, both to protect the lens and for outdoor shots. The supplied software works OK for downloading the memory, but I read the SDHC cards directly into my Sony Vaio laptop for faster transfer. The learning curve for the software is reasonably easy and the manual is good. I have played back the stored video directly into a 1080p Vizio TV using a mini-HDMI to HDMI cable and also recorded directly from the cam to a standard definition Toshiba DVD recorder using the cam's component output.
Two minor negatives - the supplied BP-809 battery is only good for about an hour and the higher capacity BP-819 batteries aren't currently available at any of about a dozen locations that I tried. I purchased a 2nd BP-809 and they do change out fairly quickly. The software starts to warn you with 5 minutes of battery remaining, and I took it down all the way to zero without losing any data. The other negative is that you have to leave the AC power supply connected if downloading via USB cable.
The lens at the widest zoom setting isn't quite wide enough to film a standard baseball field from behind the backstop, and a 0.5 to 0.7 wide angle lens would be a very good accessory for shooting sports.
I have a 37mm to 28mm adapter, and the cam works well with the Nikon 3X telephoto lens from my Nikon 4300 still camera, although you have to have the telephoto on the cam set all the way out to get full field in the cam.
As an aside, I use Pinnacle Studio 12 Pro to build my movies, and it handles the AVCHD output files from the cam without a hitch. You'd better have a fast PC with at least 2GB (better 4GB) to work with HD, however.
AVCHD Is Hard To Work With August 12, 2008
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
One thing that was left out in all the reviews is that if you want to edit the AVCHD clips you've recorded, you'll need a high-powered PC or MAC. The specs called for in the supplied software indicate that the user must have a Pentium D processor at minimum to edit clips. My PC was four years old with a Pentium 4 HD processor, and it was not able to play back the video clips smoothly enough for me to even edit them. I have an Nvidia GeForce 7600 video card with 512Mb of RAM and also 4Gb of RAM on the motherboard.
Also, the software only burns to DVD-R disks and my PC had only DVD+R capability, so I had to buy a new writer to burn the AVCHD DVD's which did play in HD on my Sony PS3. As far as MAC's go, there is no way to burn a DVD in full 1080i high-def on a MAC...even with Final Cut Pro. Yes, it will import the AVCHD files and you can edit them, but you cannot actually burn the edited movie in full 1080i high-def onto a DVD without having to use a 3rd party piece of software.
I visited the local Apple store and after 2 hours of them playing with it, they produced a DVD for me to take home to play on my PS3...and guess what, the PS3 would not even recognize the disk!
Don't get me wrong, this camera takes beautiful, full 1080i high-def video, but once you've downloaded the files to your computer, it's almost impossible to burn those AVCHD files back onto a DVD for playback in full 1080i high-def unless you've got a Blu-Ray disk player such as the Sony PS3. The people at the Apple store indicated that Final Cut Express would import the AVCHD files, but would then convert them into an intermediate codec which ends up downgrading the clips to less than full 1080i high-def.
They told me to actually burn the edited movie onto a DVD in full 1080i high-def, I'd have to buy Roxio's Toast 9! Is amazed me that even their $1000 Final Cut Pro required the purchase of an $80 piece of software to complete the process!
The AVCHD format is the future, but I'm afraid there's just too little in the way of a simple workflow to actually be able to import, edit, and then burn these AVCHD format movies onto a DVD for playback in full 1080i high-def on ones HD TV set. I have spent a month researching this, and decided that I was just not willing to upgrade to an entirely new computer with an Intel Duo Quad Processor to work with the AVCHD files that these cameras produce.
The new Sony Vegas 8 Platinum will burn the AVCHD files to a DVD, but again, check out the required hardware specs on Sony's website and you'll see that the minimum requirements for hardware are probably much more than what you have unless you bought your PC within the last year.
Based upon all of this, I finally decided to return the camera and wait until this newly adopted AVCHD format is easier to work with. By the way, for most of us, a Blu-Ray disk writer and the BD blank media are just too expensive to buy. Most people will most likely want to burn high-definition DVD's instead, that will play in full 1080i high-def; 30 minutes on a single layer DVD and 60 minutes on a dual layer DVD.
You will see that virtually all of the software currently available; including Adobe's just released Premier Elements 4.0 will NOT burn AVCHD files onto a DVD! In fact, it does not even support AVCHD files created by Canon HD camcorders that are in the AVCHD format! And Sony's Vegas 8.0 Platinum also does not support Canon's AVCHD files.
It's all way to difficult for the average consumer. Pretty much your only option to see your movies in full 1080i high-def will be to attach the camcorder via an HDMI cable (not included) to your HDTV. This will allow you to watch your raw un-edited footage directly from your camcorder. However, the HDMI cable you'll need costs about $40-$50! And don't think you can use a standard HDMI cable...no, it takes a special one which has a MINI-HDMI at one end and a standard HDMI to plug on the other!
WOW...what a pain. The marketing information is very flowery in its description, but the reality is far different. Do your research and you will that the products out there for editing these AVCHD movies simply fail to mention anything about actually BURNING the results onto a standard DVD for playback in high-def on a regular DVD home player. Why? Because you cannot! You MUST own a Sony PS3 to do this!
In short, "buyer beware" on any HD Camcorder which records in the AVCHD format. And as a topper, each camera manufacturer who supports AVCHD format does so in their own way, so the editing software that will import AVCHD files from one brand of camcorder MAY NOT import is from another.
Even the Pixela SE software that Canon supplies (which is bare bones, but does work) will ONLY work with files from these "HF" series camcorders from Canon! Oh, by the way, the Instruction Manual for using the Pixela SE software that Canon includes with the camera IS NOT available for download on Canon's website, but rather, one must buy the camera first and it's included on a CD which you'll find in the box! Only the Installation Instructions are posted on Canon's website! Why you ask? Well once you see the manual you'll find out that the hardware requirements probably exceed what you own, rendering the software almost unusable.
Again, let me repeat...this is a fabulous camcorder and the HD video is spectacular! It's the bigger issue of "what do I do with the files on the SD card now that I've shot the video?" that will stop you in your tracks.
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