Canon Vixia HV30

• Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 21 reviews
• My rating: 0 stars

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• 10 stars

  Outstanding!!!

  by guilladitox on November 15, 2010

  Pros: Great image

  Cons: Nothing yet.

• 8 stars

  Best Mini DV camcorder available

  by videotransmi on November 8, 2010

  Pros: This is an easy to use semi professional camcorder. I purchased an external Rode microphone for it to shoot live music events. You can manually adjust the audio level so you can get a perfect recording. I am very pleased with the results....

  Cons: The mini SD memory card for the camera's photo option are hard to find......

  Summary: The camera will give you great overall performance. Lots of manual control gives it a professional touch!

  Summary: The camera will give you great overall performance. Lots of manual control gives it a professional touch!

• 10 stars

  Best camcorder I've ever used

  by Kiasis on October 23, 2010

  Pros: Great low light video. Great sound pick-up. Great stabilization.

  Cons: It doesn't do double-duty as a high end DSLR, so I had to buy that seperately:)

  Summary: We breed, raise, and sell sport horses. The only way to do that in today's economy with any amount of success is to have excellent video and photos on ...

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  Summary: We breed, raise, and sell sport horses. The only way to do that in today's economy with any amount of success is to have excellent video and photos on the website, YouTube, etc.. My 'con' is tongue-in-cheek. I never expected the HV30 to be a DSLR. I am constantly amazed at the ability of this camera to take low light video that still has superb quality and contrast. And since it's not always possible to set up a tripod while filming a horse moving around you at the gallop in a small (60ft diameter) corral, the stability control of this camera is fantastic. We tried a JVC, Sony (and one other I can't remember) before getting clued into this camera. Hands down winner. The zoom is also fantastic. When filming my wife at dressage and jumping competitions I have no problem keeping horse and rider filling the same amount of screen, and always in focus. The JVC, in particular, was very slow to focus on the zoom.
  
  I know the Canon gets criticized a bit for what feels like flimsy controls and buttons. All I can tell you is that anything to do with ranches in general, and horse ranches in particular, is very tough on.... well, everything from tools to vehicles, and especially electronics used outside. In two plus years of very constant use during hot dry summers and wet foggy winters, nothing has ever broken, frozen-up or otherwise failed us on the HV30. My wife has also used it to film my ice hockey games, so I can vouch for it's cold weather performance as well.
  
  Simply put, long after the features of this camcorder are out-of-date with the latest and greatest, I expect we'll still be using it to help us sell horses and record family moments - and still be thrilled with the results.

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• 5 stars

  Sanyo FH1 a better value

  by Hal_9001 on June 1, 2010

  Pros: The optics are top of the line. Canon has a great reputation in this field.

  Cons: Too much $$$. Viewfinder is difficult to use. Disk drive and Flash have supplanted tape.

  Summary: I compared the Sanyo FH1 to the HV30, HF200, HG10 & 20, Panasonic and Sony. The FH1 had the same or more features and was almost half the price (purchased ...

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  Summary: I compared the Sanyo FH1 to the HV30, HF200, HG10 & 20, Panasonic and Sony. The FH1 had the same or more features and was almost half the price (purchased Sept. 09).

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• 6 stars

  what about transfering images to Final Cut Pro

  by murielbittar on December 22, 2009

  Pros: it is more an help message

  Cons: My Final Cut Pro 6.0 do not recognize the Canon Vixia HV30. Could anyone tell me which EXACT settings to put on the FCP in order to have this software recognize the camcorder ??? dealing with this problem since 3 days now...HELP !!

  Summary: have problems between Canon vixia hv30 and Final Cut Pro....asking for help

  Summary: have problems between Canon vixia hv30 and Final Cut Pro....asking for help

• 9 stars

  Terrific Camera

  by bayguy13 on July 29, 2009

  Pros: Quality of picture. Ease of use.

  Cons: Battery life, built in microphone

  Summary: I bought this last year, but really didn't get a lot of use with it until I went to class reunion. The HD pictures are really incredible. I taped ...

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  Summary: I bought this last year, but really didn't get a lot of use with it until I went to class reunion. The HD pictures are really incredible. I taped the reunion under florescent lighting after sunset, without any optional lighting and the results were fantastic. My only problem is that to get the best results at a gather of this sort, you really need a directional microphone, otherwise you get a lot of ambient noise.

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• 10 stars

  Great price quality trade-off

  by Chris7094 on April 11, 2009

  Pros: Good low-light behavior, great colors
  Well organized controls and menus (unlike Sony)
  Very good feature set
  Interlaced and progressive recording
  Hot-shoe compatible with 3rd party microphones (unlike Sony)

  Cons: Eye finder could be a wee bit more convenient
  Camera very light (as light as the price!)
  Cassette motor buzz recorded on sound track in quiet environment (you are warned in the user manual).

  Summary: To me the best deal currently for that price range. The weak point (shared with many other cameras) is the microphone which is recording motor noise, but a separate mic ...

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  Summary: To me the best deal currently for that price range. The weak point (shared with many other cameras) is the microphone which is recording motor noise, but a separate mic solves the issue.
  
  If I had to buy one now, I'd buy this one again.
  
  Updated on Apr 11, 2009

  Sorry when I wrote about "compatible" hotshoe, I was talking about form factor. For 3rd party mics, you still need to plug an external cable. On sony, the hotshoe has an exotic shape which prevents you from attaching 3rd party mics.

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• 10 stars

  great price and excellent video results

  by steve5200 on March 5, 2009

  Pros: I was not disappointed by this camera in any way. It produces beautiful video.

  Cons: I can't think of any other than the position of the viewfinder and the record button.

  Summary: Buy it if you want an inexpensive way to shoot great hi-def footage.

  Summary: Buy it if you want an inexpensive way to shoot great hi-def footage.

• 10 stars

  Really happy with it!

  by davidhiatt on March 1, 2009

  Pros: Great picture quality, 24p and cinema color mode, microphone jack AND shoe

  Cons: Recording HD and SD on the same tape creates problems when playing back/capturing the footage

  Summary: This is a great camcorder for the price. Now that it's dropped down below $1000, this is definetely the one to get, especially if you're a broke aspiring ...

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  Summary: This is a great camcorder for the price. Now that it's dropped down below $1000, this is definetely the one to get, especially if you're a broke aspiring film maker.

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• 5 stars

  I bought this around mid of jan 2009, I did not like it

  by anjineyulu on January 20, 2009

  Pros: Price is the only + point compared to an equivalent Sony Model

  Cons: The body is not sturdy, it keeps shaking while operating.
  I felt uncomfrtable while operating the camera .You can hear the sound of shaking casset cover while operating which makes me worry as if it is tearint apart.

  Summary: Not easy to operate.
  The body shakes
  Image is not as crispy as Sony

  Summary: Not easy to operate.
  The body shakes
  Image is not as crispy as Sony

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