F/1.8-3.2 Digital Camcorders

Editors' rating: 4 stars
User rating: 3h stars out of 11 reviews

$549 to $889 at 20 stores Add to my list

Canon Vixia HF200 Reviewed on 04/20/2009

The Bottom Line: While it's more expensive than its sub-$600 competitors, the Canon Vixia HF20 and Vixia HF200 deliver a more extensive feature set for the extra money. The HF200, which lacks internal memory, is probably a better buy than the HF20, though the HF20's all-black body is a bit classier looking.

Specs: Camcorder, CMOS, 15 x, Flash card, 2.99 megapixels, 12 oz

Editors' rating: 4 stars
User rating: 4h stars out of 5 reviews

$579 to $899 at 16 stores Add to my list

Canon Vixia HF20 Reviewed on 04/20/2009

The Bottom Line: While it's more expensive than its sub-$600 competitors, the Canon Vixia HF20 and Vixia HF200 deliver a more extensive feature set for the extra money. The HF200, which lacks internal memory, is probably a better buy than the HF20, though the HF20's all-black body is a bit classier-looking.

Specs: Camcorder, CMOS, 15 x, Flash card, 2.99 megapixels, 12 oz

Editors' rating: 3 stars
User rating: 3h stars out of 4 reviews

$299 to $729 at 2 stores Add to my list

Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 Reviewed on 09/29/2008

The Bottom Line: If you don't want to, need to, or simply can't shell out a couple hundred dollars more for an HD camcorder, the Sony Handycam DCR-SR85 delivers decent SD video and copious recording time.

Specs: Camcorder, Advanced HAD CCD, 25 x, Hard disk drive, 12.7 oz

Editors' rating: 2h stars
User rating: 2h stars out of 4 reviews

$279 to $299 at 3 stores Add to my list

Hitachi DZ-HS300A Reviewed on 03/16/2007

The Bottom Line: Hitachi had a good idea--put both a hard disk drive and a DVD in a camcorder--but implements it poorly in the DZ-HS300A.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 25 x, DVD-R (8cm), DVD+RW (8cm), DVD-RW (8 cm), DVD-RAM (8 cm), 15.3 oz

User rating: 2h stars out of 6 reviews

$499 at 1 store Add to my list

GR-D250 Mini-DV Camcorder Reviewed on 10/27/2005

Editors' Take: The JVC GR-D250 is a budget MiniDV camcorder with a big zoom range.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 25 x, Mini DV, 0.9 lbs

User rating: 3 stars out of 5 reviews

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JVC GR-D270 Reviewed on 10/27/2005

Editors' Take: The JVC GR-D270 is a budget MiniDV camcorder with a big zoom range.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 25 x, Mini DV, 0.9 lbs

Editors' rating: 3 stars
User rating: 2h stars out of 21 reviews

$699 at 1 store Add to my list

JVC Everio GZ-MG20 Reviewed on 10/19/2005

The Bottom Line: Though the short battery life and mediocre image quality are frustrating, the JVC Everio GZ-MG20U's amazing recording capacity and tiny size still make it an enticing device.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 25 x, Hard disk drive, 6.8 megapixels, 0.7 lbs

Editors' rating: 3 stars
User rating: 2 stars out of 8 reviews

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JVC Everio GZ-MG30U Reviewed on 09/27/2005

The Bottom Line: Though the short battery life and mediocre image quality are frustrating, the JVC Everio GZ-MG30U's amazing recording capacity and tiny size still make it an enticing device.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 25 x, Hard disk drive, 6.8 megapixels, 0.7 lbs