Canon VIXIA HF M41 Full HD Camcorder with HD CMOS Pro and 32GB Internal Flash Memory
Canon VIXIA HF M41 Flash Memory camcorder features a compact ultra% 2Dsleek% 2C% 2D and lightweight body and ability to easily package% in the same package to 32GB of internal flash drive and dual SDXC% 2Dcompatible memory card slot Canon 2E% -27 leading imaging technology% 2C including a real Canon 10x HD Video Lens and the new HD CMOS Pro image sensor provides high resolution video% 2C% 2C excellent performance% 2C% 2Dlight low and wide dynamic range% 2E, such as complex functionality, intelligent automatic% 22read% 22 on-site visual components and choose the best shooting% 27re% 2E% touch setting 26 track, you realize just by touching 3% 2E0% 22% 2E LCD touch-screen any new features subjects% 2C sharp focus and accurate exposure, such as theater% 2DLook filter stories Creator% 2C% 2C and decorative touch to provide a simple and fun way to shoot great video and add creative talent% 2E and a new height% 2Dquality internal microphone to your audio to match your stunning realism
- 32GB internal flash drive and 2 SDXC-compatible memory card slots
- Genuine Canon 10x HD video lens
- Canon HD CMOS pro image sensor
- Canon DIGIC DV III image processor
- Dynamic SuperRange OIS corrects a full range of motion
List Price: $ 699.99
Price: $ 699.99
Very Impressed,
Well, I have had this camcorder now for a week and tested it in many lighting situations and locations and I must say I’m very impressed. Outside filming my niece and dogs in the yard the videos are crisp viewed on my 40″ Sony HD LCD TV. I would give it a 5 out of 5. In my eyes, looks broadcast quality. Indoors with varying light was also impressive although I did notice a little graininess. I’d give low light a 4 star rating. Being as anal as I am, I did a little test. Take it for what it’s worth.
Now I am the most anal person you will probably meet and maybe set my expectations too high at times, but I started flipping through some of the HD channels on t.v. to do a little comparison and noticed too a bit of graininess if I stood right up to the television. Now I know nobody watches t.v from three inches away, I just wanted to compare what was being broadcasted to what I was able to film with this camera. I must say, this camera’s footage is nearly spot on in many instances (TNT in HD, FOX in HD, USA in HD) I’d like to believe I have a good signal from my cable provider into my television, so in overall video quality, I’d give this camera 5 stars.
So why not 5 stars overall for this camera? Well, maybe I’m used to my iphone’s touchscreen too much, but the touchscreen on the viewfinder drives me nuts. I might be old school (34 years old), but I really prefer actual buttons to navigate menus and such. I used to own a Canon Vixia HF100 and really enjoyed the navigation stick and buttons. I would say I have average sized hands, and find it a bit hard to get the right menu selection with my finger at times.
Now I did go with the 16gb version and have no regrets though I can’t ever see myself opting for using its internal storage. I like to be able to pop out my sd card and just watch my videos on my PS3 or computer for editing instantly. Don’t like the hassle of transferring images via usb. Also, wanted a black body as opposed to the silver one. Yes, I’m that picky. LOL. I like the fact it has two sd card slots, so storage should never be an issue.
I also like that canon took a chance on just making it lower megapixel for ideal HD recording. Let’s be honest, if you want to take pictures, use a real camera. I’d much rather have better video quality and sacrifice still photos. I know a lot of people complain about this, but it seems to make sense. You’re getting “larger” pixels for higher quality low light recording. It’s also nice that Canon included the HD CMOS Pro censor in this model. The same one found in the higher end G10, saving you quite a few bucks.
Overall, I’m very pleased with my purchase and feel Canon has put out a very competitive product with great results. I’ve already bought a lens hood and extended battery to compliment the camera. (Stock battery is too small and leaves a noticeable gap at the edge. A BP819 should fit the bill nicely. I hope this review was helpful. I know a lot of reviewers commented on its other features, so that is why I omitted some of the other points. Thanks for reading.
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|Canon M41 Awesome HD Video (Prior Canon HV20 Owner),
I have had the Canon HV20 HD camcorder and other MiniDV based camcorders before that. I wanted to finally make the jump to a non-tape based camcorder, and this new sensor with reported better low light capabilities seemed to fit. So I bought the Canon M41 (all three M4XXX models have this new sensor), and wow am I impressed with my first footage. I will post a more detailed review at some point, but I wanted anybody who is considering an upgrade from something like the HV20 to know that based on my personal experience and looking back at comparison footage that this M41 is definitely better. The colors are more accurate, and the overall video quality justs looks much nicer when comparing footage. And of course without even using any of the alternate frame rate options to improve the low light capability any further, the default out of the box low light performance on 60i was clearly much better than my HV20. And as expected I am already in love with the tapeless workflow. Due to the straight mapping of the sensor size to the HD video (which means no additional compression or processing needed to 1920X1080), it is not going to take high resolution still pictures (I use my DSLR for that and don’t care). The touchscreen could be higher resolution, and the menu interface is a little awkward as some have mentioned. But video quality was my #1 priority with a new camcorder, and Canon sure seemed to get it right with my initial testing. So definitely buy this camcorder if video quality matters to you.
4/29/11 UPDATE: Well after using this camcorder on vacation for almost a full week I love it even more. The HD video at full 1080p is really incredible quality, with every video quality attribute superior to my old HV20 HD camcorder from what I can tell. And let me say that the low light performance really has to be seen to be believed for a consumer camcorder at this price point, as I have taken some video in some pretty challenging low light situations that looks just amazing with barely a hint of any noise and accurate colors being maintained. I am sure that there are other nice camcorders, but this meets and exceeds everything that I hoped for.
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