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The Canon HV20 is a handheld camcorder that captures high-definition video (1920x1080i) on miniDV tapes. The HV20 is the successor to the HV10 and a direct competitor to the Sony HC7 and contains many comparable features. Similar to the Sony the Canon's main focus is on recording video and doubles as a still photo digital camera with pictures stored on a miniSD card. With similar barrel-shaped form factors the HV20 matches the Sony with a 10x optical zoom lens, and electronically control internal lens cover.
MSRP $1,000.00
Release date January, 2007
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Pros & Cons10
Reviews3
Details
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Competitors2
Related2
Gallery5
Pros & Cons
2 positive
1 mixed
0 negative
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The ProSCORE is calculated based on the ratio of Pros & Cons about this product as voted by
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ProSCORE = 100 x (Pro votes) / [(Pro votes) + (Con votes)]
Numbers used for this ProSCORE:
Pro votes = 8
Con votes = 5
Total votes = 13
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Details
Specs
- 10x optical zoom lens
- 3.1MP CMOS sensor
- up to 1080i video recording
- miniDV tapes for storage
- 2.7" LCD monitor, 211K pixels
- Internal lens cover mechanism
- Data ports: USB2.0, Firewire
- Video ports: Component, S-Video, HDMI
A hot shoe port on the top of the camera is used to hold and power optional accessories such as an additional light or microphone. Standard microphone ports are included alongside a built-in flash. Canon touts its "instant auto-focus" feature that uses a special AF sensor to measure distance. Covering the sensor has a significant impact on the speed that the auto-focus performs, and the sensor is susceptible to the same problems of a traditional AF system in low light conditions.
The HV20's 24p mode tries to simulate the distinct motion feel that filmed movies have. Canon also offers a cine mode that adjusts the gamma and color temperature of the picture to achieve a more muted look to get a more film-like quality. The 24p mode has an issue when transferring the video onto a computer as the camera outputs the video at 30FPS using a 2:3 pull down conversion which introduces field artifacts.
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This report was started
January 21, 2008 at 11:50 am by
Omar
with the last edit occurring
July 20, 2009 at 2:18 am by
Guy Yakobovitch
This page has been viewed
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27 edits by
4 contributors.
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Buy It
Canon HV20
• Canon HV20 3MP High Definition MiniDV Camcorder with 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
• HV20 MiniDV Camcorder
UPC: 013803083200
EAN: 0013803083200
MPN: CAN-HV20
Competitors
Canon HV20 is ranked 1st among it's competitors.
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Camcorders »
MSRP $1,399.00
Released January, 2007
Pros
- Great video quality
- Good battery life (2 hours)
- Configurable manual focus ring is useful
Cons
- USB1.1 interface is crazy
- Have to use Sony Memory Stick cards
- Small control dial
Canon HV20
50%
vs.
Sony Handycam HDR-HC7
50%
MSRP $1,300.00
Released September, 2007
Pros
- supports affordable, capacious and easy to find SD/SDHC cards for expansion
- 60GB of internal storage
- 3 CCD sensor technology
Cons
- expensive
- cheaper lens than the one found on the upgraded HD7
- no focus ring (as found on the upgraded HD7)
Canon HV20
vs.
JVC HD Everio GZ-HD3
Reviews
January 30, 2008
approved
reviewer
Pros
- Great image quality
- Image stabilization works well
- Less expensive than Sony
- Generic hot shoe accessory slot
- Easy joystick controls
Cons
- Less features than the HC7
- Poor low light performance
- No night-shot mode
- Hot shoe cover isn't attached to camera making it easy to lose
- Focus dial instead of focus ring
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July 20, 2009
approved
reviewer
Pros
- Great image quality
- Image stabilization works well
Cons
Did not agree with any cons
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/
No
March 16, 2008
approved
reviewer
Cons
Did not agree with any cons
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This product is also known as:
HV, 20, HV20
