Canon ZR45MC Mini DV Camcorder

Pros: Great hand held, excellent ergonomic, good video quality, excellent zoom
Cons: controls and functions can be difficult to learn

So, what makes a good camera? With the hundreds of various video cameras and company’s manufacturing them, its can be tricky to find the best on for you. Your best bet is to research well, because it is an investment!

After doing my own...

Pros: Compact, stylish, easy to use, the price is unbeatable for what it is!
Cons: Still pictures could have better resolution.

This camcorder is just plain awesome. It will replace your camera, webcam, and any old camcorder you have! I needed a camcorder for a video class that I'm taking in college and I have never owned a camcorder, so I didn't know where to really start when...

Pros: Stylish, comfortable, easy to use, Good pictures "not Great", Price
Cons: Horrible motor noise when recording to tape

First, I am not a professional videographer. I do not have a working knowledge in f-stop, shutter speeds, slow zoom, optical this, electronic that, and so on, and so on. What I do know is what I want in a camcorder from an average persons perspective....

Pros: video and photos, price, weight, size, several connection options
Cons: low quality photos, non-intuitive controls

Features
Features on the camera include Firewire (IEEE 1394) for transferring video, and USB for transferring photos. Photos are stored on MultiMediaCard or SD Memory Card. Video is of coursed stored on mini DV tape, which is about the only...

Pros: Great size, design, weight. Perfect price point for features.
Cons: Motor noise.

Before purchasing the ZR45, I had read many reviews here and on other web sites, that said the motor noise on these units was so loud, that the tape would record it. I also found an equal number of posts disputing this fact.

I bought a ZR 45...

Pros: Cheap. Compact. Easy to Use.
Cons: Looks. Above Average Video (could be better, though). Poor stills (minor)

I bought this camera mail-order for less than $500 and got the video editing software free.

I'm not going to delve into the fancy features and other stuff it can do, just the results of our informal and unscientific stress-testing.
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Pros: Compact and easily held/carried, Easy to use, Very good movies
Cons: Poor still shots, Battery life acceptable at best, Zoom controls not great

I have had this camcorder for 4 months, and have used it mainly for filming family events with digital editing, and wanted something very portable. Overall, it has been excellent in my first 5-6 hours of filming! Other reviews I have read complain...

Pros: Lightweight, Small, Comfortable
Cons: Poor Still Photos unless you have steady hand or tripod

I have had the camera for about 5 months now. I bought it for my honeymoon which is in June 2003. We wanted a small, high quality, fashionable, easy to use camera. The only thing I regret with this camera is the addition of the digital camera or still...

Pros: price, size, features
Cons: standard battery life, users manual

I am a first-time camcorder owner, so I did a lot of research before buying this model. After reading lots of reviews, I narrowed my choices down to the Canon ZR45 and the Sony TRV18. The Canon was smaller, lighter, cheaper and fit better in my hand...

Pros: compact and lightweight
Cons: fair video quality, camera sound broke first 3 weeks of light use.

This Canon camera is surprisingly disappointing. having used Canon products over the years, I expected a high quality product.

Unfortunately, the picture is at best mediocre, and the sound failed on the first cassette I used. Just when I...

Pros: easy to use, a plethora of features, visually pleasing
Cons: buzzing sound when playing back footage

There are so many different brands and types of camcorders on the market that it is indeed hard to pick one these days.

But this is the one to get. It is a great deal for the price and all the stuff it can do. It is also much easier to...

Pros: Small size and good video pictures
Cons: Menus are not intuitive

After much research, I recently took delivery of the Canon ZR45MC camcorder. After having had a week to play with my new arrival, I have to say that I am suitably impressed. Considering that it cost all of $545, the unit performs extremely well. The...

Pros: Many features, compact size
Cons: Very loud and annoying humming noise during playback and record

Sorry, I found out that my review of this camera was accidentally placed on the Canon ZR50 site. My apologies to the Canon ZR50 (never apologized to an inanimate object before), but I would doubt it's much different than the 45. Here is the review:...

Pros: Comfortable size, many options, great price, easy to use.
Cons: Instructions a bit difficult to follow.

We researched camcorders and tried out many models. We picked this one for the basic features we needed and the reasonable price for it's many options. It does much more than we needed, but the extra options are so much fun to use. Its very easy to...

Great camera. But DO NOT BUY without trying it out at your local store and not just looking at its cool appearance. Cannot believe Canon would sell this when it makes such an annoying buzz that it gets onto the tape and you cannot get around it. They should have waited rather than try and put it on the market.

The biggest thing is that the night feature is terrible. It reduces shutter speed so much (how fast the camera records) that you cannot see anything in the picture at all... if it's moving, that is. THe buzzing noise is not bad, and you can't hear it after you record, but the still feature takes great pictures in good light. Also, the low-light feature (not night) works amazingly, which kind of dissapoints me that the night isn't as good. Although, you lose some color when you use either of the lighting features.

this is by far the best mini dv on the market. not sure what the other reviews about sound problems are all about, i have had no issues wityh sound. the night shoting with this camra is untouched by any of its competion. ive owned 2 sonys and the canon is a much higher value. i hope everyone makes the same choice i did. excelent product

I have not used a camara that has as many features and is as good as this canon. As with all their products it is excellent

I purchased the camera at the beginning of the summer because not only did I need a new one but so many great family gatherings were going to take place this summer that I wanted to be able to record it all. I'm glad I did because it has been so great to not only take the pictures but share them with family and friends....and all in the same day. The "buzz" written about in another review is minimal and not as bad as is mentioned. The documentation and software that comes with the camera is reasonable. All in all, this is a good camera that does a lot of things!

I have had no problems with the ZR45. No noise problems. It has worked great. The design is the best on the market?

I love this camera and it's been on 24/7 since I purchased it. Canon has thought of everything, including a little latch on the side to access the viewfinder for cleaning. If you have a firewire/male, it'll plug into your computer with ease. It's light and unambiguous. I LOVE IT!!!

In bright light it has a very good picture, it has some nice features and the 18x optical zoom rocks! But I am very dissapointed with low light picture quality.

I was very excited to get my camera and I am 100% pleased with my purchase. From the other reviews I have no problems at all. It has worked great! No noise issues. No problems! The zoom is awesome, the options are fantastic. However, I wish they would have at least given us a 1394 Firewire cable and at least 1 tape with the purchase.

I love this camcorder-it works great! For the price, the size, and quality-you can't go wrong. It is so easy to use and I would recommend this to anyone! It takes great pictures and it is so easy to hook up to the computer and television!

I was disappointed in the low resolution of the still pics. User documentation is mediocre at best, virtually no mention of 1394 interface - which requires an extra cable. Interface software (Zoombrowser) is pathetic. Overall, I would expect better from Canon. Despite these drawbacks, I am not totally disappointed with the product.

They should do more to promote the firewire port like including a cable. It would be a much better camera if the stills looked better but there are more expensive models with better resolution (elura) Very nice to be able to fit into pocket and not take up a lot of space. Good video and zoom.

Those who are complaining about the motor buzz, have read too many reviews by people who have bought their first camcorders. All camcorders can pick up mechanical noises in a silent room. It's the nature of the amplifier picking up the nearest loudest sound.(i.e. the mechanism) I've owned the Sony TRV320 before and other than having the 'super night shot', it doesn't even compare in quality, and form factor to this Canon. That's my two cents worth.

I bought the camera at 3:00 PM....I returned it at 4:04 PM because of the annoying sound. I don't recommed purchasing the camera unless you can deal w/the disturbing buzz (loud).

what can i say other than go buy it. the "buzzing sound" mentioned in other reviews is minimal and hardly noticeable on play back unless there is no sound at all in the video but im only 14 and just got it for christmas and it is great for fourwheeler videos and taping myself at the races. or just messin around in the neighberhood my mom said this is gonna be her next purchase as far as video cameras go.

On my most recent trip to Atlanta, I had my Sony TRV 308 stolen. (We won't discuss this) So, in need of a camera, I went shopping. I stumbled upon this little gem. Needless to say, I have forgotten about my old camera and I hope the thief that took it is enjoying my 18 hours of footage. I'm not bitter. The camera is great. The features are useful and the manual breaks them down superbly. However, I wish the manual would have told me that the battery life is shorter than a minute man. If you can afford it (I can't) buy a bigger battery. The picture quality is also exceptional..until the lights are dimmed, then it becomes a race to see if the autofocus kicks in. Other than that, great camera for a great price.

i bought it for my wife to be for christmas. i immediately took it out of the box and started playing with it. it is easy to use small and has a lot of cool features. i have already made a film for her (we live four hours apart). im sure she will love the camera.

We had to return two ZR45MC because first one has buzzing noise coming from the bottom where the tape is. This noise is very loud that it gets into the tape while recording. The second one, the tape holder vibrates when inserting/ejecting the tape. Finally it got stucked and we can't close the cover. There is also a problem with the power&battery that no power gets into the camcorder. We love Cannon products (experienced with a printer and a digital camera). But we're very very disappointed on this camcorder that we did not want to exchange for a new one so Ended up getting a Sony DMC-TRV18.