0.4 Megapixel Image - 0.3 Megapixel Video - 20x Optical Zoom - 8 MB Secure Digital SD Card Included - MPN: 9382A001
Strengths: easy to use, fits nicely in the hand, great zoom, price
Weakness: low light recording
I shopped around for quite a while before deciding on this camcorder. The Canon name definitely goes a long way, as they were highly recommended in terms of quality. I didn't think the low light recording would be as bad as the reviews I read made it out to be, but it is. This is the only downside I have found, however. It's a very good point and shoot, and also has many features I will probably never use. I would have to say that in this middle of the road price range, it is one of the best out there. Despite the low light recording issue, I would still recommend this product.
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TopStrengths: Easy to use. Uses non-proprietary flash memory (Secure Digital) for still pictures. Decent price for the high optical zoom (x20) and other bells & whistles
Weakness: Grainy picture in low light and indoor situations. Manual is not clearly written and it covers three models (ZR80/85/90). Doesn't come with mini Firewire (IE1394) cable.
The price was right compare to others with less zoom. Powerful lense and indoor shots are awesome under low light conditions. Easy to use and buttons are not hard to reach when u need to get to them. The remote is sweet when you want to include yourself or play the tape back without monkeying around the buttons on camcorder.GOOD JOB Canon.
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TopStrengths: High quality vedio and still picture captured. Low weight. Extremely user-friendly. LCD big enough.
Weakness: It would be better if a DV cable and a DV cassette is included.
Among all similar products with 2.5" LCD and 20x optical zoom, this Canon ZR-85 seems the best and cheapest I've ever seen. Being able to capture still picture on memory card is definetely a big plus. I have been using it for 2 months and still there are lots more features I have not tried.
I think it would be better if it came with a DV cable and a DV cassette, thus I could have been able to shoot and download to PC right after I open the box instead of waiting another 1 week for my shipment of these stuff. Of course the price would be a little higher.
In short I highly recommend this to any potential buyer of DV camcorder.
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TopStrengths: light weight and easy to use . Take real good movies and pretty good still pictures.
Weakness: The battery with the Camcorder won't last long. You need to get a better battery such as BP522.
I think, overall, this is a pretty good Digital Camcorder. Made in Japan, Beautiful silver outlook and good quality. Its price is relatively inexpensive, however, the price has dropped from more than $400 to less than $300 within 4 months.
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TopStrengths: price,easy to use, picture quality,many features
Weakness: night time filming,"photo" mode useless
I bought this after reviewing all the choices in entry level mini DV camcorder.For only $360 you get an unbeatable package.Nicely designed,small,with great Canon optics this camera is a dream come true for someone entering digital video category on limited budget.Same class Sony,Panasonic,or JVC models are more expensive and don't even come close in quality and features.I highly recommend this camcorder to anyone.The only dissapointment is low light or night time recording where picture quality is somewhat low.Also just like any other camcorder with this feature "photo" mode is a joke where picture quality is close to 2 megapixel digital camera.
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fraczekp
- Dec 12, 2004
Strengths: compact size, price, easy operation
Weakness: no firewire cable included (don't be fooled by the USB link - it's for photo pics only!), poor software included with the bundle.
I took the time to get familiar with the camera before I would speak up about it. I am very satisfied with the performance (for the price). Yes, more MPs would good, but more dollars in my pocket would be good too. The "low cost" feature leads to the frequent "low light noise" complaint -- after all if it was sophisticated, it would be overpriced! Keep in mind that it's normal for digital equipment to perform poorly in low light! You just live with it or simply invest in light source (lamp or simply stronger bulbs for your living room's lamp).
To see the good sides of this puppy, take it out on a normal day (or even little hazy or foggy) and you will see that Canon did a great job with its image processing. The curves are distinct and colors are real and alive.
The image stabilization is adequate. Keep in mind that there is no substitute for a tripod at higher magnification (zoom)-- that's the reality.
As to the battery issue -- well, I purchased a "generic" replacement from store fronts and I never ran out of juice so far.
My main concern though is the software Canon provides with this camera. The bundle installs everything under the sun onto your PC while all I want is a way to communicate with the camera. Needless to say I uninstalled the "canon suite" and went with regular "movie maker" from windows for now. Eventually I see a need for decent software for my movie recording.
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TopStrengths: It's quite compact, not as bulky as on the picture. Comparing with ZR80, ZR85 has USB to transfer the video into computer easily and it can take very good still snaps as well.
Weakness: The front is a little bit heavier than the rear part, so when shooting, I'll have to adjust the holding a little bit, but the difference is not too big.
Before I made this purchase, I've done a lot comparison between this one and the Sony HC30. This one has much bigger zoom 20x200 but sony has only 10x120, and the price for ZR85 is more affordable. I do recommend this one.
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TopStrengths: One tough camera. Good picture quality. Intuitive menus and short learning curve. Wireless remote is a great bonus and comes "in the box". Great price for an entery level camcorder.
Weakness: OEM Battery is weak. I highly recommend a generic Canon BP-535 battery from the PriceGrabber site for under $30. Your camcorder will run forever.
I was looking to upgrade from a Sharp analog camcorder purchased 7 years ago. Boy have camcorders come along way! I was very impressed with all this, fit in your hand, camcorder can do for under $400.00. The picture quality is above average but what really impressed me was the camera's toughness. I was at family reunion last weekend and the camera took a direct hit with a water balloon. The camera was open and powered up at the time of impact. She went down and would not respond. I opened her up and let her dry overnight. The next day she worked like a champ just like new! I powered it up and she lit up just like nothing happened. I would highly recommend this camcorder to anyone wanting to enter the digital camcorder realm and are looking for a tough lightweight camera.
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TopStrengths: Great Optical Lens, durable design and high quality manufacture
Weakness: Low light performance is a little worse but I can live with it.
This is the first camcorder I own. I like it very much. I did a lot of research on camcorders and got two options: Canon ZR85 and JVC GR-D33US. These are entry-level camcorders and exactly fit in my budget. Reviews said JVC GR-D33US performs very well in low light environment while Canon does poor. Anyway, I got the Canon one from Thanksgiving sale and found its low light performance is not as terrible as what reviewers said. And I don't think I'll do much video record in low-light scene. I only use it to record some important events, beautiful scenes and make fun with it. It's enough for me and I like it.
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TopStrengths: Great picture with easy to use controls. Fast FireWire transfer of video to computer. LCD is crisp, clear and bright.
Weakness: Still photo capability easily eclipsed by inexpensive digital still camera. But still handy in a pinch. Lacking ability to record from microphone.
The ZR85 is easy to use with well organized controls. The small size makes it convenient to carry. Transferring video via FireWire to the Mac is extremely simple. I discovered that you could also transfer contents of the memory card via FireWire. Therefore you don't need to use the slower USB. The remote control is very convenient when playing back the video on the TV. If you leave the LCD open during playback you can hear the video over the ZR85's built in speaker.
I wish that it had a microphone input jack for a remote microphone.
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TopStrengths: smaller, handy, nice shape, good zoom
Weakness: no s-video input/output
The middle of the road in the ZR line is the ZR85. The camcorder works well as a point and shoot camcorder with a small CCD. Canon's quality optics namely the zoom and lens, and strong construction are noteworthy positives. The ZR85 has the same still quality as the ZR90 without the LED light. This model offers the best feature for investment ratio.
You got what you paid!
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TopStrengths: Size, Zoom Capacity, Interfaces (USB, Firewire, A/V in/out, SD Card), External video review buttons, Good Ergonomics
Weakness: LCD Panel malfunction out of the box, Low Light graininess
I researched MiniDV camcorders during Jan/Feb 2004, and settled on the Canon ZR85 over Sony and Panasonic based on its capabilities. Low light performance didn't bother me too much - it's acceptable for my purpose. Out of the box the camera seemed good at first. I was disappointed that the box didn't include a tape that would allow me to get started using the camera right away.
Unfortunately the LCD panel was defective - it wouldn't flip the image when I turned it around to face the front. It also shut off when I docked it into the camera body, which belies the pictures on the Canon Website which imply that I can view recorded movies that way. Canon Customer Service was entirely unhelpful - even claiming that they didn't have a camera to use themselves since it wasn't supposed to be released until April 2004 - again belied by their website which indicates a Jan 2004 release date (forget the fact that it's freely available at stores like Best Buy and various Internet retailers).
I'm stuck with it now, and will may have to ship it for warranty" repairs to their only repair center - located in NJ.... unless I want to eat the retailer's 15% restocking fee. (Update: The retailer - ElectricSam.com - just got off the phone with me and they are going to waive the fee *and* reimburse my shipping ! Kudos to them !)
All in all, a pathetic situation for a product from leading consumer-oriented company. At this point I would recommend *not* buying a Canon camera product based on the LCD panel malfunctioning, and Customer Service being clueless and unhelpful. This may seem trivial, but a sour buying experience is only aggravated when coupled with poor customer service from a manufacturer.
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TopStrengths: This Camcorder is very light. It has capability of taking picture. It has 16MB SD card included
Weakness: Battery Life is too short. Should have an extra light for low light.
I received my product within 5 business days so I was happy.I have used only for 3 days and did not find any problem. This product is good for medium budget people.
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TopStrengths: Easy to use. Good design. Great sound.
Weakness: I haven't found anything yet.
Canon brand is really reliable.
Price level is between Sony and the others.
The quality level is highest.
I compared Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, JVC, and this Canon at the same level.
My choice was Canon ZR 85.
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TopStrengths: easy to use, good ergonomics, 20x zoom, great picture, price
Weakness: low light recording, battery life
This is the best camera I can get in this price. I'm very happy with the purchase. You'll need another batter and a UV filter to go with. You can easily find those accessories in the bargain price on eBay.
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TopStrengths: Easy and comfortable to handle. Beautiful design overall,nice quality of images shot with both tape and card. Very competitive price within similar product range.
Weakness: not well porforming in low light environment. Some noticeable motor noise when shooting. No external mic function on the AV jack.
In summary, it is a nice buy combining good price and satisfying quality. I did some research before finally deciding on this ZR85 model and I am very comfortable with the purchase. It is a good bang for the buck.
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TopStrengths: easy to use, good price , good value
Weakness: could be higher resolution
this is a good camcorder - i have used cannon cameras for a while and really like them - and i hope that this camcorder is as good as their cameras are. will update this review after a few days of usage
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TopStrengths: Easy to Handle and good features
Weakness: The Still picture Quality is not good.
The camcorder is a good bet for the price and the picure quality. Digital Recording is good but the still image is not very good, just ok. The camcorder is easy to handle.
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TopStrengths: Size, Zoom Capacity, Interfaces (USB, Firewire, A/V in/out, SD Card), External video review buttons, Good Ergonomics
Weakness: none as I know
I purchase this cute one 2 weeks ago for a gift, when it received, it's so cute.i tested it many times, all functions , great one.Only thing I am not very happy is the price, i know this become cheaper and cheaper but ,you know, still a little bit expensive
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TopStrengths: easy to use. many great features
Reasearched this camcorder on the internet, so decided to buy. Very very happy with purchase. Camera was everything that I expected. love to be able to take still pictures with camcorder and esy to retreive off memory card.
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TopStrengths: small size, intuitive features
Weakness: too many menu options, confused between card and tape storage options.
Nice little handheld camcorder, worked great for taping the kids over the holidays. Battery lasts just long enough to fill one 60 minute tape. Definitely need to buy a camcorder case (not included). Also maybe a spare battery.
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TopStrengths: Uses non-proprietary SD-card. Easy to use.
Weakness: Mini Firewire cable not included. Original battery has short life.
I spent another $140 as soon as I bought this and I already had the firewire cable needed for transferring mini-dv video to your computer. I bought a better battery, a carrying case, some mini-dv tapes and a big SD card. These are all necessary to really make use of the camera, so plan for this added expense.
I've recorded an hour of video and transferred it to the computer and put it on the web. Using a Mac, this was a very simple process. I did call Canon support once (I didn't have the cable fully plugged in, doh!) and the phone support was prompt and amazingly helpful. A truly remarkable support experience.
But generally, I've found the camera really easy to operate and wouldn't have needed to call support if I had just plugged my firewire cable in all the way.
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Canon Zr85 Mini Dv Digital Camcorder receives an overall TopTenREVIEWS score of 2.47 out of 4.00. It is ranked the #83 MiniDV camcorder of all time. The overall rating represents an intelligent balance of features, value as a function of price to features, and a summary of reviews from a variety of sources. The TopTen REVIEWS' formula gives a picture of important consumer features, market value,...
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The Canon ZR85 has a 1/6th-inch 680K CCD that performs relatively under normal lighting conditions, but shows a decrease in quality under lower light due to the smaller size of the camcorder and, thus, the CCD. The ZR85 has a 2.5-inch LCD with a .33 inch color viewfinder, along with digital image stabilization for adverse recording conditions. Most of the manual controls, along with playback and...
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On display at the 2004 Consumer Electronics Show was the Canon ZR85, which is one step up from the ZR85. The most significant upgrade in middle camcorder in the ZR product line is the inclusion of an SD card for high resolution stills. The ZR85 is a point and shoot MiniDV camcorder with still capabilities that benefits from Canon's 65 years of lens crafting excellence. Similar to the ZR80, the...
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On display at the 2004 Consumer Electronics Show was the Canon ZR85, which is one step up from the ZR85. The most significant upgrade in middle camcorder in the ZR product line is the inclusion of an SD card for high resolution stills. The ZR85 is a point and shoot MiniDV camcorder with still capabilities that benefits from Canon's 65 years of lens crafting excellence. Similar to the ZR80, the...
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On display at the 2004 Consumer Electronics Show was the Canon ZR85, which is one step up from the ZR85. The most significant upgrade in middle camcorder in the ZR product line is the inclusion of an SD card for high resolution stills. The ZR85 is a point and shoot MiniDV camcorder with still capabilities that benefits from Canon's 65 years of lens crafting excellence. Similar to the ZR80, the...
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Canon Digital Camcorder - 2.5" LCD - CCD
Strengths: Price,Easy to use,Picture Quality,Lots of good features,Remote controled,C/F card
Weakness: No DV cable for DV Messenger(Required)
I researched a lot of Mini Dv camcorders, and came up with this one. A lot of Bang for the Buck. I own one of the orginal Full VHS camcorders, and 1 pound is a whole lot better than 10 pounds. They have came a long way on size and picture quality. The remote control comes in nice when playing back on TV with included RCA cable. I am happy with my purchase, with only one draw back, no DV cable, required for DV messanger, on camcorder with out network mode. Easy to tranfer photos and movies to computer and to DVD disk using included USB. I would recommend this camera to anyone looking for a camcorder with lots of features and good quality movies and photos for a low price.
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