For the occasional family gathering and a little holiday footage, the Canon MVX20i is a relatively cheap option. Compared with its sibling the MVX250i, it has smaller 14x optical zoom range (the MVX250i has an 18x optical zoom range) and lacks a light for filming in low light conditions. Although the difference in zoom may not be a big drawback, you might want to think twice before forgoing the night light.
The Canon MVX20i has a lot of features for its class, and it boasts an excellent instruction manual. It has a 64mm (2.5-inch) LCD viewfinder and offers manual control of focus and exposure. You can capture still photos to an SD card with a separate shutter button and create panoramic images with the enclosed software. Battery life is very good. You can expect a full hour per charge, perhaps more if you film with the viewfinder instead of the LCD screen. Be warned however: the electronic viewfinder is only for those with exceptional vision.
You can connect the MVX20i to your TV via the standard audio/video connections or the S-Video jack. A FireWire port is there for video editing or for using the camcorder as a Webcam, and a USB port lets you download still photos or 320 x 240 QuickTime movies from the SD card.
I filmed in many different lighting situations, but the MVX20i does best in moderate-contrast, well-lit conditions. The footage gets grainy quickly as the sun sets.
Edited by: Lori Grunin
Additional editing by: Tom Espiner
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boarder 20 November 2008
Good: Sharp bright video, easy to use, long lasting
Bad: No additional sofware or leads
Comment: The MVX20i delivers great quality video and stills, with easy to use controls. What's great is you can put it in auto mode, where the camera automatically adjusts, or you can set it up yourself which means you can get every shot exactly as you want it.
The 1.33MP CCD gives superb resolution for a camcorder of this price, and records colours as they appear. I've tried similar camcorders in this price range but colours can appear faded and boring, whereas the Canon records exactly what it sees.
The batteries last for loads of time and don't seem to be giving up yet (after 4 years!) and the camera works right out of the box.
I use it mainly for extreme sports and it's taken it's fair share of bashing about and is still going strong. The only problem with this camcorder is the limitted amount of leads and accessories, though the manual is great (if you need it).
Top quality camcorder!
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