Summary: cannon zr80

Comment: I purchesed this camcorder 5 years ago. Haven't used it a lot but when I have I have bee happy with it. The only thing is the batterry. It only last 25-30 minutes. It sopose to last an hour. The tapes are 1 hour so you have to find a plug that you can use and are not in the way while shouting. The quality is great.

Summary: Terrible

Comment: I bought a ZR80 about 3 years ago. It really seemed the perfect camera for me, new mommy who wants to record all the baby stuff. I got lovely videos and everything worked perfectly for almost 2 years. Suddenly, the screen started to appear black. It would record only the sound but not the image. It worked randomly, sometimes it would record the image, sometimes it just wouldn't..... very frustrating and disappointing! I have read other reviews stating similar problems. I will never get another Canon camera, as I don't plan to replace it every 2 years!!

Summary: Don't buy, camera doesn't last!!

Comment: We got this camera 3-years ago as a baby shower gift. The camera does not have high quality video indoors, the battery life is really short (lasts only about 30 minutes after being fully charged), and we ended up with the black screen of death (see reviews for Samsung SCD23 MiniDV Camcorder with 2.5 LCD). I would expect a video camera to last much longer than 3-years. I'm very disapointed with this camera and would not recommend it to anyone.

Summary: Great for the price

Comment: Canon recalled this item for a faulty CCD, the symptoms of which are static or no image at all recording to the tape. After about 15 hours of use I ran into this problem and was pretty bummed out, but after checking the Canon website I noticed that they had recalled the product and were offering free repairs (and free shipping). So, if it breaks, check the site, and send it in!

I've used this camcorder for home movies, school projects, and short video profiles. I now use a more professional 3CCD camcorder for my projects, but I keep this little one around as a backup, or use it for situations where portability is important. It has served me very well in the 4+ years I have owned it, but does have a few drawbacks.

Pro's:
-Good picture for a 1-chip portable camcorder
-Decent audio for an internal microphone (zoom out and get as close to your subject as possible for better audio, or get a wide-angle lens for best results)
-Feels solid
-Manual modes; white balance, focus, shutter speed
-Decent night shot
-Syncs and imports perfectly with editing software (like iMovie)

Con's
-No external mic input (this is my only "real" complaint)
-Loud bass records static (doesn't do concerts very well)
-Lens cap falls off way too easily
-Faulty CCD, but free repair

They sell on eBay for about 50 bucks, and even 4 or 5 years after its release, it's an overall good buy.

Summary: worst vacation camcorder EVER!!!!!!!!!

Comment: I took it to europe thinking I would get great video, instead I arrive at London and it says SORRY NO LIGHT SOURCE FOUND. Ever since then it has been pitch black vido and picture. Even though it says it has a warranty, they say I broke it no refunds. DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY, GET JVC!!!!!!!!!!!!!