>> Flash-based camcorders but can it recently join the party? I'm Brian Tong for cnet.com and today we're shining the Product Spotlight on the Canon Vixia HF 10. The Vixia HF 10 is Canon's debut model for flash based high definition cameras and there's a lot to love. The sleek and compact black design that weighs just over 15 ounces and is small and light enough to fit in a large jacket pocket. Its plastic body feels real solid too. Now some of the controls have been relocated with this design, the functions on the joystick which are used frequently to change settings now live on the LCD. The HF 10 has sixteen gigabytes of built-in flash memory and a slopper SDHC removable flash. This camera records AVCHD video at a maximum of 17 megabytes per second and that supports a full 1920 by 1080 high-def resolution for capturing just over 2 hours of footage. You can also record your SD card at the highest quality as long as you're using Class 4 SDHC or higher. Now let's take a look at the lens. It's a 12X zoom which is longer reach than most of the 10X lens from other cameras in its class. It performs really well, focuses quickly and stays locked in both dim and bright conditions. There's HDMI and USB on this side, on the back you'll have a Mic in and an AV out, and on the inside there's a slot for an additional SD card and component out. And there's Canon's accessory shoe slot up here. You'll also get an included battery which is rated for about 55 minutes of recording time, but like most camcorders you'll want to consider picking up the larger double capacity battery even if it ruins some of the sleek lines. What else should you guys be aware of? Well there's a manual focus mode that uses a joystick and it's basically useless. Also the wind filter is not as dependable as previous models and I've never had a chance to see this in action, but if you live in a place like San Francisco that could be an issue. But overall this camera does everything you could ask for in its class. I'm Brian Tong for cnet.com and Canon may not have been the first out of the gate with a flash-based camcorder, but the Vixia HF 10's well-rounded features set, great video and performance, gets it right the first time.
