Canon FS300 Flash Memory Camcorder w/41x Advanced Zoom (Silver)

This camera is small enough to easily fit into your jacket pocket. The automatic lens cover means not having to worry about the lens, nor any extra pieces to carry around and keep track of. The long battery time, large capacity of a SD card and small size adds up to a very convenient camera to keep with you translating into a greater likelihood of actually having the camera with you more often to catch those interesting moments of our lives. This is a very easy camera to use while shooting video.

There is a little more labor involved to edit video and transfer footage. Although it can be done without too much difficulty. And I am reluctant to be critical of that aspect since the technology has advanced so much in the last decade. I remember a time when videotaping our personal lives was much more limited by the technology.

The picture and sound quality are good. The price is right. I recommend this camera for the convenience and price. Unless of course the best picture and sound available is what you want, then more expensive cameras are available worthy of a five star review. For most purposes, this camera can't be beat for its convenience and therefore the greater chance of actually having it on hand when needed.

Canon seems to have taken a step down from the comparatively-excellent FS200 with a range of features that fall short in so many areas. As others have mentioned, the software included is practically useless, but more importantly the video quality just isn't there. There are major compression artifacts that appear whenever there's significant movement or any zooming used, it handles low night very poorly, resulting in grainy video, and the single-shot feature produces low quality shots comparable with those you would see on a cell phone.

Inexplicably, Canon has removed the audio in jack that came on the FS200, meaning there's no way to use an external microphone to capture any sound. Consequently, there's camera noise in every video, which is surprisingly loud considering it has so few moving parts. Combined with the fact that it comes with no memory (contrary to indications in the manufacturer's own product description), the FS300 feels more like a budget version of the 200 rather than an upgrade. As for documentation, I agree with other reviewers I wouldn't normally notice a poor quality manual in electronics but I needed it to find the power-in jack, which is superbly camouflaged on the unit.

Overall, it's small and easy to carry around but falls short of the quality I've come to expect from Canon products. I can't use this for pro-sumer video capture as I had planned to, and apart from the decent zoom function there's not much to separate from a Flip at half the price. Let's hope the FS400 fixes the plethora of faults, though I'll be waiting to the see the reviews before parting with my cash so hastily!

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As stated by others the software included with the camcorder is terrible. It has no editing ability. I ended purchasing a third party software for $50, so in the end, with the memory card this is more like a $400 camcorder. Video is as good as it should be for an SD camera, sound is okay. Overall a good camera.

Pros: Small, light, quickly charges, long battery life, decent enough video

Cons: Poor video in low light, okay sound, software

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This is a fairly inexpensive, basic, camcorder. Probably the best selling point versus its competitors is the excellent wide ranging zoom lens on this camera. The LCD screen is also good sized and seemed bright and clear. You'll definitely want a 16GB or (better still) 32GB SDHC card to get full use from the camcorder. I found the image quality to be only so-so, though certainly in line with other inexpensive camcorders (and far better than a Sony "bloggie" that I had the misfortune of trying a few months ago). It's a small camera (would fit in a pocket), easy to handle (controls right by the fingers), and those controls are clear and straightforward. You'll want to get your hands on the actual camera before buying though, some folks complain that their hands are too big around the unit. Check that out yourself.

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To say this camera works seamlessly with a Mac is a joke. It's very spotty at best and I've spent literally hours (today for example) trying to get iMovie '09 to recognize the camera even though the camera icon shows up as a drive on the desktop. Yes, I've downloaded video in the past, but it's always a crapshoot. So buyer beware.

I had NO idea Canon would even release a camera that didn't work seamlessly with the Mac Platform. Disappointed to say the least. Help!