Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #29963 in Consumer Electronics
• Brand: Canon
• Model: 2493B016AA
• Released on: 2008-01-07
• Dimensions: .0" h x .0" w x .0" l, .84 pounds

Manufacturer's Description
A powerful introduction to home moviemaking

Advanced Zoom
Benefit from a 36x Advanced Zoom. The unique combination of genuine Canon optics and powerful DIGIC DV processing now offers extended magnification – even distant shooting subjects are captured in crisp detail. An Electronic Image Stabilizer (EIS) helps to ensure steady footage.

True widescreen
Your home movies are recorded in eye-catching 16:9, allowing you to get the most out of your widescreen TV set. During shooting the 2.7" widescreen LCD and 16:9 widescreen colour EVF (Electronic Viewfinder) help you compose your movies in the correct dimensions. Use the LCD to share the view whilst shooting, or choose to use the EVF to save on battery power.

Quick Start
With just one push of the dedicated Quick Start button, the camcorder powers up almost instantly from Standby mode. Never miss a moment of the action.

High quality audio
Capturing superior quality audio is easy – simply attach an external microphone to the MD205 via its microphone input connection. This is particularly useful when shooting in noisy environments, when ambient sound might otherwise interfere with your movie’s soundtrack.

Intuitive Joystick controller
Situated on the frame of the LCD screen, a Joystick makes it easy to operate all of the camcorder’s key controls. To access more advanced features, simply use the Joystick to navigate menus displayed on the LCD screen.

Vivid colours
Record colours in full, vivid colour with the power of DIGIC DV processing. DIGIC DV, unique to Canon camcorders, optimises the colours in the images you shoot, ensuring that they appear vibrant and true-to-life.

LCD video light
When turned to face forwards, the camcorder’s LCD screen doubles as a convenient video light. It lights up close subjects when shooting in poorly lit conditions.

Making it Easy
The camcorder features a one-push Easy mode that allows beginners to get shooting straightaway. Switching all of the camcorder’s key settings to automatic, it allows you to concentrate on what you are filming. For more advanced users, a full range of Program AE modes is available.

Box Contains

• Canon MD205 camcorder
• Lithium-Ion Battery (BP-2L5)
• Power Adapter
• Stereo Video Cable
• User Guide   

Customer Reviews

Excellent so far!
I bought this camcorder last week and have just used it to record a friend's wedding. It is my first camcorder so bear that in mind!

Hardware:
The camcorder fits my hand nicely after adjusting the strap, with the small number of controls in easy reach. Both the screen and viewfinder are bright and easy to use, my only gripe is that several of the controls are on the LCD screen surround, so you can't change them if you are using the viewfinder.
The zoom is very good and can be controlled smoothly while recording, personally I wouldn't recommend you zoom in too far without a tripod, the image stabilisation only compensates for a small amount of movement.

Image and Sound:
The sound quality is excellent with the built in stereo mic, it recorded both load string music and the ambient sounds at the reception with no distortion. It easily matches any recordings I have heard before with no hissing etc.
The image is good, but not excellent, when played back on a TV via the supplied AV lead the quality is maybe half way between VHS and DVD, fine for home use, but if you want broadcast quality I would look elsewhere.

Video Editing:
After buying a firewire card and cable (none supplied with camcorder) it was very easy to download the footage to Windows Movie Maker, just plugged the camcorder in and Windows XP recognised it. It downloads in real time, so approx 1 hour per tape, but that is due to the tape storage medium I guess.

Pros:
Excellent value
Excellent sound and good picture
Records in widescreen
Easy to use
External mic socket for recording interviews etc

Cons:
Supplied battery only lasted for 45 mins of footage (larger ones are available from canon or well known auction sites)
Some controls not available if using the viewfinder
No DV-in (can't send edited video from computer back to tape)

Summary:
A nicely built basic camcorder with excellent sound and good video. I would recommend this to somebody who is buying their first camcorder, and who wants it for home use. It is easy to use and has some more advanced features if you want to experiment. If you plan on doing a lot of recording you will want to buy a spare battery.
Excellent value for money in my opinion!

Great value & good quality camcorder
As my previous camcorder had packed up, I was looking for a replacement. I was wary of DVD or Hard Disk-based camcorders as I do a lot of computer-based video editing and from my research it seemed Mini DV still had a lot to offer on that front. And I was looking to save as much money as I could.

The Canon MD205 isn't the most complicated or highly specified video camera available - far from it. But then this also makes it very easy to use and perfectly capable of shooting video, which of course is its main purpose.

It has 16:9 widescreen, a good flip out LCD screen (which also doubles as a video light when turned around) and the image stabilises well. The controls are simple to use and the joystick is responsive. Image quality is nowhere near as good as more expensive models, but at this price point it is good for its type. It's a bit grainy when used indoors, although you can adjust the AE mode to compensate. There is IEEE1394 (Firewire) output to connect the camera to your PC.

The quick start feature is really useful if you are out and about as the camera goes from standby to ready to record in around a second at the press of a button. This still uses some power, but nowhere near as much as having the camera permanently on. Overall battery performance is pretty good with the included unit, I have managed just over an hour with the screen in use.

The zoom is generous, if a little quick for my liking, which can make the autofocus really grown under the strain. There is no still picture capture, but then this feature is hopeless on cheaper camcorders when it is included - compared to a proper stills camera - so I'm happy to be without it.

The build quality is good, and the styling is pretty standard. There is a side-mounted tape drive and the lense cover is built-in, you just flick a switch to slide it over the lense. Much better than having a lense cap dangling from the camera. It's not particularly heavy but has enough bulk that it's not particularly pocket-friendly.

If you are looking for a cheap, good quality camcorder with no frills but good video, the MD205 is perfect. It ticks all the basic boxes and is a pleasure to use.

Great little camcorder
This is a great camcorder for the price. The 36x zoom is superb, and the image stabilisation works very well. It's pretty lightweight and will fit neatly into a coat pocket.
Image quality is not as good as more expensive models, but for filming family holidays etc it's perfectly adequate. My only slight gripe is I can't easily turn the date on for a few seconds at the beginning of filming like I used to be able to with my old 8mm Canon camcorder.
Quick start function is handy when you don't want to leave it running, but don't want to miss the action either.
Overall great value for money.