Home > Consumer Reviews > Canon ZR70MC MiniDV Digital Camcorder with 2.5" LCD, 22x Optical Zoom, Digital Still Mode, MMC Slot, Image Stabilization and Wide Angle Attachment

My wife and I recently bought this camera. We're expecting a baby in a few months so we wanted to get a high quality camera for capturing those precious moments of the baby's life. We shopped around a bit and considered all the major brands and decided on the Canon. Overall, I'm pretty impressed with this camera. It has many nice features and it is fairly easy to use. It records very good video, but the still pictures aren't photo quality. Even at the highest resolution the still pictures were a little grainy. But good enough to email or post on a website. If you're in the market for a camcorder, consider this one.

I have had my canon for 3 weeks. I have made the small movies to e-mail and it works great everyone loves getting the short movies. There is so much to this camcorder that I am still learning. The picture is very clear and the voice is really good. It is small and compact easy to hold and the remote is great. I love it and the cost was worth it.

yes, i've checked canon's website. if your digital camcorder or camera are having lcd display problems --blank or distorted--, canon will repair it free of charge, regardless of warranty status. just call thier customer support center @ 1-800-828-4040. they will cover shipping charges in connection with the repair. i have a zr60 digital camcorder & powershot a70 digital camera. both exhibit the same problem. if you go at their official website, go to support, type in your model and product and you can see a service notice for ccd image sensor.

I did a lot of research before deciding to go with this camcorder. So far, I have been very pleased. You may actually have to read the owner's manual to learn how to use it to it's fullest potential, which is something I'm not used to. But once I read the owner's manual, it is actually pretty easy to use. It's sensibly set up, and there aren't a zillion buttons to confuse you. It is the perfect size. Plus, it also has a lot of fun features such as animation and gone are the days of the simple fade in-fade out. Now your images can twirl in, bounce in...and if your an old-fashioned type...the simple fade in is still there, too. Overall, this is an extremely versatile camera.

This is my first camcorder. I also have a Canon S30 (3.0 mp). I bought the ZR70 based on my experience with Canon and the feature set. I'll start with my positive impressions:

-The 22x optical zoom is great. I feel confident in
knowing that I'll probably never need a longer zoom. I
don't even need to use the digital zoom with the ZR70.
-The feature set for this camera is impressive. It has
many digital effects and scene transitions. However, with
most video editing software, any effect not included with
the camcorder can be added in with a computer.
-The battery life is pretty good. It will outlast an 80
minute tape. The battery charges in the camera, but an
external charger is offered by Canon.
-The ZR70 is compact and fits easily into my hand. It is
almost as small (and light) as my S-30.
-Most importantly, the image quality (video) is impressive
outdoors and in a well lit room

The negative:
-If the room is not well lit, expect a lot of grain. Also,
the 'super night mode' has little to offer. The light on
the front of the ZR70 is blinding and doesn't help the
image quality. However, while the grain is very noticeable
on my computer, once burned to a DVD and played on my large
screen TV, the grain is much less noticeable.
-The camera does pick up motor noise. It isn't that loud,
but keep in mind that it will be in all of the movies you
take. You can buy an external microphone, but as I've not
used one, I can't comment on any improvement it may offer.
-The digital camera mode is a joke. 1024x768 is a decent
resolution, but the camera picks up so much noise (grain)
in the images that they are almost unuseable. This is to
be expected in most camcorders however, and I have my S-30,
which takes great shots. (Don't expect great stills from
a camcorder OR great video from a digital camera)
-The image stabilization isn't that great. Thats to be expected though, with the long zoom.

In conclusion:
I don't know if I would recommend the ZR70. I was close to returning it myself, but didn't want to go through the hassel. I mainly compared the ZR70 to the current offerings by Sony (TRV33, etc.). The reviews for the Sonys are good, but I can't get past the touch screen LCD. In my opinion, that is a very impractical way to control the camcorder. If you won't be using the camcorder in darkness frequently and don't mind the soft motor noise, the ZR70 is a good buy. Hopefully Canon will address the low light grain and the motor noise in their future products.

**Update**
A few days ago my camcorder's CCD failed, resulting in the camera recording a black screen in any of the recording modes. HOWEVER, after calling Canon, they've agreed to repair it at no charge to me (even picked up the shipping costs). This greatly impressed me (the camcorder is 2 years old). For those of you who have had this happen, call Canon technical support. They did not say this directly, but it seems to be a well known issue and will be repaired out of warranty for free.