Home > Consumer Reviews > Canon HF100 High Definition Camcorder - 12x Optical Zoom With 2.7 inch Widescreen Multi-Angle Vivid LCD

I wanted a cam with nearly broadcast quality that I could use easily almost every day to record dance performances and rehearsals. It produces great results as everyone says and I invested in a Panasonic TV with an SDHC card slot plus the Canon DVD burner DW100, both of which give me ace immediate playback of the filmed material.
So here comes my 'but'...
Now I need to get up to speed #from previously zero level editing experience# and as the AVCHD files need a pretty hefty computer and the right software to go with it, I'm having to dive into getting myself sorted out in that respect too....there are a load of alternatives out there, and to be honest I'm leaving this review in as much hope I'll get some more info from other hf100-ites as of passing on info re the cam.
I haven't regretted buying this cam at all, but if you get it be prepared to get on to a learning curve if you're basically a point and shoot person like me!

Easy to use and takes excellent HD video. My only minor grumble is that when you occasionally use the optical zoom buttons, you can hear a slight click on the sound.
I used a "cheap" class 6 SDHC card (about £23 from Amazon). This works well, as does a "cheap" HDMI lead, also from Amazon.

..if you drop your camera from a great height, accidently of course, your precious film moments can still be retrieved from the card.I'm talking from experience. I've just returned from holiday after dropping my Panasonic SD9 from the top of an amusement ride.I felt sick!! The camera was totally trashed but the card was intact and works fine. It was in America and only 6 days had passed so I bought a Canon HF100 as a replacement.I was after another SD9 as the additional charger and battery would have been useful but it was'nt available without travelling miles. The Canon does have a better build finish,even the battery is streamlined with the back of the camera.I have noticed the battery life to be shorter than the SD9 and the zoom slider is rather flimsy but overall its a quality product.Now just hope the insurance pays up for my stupid mistake.

After having the use of the same camcorder on holiday from my brother-in-law I could not resist of the purchase.
GSM Fonz gave a very accurate specification of the newly new item and sent it out very swiftly after payment.
Very happy with the service provided.

I bought the HF100 for use at investor meetings for my work. It's a great camera, easy to use and gives excellent results. Particularly useful for recording meetings are the audio input and headphone output. We can lift sound from the PA system and pipe straight into the camera so we get great sound even with the camera at the back of the room. And we can monitor to ensure we haven't got a problem during the meeting. The stablised zoom sorts out any wobble issues and we find the automatic settings give great results.

But...

The software supplied is rubbish. Or if it itsn't and we simply had issues specific to the set up of our PCs, the software manual is so lame and pathetic that it simply makes the software look rubbish. A look through the relevants web fora suggests we are not alone.

I'd recommend this camera to anyone, but go and buy some decent editing software. Pity to spoil such a good camera with such rubbish software and software manual.