Canon Vixia HF10 Camcorder Reviewby David KenderPublished on Mar 11, 2008 3:14 PM 
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Audio (9.0)
After just reviewing the Panasonic HDC-SD9 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $0.00), the HF10’s audio options seem miniscule. The HDC-SD9 offers independently-controlled surround microphones and an Auto Gain Control that can be turned on or off. The HF10 only has a Wind screen and Mic Attenuator which is designed to reduce the amplification of sound, or increase loss. If you want to manually adjust the microphone levels, press the center of the Joystick and page down to Mic. When Mic is activated, an audio level monitor appears in the bottom left corner of the LCD screen. Now you can adjust the particular decibel level you see fit for the recording environment.
The mic controls in action
We prefer the HF10’s monitor over the HDC-SD9’s because it is composed of far more increments along the scale. The HDC-SD9’s monitor is only equipped with 8 bars while the HF10’s monitor is composed of 24 bars that flow fluidly, allowing a more accurate reading.
The Canon HF10 with the DM-100 mini shotgun mic (NOT included)
The HF10 has a Mic jack, Headphone jack, and Mini Advanced Shoe that is compatible with numerous attachments, including the Canon DM-100 boom microphone. The DM-100 microphone cuts white noise down significantly and provides a crisp, clean recording. Headphones and the DM-100 mini-shot-gun mic (optional) are a tag team of audio excellence that is hard to pin down in the consumer range.
Playback (6.0)
In order to play back video or review still images on the HF10, switch the Mode dial to Video Playback or Photo Playback mode. In Video Playback mode, a gray screen appears containing four tabs at the top: Flash Memory Playback, SDHC Card Memory Playback, Flash Memory Playlist, SDHC Card Playlist. Below the tabs you’ll find individual icons that represent recorded clips. In order to select a clip, highlight it with the joystick and press the center of the Joystick to play it. The clip begins playing within the entirety of the LCD screen. Playback controls are located on the bottom of the LCD panel and consist of Play/Pause/Record Start/Stop, Rewind/Zoom Out, Fast Forward/Zoom In, Stop/BLC. You can control the volume and shift between clips using the Joystick. Stop brings you back to the icon screen.
In Video Playback mode, the Function menu is characterized by five options located along the bottom of the screen: Copy, Add to Playlist, Delete, Select Date, And Menu. The Video Playback menu consists of the following options:
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Video Playback Menu |
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| Memory Operations | Memory Info, Card Info, Media: Images, Delete All Movies, Initialize |
| Display Setup | Brightness, Data Code, Language, Start Week |
| System Setup | Battery Info, Wireless Remote, Beep, Power Save, AV/Phones, Phones Volume, Speaker Volume, Image Numbers, Image Quality, TV Type, Component Out, HDMI Status, USB Setting, Add To Disc |
| Date/Time Setup | Time Zone/District, Date/Time, Date Format |
| Close | Close |
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Photo playback menu |
Photo playback mode in action |
In Photo Playback, there is no icon screen at first—images automatically appear onscreen with a highly detailed profile including a histogram chart, image size, exposure level, white balance setting, date, and time captured. To access the icon screen, press Stop. Still images icons will appear in that gray screen, this time with only two tabs—Flash Memory Playback and SDHC Card Playback. The Joystick shifts between images, rotates an image 90 degrees, and deletes an image. Pressing Play starts and stops the slide show.
Unfortunately, the HF10 is exceedingly slow when it comes to reading the internal flash Memory. Images take between 5 and 10 seconds to load, which is rather absurd.
The Photo Playback Function menu contains the following options: Copy, Protect, Print Order, Transfer Order, and Menu. The Photo Playback Menu consists the following options:
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Photo Playback Menu |
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| Memory Operations | Memory Info, Card Info, Erase All Print Orders, Erase All Transfer Orders, Erase All Images, Initialize |
| Display Setup | Brightness, Language |
| System Setup | Battery Info, Wireless Remote, Beep, Power Save, Image Numbers, Component Out, HDMI Status, USB Setting, Add To Disc, Firmware |
| Date/Time Setup | Time Zone/District, Date/Time, Date Format |
| Close | Close |
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The Photo Playback menu |
The Photo playback screen |
Connectivity (10.0)
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The new proprietary-fit shoe |
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Ports are scattered on the HF10. In back, the Mic, AV/Headphone, and DC jacks are housed by a thick plastic enclosure wedged between the battery and LCD screen. Mounting the Headphone jack in back makes sense because it will not interfere with the shooting process. Just make sure you switch from AV to Headphone in the Administrative menu or your ears will be accompanied by a cacophony from Hell.
The SDHC card slot and Component terminal are located in the LCD cavity. In order to access the card slot, flip the Card Door switch and the spring-loaded plastic barrier will open. To close the card door, you must manually shift it back down. The Component terminal is sheltered by a square plastic shield that is attached to the LCD cavity via two thin plastic strips that can easily be yanked out with enough force.
Another annoyance is the fact that the HDMI is actually a mini-HDMI. The cables for these ports are hard to find right now, but Canon would likely take the defense that it saves room. The mini-HDMI and USB terminals hide out underneath the HF10’s hand strap, housed by an incognito rubberized shield.
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Mini-HDMI and USB (above), |
Component-out (above), |
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