There are now only 3 Mini DV camcorders in the Canon consumer line. The ZR850 ZR830 and ZR800. It seems like consumers have responded well to DVD camcorders and manufacturers are catering to that crowd as well as introducing more high definition camcorders.

The ZR850 ZR830 and ZR800 are fairly similar camcorders. The main difference between the ZR830 and ZR800 is that the ZR830 allows you to take still images while the ZR800 does not. Is it worth the extra $15 for still images ? I say yes. The still camera on a camcorder will not take picture nearly as well as a dedicated digital camera. However it is a pain to drag two devices around. In well lit environments most Camcorder still images are satisfactory. If you really are looking for quality take your digicam as well.

Now let’s look at the jump between the ZR850 and ZR830. For an extra $45 the ZR850 has a 1 megapixel CCD compared to the 680,00 pixels CCD of the ZR830. The ZR850 also has a pretty much useless built in light. You will not notice much of a difference in the video performance of the ZR850 compared to the ZR830.

I know in the past people seemed to complain about the built in microphone picking up motor noise from the camcorder. I honestly never notice it on my Canon ZR. Maybe I tend to shoot in louder environments like concerts and recitals.

The Canon ZR series are decent camcorders for the price and are great beaters. For the more discerning consumers I would take a look ad the new wave of high def cameras being introduced.