Quick Camcorder Review: Canon Elura 100

The Canon Elura 100 represents the entire middle-of-the-road Elura line, squarely between the bargain-priced ZR models and the higher-end Opturas. Last year there were three Elura camcorders. This year, Canon seems to believe that the Elura 100 ($399 MSRP) can fill the gap alone. We agree.

The Elura 100 features a 1/5” CCD with 1.33 gross MP. In bright light, this chip system produced a strong image. Although some of the colors were slightly more saturated than others, the picture generally looked very good for a camcorder of this price. The ZR camcorders all use a smaller 1/6” CCD and produce a fuzzier image. Last year’s Elura 80 had a larger 1/4.5” chip, but the results this year actually looked better.

In low light, the Elura 100 did not do exceptionally well. While focus remained good, the noise increased noticeably, and  patches of yellow discoloration even appeared. In this aspect, the ZR700, a model designed to be the next step down, performed better, which we attribute to a more effective automatic gain. However, given the poor low light performance of camcorders in this price range on the whole, the Elura 100 is one the strongest competitors.

The Elura 100 has a comfortable design, but there were some minor handling issues we have to point out. First of all, the lack of grip along its upper-right edge made it difficult to hold, though the padded handstrap worked well. The joystick control was a more significant problem. Normally, we love joystick controls, but this one is particularly small, barely raising its head from the rear of the body. Due to its small size, you’ll sometimes end up pushing the joystick inwards (which acts like the “enter” button) when you’re trying to push it up, down, left, or right. Other buttons are poorly placed. The Canon menu system is well planned and intuitive, but a larger joystick would have helped with navigation. The menu is also translucent when on-screen, allowing you to keep an eye on the picture.  Automatic controls are a cinch, with an Easy mode switch located prominently on the back of the camcorder. The Elura responded quickly and accurately to focal changes and only slightly less quickly to big exposure adjustments.

While not as good as those on the Panasonic, the manual controls on the Elura 100 are strong for the under-$400 camcorder field. Focus, exposure, shutter speed, and white balance are all available. Upper-end Canons offer F-stop control for better exposure control. Here, the exposure is in EV units, +/-11 steps.

The still features and performance on the Elura 100 are very good, capturing JPEGs to an SD card in resolutions up to 1152 x 864. All the manual controls available in video mode appear here, though the shutter speed is somewhat reduced. MPEG4 video clips at 320 x 240 and 160 x 120 can also be saved to the SD card. There is no flash, however, a feature which many other camcorders do offer.

Ports on the Elura 100 include DV in/out, USB, A/V in/out, and a microphone port. The last is something we really appreciate: any experienced user will tell you that in-camcorder mics don't always cut it. Using an external mic adds an enormous amount of professionalism to a home video without much effort on your part. Your audience will thank you.

In a strange bit of marketing, the Elura 100 costs $399,  the same price as the ZR700, the next model down. The choice is clear, however. The mic and analog inputs are a huge benefit to the Elura. Normally, the closed battery design would be a huge detriment, as it removes the option of extended life batteries, but the included battery had a lifespan of over 2 and 1/2 hours. Overall, this is an excellent value for the price class, which is more than can be said for many pricier camcorder.

Canon Elura 100 THE BOTTOM LINE Rating: 218.30

Likes

-Mic-in port -Analog to digital pass-through -Top loading tape compartment -True wide screen format

Dislikes

-Physical design -Terrible viewfinder design -Electronic, rather than optical, image stabilization

Canon Elura 80 Rating:194.21	Panasonic PV-GS39 Rating:206.78	Sony DCR-HC26 Rating:169.72	Sony DCR-HC36 Rating:	Canon Optura 50 Rating:221.65
Better	Better	Better	Better	Better
-Current selling price  -Cleaner, more concise external design and layout  -Moveable viewfinder capabilities  -Cold Shoe for accessories	-Lower MSRP of $349  -30x optical zoom  -Manual control over gain is extensive  -Manual control over aperture settings is also extensive  -External design quality and structure  -Wide angle field of view is broader  -Extendable viewfinder	-Lower MSRP at $350 -Assuredly easy to use  -Functional electronic color viewfinder	-Extremely simple auto mode ability for beginners and novices -Adjustable viewfinder	-External focal ring  -In camera flash  -S-video port  -Cold accessory shoe  -Extending viewfinder -Optical image stabilization
Equal	Equal	Equal	Equal	Equal
-Digital interface for manual control over focus  -Top loading tape compartment  -Electronic color viewfinder  -MinDV format  -Image resolution   -SD memory card for still images  -Manual control over exposure, shutter speed, and white balance	-SD memory card for still image recording  -2.7 inch LCD screen  -Digital control over focus  -Manual control over white balance -Video footage is recorded to MiniDV format  -Mic-in port	-Manual control over exposure  -20x optical zoom rating  -Digital control over manual focus settings  -Video is captured to MiniDV cassette tape  -Manual control over white balance  -Top loading tape compartment	-20x optical zoom  -Color electronic viewfinder  -Manual control over white balance  -Manual control over exposure  -MiniDV format for recording video  - Manual touch screen focus option -Comparable MSRP	-Manual control over exposure levels -Mic input  -MiniDV tape for video footage  -SD memory card for still images  -Manual shutter speed  -Manual white balance -Top loading tape compartment
Worse	Worse	Worse	Worse	Worse
-18x optical zoom  -Slightly lower quality video performance -No video light -Smaller field of view when shooting in wide angle mode  -2.5 inch LCD screen (does have higher resolution level)  -No mic-in port	-Smaller imager size  -Video performance was lack luster  -Far lower video resolution test results	-Lower quality video performance levels  -Smaller CCD  -Sub-par video resolution  -2.5 inch LCD screen  -No manual control over shutter speed  -Still images can only be recorded MiniDV tape  -No wide angle option, identical field of view in both 4:3 and 16:9 format  -No mic-in port	-Small touch screen interface system  -Proprietary format for memory cards  -AV out port  -No mic-input capabilities  -2.5 inch LCD screen	-Higher price range  -10x optical zoom  -Lower video performance and slightly lower quality of resolution overall -2.5 inch LCD screen  -Smaller field of view for widescreen shooting in 16:9