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Quick Review Camcorders : Canon ZR300

by Nick Hyacinthe
Published on August 10, 2005

At the helm of the 2005 Canon ZR line is the ZR300. Although this is one of the top models of the ZR series, this model is outfitted with the same imager specs as its parent model, little siblings, the ZR100 and ZR200: a 1/6” CCD with 680K gross pixels, and 340K effective pixels. The camcorder has a bigger price due to its rank in the series, and more importantly the extra ornaments within, the most significant being the .6x wide angle attachment. Canon also equipped this model with 22x optical zoom (the others have 20x), an 8MB SD card, and a built-in LED light, in hopes of giving the ZR300 its own identity.

The ZR300 had mixed performance results in bright and low light conditions. In conditions equivalent of a sunny day, the ZR300 displayed a bright image with good color representation. However, the overall image was a bit fuzzy. When tested in low light settings, darker than a dimly lit bedroom, the camcorder performed comparably well; like its siblings, the ZR100 and ZR200, this camcorder eclipsed the poor performance of ZRs in the past. Although this model displayed slightly crisper images with more potent colors, the images still had a significant amount of grain.

Canon has created an EASY mode which is aimed at providing the users with a stress free and comfortable operating experience. Once this mode is activated the camcorder is essentially on autopilot, and it makes all quality control adjustments: White balance, Shutter speed, Exposure, and Focus. This feature comes from the legacy left by Sony's successful Easy HandyCam mode. The EASY mode makes seamless and truthful automatic adjustments.

Unfortunately the accuracy of these adjustments wanes in low lighting conditions. In lighting conditions that approximate a room lit by a single bulb, the camcorder has trouble focusing. The focus lags noticeably. The ZR300 also has some problems adjusting the white balance in low lighting conditions. Entry level camcorders often run into these problems in low light, which is why it is always better to trust your own judgments and make your own modifications.

The poor LCD has plagued the usability of the 2005 ZR series. With the slightest change or movement the LCD solarizes and viewing becomes troublesome. The user spends more time adjusting the LCD than adjusting manual controls. It is hard to monitor the image when one is juggling the camcorder.

The model shares identical digital still capabilities with its smaller sibling, the ZR200. Aside from the ZR100, the ZR series can capture stills in 4:3 mode at 1024 x 768, and the standard 640 x 480 resolutions onto an SD card. The card can also capture MPEG footage at 320x 240 pixels. One of the distinguishing aspects of the ZR300 is its supplied 8MB SD card, which is sadly an ineffective accessory. 8MB can store a very small amount of photographs.

The Canon ZR300 is outfitted with ornaments to distinguish it from the its smaller siblings. The extra 2x optical zoom and the LED light seem to be small gestures by Canon to give it its own personality, and have the consumer pay for it. Similar to its siblings, this model performed better than the ZRs of last year. Nonetheless, the camcorders produced good bright light images, but poor low light images. The poor LCD hurts usability, but overall the camcorder is fairly easy to use. This camcorder is ultimately a mixed bag. Its strengths and weaknesses are parallel with that of its siblings, but it stands alone in the gimmicks.

Canon ZR300- THE BOTTOM LINE
Rating: 198.71

Likes

- Included Media
- Wide Angle Attachment
- Low light improvement
- Navigational function
- Widescreen mode

Dislikes

- Solarizing LCD
- Occasional bad button placement

Canon ZR300 Compared to the...

Canon ZR200 Rating: 190.66	Canon ZR400 Rating: 201.32	Sony DCR-HC32 Rating: 177.60	Panasonic PV-GS35 Rating: 189.07	JVC GR-DF430 Rating:

Better	Better	Better	Better	Better
-Affordability -Low Light Performance	-Imager Specs -Still Capabilities -Microphone Input -Video Performance	-Accessory Shoe -Spot focus -Spot Metering -Viewfinder/LCD	- Manual Control -Low Light Performance - Optical Zoom -Low Light -Top Loading -Headphone Jack -Gain Portability -Video Performance	-Microphone Input -Noise reduction -Accessory Shoe
Equal	Equal	Equal	Equal	Equal
-Ease of use -Manual Controls -Automatic Control -Optical Zoom -Handling -2.4" LCD Size -No Accessory Shoe -Audio -Video Performance -Portability	-Low light performance -Audio -Ease of use -Digital Still Capability -Ports -Viewfinder/LCD -Automatic controls -Manual Controls -Portability	-Imager Specs -Audio	-Imager Specs -A/V Dubbing -Media	-Image Specs
Worse	Worse	Worse	Worse	Worse
-Digital Still Capability -Optical Zoom -Wide Angle	-Affordability -Optical Zoom -Wide Angle	-Widescreen Mode -Low light -Navigational System -Video Performance -Optical Zoom -Digital Still Capability -Video Resolution	-Ease of Use -Zoom Toggle -Digital Still Capability -LCD/Viewfinder -VCR Mode	-Still Capabilities

Area	Weight	Raw	Adj.	Poss.
Video Performance	2.00	5.75	11.50	20.00
Front	0.20	7.00	1.40	2.00
Right	0.30	9.50	2.85	3.00
Back	0.25	7.00	1.75	2.50
Left	0.20	9.00	1.80	2.00
Top	0.15	8.00	1.20	1.50
Automatic Control	0.50	5.00	2.50	5.00
Overall Manual Control	0.60	5.00	3.00	6.00
Zoom	0.75	8.00	6.00	7.50
Focus	0.70	4.50	3.15	7.00
Exposure	0.65	4.50	2.92	6.50
Shutter Speed	0.60	3.00	1.80	6.00
White Balance	0.55	7.00	3.85	5.50
Gain	0.50	0.00	0.00	5.00
Still Perfomance	1.20	3.50	4.20	12.00
VCR Mode	0.30	9.00	2.70	3.00
Low Light Performance	2.00	3.75	7.50	20.00
LCD / Viewfinder	0.60	7.00	4.20	6.00
Audio	1.00	4.00	4.00	10.00
Handling	1.25	8.00	10.00	12.50
Jacks / Ports / Plugs	0.80	7.00	5.60	8.00
Other Features	0.70	7.50	5.25	7.00
Value	1.25	4.00	5.00	12.50
Total (weighted)			92.17	170.50