Canon ZR850 1MP MiniDV Camcorder with 35x Optical Zoom

The following camcorder is one of the first camcorders I have ever owned. I purchased it because I am interested in taking home movies as keepsake. For that purpose, this digital camera will work perfect for anyone, However, if you keep your expectations too high, you will probably be disappointed.
Many people have complaned about motor noise on camera's along this line, if you purchase the zr 800, you can use an external mike of as high quality as possible, and avoid this background noise. If you are like me, and wanted the higher offered pixel ratio, then you can get the zr 850, which lacks the external mike and the possibility of preventing that noise. The noise, I might add, appears to me little more than a suddle white noise in the background, which can easily be filtered out with most video editing software.
When recording to the sd card (the plus of the 850), the movies shot are rather low resolution and appear a bit blurry for me. Part of this could be the videos I have shot this way consisted of a lot of close ups. This camera does not seem designed for doing much in the lines of close ups. The night vision does a very good job in pitch black. A small led on the front of the camera adds extra light. Unfortunately this is the only light you get, since any high powered light isn't available to attach to this camcoder. The led doesn't add very much light, and with any low light area, the picture resolution is severly hindered, but still seeable considering how dark it is.
The still pictures look decent, but obvious static that you would easily not see on any modern digital camera are very evident, so definately don't purchase this as a digital camera replacement. The battery lasts about 45 minutes, the guide suggestions you can buy larger batteries that will increase the life.
Since I kept my expectations so high, I expected the resolution to be a little better on the camcorder in general. It is decent enough, and so is the sound. I just expected more than I should have with a small handheld camera. The camera feels great though, it is easy to carry, easy to use. You run pretty much no risk of getting your fingers in the way of the view finder. It is very comfortable and easy to use. Very little instruction is needed to figure out just about everything you can do with it.
My biggest beef with this product, which really has nothing to do with the product itself, is that it didn't come with a firewire cable or capturing software. This means you can't transfer stuff to your compuer out of the box. Rather, you need to get a firewire cable (presuming you have a firewire port) for up to $35 as the price at best buy. You probably should order a cable with the camera. The capturing software is available from the canon website, just requiring you to register your product. After trying several programs, roxio seemed to work the best for me trying to capture video. At that capturing video is a breeze, although that has more to do with software than the camcorder itself.
Besides that, its a good product, it comes with a remote control if you happen to be filming yourself, and av cables so you can put the image on the television. Not the best on the market, but a pretty decent camcorder, especially at the discounted price.