The ease of the Canon MV940 Digital Video Camera

Category: Review on Canon MV940 MiniDV Camcorder

Posted by: 24-Oct-2006

Strengths: easy to use, good in optimal light

Weaknesses: few features above lesser models, not much savings over more advanced models

Canon’s intermediate starter camera, model MV940 is slightly better than the MV920 and lower quality than the slightly more expensive MV960. If you are looking for a cheap camera, the MV920 might be all you need. If you are more advanced, the MV940 is lacking. That’s not to say it’s a bad camcorder, but there are cheaper with a few less features and better ones with a slightly ($20) price tag.

Under optimal lighting, the MV940 performs well. Low light performance produces considerable noise, even when in night mode, which is pretty common for beginner camcorders. The 680,000 pixel resolution will capture enough detail for the novice. The zoom has the option for fixed or variable speed.

You do get the handy joystick feature control rather than difficult menu navigations of other cheap models. The MV940 also fits well in the hand.

There are a lot of shooting options for this entry-level camcorder. You can shoot in any of the three white balance modes, eight auto modes, six different shutter speeds or nine image effects. A horizontal overlay on the LCD to prevent unbalanced video. There’s an easy mode as well if you don’t want to make such decisions.

If you plan on transferring your old analog tapes to digital with a camcorder, keep looking. The MV940s older brother, the MV960 does this but the MV940 doesn’t. The still photos taken on the MV940 are alright but not great.

The MV940 also has a smaller battery and less recording time than beefier 960 model. The analog to digital feature is also very useful and it may be worth the extra $20 to pick up the better model.