Canon MV890 Mini DV Camcorder

I bought a Canon MV890 as a second camera for my 7 year old to use without causing me too much worry and also so I can get another angle of shot when filming myself (using tripods) rock climbing. It does just what I need it to do, but it is not perfect...

For the last year I have been using a Sony Handycam HC27E (most basic in the range, I think)and will continue to use that as my main camera with the the MV890 as a second camera. I shoot about 90 mins of video per week and really enjoy the whole shooting and editing process. I will never be more than an enthusiastic amature and for now am happy working in standard definition video.

The MV890 seems to be a product aimed at people who want to spend the minimum amount of money and be able to film stuff that they want to remember without having to spend any more on editing/accessories etc, so I'll start by explaining it in this context...

Anyone with Windows XP will have Windows Movie Maker; this works fine for importing video from the MV890 onto your hard drive and also for basic editing. Unfortunately the Mv890 odes not come with a firewire cable to form the physical conection from itself to your computer - I already had one (cost about £10) so this wasn't a problem. It did come with a USB cable, but I havn't tried transfering data with that.

The main let-down with this camcorder is the amount of noise it makes. It doesn't make a loud noise that disrupts events being filmed - in fact you probably won't notice it at the time. You will notice it when playing back your footage - the camera's built-in microphone records a lot of the noise made by the motor which moves the tape when recording. Compared with my Sony HC27E this is awful. Footage of a family event will be accompanied by a very annoying whirring sound. This might not bother everyone though. The MV890 does have a socket for plugging in a separate microphone which can be held away from the noisy camera and will get you great sound recording results - very useful if you want to use a separate mic, but a real pain if you want to use just the main camera. Also, if you are going to record your soundtrack sepatately, this will not be a problem - in fact having the option of using a separate mic gives you a chance to record some very clear naration during editing. My Sony doesn't have a mic socket and neither do many budget camcorders.

The MV890 produces a great picture, both in widescreen (16:9) and in standard (4:3). The viewing screen that you can watch as you record (and play back) does show some rather odd, over saturated (I think that's the word) colours - like a tv with the colour setting all messed up (as my grandparents used to like), but the actual footage recorded on tape is fine - I guess its just a cheap screen.

A last minor moan is that the MV890 feels "cheap" in your hands. It rattles if you shake it gently or move it and you can feel the vibration of the noisy motor as you record. My Sony HC27E feels so much more "solid" and gives the feel being much better quality - I will just have to find out how this difference in feel transates into reliability.

The optical zoom and the electronic functions all do what they are supposed to. Night vision is acceptable. General shape and position of buttons is fine. Very easy to use. If the Sony HC27E with no mike socket, but much quieter, is selling for £150, then the cheap feeling Canon MV890 with widescreen ability and mic socket is probably worth £100.