Customer Reviews

Canon Optura 200MC MiniDV 1.3 Megapixel Camcorder

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The lens, single-CCD sensor and optical stablization on this camera are of course excellent, as one would expect from Canon. But the 200 MC's predecessor, the Optura 100MC, was a much better value for the steep price tag.

For one, the 100MC came with an accessory shoe that made it much easier to attach a pro-level directional mic and light, which fed right off the camera battery and required no cables. Because of the 100MC's very compact size and adaptability, it was arguably more portable, versatile (and certainly cheaper) than the 3-CCD pro-level GL2, the next model up in Canon's line. (And despite having only one CCD, the 100MC's picture quality did not differ that significantly from the GL2 either.)

Alas, Canon has apparently decided to kill its own competition with the GL2 not by making the GL2 a better camera, but by stripping down the Optura series. With the 200MC revision, they've taken away the accessory shoe and added consumer features of debatable value, such as a blotchy, preprogrammed "Super Night Mode" and a useless, Windows-only DV messenger functionality. You can still attach accessories, but Canon makes it hard; you have to use an awkward bracket (sold separately) and the accessories must have their own power sources and cables. A fully loaded 200MC is an unwieldly and unpractical tangle.

You're better off with the Optura 100MC, a great little camera that can still be found from used or like-new sellers on Amazon for [price-info] less than the price of a new 200MC.

Or, if you can live with a digital (rather than optical) stabilizer, I'd recommend you save yourself [price info]and get a brand-new ZR50MC, which still has the accessory shoe that the new Optura has lost. Those are simple but decent cameras, and a bargain considering their price.

I just got this camcorder after lots of reasearch. Unlike what other people on here said, it is a great camera. The quality is awesome and the audio quality is also very good. It doesn't have an accessory shoe which is disappointing but you can buy an adapter from canon that attaches to the bottom. I have also taken some great stills with it and made a VCD slide show with them, many of the people I showed it to thought the pictures were from a 3MP camera. Overall this camera is great and I am very happy with my choice, plus it is now at a much better price. I definitely recommend it to anyone.

I had doubts about the 200MC based on complaints about the changes from the 100MC. In the end I chose the 200MC because it suits my purpose. My subjects are usually outdoor/action and I was especially interested in the Progressive photo aspect along with video.
Some may be disapointed with the departure of the built-in accessory shoe in favor of the built in flash and if you are shooting a lot of indoor video and don't care about the photo aspect this could be a big issue for you.
This camcorder is pretty versatile. it is easy to mix images and video between media (tape or card) the USB port in addion to the DV and video connectors make it very easy to fire off a print, e-mail attachment or develop a full-blown video production via computer or VCR. I had no problems moving images and footage to my mac. (It comes with the usb cable but not the firewire cable, be warned.)
There are compromises in all this clever versatility however. Don't expect brilliant photographic quality - there is noise but it is handy for getting just the right action shot without the bizarre distortion that sometimes appears in digicamera shots.
I am new to video so have little to compare there but optimal quality seems to depend on selection of settings used which may mean actually reading the manual and experimenting. It did perform better than expected however on the dusky end of a snowy day with light colored moving subjects which would probably be a test for any camcorder. Low light, night , and supernight make good exposure adjustments but lose on movement. Better to get the bracket and light for any serious low-light action footage.
It is light weight , may feel too small to someone with larger-size hands.
Video Conferencing is another possibility with this camera apparently.

The Optura 200MC is a good choice for three types of users. First, if you need a small camcorder with decent quality. I take this camcorder trail running and get great footage passing people while leaping over logs, etc. I simply couldn't carry a bigger camcorder some of the places my Optura 200MC goes.

Second, my acting classmates borrow the camcorder to review rehearsals. It's easy for a student to "point and shoot" without training. The viewscreen is big enough, and the built-in speaker loud enough, for two or three students to gather around and watch.

Third, I advise spending half (or less) of your video equipment budget on a camcorder. Budget plenty of money for audio gear, tripod, lights, computer and software for editing, etc. If this leaves only enough money for an Optura 200MC, buy it. You'll make better videos with an Optura 200MC and good accessories than with a GL2 or XL1S and no accessories.

The Optura 200MC has three shortcomings. First, the built-in microphones are awful. You hear mostly motor noise. The Optura 200MC lacks a microphone hotshoe for adding an external mike. I bought Canon's microphone mounting bracket, a Sony directional mike, an extension cable to use the mike for interviews, and two Sony wireless mikes. This totalled $400. I now get great audio, although the external mike and mounting bracket double the size of the camcorder.

Second, the FireWire chip has failed twice, and the exposure manual control has failed once. Each repair takes a month. If you need a dependable camcorder, consider buying a more expensive camcorder.

Third, the video quality is pretty good for a 1-chip camcorder. It has only two preset color balances, sunlight or incandescent light. On cloudy days, or with florescent lights, etc. the color balance is off unless you do a manual white balance. The color saturation is OK, not great. The lens sharpness is pretty good, and it handles low light better than you'd expect. The automatic exposure uses a spot meter in the center of the frame. If you have a bright patch of snow or clouds in the center, everything else is too dark. Like the color balance, you'll sometimes have to manually adjust the exposure.
--
Thomas David Kehoe, author of "Hearts and Minds: How Our Brains Are Hardwired for Relationships"

I purchased this camera a week ago around [$$$]. There were other electronic stores advertising this camera for around [$$$]. The next closest deal I found for a camera of this size, with 1.3 megapixel still picture and mini dv technology was around [$$$]. This camera is a steal!

I've had it for a week and what caught my attention initially was the quality of the construction. This camera is solid. The controls are well laid out and anything you need is at your fingertips. I have tested the still picture and mpeg to memory card features. Downloading the images and mpegs to the computer was as easy as easy could be. Although I haven't printed any stills yet, I was surpised by the superior picture quality as it showed up on the monitor. The mpegs are a little weak, but if you need superior video on your computer, buy a firewall cable. It's not included, but at this price you should have plenty of money left over for accessories.

Of the two negative reviews of this product, one refers to it's high price tag, no longer a factor at over [%] off. The other isn't even reviewing this camera.

The only negative I can find is I wish they included a dv camera to computer focus regarding the video in the same way they include instructions and features for the memory card. I.E. I wish they included the firewire. I know, WAAAAAAAAAA. This camera is two cameras in one, and two compact cameras at that. If you want to take pictures and videos of travel or everyday life but don't want to be bogged down by two cameras or bulkier cameras, this is the one for you.

The price you see now on Amazon and other Amazon providers is way out of whack for what this camera is available for from other sources. I considered the Optura 300 and the Elura 50, but I already had a major investment in BP-500 series batteries and chargers. I also use an Optura Pi and a Rebel Digital. Be aware that the 300 and the 50 use other model batteries that are much less available and less robust than the 500 series batteries. I am a big believer in optical stabilization but that is becoming less important nowadays due to excellent electronic circuits.

Getting to the camera, I also do not miss the accessory shoe as I bought this camera for two reasons. The battery compatibility as I mentioned and its small sized ergonomics. As other reviewers have mentioned, the rotating hand strap makes the camera comfy and very handy. My wife can throw it in a purse or I can keep it in the same bag as my digital rebel. And that's the point. Along with the Optura 300 and Elura series, this is a go virtually anywhere miniDV cam. The person that is comparing (and comparing poorly) the GL2 to this cam misses the entire point. 2 different cams for different purposes. I doubt that if you are considering a GL you are even looking at a compact cam. The GL and XL series cams are much much better than any of these.

If you want a compact camera with optical image stabilization, with typical Canon engineering, optics and quality, this would be an excellent choice. But shop around for a deal because the Optura 300 is also very good (some would say better) and the Elura 50 is a budget minded compromise if that's what you need.

I'm by no means an enthusiast. My wife and I got this (based on on the reviews here) for our honeymoon and it did it's job wonderfully. The instruction manual was hefty, but it was very easy to follow. The fact that it was small and compact really worked well for putting it in my carry-on for the airplane. Therefore not leaving me to worry about it getting ripped off by storing it in luggage. Also that it was both a digital camera and camcorder proved indespensable for light packing when heavy walking. We went to Istanbul and every shot we took turned out great. If the flash went off, all we had to do was gently place our finger over the top so it would not pop up. The sound quality was also very good. I have read where some had problems with motor noise coming from the machine but we never did. The only real complaint I have about this is the night vision with the camcorder portion. If you put it in the "extreme low light" mode, the video puts out a slow-motion blurry mess even moving the camera at a snails pace. Once again I'm not an expert, the fact that the blurry mess is in color may mean something to those reading who are hobbyists. However I was able to get what I wanted in moderalty dim environments and at night in the city with the normal setting just fine. Where the low light setting pulled through was in the still pictures we took and that's what I wound up using it for. I recommend getting the largest battery offered for this model. Not only does it last forever but it's great for balancing the camera for a steady shot. Get a larger memory card too. Great for beginners that leaves room for serious filmmaking. Glad we got it and recommend it.

I've been using this camera for almost a year. Ease of use is excellent. Quality of video much better than the Canon ZR series. I don't use it for still images, have a Sony DSC-F707, so I can't comment. Low light video performance is better than I expected.
This model has yet to eat a tape or moisture check in 10 months. I've used it skiing down the Rockies and treking through jungles.
Of course, being a male, I'm now looking at moving up to the Optura 300.

I researched small camcorders for 3 months, July through September of 2002, to take for a week in London and three weeks in Scotland. I selected the Canon Optura 200 MC. It arrived in October and at 60 years of age, I practiced with it and it was easy to learn. We left on our trip in mid May of 2003. I took 1174 digital stills and 17 hours of mini DV tape in that month. The pictures I got were wonderful. I have received lots of compliments on the quality of both the stills and the video. I defy anyone to get better quality pictures with cameras that cost twice as much or more. I would not trade my camera for anything. When I finally am ready to purchase a camera in the future, I WILL buy another Canon.

This little box aint so bad, It plays my recorded Tapes to my computer for editing, since my PRO grade CANON XL1S That refuses to without eating tapes, BUYER BEWARE! The used stuff can cost you more in the short term than you think, My CANON XL1S will cost me 350.00 to 500.00 plus shipping to get professionally repaired, this little Canon OPTURA 200MC save me from losing what might be the lastOf my KIDS Sports games. So If you have ISSUES with your CANON XL1S or got burned like I did, this will play then into your computer throughout the 1394 DV in/output cord although not the same resolution it will save your MEMORIES FROM BEING TOTALLY LOST!