Canon ZR500 MiniDV Camcorder with 25x Optical Zoom

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Product Details

• Item Weight: 10.6 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000DZH4CO
• Item model number: 500
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #5,371 in Camera & Photo (See Bestsellers in Camera & Photo)

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  Camera & Photo > Camcorders > Digital MiniDV

• Date first available at Amazon.com: April 2, 2004

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

From the Manufacturer Around the world, the name Canon means optical excellence, advanced image processing and superb performance. And Canon digital video camcorders are no exception. For budget-conscious consumers, the ZR family of cameras is a perfect balance between style, performance and affordability. ZR digital camcorders give you a variety of features, including widescreen HR recording, pre-programmed auto exposure settings, a Firewire/DV terminal and Canon's advanced image stabilization system.

Along with its stylish Blue Mist finish, the ZR500 boasts Canon's longest zoom ever. It also comes with features found on more expensive camcorders. An easy-to-read menu system makes it a breeze to operate. The joystick lets you easily operate playback, focus, exposure and menu options with a single controller. And a big 2.7-inch LCD lets you see exactly what your camcorder is recording.

Widescreen HR recording
You want your memories to last forever -- that's why you've taken the time to capture them. And you want to shoot in widescreen format to get everything you can out of your new widescreen TV or home theater system.

So, why is the way you record widescreen images so important? Because you want an image made for widescreen, not adapted for widescreen. Because every HD television is widescreen -- widescreen is the future.

The story of how we do it may be a bit technical, but the result is clear to see. Canon camcorders use the entire width of the image sensor to capture video in true 16:9 format. What difference does this make? It's simple. With more pixels captured, you get better image quality. Some competitors' camcorders force the wider picture into a smaller space on the sensor -- giving you a less true image, with fewer pixels and lower quality. With a Canon camcorder, your videos of your travels will let you relive great memories.

In addition, the viewfinder on your ZR500 displays your widescreen image in a letterbox view. From side to side and top to bottom, what you see is what you get. You can also view your widescreen shot in the ZR500's large, 2.7-inch LCD screen. Either way, there isn't the guessing or extra work in looking at an image that's distorted like a fun house mirror.

To make it even easier, a widescreen button lets you switch from standard 4:3 to 16:9 widescreen HR at the touch of your finger. You can also use the widescreen feature with the camcorder's advanced image stabilization.

Every one of the camcorders in Canon's ZR series gives you Widescreen HR recording at a very affordable price. Why shouldn't your camcorder shoot as wide as your widescreen TV? It should -- and it's hard to match the widescreen video, or the value, you'll get from your Canon ZR.

Remember -- widescreen is the future. And Canon's Widescreen HR is true widescreen that's picture perfect.

Optical performance you can see
Because of genuine Canon optics, the name Canon is synonymous with unsurpassed optical performance. Brilliant optical quality is part of every Canon broadcast TV camera, 35mm film camera, and camcorder -- and the ZR500 is no exception. Thanks to the ZR500's powerful 25x optical zoom lens and 800x digital zoom, you get an incredible range of focal lengths. Whether you're at the back of the auditorium while your child's on stage, or you want a panoramic shot of the sun setting over the lake -- you always have the perfect lens.

Without AIS

With AIS

Along with outstanding optical performance, Canon's Advanced Image Stabilization is another feature that helps you shoot great, professional-looking video by correcting camcorder shake instantly.

Brilliant video
The ZR500 delivers stunningly vivid video thanks to Canon's exclusive DIGIC DV signal processing circuit. A variety of other features help you shoot video that will impress all your friends and family.

Smooth Zoom Control: Simply select from 3 pre-set zoom speeds and Smooth Zoom Control does the zooming for you -- giving you steady, professional-looking shots every time.
Level Shot Control: Tired of shots that aren't level or subjects that aren't centered? Simply turn on the ZR500's Level Shot Control -- and horizontal and center markers will appear in your viewfinder. With these markers, it's easy to level the horizon for perfect video footage of a breathtaking landscape, or keep your child in the center of the frame while they're on the soccer field.

Perfect exposures

Auto Exposure Mode: With the ZR500's AE Mode, you select from a variety of exposure or scene modes for the best results under difficult lighting conditions, including: EASY, P, Portrait, Sports, Night, Snow, Beach, Sunset, Spotlight, Fireworks. For example, the Sports setting automatically selects a faster shutter speed, ensuring sharp images of your child's hockey game; and Sand and Snow settings compensate when shooting a subject against a bright background.

Exposure lock: With a push of the ZR500's omni-selector, you can lock your exposure settings, then recompose your shot. For example, you can lock your exposure while zoomed in on your subject. Then, even if you zoom out and include a very bright or dark background, your ZR500 will still give your subject the right exposure. Also, by shifting the omni-selector left or right, you can adjust your exposure by up to +/-11 stops (+/-2.75 EV).

Use auto slow shutter for low light

Auto slow shutter function: Activate this function, and your ZR500 will shoot at a slower shutter speed for improved low light performance.

Share your video

Otherwise known as Firewire or iLink, the ZR500's IEEE 1394 DV terminal is a high-speed digital interface that ensures virtually no loss of video or audio quality when transferring videos to a computer. Simply use a DV cable to connect the camcorder to your computer's DV terminal and you can be sure that your favorite, recorded moments retain their pristine image and sound.

What's in the box

ZR500 camcorder, battery pack BP-2L5, stereo/video cable STV-250N

Product Description

Around the world, the name Canon means optical excellence, advanced image processing and superb performance. And Canon digital video camcorders are no exception.For budget-conscious consumers, the ZR family of cameras is a perfect balance between style, performance and affordability. ZR digital camcorders give you a variety of features, including Widescreen HR recording, pre-programmed auto exposure settings, a Firewire/DV Terminal and Canon's advanced image stabilization system. The results are brilliant video and digital photos that you can easily share with family and friends.Along with its stylish Blue Mist finish, the ZR500 boasts Canon's longest zoom ever. It also comes with features found on more expensive camcorders. An easy-to-read menu system makes it a breeze to operate. The joystick lets you easily operate playback, focus, exposure and menu options with a single controller. And a big 2.7" LCD lets you lets you see exactly what your camcorder is recording.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

127 of 128 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Value of any Entry Camcorder, Sony, Panasonic, or JVC, March 6, 2006

By	Jack "bdcu" - See all my reviews

True hi-resolution widescreen mode, mic input, built-in lens cover, and surprisingly good low light performance make this an outstanding product among the "base models" of the four camcorder brands. The styling in my opinion is quite elegant, and the joystick operation is pretty easy to understand. The widescreen LCD is beautiful and "future-proof". Unlike Panasonic or Sony, Canon doesn't seem to cripple their base model too much to differentiate the pricing. Omitting the SD card slot and having no "photo" button makes it a pure video camera, while desirable features like the LCD and the video processing circuitry has not been downgraded. Made in Japan, the quality shows in every aspect of product, accessories, and packaging (the adapter is a bit bulky, though. I was hoping for the kind that came with the SD series digital cameras, but no).

According to camcorderinfo.com, low light noise has been greatly improved from ZR100, better than any of last year's models or brands in the price range (which all share the same sensor dimensions - 1/6" diagonal). Having used a Panasonic 3CCD camcorder, I'm pretty satisfied with the performance of this tiny sensor. However, the tape mechanism is a bit loud, compared with the Panasonic GS120 or JVC GR250 I used - I guess every brand has their unique "whine". Connected directly to TV (via composite, no s-video port available) the picture is a little dull, but on the LCD and on the computer monitor (via IEEE1394) it's great. If you burn it to a DVD on the computer the colors should retain their accuracy.

The battery is tiny, the same type used in the Canon Rebel XT (another clever cost-saving, cost-sharing idea), but I was able to fill up a 60 minute tape including framing/standby - amazing.

If this is your first camcorder purchase, I fully recommend it! If not, then it's a good example of how refined the budget camcorder have become, a very capable replacement or backup.

45 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Greater beginner or back-up camcorder, November 24, 2006

By	E. Stiner "vampirehobbit" (IL United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Since the repair shop won't give me back my primary camcorder, I bought a Canon ZR500 to finish a project. After working with the TRX series of Sony Handycams, it took a bit of perspective-adjustment to accurately rate this camcorder. I read all of the reviews I could find on the camcorder before purchasing it, and I can now agree that the ZR500 is a nice place for those serious about getting into video but new to the field to start at. My biggest complaint is the noise that appears in lower light settings, but I find that to be a problem common to entry level camcorders. (So far as I've seen, the cheapest camcorder that really begins to get past that problem is the Canon ZR700.)

This is a great little camera for someone who wants something small and compact to keep on hand for experimentation or as a back-up for amateur video production. It's not much bigger than my still camera--and I love that about it! It fits into a side compartment of my camera case just right. One review I read complained that the size led to fingers getting in front of the lense. Well, I *tried* to get a finger in the picture, and I couldn't even *reach* the lense! I'm not sure how that user could get even a pinky in the picture while holding the camera!

Another complaint I've come across is one concerning settings. I'm not sure where that complaint arose from either, since the ZR500 has the nice little feature of a button battery that provides extra power to the camcorder, ensuring that it saves your settings. I've never lost any settings, including "wind screen off," after powering down. The only way you could lose your settings is if you let the back-up battery die, and one lasts about a year.

However, if you prefer to use the viewfinder, this may not be the camera for you. The viewfinder on the ZR500 does not extend away from the body, so youhave to press your face against the back of the camcorder. If you want to use a larger (longer-lasting battery), then the viewfinder is pretty much unavailable. However, I never use the viewfinder on any of my camcorders, so it's all a moot point to me. The LCD panel works great. It has a back-lit option to help you see it better under a variety of conditions. The menu buttons and "joy stick" are set into the edge of the LCD panel frame. Once you get used to them, they're extremely convenient.

The ZR500 provides a nice introduction to the world of manual controls. It offers a lot of presets for the newbie, but also allows for manual adjustment of focus and exposure, amoungst other things. I was particularly impressed by the high-end exposure, and the background focus options. One problem I've frequently encountered is an inability to move from focus of a foreground object to focus on a background object. (And visa versa.) The ZR500 allows me to do so while recording. Though this results in a clicking sound occuring on the sound track (the actual sound of the button being clicked), I almost never use the original audio from a video, and so haven't found it to be any kind of a problem. As for the exposure, I tried both the presets (including Night Mode) and manually adjusting the exposure. Night Mode creates the delightful blurring of movement that allows you to create wonderful light effects against a dark background. For those of you interested in captureing natural motion in a dark space, I suggest manually changing the exposure. That will give you a brighter image without any blurring.

The plugs are well-placed and the mic input is a welcome addition. I've had no trouble uploading video through a firewire onto my PC. The camera doean't come with software, but that's fine, since I use only Adobe Premeire Pro and Final Cut, anyway.

All in all, the ZR500 is a nice point-and-click camcorder for new videographers, or as a back-up. My only fault is the somewhat grainy quality in low light settings, but as the grain doesn't obscure the image, I can deal with it. The only extra feature I could ask for is a still camera function.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not suitable for indoor use, March 14, 2007

By	John Doe (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews

The look and feel of this camcorder is very good. Unfortunately my camcorder use is limited to low light indoor activities. For example, evening party, indoor school activities, kid drama and orchestra. This camcorder is not at all suitable for these activities. Earlier I had a Sony DCR TRV140, which was way better than this camcorder.

This camcorder has a very small sensor and hence such a low price. One easy guide to evaluate the sensor size is to look at the optical zoom. Most of the camcorders with more than 10x optical zoom has small sensors. These large optical zoom camcorders will perform poorly in low light.

If you are planning to use this camcorder in low indoor light, I do not recommend it.