Canon MV500

Don't be fooled into thinking that a digital zoom is going to give you a better quality enlargement than a standard one. While it's often true that 'digital means better', quite the reverse is true in this instance.

Indeed, so poor is the quality of a digital zoom that many camcorder users instantly turn the feature off and never use it. For long-distance film-making, always look for models that have a healthy optical zoom instead. The Canon MV500 does particularly well in this department with a whopping 18x optical magnification.

Like the MV5, the MV500 doesn't particularly cater for those who want an all-in-one DV camcorder and digital stills camera. The absence of both megapixel capabilities and a memory card slot mean that stills snappers might be best served looking elsewhere.

There are a couple of other niggles, too. The camera's FireWire socket is not bi-directional and can only output video. Sadly, many firms charge a lot extra for the pleasure of DV input-enabled FireWire camcorders. The Canon MV500, for instance, can be bought as a DV-in/out version in the form of the MV500i but you can expect to pay up to £100 extra for the privilege.

The MV500 also suffers from a bottom-loading tape mechanism. This can really be a problem for those who plan on doing a lot of tripod-based filming, since changing a tape halfway through filming means that you'll have to remove the camera from its perch and thus muck up your framing.

Canon 08705 143723www.canon.co.uk