At just £230 (and even less if you shop around) the MV930 is one of the cheapest camcorders in our group test – not that the model’s low price translates to any discernable compromise in terms of image quality.

Outdoors in bright, even sunlight the miniDV-based MV930 performed extremely well. Colours were deep but realistic and the automatic focus was quick to respond when moving the camera from a close subject to a far one and vice versa.

The camcorder can record in ‘proper’ widescreen too (rather than just stretching or cropping the image). Our one gripe would be the MV930’s overreliance on automatic gain increase in low-lighting conditions, which gives footage an odd stuttering look.

The MV930 has a few interesting tricks up its sleeve. Particularly notable is the camcorder’s SD card slot, which can store mini movies and still photos. The inclusion of a Pictbridge socket means that photos can be sent directly to a compatible printer.

There’s no SD card supplied though and, admittedly, photo image quality was not that impressive. It’s a useful additional function nonetheless, and rare at this price.

On the downside, the MV930 suffers from a slightly plain design. The sliding lens cap also has to be opened manually and the viewfinder is fixed – although these are minor issues.

More annoying is the fact that the instruction manual refers to three other models of camcorder, all of which exist further up Canon’s price range. Consequently, you keep being reminded of all the features you don’t have, such as a built-in lamp or the ability to record from an analogue video source to DV tape or memory card. If all you need is a good-quality digital camcorder, however, then you can’t go far wrong with the MV930.

This article is part of a group test of budget digital camcorders. Others are:
Canon DC100
JVC GR-D340
Panasonic NV-GS37
Samsung VP-DC161W
Sony Handycam DCR-HC35
Table of features can be read via our pdf download.