Canon FS100 Camcorder - Features
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The first thing to say about the FS100's feature set is that it only records to SD cards. Its bigger brothers the FS10 and FS11 have built-in memory (8GB and 16GB respectively), but Canon has declined to include even a starter card with the entry level model, so you'll have to budget for this at the same time as you buy the camcorder or you will essentially be getting an expensive paperweight. This immediately requires a decision because, depending on the cost of SD cards when you come to order, you might get better value buying one of the other models.
The increase in capacity of flash memory cards has made camcorders based on them a viable option, and the extra convenience they offer over tape-based alternatives like MiniDV makes them highly attractive. Selecting and replaying movie clips on the FS100 is as simple as viewing stills on a digital camera: just scroll through the available clips with the joystick, and press play when you find the one you want to see. This ability alone will no doubt attract many purchasers new to the whole camcorder thing.
SD cards are now available in capacities up to 32GB, which will store over 7 hours of footage at the highest quality. In our opinion, you'll need at the very least a 4GB card to make your purchase worthwhile.
After you have installed your new card you can start filming straight away. An "easy" mode is provided, which will take full and automatic control of all the settings if you just want to point and shoot, but digging a little deeper reveals a reasonable amount of control for those who want a more involved experience. Three recording modes (LP, SP & XP) offer a choice of quality, although in truth you'll rarely want to drop far below the only-acceptable quality level offered by XP.
Manual focus is achieved through use of the little built-in joystick and on-screen menu system and can, unusually, be adjusted during shooting, although this is a slightly convoluted process that can be a bit tricky to get the hang of. Many people will no doubt leave easy mode switched on most of the time. Canon has also thoughtfully provided a shutter priority exposure mode alongside the standard program, and scene modes, which provides yet more flexibility over the filming process.
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