Pros: Great package. The camcorder is small, but easy to use. Mega pixel capacity for little money. Video quality is great. SD memory is handy.
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br /Cons: Not as compact as the Sony HC series.
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br /I am a very savvy consumer and I have spent a lot of time researching cameras and camcorders. It seems like I always end up buying Canon products and there is a reason for it.
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br /The Elura 1/4.5 inch CCD is the best in the class. Sony offers a smaller 1/6 inch CCD for the same price. The quality of materials used to make the Elura series is excellent. The picture is great, but it is the little things impress me. The hinge on the LCD screen is the best designed hinge ever on a camera. The camera is compact and has been well engineered. The video quality is great because it has a bigger CCD than many of the camcorders in the same price range. Don't get me wrong it isn't as good as the Canon GL2, but for the money I am impressed. It has a big lens that lets a lot of light in, which improves low light video.
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br /The SD card slot and the hot shoe is a nice feature. The mega pixel capacity is also great. It doesn't take as good still pictures as my Canon S410, but in a pinch the Elura does good for still pictures. This is expected because this is camcorder first and a camera second. I would recommend the Elura 70 over the 65 because you get a bigger battery and wide angle lens that is useful indoors.
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br /Now for the bad. The only thing that made me almost buy the Sony HC40 was the Sony is more compact. Even though the Sony is more compact, the Canon is still small. I was also weary of the touch screen menu on the Sony.
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br /Overall, I am very impressed with this camcorder and would recommend it to anyone.
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I'm about to shoot my first independent film and I looked long and hard for the right camera at the price range I could afford. In the end, I was really torn between this camera and the panasonic PVGS120.
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br /What I was really looking for in a camcorder was good video quality. The canon definitely has better stabilization than the panasonic but what got to me the most was how bad the GS120's picture distorted after 32X or so. The advertized 700 zoom is a waste of time and space not to mention the consumers money. Why have that in when it's almost unbearable to look at?
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br /The next issue was that of the 3ccd in the GS120 versus the one chip of the canon. I must say that if you compare the two side by side (esp after white balancing) you'll see that the Canon can edge out the colors and look that you'll find through the GS120. Impressive for a one chip cam. And besides folks, a 3 chip cam at this price range is too good to be true. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise (the GS200 and 400 are different stories however!).
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br /As a bonus, the Canon has an audio input which helps ME cover all my audio bases. My intention is to use both an external mic and a digital recorder to make sure I get the best sounds to synch with my film. This is highly important because any person who is good at making movies will tell you that sound is as (if not more) important than what the audience sees visually.
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br /The Canon Elura 70 fits nicely in the palm of my hand and feels great. The menu is so easy to use that I got the ins and outs of my cam in an about 2 hrs.
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br /Now for the con which really isn't that major anyways. The backlight sucks. But then again, you shouldn't even be dependant on it. Get a VL 1 or VL 3 flash to go with it and you'll be set. Not a big deal. Using Nightmode blurs the screen and distorts the shutter anyways. Don't bother. It was nice of them to throw it in anyhow :)
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br /So in conclusion, the factors that helped me lean towards the Canon were the stabilizer, the zoom, and the fact that this 1 CCD camera looks just as good as panasonic's 3CCD cam. I hope you enjoy it and it definitely gets my thumbs up. Take care.

Not sure what the reviewer below is talking about but based on his lack of details I imagine it's not a genuine review.Anyway, I spent allot of time researching before buying a camcorder and decided on the Elura 65 -- check out the review of the Elura 70 (the 60, 65, and 70 are basically identical) on http://www.dvspot.com . The Elura 60 didn't have a hot shoe which I knew I would need since most camcorders in this price range do not have a good light -- if any at all. Daytime recording is excellent. Some argue that it's only a single CCD camcorder but it's a large CCD as apposed to the three small CCDs in the Panasonic PV-GS120. The Panasonic was my second choice but I read allot of negative reviews about the image stabilization. The Elura also fits more comfortably in the hand when compared to Panasonic. In addition, the Canon has virtually no tape noise when operating. I highly suggest that you get the double capacity battery BP-2L14, the hot shoe light VL-3, and the portable battery charger CB-2LT. The double capacity battery will last about four hours and adds very little weight to the camera. The supplied batteries drain very quickly. Night shots are notoriously bad for all camcorders in this price range even though some are better than others. The VL-3 light will make a big difference in picture quality at night. Also, the portable charger is more convenient to travel with than the big and cumbersome charger supplied in the box. I can't comment about the reliability yet since I've only had it for a couple of months. But based on my experience with other Canon products it should be good. Enjoy!

Well, choosing between the cameras, and after going for MVX250i (European twin for Elura 70, as I live in Europe), I'd like to point out some really strong sides of the cam: 16:9 is really WIDER than 4:3 (not just cutting upper lower parts only) and is taking full advantage of 1.3 MPixel CCD, which btw, let's the stills be captured to SD card in 1280*960 res.. not bad at all for screen viewing. The optics are absolutely superior in its class, the angle for close-ups IS wide and the optical zoom is remarkable. It HAS mike input, unlike new ZR series (which I was considering at some point), and the motor is much quieter also, comparing to ZR. Its shape size is excellent, it feels solid and is really comfortable to held - thanks to the low height. On table it may seem somehow thick, but to palm it fits perfectly.brIf to mention one con, then in lower light conditions the cam tends to boost the sensitivity of the CCD too much, making picture quite grainy. Also, any faster movement in dark will result in blurry picture. The built in white LED sure does its job well, but the sand in the picture remains... So you'll get some of the advertised colours with the price of noise, the opposite of Sony's night-mode. Sure you can attach external lamp any time ..brAs a conclusion, it seems there is no other cam offering this level of features design at this price.. at the moment. If you are looking for something small capable, this is it. Absolutely no regrets so far..

Well, choosing between the cameras, and after going for MVX250i (European twin for Elura 70, as I live in Europe), I'd like to point out some really strong sides of the cam: 16:9 is really WIDER than 4:3 (not just cutting upper & lower parts only) and is taking full advantage of 1.3 MPixel CCD, which btw, let's the stills be captured to SD card in 1280*960 res.. not bad at all for screen viewing. The optics are absolutely superior in its class, the angle for close-ups IS wide and the optical zoom is remarkable. It HAS mike input, unlike new ZR series (which I was considering at some point), and the motor is much quieter also, comparing to ZR. Its shape & size is excellent, it feels solid and is really comfortable to held - thanks to the low height. On table it may seem somehow thick, but to palm it fits perfectly.If to mention one con, then in lower light conditions the cam tends to boost the sensitivity of the CCD too much, making picture quite grainy. Also, any faster movement in dark will result in blurry picture. The built in white LED sure does its job well, but the sand in the picture remains... So you'll get some of the advertised colours with the price of noise, the opposite of Sony's night-mode. Sure you can attach external lamp any time ..As a conclusion, it seems there is no other cam offering this level of features & design at this price.. at the moment. If you are looking for something small & capable, this is it. Absolutely no regrets so far..

You can find a full review + users opinions on the Elura 70 at www.camcorderinfo.com.brI bought mine at another vendor's site, after carefull research.brLet's just say I consider it the Top Choice for the entry level digital video fan.brCanon is scoring a hit with this year's line of Eluras. In fact, they have announced they even are pulling out of the analog camcorder bussines.brIn my opinion the Elura 70 offers the best package of features and characteristics, compared to the other brand's models on its category (under $1K)

Bought the Elura 70 the moment it was available, paid $700. Used it may 3-4 hours, got it out for the kid's birthday, started having problems with the tape stopping, now it will not accept any tape, constant "eject Cassette" error. 14th month and out of warranty. Seach the internet, you'll find this problem everywhere. $174 minimum to repair, probably/possibly more(with shipping/insurance $200 easily). Oh, and then you get a lovely 3 month warranty after the repair and you cannot purchase a longer warranty from the repair. A minimum of $200 and I get 3 months coverage on $700 unit? Thanks, I'll use that $200 to purchase a quality product instead.

- after about a year, after the warranty expires, that is. Before it broke on me, it was an excellent camcorder, especially for the point-and-shoot crowd. It had manual options that were very handy. Then, of course, it broke.
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br /The tapes started jamming, the DV timecode was severely messed up, it gave odd error messages, and would turn off abruptly. I had maintained it very well, cleaning the heads regularly. The worst part, however, was dealing with Canon Customer Support. If you have never dealt with them before, ... they are bent on vacuuming money out of their customers. It would have cost me just under $200 to have this manufacturing defect repaired. Why spend that much money on a camera that only costs $500 to begin with?
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br /I have found that this problem is common with all of Canon's lower-end camcorder series, including the ZR line and the Elura line. I have not ever had experience with the upper-end cameras like the GL1 or XL1, but through research online they seem to be better engineered. That said, I still will not buy Canon again because their support is so bad.

Don't know about the 70-model, but you might want to take note. I paid $700 for a new Elura 40 about 2 yrs ago. Made about 5 tapes during that time. The other day I decided to transfer them to my Mac for some editing, but the camera wouldn't accept a tape. It kept giving an error saying "Eject Tape", and when I did so, the tape got caught inside. Ruined several of the few tapes I made.
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br /I checked the Elura forums to see if others had experienced something similar. To my amazement, I found lots of folks with the exact same issue. One thread had 40,000 hits. It's obvious there is a design flaw here.
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br /I contacted Canon - even spoke with a supervisor. He said there was no known issue like this. When I mentioned the tons of cases on the forums he said they were made up. Canon has given me a quote of $157 to fix the camera. Remember, I have about 5 hours of use on this $700 paper weight - and I have taken good care of it.
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br /So, buy a Canon if you must, but I would suggest an extended warranty if you do.

Canon stinks when it comes to customer service. I had to sent my Elura70 twice for service within the first 3 months of the purchase. Everytime I call them they come up with different excuses for why my comcorders is not fixed yet...
br /Think twice before buying a Canon....

I am a huge fan of canon and thought they would be reliable with their camcorders as well. This camera lasted for about 1 year... about 10 tapes. Im having the same problems as other users where the tape got caught. I also have problems where the cam zooms by itself with the zoom button internally stuck.
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br /Will cost me 180 to send in. Abosulutely insaine. Stay away from this one and consider something different than Canon.

I purchased the Canon Elura 70 and within 3-4 uses, the camcorder started giving me the "remove the cassette" error message and would not accept the tape. Still under warranty, I had to pay almost $200.00 to send it to Canon repair center. Over the next 12 months, I had to send it in again and again for the same problem as well as problems with the still photo button not working and the zoom lever not working and the camcorder zooming on it's own. Each time after the initial repair, I had to pay shipping and handling and insurance at a cost to me of approx. $16-$18.00 to send in the camcorder. After sending in the camcorder 5x over a period of a year and multible complaints and threats...Canon sent me a brand new Canon elura 70 and now the "New" camcorder is in the Canon Repair Center for problems with the Zoom "zooming on it's own", and the still picture button not working, after only having the camcorder for only 4 months. I'm afraid to use the camcorder for any video because it will give me an error message like the other one did. I am currently looking for a new camcorder with a name brand that is not "CANON" As for depending on this camcorder to video my children's life events as I had planned on when I bought it originally....well, they are growing up and I am missing out on videotaping any and all of them....since the camcorder is in the shop again!

The camcorder I purchased was factory refurbished, hoping all the issues other people have had with the tape mechanism have been fixed. I purchased it with an extended warranty just in case. For the price, the camcorder is a great buy. I wanted the MiniDV style since we're going on a week long vacation and wanted to be sure we could simply pop in a new tape and keep taping without the need to upload data to a computer first. I also wanted the ability to use the camcorder to pass through the analog signals from our older vhs tapes.
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br /We've had the camcorder for a few weeks and so far, everything seems as good or better than expected. Light and dark image quality is very good, as-is the built-in microphone (this camcorder also has an external microphone jack). Image quality when passing the analog signal through is acceptable, with the only breakdown coming when the vhs image is transitioning from dark to light.
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br /The only problem I had was I received a component kit for the wrong camcorder, so half the parts were missing and I had the instruction manual from a completely different model line (again, factory refurbished and factory sealed - so definitely a Canon issue). ElectronicsClub, my Amazon retailer, quickly took care of the issue.

Not sure of all of these problems people are having, but i bought my Elura 70 about 4 years ago from [...] and have recorded about 10 tapes before i lost my charger last year. I have carried this camcorder overseas twice now, and it worked flawlessly on 220 electricy (with converter).. Can't really complain about it except that it cost me around $[...] 4 years ago, wasn't cheap. I just got a new charger and it works fine, without any tape glitches or error messages. Hope to keep it around for another couple of years.

Out of the box, the Elura 70 is fabulous. Amazing shots, nice 18x optical zoom, and great image stabilization. But after recording about eight tapes, the camera started to reject tapes when insterted. The error message "Remove the cassette" always appeared and the tape ejected immediately. Now the camera is unusable. Each time I put in a brand new tape the camera will start up, spin some wheels, and then stop the wheels, and eject the tape. I have tried an off-the-shelf mini-DV head cleaner, but that didn't work. Please, beware of this camera.

I had an Elura 50, it had the worst problem in all the camborders I owned. It randomly gave you a 'remove cassette' message, and you can not close the chamber.
br /Search the internet, and you will find Canon has lots of complaint about this problem.

I bought my Canon Elura 70 and after four hours of use (4 one-hour tapes recorded) the tape compartment refused to close. The camera was sent to Canon Factory Service for repair. Canon has the most horrible customer service I have ever seen in my life. I sent the camera and never received any feedback from Canon. An entire month passed and they didn't sent me a single email nor a single phone call to acknowledge the receipt of the camara. I called them many times. In the fourth time, an enlightened sould gave me my order # and they found the camera. They shipped the camera back to me but after a few recordings, the tape compartment was not closing again. My Canon Elura 70 will now go to where it deserves most: the garbage bin. I will never again in my life buy anything from these crooks. There is one word that defines what Canon products are: CRAP. If you are in the market for a Digital Camcorder I would strongly recommend you to stay away from the Canon Eluras. Go for a SONY. SONY products are more expensive than the Canon Elura 70, but believe me, they will save you a lot of headaches.