Shoot Review  Canon XL H1
VideoSystems By D. W. Leitner 
HDV camcorder is keen on optics and 24fps. Of the first crop of professionalized HDV camcorders with 1/3in. sensors, only the latest, Canon's XL H1, can claim to have been created by a lens manufacturer. Canon kept the familiar “chainsaw†profile of the XL series for the new XL H1 and added useful I/O functionality for the HDV camcorder. Four BNC connectors for timecode in and out, genlock, and HD-SDI comprise the Professional Jackpack. This is a meaningful distinction. With fixed-lens HDV camcorders retailing for less than $5,000  2/3in. HD lenses are typically $20,000 alone  HDV camcorder design has necessitated compromise and trade-off, optics included. Depending on how you look at it, a $5,000 HD camcorder is either a modern-day miracle or a collection of technical concessions to the mass marketing of affordable HD. (It's both, of course.) read more...
HDV camcorder is keen on optics and 24fps. Of the first crop of professionalized HDV camcorders with 1/3in. sensors, only the latest, Canon's XL H1, can claim to have been created by a lens manufacturer. Canon kept the familiar “chainsaw†profile of the XL series for the new XL H1 and added useful I/O functionality for the HDV camcorder. Four BNC connectors for timecode in and out, genlock, and HD-SDI comprise the Professional Jackpack. This is a meaningful distinction. With fixed-lens HDV camcorders retailing for less than $5,000  2/3in. HD lenses are typically $20,000 alone  HDV camcorder design has necessitated compromise and trade-off, optics included. Depending on how you look at it, a $5,000 HD camcorder is either a modern-day miracle or a collection of technical concessions to the mass marketing of affordable HD. (It's both, of course.) read more...