If your heart is set on a DVD camcorder but your budget is firmly fixed at a MiniDV price point, Canon may have a solution with its DC100, an entry-level model in its new line of DVD camcorders. The DC100 sits below the DC10 in terms of both price and, inevitably, performance. For a DVD camcorder, however, this unit is one of the least expensive available and should appeal to budget consumers and point-and-shoot advocates seeking a simple and cost-effective way to record video to disc.

The DC100 records video and stills directly to write-once DVD-R and rewriteable DVD-RW. The design is very similar to the DC10, albeit fractionally larger, but it still remains a highly portable unit that handles comfortably. Unfortunately, the DC100 lacks the user-friendly joystick control of the DC10. While the DC100 delivers video images that exhibit good sharpness, the colors can appear slightly muted even in favorable shooting conditions. Video noise also becomes more apparent in lower-light conditions. That can be attributed to the DC100's smaller imager, a 1/6-inch CCD that delivers 340,000 effective pixels for video in 4:3 mode and up to 450,000 pixels in 16:9 widescreen mode, depending on whether or not the digital image stabilization system is engaged.

The DC100's 25X optical/1,000X digital zoom works smoothly and effectively. Point-and-shoot enthusiasts will appreciate the Auto mode that should have even novice users shooting usable video straight out of the box. As a digital stills camera, though, the DC100 will surely disappoint. It does enable you to capture stills to disc, but it lacks a built-in memory card slot.

While the DC100 is an inexpensive and functional DVD camcorder, the next model up in the Canon line, the DC10, offers improved performance and a better navigation system. If your budget allows, we'd suggest you invest the extra money in that DVD camcorder model instead.

Pros:  Inexpensive for a DVD camcorder, includes 16:9 widescreen mode
Cons:  Poor low-light performance, stripped-down feature set

Warranty
1 year parts and labor