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Model
|
| Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| Picture ? | | |
| Manufacturer | Canon 
| Sanyo
|
| Name | HF M306 | Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| European name ? | Legria HF M306 | Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| US name ? | HF M306 | Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| lowest US price | 400 $ | 399 $ |
| On the market since | March 2010 | April 2009 |
| Manufacturers URL | link to Canon | link to Sanyo |
|
|
Test preview
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| slashCAM rating ? | Good
 | not yet tested |
| test picture 1200 Lux | |  |
| Test image 12 lux auto-mode | |  |
Video
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| Video formats ? | AVCHD
| MPEG4/AVC
|
| Recording Medium | SDHC card
| SDHC card
|
| video resolutions EU ? | AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i AVCHD 1920 x 1080/25p
| AVC/h.264 1920 x 1080/60i AVC/H.264 1920 x 1080/30p 720p60 AVC/H.264 720p30 AVC/H.264 AVC/H.264 1920 x 1080/60p
|
| video resolutions US ? | AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i AVCHD 1920 x 1080/24p AVCHD 1920 x 1080/30p
| AVC/h.264 1920 x 1080/60i AVC/H.264 1920 x 1080/30p 720p60 AVC/H.264 720p30 AVC/H.264 AVC/H.264 1920 x 1080/60p
|
| Max Bitrate ? | 24 Mbit/s | 24 Mbit/s |
| Compression format ? | MPEG4
| MPEG4
|
| on-board memory ? | | |
| Optics |
| Optics Manufacturer ? | Canon
| |
| Optical Zoom ? | 15 x | 10 x |
| Wide Angle 16:9 ? | 39,5 mm | 42 mm |
| Filter diameter ? | 37 mm | 40,5 mm |
| Image Stabilization ? | optically and electronically
| electronical
|
| ND Filter ? | No
| No
|
| Exchangable optics ? | No
| No
|
| Image Sensor |
| Number of sensors ? | 1 | 1 |
| Size of image sensor ? | 1/4 inch | 1/2,5 inch |
| image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ? | 2990000 Pixel | 5310000 Pixel |
| Image Sensor Type ? | CMOS
| CMOS
|
| Controls |
| White Balance ? | auto manual presets
| auto manual presets
|
| Focus ? | auto manual
| auto manual
|
| Minimum shutter time ? | 1/2.000 | 1/10.000 |
| Maximum shutter time ? | 1/2 | 1/30 |
| Apperture control ? | auto manual
| auto manual
|
| Infrared recording ? | No
| No
|
| Expanded Focus ? | Yes
| No
|
| Peaking ? | No
| No
|
| Signal Processing |
| Zebra ? | No
| No
|
| Histogram ? | No
| No
|
| adjustable sharpness ? | Yes
| No
|
| Adjustable color ? | Yes
| No
|
| Cinegamma ? | Yes
| No
|
| Black Strech ? | No
| No
|
| Knee ? | No
| No
|
| Colorbars ? | No
| No
|
| Misc. |
| Shot Transition ? | No
| No
|
| Custom Presets ? | No
| No
|
| Set Time Code ? | No
| No
|
Configuration
|
| Connections |
| [ top ] | Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
FBAS ? synonymous: RCA, composite | Out
| Out
|
YC ? synonymous: S-Video | No
| Out
|
YUV ? synonymous: Component Signal | Out
| Out
|
| HDMI ? | Out mini
| Out
|
DV / HDV (FireWire) ? synonymous: ILink / IEEE-1394 | - | - |
| USB ? | USB 2.0
| USB 2.0
|
| Microphone / Audio input ? | Mini-jack No
| No
|
| Headphones ? | also AV-output
| No
|
| Lanc ? | No
| No
|
| Time-code interface ? | No
| No
|
| Genlock ? | No
| No
|
| Accessory shoe ? | Advanced Mini
| No
|
| HD-SDI ? | No
| No
|
| Misc. |
| Weight (without battery) | 320 g | 299 g |
| Weight (with battery) | 380 g | 342 g |
| Battery type | Canon BP-808
| Sanyo DB-L50
|
| Battery capacity | 890 mAh | 1900 mAh |
| Charger ? | internal
| internal
|
| Remote control | Yes
| Yes
|
| Size |
| Height | 60 mm | 53 mm |
| Width | 68 mm | 57 mm |
| Depth | 123 mm | 105 mm |
| Relative Size ? | 5 | 3 |
| Viewfinder |
| Viewfinder available ? | No
| No
|
| Color Viewfinder ? | - | - |
| Viewfinder format ? | - | - |
| Viewfinder pixels ? | | |
| Display |
| Display available ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Color display ? | Color
| Color
|
| Display size | 2,7 Inch | 3,0 Inch |
| Display format ? | 16:9 | 16:9 |
| Display pixels ? | 211000 Pixel | 230000 Pixel |
| Touch Screen ? | Yes
| No
|
| External controls |
| Manual Zoom ? | Rocker
| Rocker
|
| Manual Focus ? | Menu
| Joystick
|
| Manual Aperture ? | Menu
| Joystick
|
| Focus switcher ? | No
| No
|
| ND Filter ? | No
| No
|
| Exp Lock ? | No
| No
|
| Gain ? | No
| No
|
| White balance ? | No
| No
|
| Push AF ? | No
| No
|
| Audio Levels ? | No
| No
|
Custom Keys ? synonymous: User buttons | No
| 4 |
Audio
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| Audio Formats ? | Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz
| AAC Stereo
|
| Microphone ? | Stereo internal
| Stereo internal
|
| Audio Control ? | auto manual
| auto
|
| Audio levels ? | Screen
| No
|
Still
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| Recording Medium ? | SDHC card
| SD Card
|
| Medium included ? | No
| No
|
| Effective pixels ? | | 8000000 Pixel |
| Resolutions ? | 2304 x 1296 - Max
| 4000 x 3000 - Max
|
| Standard ? | JPEG Exif 2.2
| JPEG Exif 2.2
|
| Flash ? | Yes
| Yes
|
Misc.
|
| [ top ] | Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| Specials | | Adjustable ISO modi USB storage directly connectable |
Product Shots
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| [ top ] | Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| View 1 | | |
| View 2 | | |
Test results
|
| Test pictures |
| [ top ] | Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| luminance resolution | |  |
| chrominance resolution | |  |
| lens distortion | |  |
| test small ISO image | |  |
| noise / internal microphone | |  |
| test picture 1200 Lux | |  |
| Test image 12 lux auto-mode ? | |  |
| Test image 12 lux optimized ? | |  |
| slashCAM rating |
| Lowlight ? | Satisfactory | |
| Resolution ? | Good | |
| Color performance ? | Very good | |
| subj.Picture impression ? | Very good | |
| Optical Zoom ? | Satisfactory | |
| Wide Angle ? | Satisfactory | |
| Configuration / image ? | Satisfactory | |
| Configuration / sound ? | Sufficient | |
| Handling ? | Good | |
| Portability ? | Excellent | |
| Photo function ? | Satisfactory | |
| Optics ? | Good | |
| Dynamics ? | Good | |
| Conclusion slashCAM |
| slashCAM rating ? | Good
 | not yet tested |
Total score ? (maximal 570) | 361 | |
| Pros | + Many manual controls
| + Many manual controls + Adjustable ISO modi + USB memory stick can be connected directly for archiving purposes
|
| Cons | - No Zebra
| - Automatic mode - Image stabilisation - vertical resolution in 60i mode - handling - wide angle - 60Hz modi only
|
| Conclusion | A big drawback from the previous series has been fixed: setting the focus works much better thanks to the touch screen.But overall the operation is still somewhat fiddly at certain points.The large display of the upcoming HF S series will thus come in handy. On the minus side we have the low light capabilities, the missing zebra mode and the small wide angle.A plus is the lowered price, as well as the cinegamma/25p-mode and the fact, that the camera, given enough light, produces very consistent images in the auto mode. | |
More information
|
| Reviews and Forums |
| [ top ] | Canon HF M306 | Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 |
| slashCAM Review | | |
| external reviews/tests | | |
| Forum posts | Canon HF M306 vs Panasonic SD-707 = more worth the price?
[Purchase]: Canon HF 200 vs. M306 vs Canon HF. Panasonic SD66
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