Canon's consumer camcorders make the big leap from HD to 4K with the latest Vixia / Legria all-in-one video cameras
Canon has unwrapped a new generation of affordable camcorders that can shoot at 4K resolution Launched at NAB, the major trade show for the broadcast industry, the new new flagship consumer model is the Vixia HF G60 if you are in North America – but will be called the Legria HF G60 if you are in Europe.
The Legria / Vixia HF G60 features a large one-inch 4K sensor and has a built-in 15x optical zoom. The CMOS 13.4MP sensor features Dual Pixel autofocus which is already featured on Canon's DSLR but which is designed for high-speed focus tracking when recording video.
Dual memory slot
The lens has an effective focal length of 25.5-382.5mm with a maximum aperture of f/2.8-4.5. A digital zoom function stretches the focal range from 15x right up to 300x – and the minimum focusing distance is 10mm at the wide end of the zoom. The lens has a nine-blade circular diaphragm for smooth out-of-focus bokeh, and there is a built-in optical stabilizer.
A welcome feature of the camcorder is that it has two SDXC card slots for recording footage onto. It measures 125 x 91 x 265mm and weighs in at 1135g.
The camera has a 3in 460-dot vari-angle touchscreen LCD, in addition to a 0.24in 1.56m dot eyelevel viewfinder. The unit comes with HDMI, headphone, microphone and USB ports. It's a sign that the traditional camcorder market is still alive and kicking, and the best camcorders still have a lot of appeal for filmmakers.
Canon Legria / Vixia HF G60 will be joined in Europe with the addition of the Canon Legria HF G50 (the equivalent Canon Vixia HF G50 was unveiled at CES for the American market back in January).
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The G50 varies from the G60 by having a smaller 1/2.3in 4K sensor different lens with longer 20x f/1.8-2.8 zoom range and an eight-bladed iris. It does not benefit from the Dual Pixel CMOS AF system.
Pricing and availability
The G50 will sell for £1,049.99 / $1,099 and will go on sale in April
The price for the one-inch-sensored Legria / Vixia HF G60 will be £1,599.99 / $1, 699 from April.
Chris George has worked on Digital Camera World since its launch in 2017. He has been writing about photography, mobile phones, video making and technology for over 30 years – and has edited numerous magazines including PhotoPlus, N-Photo, Digital Camera, Video Camera, and Professional Photography.
His first serious camera was the iconic Olympus OM10, with which he won the title of Young Photographer of the Year - long before the advent of autofocus and memory cards. Today he uses a Nikon D800, a Fujifilm X-T1, a Sony A7, and his iPhone 15 Pro Max.
He has written about technology for countless publications and websites including The Sunday Times Magazine, The Daily Telegraph, Dorling Kindersley, What Cellphone, T3 and Techradar.
