Best camcorder upgrade from the Canon Vixia HF R800?

erzeek — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 13:20:53 GMT

Hi guys,

Looking for some purchasing advice.

I picked up a Canon Vixia HF R800 a few years ago when I was considering picking up video and YouTubeing as a hobby. I went for that camera as it was cheap but from a decent manufacturer and featured an external mic input (3.5mm jack). I figured it was a great safe bet to see whether I would actually use it.

A few years later and I'm really enjoying learning about video. I think it's probably time for an upgrade. Even though I realize they've kind of fallen out of favor, I would love to stick with camcorders rather than DSLRs or mirrorless. I like the idea of a workhorse / dedicated video tool.

Deficits of my current camera that I guess it would be good to remedy:

The battery life is short and there's only one OEM battery that takes ages to charge.

No cold shoes.

An internal light would be super handy so that I have less stuff to rig up.

Ideally I'd be looking for something small enough to fit on a gimbal. I currently use the Ronin SC.

Is there anything that would both represent a step up from the Vixia while also meeting those requirements?

Thank you!

Re: Best camcorder upgrade from the Canon Vixia HF R800?

Mark35mmF2 — Wed, 27 Apr 2022 06:35:22 GMT

Hi there,

Based on what you describe it sounds like moving up to the XA series of professional camcorders would be a good route to take. The XA40 can use extended battery packs and will have more capability with other accessories, but as far as I can tell there are not any similar cameras with a built in LED light so something like that would still be external.

https://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/xa40-professional-camcorder?searchTerm=XA40

topic Re: Best camcorder upgrade from the Canon Vixia HF R800? in Camcorders

Best camcorder upgrade from the Canon Vixia HF R800?

Re: Best camcorder upgrade from the Canon Vixia HF R800?