Everything i bought before or after(ie. Canon legria HF S10 $1600 what a heap of s..t)was rubish.Tell you what,this camera takes a very very clear picture from close as 10 centimeters to far as 50 meters when you zoom in.It has more features than most videocameras under $2000 today(in year 2012)It has a black&white view finder where you can stick your eye on,or not and no one can tell if you are recording or not + uses very little power,a feature I have not seen on any camera for years!Makes no noise at all when you turn it on or off(unlike todays junks going off&on with big bing-bang,clip-clap noise notifying every one within 15 meters that your camera is on)