Canon HF R21 Review

Introduction

The HF R21 carries an MSRP of $499, but it has two cheaper sibling models. The HF R20 (8GB internal flash memory) is available for $399 and the HF R200 (no internal memory) has is just $379.

Design & Usability

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The first entry-level camcorder from Canon to offer a touchscreen interface.

The HF R21 comes with a comfortable hand strap and the camcorder features a compact, yet balanced design. This isn't a pocket-cam, though, but merely a petite traditional camcorder that you won't have trouble fitting in a large purse or small camera bag. Even with its comfortable design, the HF R21 didn't provide much confidence when it comes to durability, as the plastic body felt cheap to the touch.

There aren't too many buttons on the camcorder, and the four located on the left side (in the area where the LCD panel rests) are rarely used. The lack of physical buttons on the camcorder means the touchscreen interface is integral to using the HF R21. This is the first year that Canon included a touchscreen on its entry-level line, and the screen works relatively well.

I wasn't happy to see the R21 has an enclosed battery compartment, as this makes it impossible to use the camcorder with a larger battery pack. This kind of limits the helpfulness of the R21's large amount of internal memory (32GB) and dual memory card slots. Even if you load the camcorder up so you can record for many hours, you'll still have to replace the battery pack or plug in the camcorder at some point.

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Features

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A lot of miscellaneous controls and features are scattered throughout the R21's menu system.

If you like to control everything manually, then the HF R21 is not going to win you over. The camcorder mostly relies on automatic controls to capture a video image, although you will find basic focus and exposure adjustment options. That doesn't mean the HF R21 isn't loaded with features, however, as the camcorder has plenty of random functions and controls. Some are silly, like digital effects and decorations, but others are very useful. The camcorder's Cine Mode, which can be used in conjunction with the R21's 24p frame rate to create a film-like aesthetic, is one of these useful features, as is the 20x optical zoom capability of the camcorder's lens.

Random controls abound as you dig deeper into the HF R21's menu system. There's a flicker reduction setting to, well, reduce flicker caused when recording monitors, televisions, or some fluorescent lights, and there are a variety of automatic scene modes to play around with. The camcorder also has a pre-record function that ensures you won't miss any of the action. With pre-record engaged, the HD R21 starts recording three seconds before you hit the record button. Sounds crazy, for sure, but this feature is actually being implemented on lots of camcorders these days.

Performance

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Performance doesn't get much better than this for under $500.

The quality of the video captured by the Canon HF R21 is very good for a sub-$500 camcorder. It isn’t on the same level as $1000 camcorders, but the HD images are crisp and the low light performance is solid for an entry-level model. If you're not super picky about image quality, then the HF R21 will be fine for your shooting needs. But if you're serious about capturing excellent HD video, then you'll have to spend more money.

Conclusion

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A great camcorder for simple home movies, vacations, or YouTube—but it's not ideal for amateur filmmakers.

If you’re looking for a low-cost HD camcorder, you essentially have two options: an ultracompact “pocket” cam that is about the size of a cellphone, or a more traditional budget camcorder like the Canon Vixia HF R21. The HF R21 certainly isn’t as portable as its tiny competitors, but it has a more features and its video performance is far superior. This makes the HF R21 the ideal camcorder for someone who has used a camcorder before and isn’t afraid of new technology, but carries no illusions of being a professional videographer.

Ease of use is paramount with the HF R21, but the camcorder also has a few advanced controls that are worth checking out. There are a couple cinematic settings (including an alternate frame rate) to help you achieve a film-like aesthetic, plus fantastic audio controls for an entry-level camcorder. If you’re looking for extensive manual controls—like the ability to adjust shutter speed or aperture—the Canon HF R21 is not the camcorder for you. Some entry-level models, like the Samsung HMX-H300, do have the ability to adjust these controls, but Canon left the option off the R21.

Science Introduction

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It seems that Canon forgot to tell the HF R21 that it's an entry-level camcorder, as it certainly doesn't perform like one. The HF R21 performed admirably in all of our tests, and, while it never produced amazing results, it didn't fail any of our tests either. Color accuracy was strong, low light performance was decent, and sharpness levels were just as good as the competition. The camcorder struggled a bit with battery life and stabilization, but even with those tests the HF R21 outperformed its predecessor (the HF R11).

Color Performance

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Accurate colors in all kinds of light

Canon must have made some changes to the color rendering on the HF R21, as the new camcorder did far better than last year's HF R11 in our color accuracy tests. The R21 measured a color error of 3.13—that’s nearly a point lower than the R11—and a decent, but not overly-vivid, saturation level of 81.28%. In low light, the R21 continued to show improvement over its predecessor. The camcorder managed a color error of 4.14, which is far better than the competition, but its 69% saturation level was (again) a bit lower than we'd like. With the HF R21, you'll surely get accurate colors, but if you’re looking for incredibly vivid tones you may want to look at other camcorders.

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Battery Life Performance

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Battery life wasn't very good, but it's the design of the R21's battery compartment that really hurts the camcorder.

The Canon HF R21 didn’t do a great job in our battery life test. The camcorder was able to continually record for 83 minutes, which is much worse than the competition from JVC and Sony. Surprisingly, this 83-minute performance is actually better than Canon's HF R11 from last year (a very disappointing 71-minute battery life).

Making matters worse, the Canon HF R21 has an enclosed battery compartment. So, if you want to load the camcorder up with a larger battery pack for longer-lasting performance, that’s not even a possibility. Most other entry-level models, other than pocket-cams, have open-ended battery compartments that can accommodate larger battery packs. Canon's decision to not include this feature was a poor one.

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Low Light Sensitivity

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Most budget camcorders struggle in low light, but the HF R21 sits at the top of its class in this test.

Low light sensitivity results for the HF R21 weren’t great, but the camcorder was the best of its class in this test, so its performance is still commendable. The camcorder needed 12 lux of light to record a passable video image when shooting with enough optical zoom to frame our test chart. Compare this to the JVC GZ-HM450’s need for 19 lux of light to obtain the same results with the same settings (or the Samsung HMX-H300’s need for 23 lux). The Canon HF R11 needed just a tiny bit more light than its successor—13 lux—to reach 50 IRE on our waveform monitor.

Because the HF R21 has multiple frame rate options for recording Full HD video, we tested the low light sensitivity of the camcorder using each rate. The PF30 mode required just 5 lux of light to reach the same levels that the camcorder’s 60i mode needed 12 lux for. The PF30 mode did even better, needing just 4 lux of light.

Without using any optical zoom, which allows the HF R21 to take full advantage of its widest aperture setting, the camcorder needed 9 lux of light to hit 50 IRE on our waveform monitor using the 60i frame rate. This is a slight improvement over the 12 lux performance that the camcorder registered with zoom, but it isn’t as dramatic as the increases we’ve seen from Sony camcorders that have very wide-angle lenses. Overall, the Canon HF R21 did very well in this test for an entry-level camcorder, and the fact that its results were extremely good using its PF24 and PF30 frame rates should please users who are planning on shooting with these alternate frame rate options.

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