Hands-on with Canon's TX1 hybrid still-camcorder

We got a chance to check out Canon's bizarre TX1 hybrid still camera / camcorder -- something we were both looking forward to and disappointed by. Why disappointed? Well, as excited as the steady-handed form factor and 10x optical zoom makes us, the 720p recording in Motion JPEG kind of kills our ideas for using this thing as a video workhorse. Still, definitely worth checking out the gallery.

Gallery: Hands-on with Canon's TX1 hybrid still-camcorder

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[Simon P @ Mar 8th 2007 4:15PM]

I'm looking forward to this. I can live with motion JPEG and I can live with 14 mins of high-def for shooting short clips of my kid before dumping it off. Can't wait for this.

[Bernie from Germany @ Apr 3rd 2007 7:10PM]

The problem starts with the look of the tx1. Some find it ugly, some consider it being state-of-the-art. Well, at first I wondered what this upright cam-thing was. After looking at it for a long time, I saw: it's just the miracle I was waiting for. It is not the super-high-end camera, not the endlessly recording tool for producing endlessly boring 'home movies'. The tx1 is just a brilliant companion for your everyday life, producing both pictures and short movie impressions at an ultimate peak of perfection. It's a stroke of genius and I want it because I LIKE IT.

[RIGGY @ Apr 30th 2007 5:15PM]

I Have this camera and would comment as follows...
I have an Ixus 850 that beats it on photos & a Panasonic 120 3CCD that beats it on video.
The only thing going for it is it sizes...it suffers from soft focusing taking time to give crisp images on occasion when moving, in all formats...oh and don't switch the continiues focus off or it gets a lot worse.
If you already have two decent forms of captue, you will be disapointed with everything bar the size! My feelings are mixed, I had hoped for slightly better on the vedio, which is why I bought it.

[yzkbug @ Mar 8th 2007 4:38PM]

Please don't dump your kid ;)

[Simon P @ Mar 8th 2007 4:45PM]

damn. somebody figured out i was talking about my kid and not the video files.....rumbled....

[Scott @ Mar 8th 2007 5:03PM]

Is there suppose to be an article here? I just see pictures. Why was engadget disappointed?

[Chris @ Mar 8th 2007 5:28PM]

Yeah - why the disappointment? Motion jpeg is fine - its similar to the compression in miniDV video cameras - it's completely intra-frame, with no temporal compression like the various mpeg formats, making for easier editing work. iMovie, etc, all handle these intra-field formats without a problem, and the quality can be outstanding (depending on allowed bit-rate).

Don't be disappointed! :)

[Z @ Mar 8th 2007 5:34PM]

It sounds like they were disappointed by not only the poor choice of recording format (read: mediocre video quality), but very likely the 13 minute recording limit, as well (as these two things go hand in hand).

These are the two main things I thought made this camera a disappointment.

[Martin Yu @ Mar 8th 2007 5:34PM]

Question about M-JPEG: the big issue is that it's not as compressible as MPEG2, right? But it is used for its low processor overhead. Is it worse quality? I don't mind carrying a pocketful of SD cards if the quality is good.

[Tony Bowman @ Mar 8th 2007 6:23PM]

let me see 2 or three undoctored(sure edit for length and content, but gimme raw image capture) videos this thing produces and i'm sold on it. the formfactor is perfect, and i've no interest in shooting more than about 10 minutes of video at a time anyway. as long as it's got pretty good(not asking for perfect here) stills, this will be my next camera.

[Pingspike @ Mar 8th 2007 9:24PM]

Like many I'd prefer to see an actual video this thing gives before rendering an opinion about how good or bad it 'should' be given its specs etc.
I have been waiting a while for this thing to hit stores as it sounds very promising.
I was going to go for the Sanyo before I saw this thing, but judging by the video shown at Akiharabanews: http://www.akihabaranews.com/en/review-62-Sanyo+DMX-HD1%2C+everything+except+for+HD%2C+the+disappointment.html
I'll wait for a TX1 review. Both cos the Sanyo's quality is disgusting and the TX1 is cheaper (yeah I'm a cheap git)

[Min Thu @ Mar 9th 2007 12:17AM]

Any sample HD video clips available to watch? I am very much interested in Canon TX1.

[kronium @ Mar 9th 2007 5:42AM]

I welcome MJPEG. Especially since the TX1 has a bitrate of 35Mbits/s. I'm sick of compressed HD using MPEG. It still may be possible to record past 13 minutes, just video may be broken up into multiple files. Easy to recombine. The following Japanese page has a review, and sample video. Look for the file ezsm1.avi
http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/av/docs/20070307/zooma298.htm

Gizmodo was impressed with the camera, especially the build quality. Here's the main reason why I already pre-ordered on Amazon: http://www.sizeasy.com/page/comp/754

[Edwin @ Apr 1st 2007 11:55AM]

Bizarre?!? Video workhorse?!?

This is not intended to bring an end to the camcorder market, it is intended put HD video capabilities in your pocket. Just as pocket sized cameras are not intended to replace SRLs, pocket cams should not be judged by their ability to replace a camcorder. They should be evaluated by their ability to capture impromptu short film moments.

"It's like you're dreamin' about Gorgonzola cheese when it's clearly Brie time, baby."

As to which video capture format is better for a pocket cam, I prefer JMPEG as it offers superior frame capture over MPEG4. I love the ability to grab high quality stills from video sequences that are candid and uncomposed. There are too many occasions when cameras and camcorders have failed to serve me in that way.

"Leave it to a dago to bring a knife to a gun fight."

If you need more than 26 minutes (8GB card) of video capture, it's typically something important. Why would you knowingly bring the limitations of a pocket cam into that situation? I would not want to be stuck holding a pocket cam that long, anyway. There are times when a dedicated camcorder is the order of the day; times when you should also have a tripod, an external mic, and a good idea of the shots you want. For everything else, there will be a TX1 in my pocket. As my two pockets also have to hold my wallet, phone, and iPod the TX1 is barely small enough for my carry everywhere needs.

[Bernie from Germany @ Apr 3rd 2007 7:23PM]

Further Insights:

http://www.akihabaranews.com/en/review-75-PowerShot+TX1%3A+Getting+started+with+the+first+Canon+HD+camcorder.html

Bytheway : The assumed "Inaccessible" photo button is accessible. For shure ;-)

[Sec @ Apr 11th 2007 12:52AM]

"If you need more than 26 minutes (8GB card) of video capture"

Is that 26min at full resolution?

[Karl @ Apr 11th 2007 4:17PM]

What no Auto Exposure bracketing??
I would think every digital cam would offer this feature!! I would buy the tx1 for sure if it offered this.

[Cedric Chang @ Apr 29th 2007 2:09PM]

I like everything about this except the the lack of an external microphone. Also, it would be fantastic if Canon let you choose ( select between ) the compression method you wanted to use ( MJPEG or MPEG4 ).
Does anyone know where the microphone is located ?

[Istok @ May 16th 2007 5:50PM]

I just watched the video that those dudes from Akihabaranews did and wow that was good, I'm sold!
As was said earlier, for quick videos this is awesome. I wouldnt tape my daughters wedding with this but catching your drunk uncle make a fool out of himself at a family event- priceless.

[balazer @ May 31st 2007 1:24PM]

Several users in the forums at dpreview.com have analyzed the 1280 x 720 video output of the Canon TX1 and determined that the effective resolution is no better than 848 x 480 or so. Indeed, it appears that the camera is upsampling internally.

This is a shameful bit of dishonest marketing on Canon's part, and they shouldn't be allowed to get away with it - especially when their choice to upsample to 1280 x 720 is actually worse for the user, producing huge files that suffer from more compression noise.

The Canon TX1 should be judged against other 848 x 480-video cameras such as the Panasonic TZ3 and Casio EX-V7.