Sorry to hijack the thread a lil' bit, but I just wanted to say I completely agree with you about Canon Canada's customer support (or lack thereof). I live in Quebec city, and the only way I can repair a Canon camcorder is by sending it by mail to the Service Center near Montreal. And wait for about a month and a half to get it back. I had to send my XL2 2 times, and the two times I waited way too long for something that would've taken 2-3 weeks top with Panasonic or Sony tech support in my city. All the head of the service dept. in Montreal could tell me was that they were sorry and they'd try to go faster next time. Well, when I needed to get a HD cam, I went with the HPX170 instead of the XL-H1. One of the reasons to go to another company was that I sure as hell didn't want to wait that long ever again for a repair from Canon.

Mark, when you say Canon needs not only create a cam that can compete but also up its customer support in Canada, I'm 100% behind you. I really hope reps from Canon are reading this : I really love Canon products but unfortunately they lost me as a customer. Not forever though ; I might come back later if customer service problems are taken care of (and if Canon creates an XL-H2 or something else that kicks the HPX170's @$$) :-)

Just my 2 cents, sorry for the hijack!

...Salut Gabriel ! Je comprends toi exactement ! For me, it wasn't just the service issue alone - It was the arrogant attitude and lack of respect for the customer - repeat customer I might add ! As I wrote earlier in this thread, it was the extra $800.00 hefty price for the Canon Console Software after paying 12 Grand for my second Canon camera which did it for me. Either a) the software should have been included in the box with the H1 for the purchase price of the camera, or b) The purchase price of the software should have been considerably less expensive.

Some companies, when they know they have a good product, and they sense a strong patronage for their product, can become very smug and full of themselves. This attitude quickly becomes part of their corporate dealings with customers and permeates everything they do. Clients like you and me, on the other hand, pick up on this right away and it can eventually sour one on a product. I hear you my friend, I understand where you coming from. It can be nauseating to deal with a company who thinks their product is so good that they can do no wrong. There is a company like that who interacts on this website.

As long as we're talking about Canon service, I have to say that I consider it odious that I can't get my XL2 serviced for even basic things, like a headcleaning, for instance, in my area. The local electronic shop can service Panasonic, but not Canon. For something that basic, I really can't see why I have to send it off to the Canon service center.