OK, got you. :-)
BTW, MX300 was known as a fine cam and IN fact I was considering such (or MX350) just prior to maiking my mind for GS100. Perhaps if I cuold be able to located MX300 or MX350 (PAL versions fo either) for reasonable pricing prior to making final decision for GS100 I would go with MX300/350.

Moreover, my best bet would be even MX8 if the one could still be located for reasoanble money and covered by Pana warranty. In fact I was able to figure such in Russia by internet and it was available in Moscow, but in excess of 1300 US$. For this money range I still think GS100 was and still prsent unbeatable choice.

Alex

This Xi is listed at under $1200 at Adorama.com and B&H says contact them for their special price (they can't list it on the web site because they're an authorized dealer for Canon, I think). Interesting how fast the msrp has been undercut to the under $1500 range. I hope it bodes well for the next round of camcorders - maybe the ones with the cup holders discussed in another thread.

I always wondered why there were no 3-CCD digital cameras.

When I bought a Nikon D1, I was impressed, but the color was not steller. When I sold it and got a Canon 10D, I was shocked! How could a single chip be this amazing? Canon completely crushed everyone with their CMOS sensor (people thought CMOS would never have good quality).

Anyway, I saw some Xi stills on the web and the color had the same look as my 10D SLR -- the only difference was the somewhat lower resolution. The stills were vastly better than the 953 for two reasons:

1. The 953 has just 0.8 MP resolution and they upsample it 4 to 1. I had to shrink the 953 images down to 1000x750 in order for the artifacts to go away.

2. The 953 had a lack of depth and clarity and the images were very oil painting like.

Compare them yourself:

http://www.dvspot.com/reviews/canon/optura_xi-review/index.shtml

http://www.dvspot.com/reviews/panasonic/pv_dv953-review/index.shtml

Now I have not used these cameras, but I assume that whatever made the Xi have much better still quality will result in it also having better video quality.

<<<-- Originally posted by Patricia Kim : This Xi is listed at under $1200 at Adorama.com and B&H says contact them for their special price (they can't list it on the web site because they're an authorized dealer for Canon, I think).-->>>

You don't need to contact them. You just need to click on some link. They sell it for $1130 now with free shipping.