Outstanding buy!

This is the top-of-the-line for Canon's consumer-grade Mini DV cams. The quality is excellent for this price range. I've made a number of DVDs from footage I've shot, and they look great on a big TV. The mic captures the sound well, and the camera is easy to operate.

The remote control works well. Recommend a high-capacity battery for regular use although battery life is very good.

Fits in the hand well and is small enough to easily fit in a pocket. Stills and video easily transfer to a computer.

The zoom range is very long and will require a tripod for steady results at the long end.

I've used it for family events, traveling, and just for having fun in general. The ZR950 is a great value for the money.

It has some hokey special effects like sepia tone, etc., but I have no need for gimmicks. Things like that are best left to post-production.

On the down side, it uses USB for transferring stills to a computer and FireWire for transfering video. Doesn't matter to me since I'm a Mac guy, but a lot of PCs still haven't caught on to FireWire. They include a USB cable, but you'll need to supply a FireWire cable. Also, there is no video capture software included.