Canon's XH A1 and XH G1 are excellent camcorders for entry-level professionals and independent filmmakers, with hard-to-beat prices for what they offer.

One of a pair of Canon's first flash-based camcorders, the Canon Vixia HF100, delivers excellent HD video quality and performance in a tiny package.

While it has its flaws and is a bit expensive, the ultrasimple Flip Video MinoHD produces impressive video for a camcorder of its size.

The Sony Handycam DCR-SR45 has a good design and reasonable feature set for its price, but the video quality doesn't measure up to the rest of the package.

Despite some minor flaws, Pure Digital's Flip Video Mino is the best mini camcorder for straight-to-Web video currently available--but it also costs more, and it can't match the features of a video-savvy point-and-shoot camera.