In the days of instant cricket or ?Twenty-20? to be precise, the camera plays a major role. Now it has become customary for the umpires to consult the camera replay in its slowest motion from multiple angles before deciding the fate of a batsman.

Before you accuse me of talking cricket in this column, let me assure you, I am not talking cricket, I am rather talking of cameras! And Canon, the leading camera manufacturers, have introduced their latest ?Direct to DVD? camcorder ?Canon DC320?, in the Indian market.

Resembling a ?Mini Disk-man strapped to a camcorder?, this DC320 wields a mighty 2000Xdigital zoom on top of a 45Xadvance and 36Xoptical one! And if that?s not enough, it records on a mini (8cm) DVD, up to 30 minutes of video in standard mode and 60 minutes of video in long play mode. It can also record on a DVD-RDL (dual layer) discs that can store up to 108 minutes of video.

Most of the filming controls and buttons are located on the rear of the camcorder and can easily be accessed while holding it in the right hand (sorry lefties). The power ON/OFF switch that also toggles for play/record modes ? is placed adjacent to the record button and can be operated conveniently with the thumb. Same is true for the zoom lever, that is placed on top, for your finger to operate. The zoom function is very fluid with almost no jerks and jarring. Another button Quick Start is also placed there. Simply push the Quick Start button to put your camcorder in stand-by mode. Push it again and the camcorder will jump to life in less than a second. The battery also slide-fits on the rear of the camcorder. The not-to-be-missed disk compartment cover is on the right-hand side. Inserting a disk or removing it is quick and easy, just push the disk cover button down and the disc cover will pop-out with a pleasant warning beep. Recorded DVD R/-RW with the DC320 camcorder is compatible with most DVD players and can also be played on your PC.

The DC 320 has a Canon broadcast quality TV zoom lens. It captures very sharp and brilliant video and digital images. The lens is precisely matched to the camcorder?s CCD and made of high-quality glass with the proprietary ?super spectra? coating that reduce flare and ghosting. The lens is well protected by a built-in shutter-lid.

I shot some test video footage during a couple of rainy days and surprisingly the shots displayed well on the 32? plasma TV, with very life-like colours and skin tones. At the high zoom it was very difficult to keep the image stable, leave aside the focus, even the built-in EIS (electronic image stabiliser) was of no use. What one needed was a sturdy tripod to mount the camcorder.

Two built-in stereo microphones are also concealed under the lens. The rotatable, pull-out wide screen viewfinder on the left side of the DC320 has a 2.7? LCD display screen that gives you a 16:9 wide screen format for a real cinematic experience. And if you want to conserve battery power then there also is an optical viewfinder with a dioptric correction slider, but no rubber cup to protect your glasses.

The non-touch-screen type display panel also has a tiny joystick, function button and a display ON/OFF button. The tiny Joystick lets you control play, stop, fast-forward, and rewind functions during playback surprisingly with lots of ease. It also controls exposure-lock and exposure compensation during recording. The LCD display panel can also double as a fill-in light in case you are shooting in very low light environment. Just select the night mode and activate the ?LCD light ON? in the function menu and rotate the panel 180 degree facing the subject, a very soft white light will illuminate your subject. The SD memory card slot is provided on the base of the camera to record still images. The still images are just acceptable in quality but you can print them directly from DC320 to any ?PictBridge? compatible printer. Weighing a mere 380 grams, built to very high quality standards and finished in grey and metallic silver, this dua-tone camcorder Canon DC320 has a mirror finish steel crown on the top!

At an MRP of Rs 23,995, it?s a very well balanced camera to hold in your hands ergonomically and otherwise too.

PROS

* Very good build quality

* Excellent zoom Lens

* Benefit of recording on DVD-R/RW

* Very good Image quality

CONS

* None, if you can afford it