The HF S21 is the latest flagship camcorder from Canon. This new Vixia is loaded with features and controls, offers impeccable Full HD video performance, and has a robust design that makes it ideal for a student filmmaker or semi-professional videographer.

In our testing, the HF S21 managed a similar performance to last year's HF S11 from Canon, but the HF S21 offers a number of new features and design improvements. Most noticeable is the upgraded LCD, which is 3.5 inches in size on the HF S21 and uses a touchscreen interface. This touchscreen represents a first for Canon, and the touch-sensitivity of the panel feels very different than the touchscreens featured on Sony and Panasonic camcorders.

In addition to the bigger, better LCD, the HF S21 also has a small electronic viewfinder on its back side. It's no secret that viewfinders are being phased out as consumer camcorders begin to drastically shrink in size, so we are very impressed to see Canon adding one to its flagship model this year.

The other improvements on the HF S21 come in the form of updated internal hardware. The camcorder has 64GB of internal flash memory, two SD/SDHC memory card slots, and an improved optical image stabilization system called Powered IS. We did notice the HF S21 was a bit less comfortable to hold than last year's HF S11—mainly a result of a bulkier right-side design.

The final new features on the HF S21 have many professional videographers licking their chops: a native 24p mode and built-in LANC terminal. Canon has included alternate frame rates on its consumer camcorders for many years, but the HF S21 represents the first non-tape consumer model with a native 24p option. The LANC port allows the use of wired remote controls without a bulky adapter. While these features may not sound like much to a casual videographer, they are sure to intrigue pros and enthusiasts.

Performance (read in-depth lab performance at CamcorderInfo.com)
The HF S21 had good overall performance in both bright and low light, but we were disappointed that the camcorder didn't offer much of an improvement over last year's HF S11. In fact, some of last year's models from Canon did better in our color accuracy tests than the HF S21.

The HF S21's image stabilization was better than previous models—thanks to the new Powered IS feature—but the camcorder still couldn't match the results from Sony's flagship models.

Comparisons (read in-depth comparisons at CamcorderInfo.com)
Despite the fact that Canon didn't improve the video performance on the HF S21, the camcorder is still a better model than last year's Canon HF S11. The improved LCD is large and splendid, and simple innovations like the two SD/SDHC memory card slots and the inclusion of an electronic viewfinder are smart moves by Canon.

It is much too early to tell if the HF S21 will be one of the best camcorders of 2010, as we have yet to test the new flagship models from Sony, Panasonic, JVC, Samsung, and Sanyo. Still, the HF S21 is a strong camcorder with an abundance of features and good video performance all around.