The Canon ZR90 has some lovely touches, such as an included wide-angle lens attachment and 22X optical zoom. Video quality, however, is merely adequate.

This camera is intuitive, with simple toggles for switching between photo and video modes or programmable and automatic modes. Other buttons, particularly the night mode switch (for low-light shooting), are too easy to hit inadvertently. In addition, the accessory shoe isn't intelligent, and there's no external mic jack.

In video quality testing, the ZR90 trailed the competition in its ability to capture fine detail. Video of our GretagMacbeth chart revealed that the ZR90 tends to mute almost all colors, particularly yellows and pinks. Under fluorescent lights (in automatic mode, after manual white balancing) the ZR90's videos were grayish, with a fine patina of noise particularly visible against light backgrounds. Outdoor videos in direct sunlight proved better, but colors were again perceptibly faded.

The ZR90's audio had noticeable background whine and voices sounded slightly metallic. In our still-image testing, the ZR90's performed well in terms of color handling, but whites were overexposed. Images looked soft with some jagged edges.

Click here to read our of the Canon ZR90.