HG20 vs HG21
The Canon HG21 is more than a simple upgrade to its younger sibling, the HG20. It improves on the weaknesses of the HG20 without adding any of its own. A major improvement with the HG21 is the shift from the standard LCD to the multi-angle vivid version. It provides a much wider viewing angle that is quite helpful while using the LCD to frame your shots properly. It also presents a better image when used under bright light, unlike the LCD of the HG20 that washes out pretty quick.
When used under bright sunlight, even the better LCD of the HG21 isn’t of much use in filming. In this situation, the HG21 still wins out as it is also equipped with a 0.27in viewfinder. Although it won’t be used too often, it can be very helpful in certain situations. The HG20 does not have a viewfinder and the user needs to shade the LCD, aside from holding the camera and trying to get a good shot, in order to actually see what you are capturing.
Another improvement that was implemented with the HG21 is the inclusion of a beefier 120GB drive, unlike the 60GB drive of the HG20. Twice the amount of drive space means twice the maximum duration that you can film before you would need to dump your recordings to your computer. It is good to note though that doing constant back-ups is still advised as losing 120GB of footage due to a lost or damage camcorder is pretty bad.
The LCD change may not affect weight but the addition of the viewfinder and the bigger hard drive should translate to an increase in size and weight. But despite that, the HG21 is no bigger than the HG20 and only weighs 25g heavier than the HG20. The difference is really very small and most users would not really be able to notice in a side by side comparison.
For the rest of the specifications, the HG21 is exactly identical to the HG20; including the sensor, zoom factor, battery life, and other recording specifications.
Summary:
1. The HG21 has the multi-angle vivid LCD not found on the HG20
2. The HG21 is equipped with a viewfinder while the HG20 is not
3. The HG21 is equipped with a 120GB drive while the HG20 has a 60GB drive
4. The HG21 is only 25g heavier than the HG20