This camera definitely comes fully loaded. Far more options than the typical video camera, includine microphone input, component output, and lots more. The menus aren't difficult to navigate, and the video is superb! I really like the miniDV tape format, so the ability use those to archive as much video as I want was very appealing. Get more detail about Canon VIXIA HV40 HD HDV Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom.