Camcorder Descision - Torn Between HV20 and HC7

[Egg Dude]

I'm trying to make a choice. I am undecided between the Canon HV20 and the sony HDR-HC7. Here are the reasons that make it a hard choice:

-Canons Night Mode is not very good, but the HV20 has a 24p setting. Does the HC7 have a 24p setting? I know it has a cinematic mode, but what does that do?

-For quick effects tests, I might want to shoot in SD (Standard Definition) or DV for the faster performance. Does the HV20 have an SD mode?

-The HV20 is cheaper

I would be happy to see some replys and answers to these questions, and efforts will be appriciated.

[FreshMentos]

I think that the HV20 has a better run for the money. I'm almost sure that the HC7 does not have 24p mode. I haven't seen the picture quality of the sony cam, but I have seen the HV20 footage and it looks fantastic for a consumer cam.

Reviews for both cams:

HV20: http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-camcorders/canon-hv20-mini-dv/4505-6500_7-32172625.html?tag=prod.txt.1

HDR-HC7: http://reviews.cnet.com/4244-5_7-0.html?query=sony+hdr-hc7&tag=srch&target=

[Egg Dude]

The big descision is the tradeoff between the price and a bad night mode, but really the drawback is SD. If the Canon can't shoot SD/DV, it would be an inconvenience.

[FreshMentos]

The HV20 can downconvert to SD in post. Shooting in low-light with any camcorder is never a good idea. I'd just shoot in mid-day and use a day-for-night filter in post. I'd rather save money over a fixable problem in the HV20 (bad low-light) instead of paying a couple extra hundred dollars on the sony cam that probably doesn't have as good of image quality. Just my 2 cents.