Me too on the RODE video mike/Canon HV20 combo. Although the first few times used the video mike I had to remember to TURN IT ON.
Plugged into the mike input plus not turned on = no audio. Doh! Also, it's kinda conspicuous, in an "I got asked to leave the hardware super store" sort of way. So, with it, you're going to me "more conspicuous" if you like filming in places that sometimes don't want you filming. And yes, the Canon battery is annoyingly "loose." I have/swear by a MacBook Pro (the smaller size). For something like Final Cut more screen size would be nice, but it's "workable." Also, it's so beautifully designed (and I'm no Mac zealot at all....) that once one of the fans on it started making an annoying, audible whirr, it was like hearing a supermodel fart. I've got used to it, and I suspect it may be a not-unusual-occurrence. Curse them for making me fall in love with it, then having it behave all mere-mortal on me. This just in, everybody poops. Even Steve Jobs. ALso, if you plan on editing HD footage, and don't want to lug an external drive about with you everywhere, get the biggest hard drive they offer and plan on putting a bigger one in later. I've yet to schedule that operation, but if you're ever likely to have more than some short vlog footage captured... you're going to need a bigger boat. Or am I wrong here? Cheers Mark Day http://markdaycomedy.blip.tv http://www.youtube.com/markdaycomedy [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]