Canon's VIXIA HD camcorder line expanded with five separate models released all at once: the HF S10, HF S100, HF20, HF200, and HV40. Of these the HF S10 and the HF S100 are almost identical, and, like the entire VIXIA line, record video in full 1080p (1920 x 1080 pixels).

They include an updated DIGIC DV III processor and CMOS sensor which combine to capture still images during recording faster and at higher resolution than is possible with the HF20 and the older VIXIA HF10 (8.02 megapixels with the HF S10 and HF S100, 3.31 with the latter two models).

The new processor also fleshes out the optimization features for both video and photos, such as noise reduction, auto exposure, and face detection.

The only major difference between the HF S10 and the HF S100 is that the former is dual flash – it can record to 32 GB of internal flash memory and/or a removable SDHC card. The HF S100 has only the SDHC available, although they can scale up to 32 GB. Still, the internal drive gives the HF S10 potentially twice the storage capacity of the HF S100.

Other than storage, the HF S10 and HF S100 are nearly indistinguishable. They have a similar form factor, which has changed little over the VIXIA's evolution, and the main physical feature is the fold-out 2.7-inch LCD viewscreen. The camcorders have an HDMI port for connection directly to an HDTV, and the package comes video editing software.