Canon's VIXIA HF11 is a 1080p solid-state high-definition camcorder. The model improves on the HF10 by doubling internal storage to 32GB and offering a 24Mbps compression data rate, the theoretical maximum for the AVCHD format the camera uses. In order to support the full 24Mbps data rate, videos must be stored to the internal memory or to a fast-enough SDHC card, rated Class 4 or better. Although internal memory can store three hours of high-quality video, the default battery only gives the camera 55 minutes of recording time.

The camera features a twelve-times zoom lens with optical stabilization to decrease blurring from camera motion. Images are recorded by the HF11's 0.31-inch CMOS sensor, with around two-megapixel effective resolution.  Although the sensor has fewer pixels than those in competing Sony models, the larger pixel size gives the HF11 superior low-light performance. That performance is enhanced with the 24Mbps AVCHD data rate, which reviewers identify as showing the most noticeable improvements when compressing dark scenes. Other camera features include both a video lamp and flash for still shots, and a cinema mode for 24 frames-per-second recording to simulate shooting on film.