I also have a Canon HV10, the HDV quality is outstanding but coupled to a Swarovski scope, it appears that the camera is only usuable at the tele end of the zoom, this means it is 10x (on the camera ) and 20x or 30x (on the scope) depending which eyepiece you are using, so the total magnification is far to great for Hong Kong's polluted conditions.
The HDV quality of the HV10 matches the quality of the 3 ccd HDV cameras.
Bob