also, it looks like DSLRs finally killed RED Scarlet:
panasonic are going to release the AF100 which will be in the 6k USD range.
I recently bought the Canon HF-S21 Legria and it's stellar. But it's also very expensive. Here's a quick test shoot I did with it. (You have to go to my YT video to watch it in full HD tho I think.) BTW Legria is PAL and Vixia is the N.American version (NFTS?). If you want to buy the N. American one, you won't be able to watch the videos on your TV I think. You can order them on http://www.bhphotovideo.com/ but expect import duties.
In the end, only you can decide what model is right for you. It will take a lot of reasearch and watching test videos on Vimeo or Youtube. Only then will you be truly happy.
This website helped me out a lot tho for reviews:
Thank you for that.
After reading a number of reviews, I finally opted for a Panasonic HDC-TM700 ( CHF 1149 on digitec ). It does 1080/50p and is robust in low-light conditions. I hope I won't be disappointed.