Kodak PlaySport (Zx3) HD Waterproof Pocket Video Camera (Purple) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)OK lets start off with this camera is $149 keep that in mind.
The 5.3MP still photos are fairly good, not to bad, but remember this is a video camera first
a dedicated 5MP still photo camera will take much better photos, but again hey these aren't to shabby it just depends on what your trying to do. Quick shots here and there...excellent and better than any cell phone I've had. At a wedding where you want crystal clear and sharp photos....well not so much.
The HD video camera is pretty nice, easy to use and I was just stunned at the digital zoom.
It actually works and works well, not to blocky or grainy...more so at the extreme 4x level but at 2x to about 3x the camera compensated nicely and actually cleared up the image...not sure how they do it, but they do.As others have noted, with rapid movement of the camera you will notice your image jumps or shakes.
Now remember what I told you to keep in mind $149. Yes it does have that little "feature", but it's not
a $299 video camera with a higher quality lens and CCD. Slow down, don't go from left to right or up and
down at 100MPH and it's not bad. Moving images within the video are fine, it's just if you move the camera
itself very rapidly you will notice it.
I tried the 3 HD video modes, and it also has a standard resolution mode as well that I did not try.
I compared all 3 with and with out the image stabilization on which did not seem to improve or degrade the
image at all.
At 720p 30 fps - Not to bad, noticed the jumpyness or shakyness of the image as I moved left to right in my test,
but slow down and it's not to bad.
At 720p 60 fps - Now were getting better, really not bad at all, again not $300 video camera good, but
pretty darn nice, and clearer and the shakyness of the video smoothed out a bunch, again slow down in your
movements for best quality.
At 1080p 30fps - Nice quality...really nice, but the jumpyness of the video is back, you have to take it a bit
slower but nice quality all in all.
I did not try the underwater mode, but assume it works as advertised everything else has so far.
Now I throughly loved the fact that there are no CD's with this camera, nothing in the box to load.
You simply plug in the provided USB cable and the software...every bit of it and all the drivers you need for
the camera are built right in and install on your PC from the camera...this is an excellent feature, I always
misplace the CD's and have to download from the website anyhow.
Speaking of downloading from the website ... this camera is flash upgradeable with new firmware I went to the
Kodak website and found that there was an upgrade I could download to correct a few minor anomalies that they
found...cool so hopefully this camera gets even more corrections in the near future and maybe a feature update
someday?
I also loved the fact that ALL the cables came with the camera. HDMI, USB, and Component video cables...
All of them... they can charge you at least $10 for each individual cable, but they give them to you with
the camera for $149, now how great is that ?!?!
As at least one other reviewer has said, yes - there is no case or protective sleeve that comes with the camera,
but I would take the cables over a case anyday, you know what ever they included it wouldn't be what you wanted.
Either they gave you a sleeve and you wanted a case for your accessories or they gave you a case and you didn't
want to carry all the accessories so you go out and buy yourself a protective sleeve or pouch. So just go get what you want ...
I myself purchased the Kodak Case that Amazon recommended to me .... also a nice purchase, perfect size not to big,
not to small and has a little accessory area that you can carry one of the cables and a spare battery if you need.
This camera feels rugged and well built. It's easy to use, lots of features like image stabilization and face
tracking, it comes with all the cables, free software that's always with you in the camera, and costs only $149.
So not to bad at all, and my conclusion is this if your looking for a sharp and crisp still photo camera drop the
$100 just for that and buy one, if your looking for a excellent video quality camera drop the $300 just for that
and buy one. But....If your looking for a pretty nice, simple and decent quality camera that does it all and
is rugged enough to go out in the rain or underwater drop $149 and buy this one.
I've included a video I compiled and edited down to show the different resolutions and the photos. Keep in mind
that while your viewing that this is an flv file and the actual quality that the camera will give you will be
much higher than what I was able to upload to Amazon, meaning you'll get better quality than what you see on here.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Kodak PlaySport (Zx3) HD Waterproof Pocket Video Camera (Purple)

The Kodak PLAYSPORT has as much appetite for adventure as you do. And it's not afraid to get wet. This audacious little camera can plunge up to 10 ft under water and capture the entire experience in full 1080p HD. And you don't need to worry about blurry footage when things get a little shaky. With built-in image stabilization, the Kodak PLAYSPORT will stay steady as a rock. From the waves, to the slopes, to the mud-soaked trails, this baby was made for the extremes.

Click here for more information about Kodak PlaySport (Zx3) HD Waterproof Pocket Video Camera (Purple)

Read More...

Samsung HMX-U20 Ultra-Compact Full-HD Camcorder (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I purchased this May 28th, on sale for $170. I did not purchase a memory card as I had a 2 gig SD card at home and wasn't sure that I would be keeping this camera. I charged the battery, put in my memory card and went out in the yard and shot some video and some still photos. It was a bright sunny day. I hooked up the camera to my 50 inch plasma TV with the included composite video cable and looked at the photos, which were really great quality and detail. I was pleasantly surprised that they were the equal of my Olympus 10 mega pixel digital still camera. Next I looked at the video that I shot at 1080P and heard this clicking noise throughout the video. My commentary was recorded just fine but the clicking was a deal breaker. The video quality was also not what I expected for the 1080 P setting. I loaded the CD into my PC and started to read the manual. As another reviewer noted you must us HC SD memory or data will be lost while the memory is trying to keep up with the high data rate of this camera. That night I bought a recommended SDHC card and put it in the camera. The next day I went to a WWII era air show and brought the camera. I shot about 40 minutes of video at 720P 60 frames per second and about 24 photos at the 10 mega pixel setting. There were lots of action videos as the old fighters streaked overhead as well as some newer jets. I hooked up the camera to the plasma TV and viewed the photos, which were really sharp and clear with great detail. You could read the serial number and min/max blade pitch on one of the props. This is using a low quality composite video cable between the camera and TV. The videos were terrific and no clicking noise. The use of the correct memory card improved all the quality levels of the photos and videos. My family was impressed that this small package could do so much. I next loaded the software on my PC and transferring the videos and photos was simple and the while not a high end package there is more than enough functionality to edit the videos, convert them to other formats and upload them to different online services. The only thing missing is the ability to burn them to a DVD, which I can do with Nero. On Memorial Day I went to the Daytona Prototype races at Lime Rock Park and shot a lot more video and photos. All came out terrific. I will purchase a monopod as it is difficult to hold this small camera steady for a long period of time. I will also be purchasing the optional HDMI cable to further improve the quality of the image when watching on my 50 inch plasma. This camera is a keeper and the quality is outstanding. I've shown the results to others with Flips or RCA and they rated the quality of the Samsung output to be superior.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Samsung HMX-U20 Ultra-Compact Full-HD Camcorder (Black)


Life's greatest moments are meant to be shared. You can share them as soon as they happen with the U20. Whether you've got hilarious video from last night's party or just captured a baby's first steps, you can post the results immediately - on any PC, anywhere - with just the press of a button. The U20's embedded software does the rest. And with a slim, ergonomic design, the go-anywhere U20 feels as comfortable in your hand as a pocket of air.

So much technology, so little spaceThe U20 wasn't merely designed to fit in your hand, it was designed to fit comfortably in it. The compact point & shoot Type Full HD Camcorder features an ergo nomically advanced 7-degree body shape for the perfect grip. The U20 lets you shoot video without putting awkward stress on your shoulder and arm.
One touch uploadWe're sharing this technology with you so that you can share your life with the world: With the U20, posting your videos on YouTube couldn't be easier. Just con

Get 38% OFF

Click here for more information about Samsung HMX-U20 Ultra-Compact Full-HD Camcorder (Black)

Read More...

Kodak Zi8 Pocket Video Camera (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Check out my sample footage video on Youtube. On Youtube search "djeror zi8 low light"
In my previous review of the Kodak Zi8 I was pretty frustrated at the fact that whenever I used the built in microphone the recorded videos had an annoying high pitch whine that made the audio from my videos almost unusable. Kodak recognized that this was an issue and created a firmware update that fixed the problem. It also fixed a few other things like the previous issue of the image getting darker as you zoomed in. They seem to have fixed all of the major problems with this firmware fix.I do tech product reviews so I need the following things:
- External mic input - most of my videos are shot wearing a lapel mic
- Macro mode - I have to get close to little tiny screens
- SDHC memory - I go to all day trade shows, I need 10+ hours of video
- Power options - I need to be able to shoot while AC power is plugged in or use a large external battery.
- Under $200 - I'm poor.
Because of these requirements no other camcorder can fit my needs. One cool thing about this camera is that it is much more upgradable than the other pocket cameras on the market.Con:
-The built in microphone is OK now that they fixed the whining noise, but it's still not amazing.
Work-around:
- Don't use the internal mic... I use an Audio Technica lapel mic for 1 person interviews.Audio Technica ATR-3350 Lavalier Omnidirectional Condenser Microphone For events I ordered a Sony stereo mic to use instead of the built in mic. Sony ECM-DS70P Electret Condenser Stereo Microphone . Although I wish that Kodak made the internal mic better, for the most part I am kind of excited that the Sony stereo mic will give me much better sound than any of the standard internal mics that any of the pocket cams have.Con:
-Electronic Image Stabilization (EIS) sucks a lot of juice. Also the Zi8 uses a proprietary battery rather than cheap swappable AA's. Battery life when shooting non-stop is 1hr 16min in 720p 60fps with EIS on. If you turn off EIS you get about 1hr 41min at 720p 60fps.
Work-around:
- Use the USB to power cable that comes with the camera in conjunction with an external battery source. This is a must if you are going to be recording for more than an hour with EIS, cause that's about what the internal battery will give you. Tekkeon TekCharge Rechargeable Li-Poly Battery You can just stick this battery pack in your pocket and connect the charging cable to the Zi8. This will allow you to record for a super long amount of time. I haven't tested to see what my total record time with the battery pack will be but it should be around 5X the standard recording time. (about 6 hours with EIS on, almost 9 with it off) This gives you the best battery life of almost any camcorder. Sure it's an extra cost, but when you're at an all day trade show you don't have to worry about running out of juice.Con:
- Image stabilization can't rescue video you shoot while moving around. Any camera motion makes video awful.
Work-round:
- Accept the fact you should probably be using a mini tripod with this camera or at least stand still. Also, although it takes a bunch of time to process if you have the new iMovie the image stabilization processing you can do is light years beyond what the EIS in the Kodak Zi8 can do. One more important note. Make sure you buy high speed SDHC memory cards for this thing. If your SD card is not fast enough the camera will record for like 2 seconds and then stop with an error. It took me a while to figure out why the camera kept stopping recording when in HD mode but worked fine in SD mode. It was because of my old SD card. You need to make sure your SD card has a write speed of at least 9MB/s if you want to record in 1080p. These high speed cards cost more, but you need them for any camcorder that is going to record HD video to them, it's not just the Zi8. I think most Class 6 high speed SDHC cards should work.
If you want to get the most out of this camera plan on spending an extra $100 - $150 in order to buy upgrade items. Personally I've come to the conclusion that the extra expenses were worth it. It all depends on what you plan on using the camera for. For a typical mom purse cam this would not be my recommendation, I would say go with a Flip Ultra HD. But for someone with particular needs like mine this camera may be the only one that fits the bill.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Kodak Zi8 Pocket Video Camera (Black)

Kodak Zi8 Pocket Video Camera Black

Get 16% OFF

Click here for more information about Kodak Zi8 Pocket Video Camera (Black)

Read More...