Pocket Sized HD Video Recorders

I purchased The Flip cam last year, the hand held 60 min video recorder, and I’ve been waiting for an HD model ever since.

I am doing more and more video interviews for work and shooting more video of family around the house.

The time has come to do a little research on what’s out there. I thought I’d share my findings.

I’ll start with The Flip MinoHD for obvious reasons. I’ve used their camera before, and like it. But there are several shortcomings that I am aware of in my camera and that I see present in the Flip MinoHD:

1) No way to put in additional flash cards for more space
2) Limited battery life. No way to swap in a back up battery
3) Only 720p, not full HD 1080i/p
4) No optical zoom and only 2x digital zoom.
5) No image stabilization

The most repetitive complaint is the bouncing image upon playback, which is probably most concerning. I’ve also heard people having trouble with the hd video itself, complaints have come in that the image sticks and jumps frames. In fact, when I playback the Flip sample video on Amazon, I get the sticky image problem. I’ve never seen the problem before, but it is a deal breaker. I am going to check it out on a few other computers, but even if the problem is isolated to a software upgrade, I will be wary of purchasing unless I am convinced the playback is smooth.

For that reason, I am searching to see if there is anything better for less than 500 bucks.

A new pocket sized point and shot that also takes video is the Sony DSC T500. I wanted to love this camera, but everything I read said the flash is terrible. Any pictures taken with the flash come out with inadvertent fairy dust marks and halos in your photographs. But the reviews of the HD recordings, though sparse, were encouraging. If you just wanted the smallest quality HD video camera for the money, and didn’t care about the flash stills, this might be a good way to go.

The Sanyo HD1010 looks like the best choice from the tech specs, until you consider it’s size, weight, and added expense ($500+). But it’s definitely got the video recording quality you are looking for. It should after all, it’s a ‘real camcorder’. This is not really what I am looking for right now, but it’s a good camera to compare others against.

All in all, you are going to have to make some sacrifices somewhere. What can you live without until the next latest a greatest models come out? I am leaning towards the Sony, unless The Flip image issues are just very isolated incidents. What is your experience? What should I choose?

UPDATE:
I just found the Kodak Zi6 on a Wired Review, the side by side video comparison of The Flip vs. Kodak- Kodak wins hands down. The quality is noticeably better, you’ve got upgradeable memory, and a few other features.

So far, this looks like the one I am going to get.



2 Responses to “Pocket Sized HD Video Recorders”

1. Miami Carpet Cleaning says:

   June 17, 2009 at 10:38 pm

   Nice gadget out there.. How much is that.. I want to have that gadget.. By the way.. thanks for the info..
2. Tim Madrid says:

   September 19, 2009 at 1:41 am

   I just bought this model from Amazon for $88.71 delivered. The next generation is out and it is the Zi8. It shoots full 1080p HD and has an anti-shake feature as well. It too is a little nicer in appearance.
   After extensive research, I found shooting in 1080p really slows down the upload process onto the computer and up to YouTube. If your like me you use this as a secondary camera. I have a very nice Canon HD pro recorder but these are nice to keep on you.
   Another very nice camera for $119.00 is the Creative labs Vado camera. Unfortunately it has a built in 8 gb memory that can’t be expanded like the Kodak. Advantages are it is smaller than the Kodak cams and has a wide angle lense. The colors are more natural as well.
   Keep in mind, when buying from Amazon, see all the buying options before you buy. 90% of the time you will find a better price than what they advertise.