All posts in: HD Camcorders

If your smartphone shoots video, do you really need a pocket camcorder?

Electronics
By Tara Tuckwiller on January 9, 2012 in

camcorder

Can you just skip the pocket camcorder and shoot HD videos with your smartphone or point-and-shoot camera? Sure, experts say -- but with a pocket camcorder, you'll shoot better video and have an easier time doing it.

One exception: The iPhone 4S (*Est. $200 and up with contract) brings full 1080p HD video to the smartphone world, and testers say it looks great. The top-rated pocket camcorder in our latest report on HD camcorders, the Samsung HMX-W200 (*Est. $145), still beats the iPhone 4S for pure video-shooting performance at CamcorderInfo.com, but the iPhone 4S has plenty of other tricks up its sleeve -- most importantly, its always-on wireless Internet connection, so you can instantly share your videos. Pocket camcorders can't share anything until you plug them into an Internet-connected computer. Read more

The Flip is dead, but pocket camcorders live on

Electronics
By Carl Laron on April 19, 2011 in

Flip MinoPRO

Technology has a natural life cycle. Products are introduced, gain acceptance, mature, start to lose appeal as something better (or at least newer) comes along, then fade from view entirely (except for the occasional garage-sale sighting). That's what was so startling about the news that Cisco had decided to kill off the Flip camcorder. Sure, the Flip no longer had that new tech luster. And, sure, the proliferation of smartphone devices (with their ability to capture video footage, even in HD) has started to nip away at the Flip's reason for being. Still, as a category, there's lots of life left in pocket camcorders, most experts say. Read more

The slow death of standard-def camcorders

Electronics
By Tara Tuckwiller on December 26, 2010 in

digital camcorder

Standard-definition camcorders: Yep, they're still making 'em (see our latest report on digital camcorders). Experts say there are still two good reasons to buy one: Price and zoom.

"Standard definition models are on their last legs," says camcorder tester James Morris at the U.K.'s TrustedReviews.com. "If you’re on a tight budget, though, opting for standard definition can give you more features for less money." Read more

They're cheap, but skip DXG HD camcorders

Electronics
By Christine Frietchen on September 2, 2009 in

High-definition camcorders are getting cheaper fast -- but there's such a thing as too cheap.

Lest you be tempted by the $80 DXG DXG-567V, heed the words of Christopher Breen, who describes "the depths of its awfulness" at length in his Macworld review. According to Breen, the DXG-567V struggles to adjust between light and dark, and bright objects look blown out: Breen posts an image of a daisy that looks like it's crafted out of fluorescent yellow plastic. When Breen tries to zoom, the image stutters. Every time he moves the DXG-567V's joystick, he hears it on the video.

An earlier but still available model, the DXG DXG-569V, took last place in Gizmodo's shootout of 2008 pocket camcorders. Despite being the only HD model in the test, "The DXG took the worst overall video of the bunch," reviewer Benny Goldman writes. It also drained its AAA batteries in 25 minutes. Read more

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