Rating

The other day I realized I did not have a camcorder. I really wanted to be able to record our first Christmas in our first house, site visits to wedding sites, etc., so I started looking for digital camcorders. But, I wanted it to be small and very portable, have excellent video quality, record in HD resolution and it had to fit into my tight holiday season budget.

My first instinct was to look into the new Creative Labs VadoHD. The original Vado received fantastic reviews and had 4GBs of flash storage. The new VadoHD records in 720P resolution at 60FPS and sports 8GBs of storage. The problem is that 8GBs apparently only holds 2 hours of 720P 60FPS video. It’s slimmer than my cell phone and fits right in my pocket, but at $230 2 hours of video was not going to cut it. If I could have expanded the storage via SD card I would have been sold.

The other option would have been a Flip Video MinoHD. The MinoHD is basically the same device as the VadoHD. It was also developed from is standard definition predecessor, the Mino, and shoots 720P 60FPS video. It’s roughly the same size and costs the same ($230), but it can only hold 60 minutes of video at 720/60. If I can’t expand the memory, than no deal.

Both are capable of switching to VGA and 720/30 modes to shoot video that would use less storage, but then you’re compromises video quality for storage. Both devices also use Li-Ion batteries and can charge via the attached USB connector which also serves to connect to your computer for quick transfer of all of your videos.

Then I found the new Kodak Zi6 HD. Just like the others it can shoot 720/60 video, has an attached USB connector and some flash memory. The difference is the Zi6 only has 130MB of on board flash memory. To make matters worse only 30MBs is usable by you. The other 100MBs is used as a sort of CD partition with the included Kodak video editing software on it. 30MBs of storage offers about 20-30 seconds of video at 720/60. Ouch.

Believe it or not, the memory isn’t a deal breaker. The Kodak Zi6 has expandable memory via SD or SDHC cards up to 32GB! The drawback is the SDHC cards are an added cost, but at the current $160 price of the Zi6 you can get a Zi6 and an 8GB card for about $200. The MSRP of of the Zi6 is $180, so even at MSRP you can still get 8GBs of memory for the same price as the VadoHD or MinoHD. 8GBs gives you an estimated 2 hours of video (like the VadoHD’s 8GB storage).

So what other differences are there? The Zi6 is a bit larger than the competitors, but it’s still lighter than any other device I own. This is surprising because it runs off 2 AA batteries. At first I was place off by it’s increased size over the Vado and Mino and the fact that it uses 2 AA batteries, but the Zi6 felt much nicer in my hand than the others and the ability to change dead batteries on the glide was very appealing.

The Vado and Mino require you charge them via USB. That’s fantastic, but what if I’m on a trip and don’t want to bring my laptop or I’m out for the day a long way from any USB port? The Zi6 also comes with 2 precharged rechargeable AA batteries and a small Kodak charger that plugs into the wall. The battery life for the 2 AAs is fantastic at 4 hours.

The larger size also allows for other things to be larger, like the screen. The Zi6 has a 2.4″ LCD screen for recording and reviewing your video. The screen is very nice with a sharp picture.

For comparison, the VadoHD has a 2″ screen and a battery life of 2 hours per charge.

The Zi6 only has 2 buttons and a joystick directly below the screen. Each button performs 2 functions. One function for during recording and one for during playback. The joystick controls the 2x digital zoom and recording options (VGA, 720/30, 720/60 and still image) and acts as the record “button” by pressing in on the stick. The joystick also changes functionality when in playback mode for selecting videos.

The Zi6 can take still image pictures, but they’re about cell phone quality at 3MPs, but in a pinch they look fine. The video is what the Zi6 is made for. The video looks fantastic. It’s very clear, color reproduction is fantastic and there’s no chop or blurring recording at 60FPS. Even VGA looks excellent. VGA is going to appear grainy and not look as excellent as 720/60 video, but it’s fantastic for recording something that you want to e-mail or upload to YouTube (small size).

The only problem is the video does suffer in low light situations. Outside the video is incredible for a $160 mini camcorder, but inside with shades pulled and less light the video gets a small grainy. That’s not so terrible though. For the size and price it’s expected and it’s certainly still watchable. You’ll just find yourself slightly disappointed because your other videos will look better. That isn’t to say the Zi6 can’t record excellent video inside. If you have a lot of light or can open the shades, the video quality goes up.

The Zi6 comes with a set of composite and component cables for viewing your video on an HDTV (or SD set). The 720/60 video looks awesome upscaled to 1080i on my 42″ set.

The Zi6 has a macro mode you can set by flipping a switch to the macro setting on the side of the camcorder. It allows you to take very close (about 1″ away) video with blurring and seems to work fantastic. It takes a second to focus, but does the job well.

Once you record your video you can use the attached USB connector to transfer it over to your computer. It can work just like a flash drive or you can use the accompanying Kodak software to import and edit your video. It’s compressed with H.264 compression with AAC audio and played back with Quicktime.

I just click and drag the video over and have not tried the software, yet. I have Adobe Premiere, so I expect I will never use the Kodak software, but I might just to see it.

My only gripes with the Zi6 are mere quibbles. For instance, you can’t format the memory card on the glide. You have to select each video individually to delete them or use a computer. That’s no huge deal though. With expandable memory I can have multiple SD cards available and I always go my videos over to the computer. I can’t stand having clutter on my storage devices anyway.

It’s also slightly irritating that the Zi6 does not remember your video setting. It defaults to HD 720/30 whenever you turn it on even though I use 720/60 exclusively, but it only takes one click of the Joystick to the right to fix it.

Overall, I am very pleased with the Zi6. Sof ar it’s allowed me to get some fantastic footage of our 9-month ancient puppy getting lost in 2 feet of snow and I’ve done a lot of experimenting with lighting conditions and video modes. I can’t wait to get some “real” footage on Christmas morning and at Christmas parties this week.

At ~$200 for the Zi6 and an SDHC card you can’t go incorrect.

I’ll be posting some sample video on Vimeo later. Vimeo supports HD video, so it should show the real quality.

NOTE: I use a Lexar SDHC Class 6 card rated at 20MB/s. I was fortunate to really speak to a Kodak representative at Best Buy who recommended that class and speed. If you use a cheap off-brand card not meant for photography/video you will probably have choppy video. This is due to the card’s write speed not being quick enough to keep up with the video.

Rating

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3NBAA260Z74KZ these are all the tests i wanted to see before i bought it…

it is golden

Rating

After reading alot of reviews on the Flip I realized there were a few things that didn’t make sense for us and eventually stumbled on the Kodak Zi6 which fit our needs more closely:

1) Cheaper: Tough economy, ‘nuf said

2) AA batteries: My wonderful wife has incredible patience with our small boy but has serious issues remembering to plug in gadgets for recharging. Often times I’m scrambling to catch something on video and left with…no charge, dead battery. Swappable AA batteries was the perfect solution, not offered with Flip.

3) Expandable memory: A similar issue to batteries, we both fill up memory before downloading onto the hard drive, at least there’s an option to grab another memory card. Not so with the Flip.

4) Larger screen size: Getting ancient, eyesight isn’t so excellent anymore.

5) USB and Mac: Like the Flip, it pops out and connects to the Mac. Another review noted the Kodak can’t be plugged in with Mac power supply at the same time. It is a small inconvenience and should be noted. I’ll also comment on the Kodak software. I despise installing all the different software that comes with gadgets these days. I didn’t install the Kodak and simply plugged it in to see what would happen. After launching iMovie, you simply select ‘Import Movies’. Find the device and the associated clips you’ve recorded. A small workaround but no huge deal for me.

6) At the end of the day I just wanted something simple to use (with only a few buttons and settings) and less bulky than the regular camcorder we have. Just remember it has limitations because of that simplicity.

This thing just gets thrown in the diaper bag or in my pocket like a cell phone and we are able to catch more ‘Kodak moments’ if you will.

Like I mentioned earlier, I bought this instead of the Flip. Not bashing the Flip simply pointing out differences that fit our needs better. From what I can tell, these are the things that are better on the Flip:

Smaller, USB rechargable, more colors, onboard memory

Note: Went to preview the review and noticed my wife as also changed my Profile Name to ‘New Mom’. Like most new Dads I’ve officially lost my identity!

Rating

Santa brought my daughter this camera and she’s place it down long enough for me to play with it. This is a really nice small camera (Santa apparently did his research well) that delivers on the promises Kodak makes.

- It’s simple to use and ready to go out of the box. The batteries come charged – just pop in some memory (or use the small amount built in to the camera) and you’re making videos straight away.

- The picture quality is brilliant. Images are bright and clear, indoors or out. My daughter has taken video indoors at school and home and the image is very bright. I’m impressed with how sharp the HD (30 frames per second) and HD60 (60 frames per second) videos are.

- Sound recording is excellent, nice and clear. Playback (through the camera) volume is loud enough to hear clearly as well.

- Downloading the videos is simple with the attached USB connector. I recommend buying a USB extension cable Cables To Go – 19003 – 1M USB A Male to A Female Extension Cable (White) so the camera doesn’t have hang out of a USB port.

- The included tripod socket is handy. Santa also thoughtfully included a Gorillapod flexible tripod that works fantastic with this camera. Joby GP1-EGEN Gorillapod Flexible Tripod (Green)

- The camera comes with both component and composite cables. My daughter likes that she can hook her small camera up to the 50″ plasma and watch her videos in HD. Since the component output doesn’t have sound you need to use the audio output from the composite jack, or just use the camera’s built-in speaker.

- Some have had problems with larger memory cards. I bought a Transcend 16 GB SDHC SD Class 6 Flash Memory Card TS16GSDHC6E [Amazon Frustration-Free Packaging] and it works fine in the camera. Make sure you get a class 6 card for this camera…recording in HD or HD60 requires a quicker speed of memory.

The main problem with this camera is the included software, by Arcsoft. It’s horrible. It installs several programs (including an updater that runs all the time) and some didn’t install completely so we kept getting messages about missing files. Arcsoft provided the software for an HP webcam I bought…and returned because of the poor software. Fortunately we use Pinnacle Studio 12 which works with the type of file this camera produces (.mov – H.264/MPEG-4 files) so I happily uninstalled the Arcsoft software.

It’s an brilliant camera that’s worth getting even though the software is junk.

Rating

Just got the Zi6 in today. I’ve run it through the paces and am pretty impressed by this small rascal. By default, it starts off set to HD, but it can be toggled to HD60, VGA or still camera easily. The HD resolution is very excellent for a camera of this type and looks fantastic on a 42″ HD screen. The build quality seems excellent and transfer to the computer was seamless. I used a Mac for this.

Get this if you want a distress-free, catch-the-action-as-it-happens kind of shoot. Yet I reckon used, under the right conditions, it might even fool some into thinking this is better equipment than it is.

Downshots? A few. Using the toggle to zoom is unavoidably audible and you do need a steady hand. Not the best low light performer ever was. Minor caveats really. What was Kodak thinking with pink? Yes, I have the black model. Battery life is moderate the Zi6 is a hungry, hungry baby.

Cool things? Yes! Seeing yourself in the reflection of the USB button to self shoot was certainly a sublime thought. The ability to use AA batteries rock too. Screen is excellent too.

Get Zi6 if you want to have some fun making video.

Rating

This is not a replacement for a high-quality HD camcorder with a nice lens, zoom, and all the fine features. I have one of those, but I don’t take it out often, and when I do I turn into a videographer/camera-man. So, bought a Zi6. It is a fantastic product for its size and portability. It’s only a small larger than a PDA. I can stick it in my pocket and get hd-quality video anytime. Once you come to terms with its limitations (it’s weak in low-light conditions, and its zoom is quite basic), it becomes a fantastic companion. I picked Zi6 over Flip because of its ability to use either rechargeable or AA batteries and because of its expandability via SDHC card. It’s fantastic for unobtrusively capturing family videos and all kinds of life’s moments. In small, pick this video camera for the same reason you’d pick a small point-and-shoot over an SLR.

Rating

Kodak should be applauded for restructuring the company

to produce a camera that compliments my Apple Ipod and

immediately feels like a keeper. The controls are well thought out and

the Macro opens up a whole new world of video. The camera so impressed me that I am looking

at other Kodak offerings with a fresh eye. Kudos to the team that made this happen. Don’t be

fooled by comparisons to other HD video offerings in a small package, if you buy the Zi6

you will be pleased with it for many years. No buyer remorse here.

I never thought I would be saying this!

Rating

What can you expect from something like this? Obviously its not going to film stunning pictures in the dark. To expect that is silly.

Its simple to use, it takes fantastic video in excellent lighting.

The seller to me was the memory expansion slot. Throw a 16 GB SDHC card in there and you can film for hours and hour. It uses two AA batteries, and it eats them up quickly. So, invest in spare batteries.

I’d rather be able to have tons of memory and the ability to change batteries instead of searching for a way to charge the camera and be stuck with limited memory as would be the case with the sleeker/smaller FlipHD camera.

If youre looking for convienience, ease of use, with decent video in normal lighting conditions, in a cheap, who cares what happens to it, camera. I reckon this is your choice.

The new ZX1 is out now, and its pretty much the same thing, but with more color options, better cables to hook up to your TV (HDMI), and is water proof.

Wish I waited for that one, but I needed something to toss around on a drunken vacation before it was available. Bought my Zi6 at Wal-Mart in a bundle that included extra batteries, a tri-pod, a case, and a lense cleaner for $150 in April of 09.

The editing software that comes with it is simple as hell to use. Doesnt have any fantastic features in it, but gets the job done for simple edits with a music bed. Debating on what kind of editing software to buy for larger projects. Gonna go with Adobe Premiere elements 7.

Anyway, its worth every penny. Just realize, its a $130 HD video camera. Dont expect the world from it, and you’ll be more than pleased.