Pros -Sharp picture
great low level lighting shots
lots of internal memory
great battery life
can snap pictures while in video record mode.
cons -
slow load time
confusing menus and scroll function
can not automatically go back to record/picture mode from the viewing menu, must exit out of the sub menus completely
all in all its a great hand held pocket size mini-hd camera. well worth the price and comes with lots of extras such as mini usb to HDMI cables, A/V cables, software etc.
**** this product is not MacBook Compatible! ****
I needed a camera that would allow me to zoom in and get a detailed macro video with minimal fuss and be able to go back to a standard zoom. Autofocus was a must for my purposes and image stabilization had to actually work well. I was not too concerned with sound recording as that would be recorded separately and dubbed in later (That's how the pros do it, and built in microphones on camcorders are generally pretty bad. They often pickup the sound of the zooming lens, or overcome that by cutting out the sound recording during zooming all together)
I also preferred optical zoom to digital as the digital zoom is really just like zooming in on the image in post production and creates terrible image artifacts.
I also wanted a camera that was relatively small, used SDHC cards and didn't break the budget of $200 or less. I also wanted to see the camera in action in 1080p on YouTube.
Anything that met these basic criteria was considered.
I first started by looking at the Flip UltraHD Video Camera Black, 8 GB, 2 Hours (3rd Generation) NEWEST MODEL as we've purchased and installed many of them in IT for our clients. These are pretty good video quality but only go up to 720p and unfortunately record in an Mpeg-4 format and I really didn't want QuickTime format or Mpeg-4 for my raw video.
Secondly I looked into the Kodak PlaySport (Zx3) HD Waterproof Pocket Video Camera (Black) (better cmos sensor) and the Kodak PlaySport (Zx5) HD Waterproof Pocket Video Camera Black (2nd Generation) NEWEST MODEL (newer model not as good) which do up to 1080p but also record files in QuickTime. None of the other "flat" format cameras came close to offering any type of quality close to these and frankly you just can't find good optical zoom in this style.
I started looking into more traditional lens style camcorders and came across the Toshiba Camileo H30 Full HD Camcorder Silver/Black. It appeared to have many of the features that I wanted and there were some really beautiful videos shot with it on YouTube. Unfortunately the image stabilization on the H30 is horrible and it really starts to show how bad it is when you watch enough videos shot with it in HD on YouTube.
I had about given up on the Toshiba Camileo line when I came across this model, the X100 which by all accounts seems to be the most advanced of the Camileo line.
There are some truly amazing HD videos on YouTube shot with this camera and the stabilization is far better than on the Toshiba Camileo H30 Full HD Camcorder Silver/Black.
Among the many features:
Autofocus.
10 Mega Pixel video that records H.264 format AVI movies.
Up to 16 mega-pixels still photos (three settings: 3,10,16)
3" Color LCD touch screen that supports finger swiping.
both 1080p 30fps and 1080i 60fps and 720p in both 30 or 60 fps. (standard def too)
HDTV connectivity through and included HDMI cable.
Built-in YouTube(tm) Direct application button on the camera.
ISO and color balance can be set to automatic or manual.
10x optical zoom and 10x digital zoom, thus 100x max zoom.
Various effect options, such as Time Lapse and Slow Motion.
* Time lapse modes:
* 1 Sec: Record one frame per second.
* 3 Sec: Record one frame every 3 seconds.
* 5 Sec: Record one frame every 5 seconds.
Has a motion detection feature for filming anything that moves.
4GB of Built-in memory along with a slot for up to a 32GB SDHC card.
A very handy remote control for recording and playback on the camera.
Will film in B&W as well as color.
Macro Photo and Video as close as 1cm away!
Flash for photos with even a redeye reduction feature.
Timer function for photos.
Rechargable Li-ion battery with VERY VERY cheap spares with chargers such as these:
2 Pack Battery And Charger Kit For Toshiba Camileo X100 H30 Full-HD Camcorder Includes 2 Extended (1850Mah) Replacement PX1657 Batteries + Ac/Dc Travel Charger + LCD Screen Protectors + MicroFiber Cleaning Cloth
and
Wasabi Power Battery and Charger Kit for Toshiba PX1657, PA3791U, and Camileo H30 & X100
Both of which offer better batteries than the 1700mah battery that comes with the camera.
The software that comes with the camera is pretty rudimentary as you would expect, but with the savings on this camera you can get something better like Sony Vegas Movie Studio HD Platinum 11 Production Suite.
I've only been able to play around with the camera's settings at this point, but I can say I'm very pleased with the purchase and everything seems to function as advertised. I really couldn't ask for more in a less than $600 camcorder.
Other thoughts:
*The packaging is very sharp, even the foam padding used was impressively thought out. From the moment you open the box, you see this isn't something that was just tossed together.
*I do wish that Toshiba had included a true camera bag with the camcorder as they have one on their site for $19 and the felt bag that comes with it is better suited for storing your cables and charger.
*Lens Cap! Yeah! Amazingly, many HD camcorders don't come with one.
*Reading the PDF manual on the CD reveals many hidden features and how-to's.
*On another note: if you want SDHC cards that record 1080i at 60fps, I'd suggest you go with what the professional photographers I've dealt with have suggested are the best cards hands down.
SanDisk Extreme SDHC Class 10 High Performance Memory Cards:
SanDisk 8GB Extreme SDHC Class 10 High Performance Memory Card (SDSDX3-008G-P31)
SanDisk Extreme HD Video 16 GB SDHC Class 10 Memory Card (SDSDRX3-016G-A21)
*You should always format the card in the camera before you take your first picture. Never format it from the computer.
Buy Toshiba Camileo X100 Full-HD Camcorder - Silver/Black Now
First, I want to say I love this camera but I want to be honest and explain everything so you don't give up on it before realizing what a great deal it is. Therefore, I explain the problems and how to resolve them. Before buying this camera, we read reviews for it at several different places. From those reviews and our first few times using the camera there was something which made us nearly return the camera. All was taken care of so please read the whole review. This is the reason that I said "Check Everything". A couple of reviews said they didn't know why people were complaining about a strange red streak at the corner of the view finder. I can't find the reviews that said there was a problem with this, so I bought the camera and the first thing I saw was a red streak actually more like a red smear across the middle of the view finder. I downloaded the videos and pictures that I took to my computer and low and behold the red smear is on them. Please read further to find out how this problem was resolved.It's very easy to use and the sound and picture is good and I didn't want to give up on it. I was sure there was an asnwer. There was and now I feel like a dummy because I missed one little piece of plastic that nearly made me send this camera back. I had checked all the places where they have the plastic (and yes they do have plastic on the end of the battery which several people complained about also small and just on the end, not the whole battery) but I missed the plastic that was directly on the small part of the lens not the view finder. It had a red streak on it and therefore, that is why my pictures and video's had the red smear. Removed it and now the camera is fine. The plastic really was small and my husband I both had looked at this a couple of times before really seeing the plastic.
I still don't know all the bells and whistles on this camera however from what I have used on it so far, I love it. It's very easy to use and the sound is good.
This seems to be a great value so far. Can't wait to really use it and use all the features. I do have to say that it is strange that when we called the company to ask what could be causing the red smear, they said they had no idea and said I should send it back and they would send us another one. I would have thought that maybe they would have asked if we had found that tiny lens plastic.
Just an update to say that we have had this camera for a while now and just took it on vacation. We also use it to keep up with our growing grandchildren and we still love it. We have been satisfied with the quality and sound of videos and are so happy that we found a camera that allows us to take pictures also. I still need to learn to edit videos but I really haven't worked with that yet. Still say it is a good deal just wish it came with a better case. We were expecting more than that velvet bag.
Additional note, I've never had a camera where the pictures could be deleted from the computer but this one does. So be very careful when previewing pictures. If you forget to save them to your computer and you delete, then you have also deleted it from you memory card on your camera. Learned this the hard way when I had to get software to recover some valuable lost pictures but the video could not be recovered. Just don't hit delete until you hit save. I learned my lesson simple enough and I won't do it again. : My four year old grandson was strumming the guitar and singing happy birthday to me while his daddy held the chords and his 17 month old sister danced lost forever but maybe I can get them to do it again.)
I hope this update makes this review a little easier to understand. The manuel is not very helpful so just play with the camera a bit (but don't hit delete on your computer) and it will be easier to use everytime. :)
Update: I wish I could share some pictures with you from this camera. I have two pictures of a bear that was about 40 feet from me and, of course, I was ready to run at any moment but the picture is very clear. The second one, the bear is about 30 feet from me and husband was yelling for me to get in the house. I was moving but I'm still amazed that the picture is only a bit blurry. There were some wild turkeys I kept trying to get but they somehow could tell we were there immediately so I actually stuck the camera around the door and got a great picture without any focus. I also have pictures that were focused with no threating creatures around :) and pictures taken from a moving vehicle. These pictures were great and not blurry at all.
Read Best Reviews of Toshiba Camileo X100 Full-HD Camcorder - Silver/Black Here
This a great camera with very good picture quality. I just don't understand the negative reviews, unless they are trying to be professional cameramen taping the local news with this $150 camera. Just buy it, trust me.Want Toshiba Camileo X100 Full-HD Camcorder - Silver/Black Discount?
This is a great camera and the price is right. You can't go wrong. Read the manual! It is PDF and easy to read. There are NO adjustments just a few settings. The touchscreen is well designed and works intuitively. Great ergonomic design! Use macro-mode to get it to focus up close for hummingbirds, it has motion detection and time lapse. 6 hours of lo-res high speed from a 32GB SDHC card. What a nice little machine!Save 38% Off
No comments:
Post a Comment