I purchased a Flip Slide about a year ago but I returned it after (1) it developed a problem with its HDMI jack and (2) I learned that Cisco had dropped the product and will terminate support next year. Chose the new Bloggie Sport as the replacement and received it a few days ago. Based on my experience with it thus far, I have both good and bad things to say.First the good:
(1) With the option of shooting in full-HD (1080) resolution, the Sony trumps the Flip, which went no higher than 720. I watched my Bloggie videos on a 46" screen and the quality was superb. I took some underwater videos of my 6-year-old in the pool (she's an amazing little swimmer) and again was delighted with the results (as was she!). The Bloggie has a very cool underwater mode that color-corrects based on depth. The results were impressive. (The camera is supposed to be waterproof down to 15 feet. I didn't go even half that distance, but there was no evidence of any leakage. I had to use an Aquapac case -basically a clear vinyl pouch -to shoot underwater with the Flip; this was a lot less cumbersome.)
(2) There have been some complaints about button placement on the Bloggie; yes, they take a few moments to get used to, but I actually found the placement to be more intuitive than they were on the Flip -notably the still photo shutter button.
(3) The Bloggie is as much of a "flip" as the Flip was; i.e., its USB connector flips out of the case and can be plugged into your computer directly. If that's made difficult becase of the location of your USB jack, the short USB extension cord that's included in the package will solve the problem.
(4) The Bloggie features a selectable "HD Sports" mode that shoots 720p at 60 fps. That means you get less blur in fast-moving sequences, and also that you can "grab" some amazingly sharp stills later on. (The demo video on the camera highlights this feature more than any other.) Shooting at 60 fps means that playback at the standard 30 fps would be HD slow motion. Thus far, however, I haven't found a way to do that.
(5) The Bloggie saves videos as MP4 files, meaning that they can be transferred directly to iTunes and then to all your Apple gadgets. Not so with my Sony Handcam, whose videos need to be converted before they are Apple-ready.
Now the gripes:
(1) I find the LCD screen to be insufficiently bright for shooting outdoors on a sunny day. It was a real struggle at the beach, for example, to know whether I was framing my shots accurately. The main thing I saw was my own reflection. As I recall, I was able to tweak the brightness of the screen on my Flip; Sony should have included that function as well.
(2) The delay between pressing the still photo shutter button and the digital "click" is nearly a second, making it all but impossible to catch that special moment, expecially with young kids. Not a problem for posed photos, but if you're counting to three, be sure to press the shutter on "two." (You always have the option, of course, of shooting in video mode and then finding that perfect frame through the software; that's what I'll probably do with this camera.)
(3) While I found the button locations unobjectionable, the proximity of the lens very near the left edge of the camera meant that, in the beginning at least, I saw a lot of finger in my shots. Again, it's not hard to train yourself to hold the camera "just so"; but it's still annoying.
(4) Like one other reviewer, I'm experiencing some difficulty downloading Sony's organizing and editing software.
(5) As others have noticed, the location of the mic tends to pick up camera-handling noises unless you hold the camera firmly without any surface movement. I didn't find this quite as much of a problem as others have.
Bottom line: This is a capable camera that, for its size and convenience, produces superb videos. Its ruggedness and waterproofing are real advantages. With a brighter screen, a faster shutter button, a more suitably located mic, and less problematic software, Sony would have a hands-down winner.
Took the camera out to the bar last night and it did well in the low light. Better than my flip did. Microphone is very good.
This morning it is raining in LA and I took the camera out and filmed. HD looks great, synced video to my mac and blasted it up to my Apple TV in a matter of 2 minutes. Unheard of with other cameras I have owned.
Image stabilization seems to be better than I thought it would be. LED light for flash is just as comical as a cell phone LED. Works better for finding dropped keys than anything else.
Everyone thought it was my cell phone at dinner last night, touchscreen is easy to use and BIG.
Setting have it on 2mp photos and 720p when you get it. I thought things were not that great, but then when I moved it to 5mp and 1080p there was a big difference.
Easy to hold and looks cool. So far so good.
Update: 4/16/12
Had this for a couple of really good outings with the family and have to say I would rate this a 6 star camera if I could. I have no idea why people are rating this camera so low? Maybe they are getting a lemon or something?
The clarity and microphone are WAY better than the flip and vado I used to own. Pool shots are so cool I cannot even tell you how amazed people in my family are.
Works perfect with Iphoto and Imovie. Super easy to format it into an itunes format and blast to the appleTV.
Stills are great, and easy to put into Imovie as well.
Once again, NO idea how people are rating so low. My family is LOVING this camera. Have had this in the ocean, in a pool, my daughter through it off the top of the stairs onto our hardwood floors, in the sand at the beach. Keeps on trucking. Exactly what I needed.
Going to Hawaii at the end of the month cant wait for more filming.I was so excited with anticipation to receive this camera. I loved the product description of how it is shock proof (up to 5 feet if it accidentally falls, etc.), and that it is waterproof. BUT... after receiving the item a few days ago, and testing it inside my house, I came to hate it quickly. But to be fair, I decided to hold on and trial it a bit, while shooting some short test videos, along with some test pictures. The audio/speakers are nice and loud, but like others have said, the microphone is too sensitive to even light touch on the frame of the camera while holding it and shooting videos. Now, I do use a tripod when shooting still pictures, but I purchased this vid/cam for when I'm out and about, and not lugging around my tripod. I primarily purchased it for video making, and being that it is called a 'sport' vid/cam, I would think that means not only rugged, but also good for shooting quick, impulse videos on the go, which also usually means, one will be moving the camera around a bit (upon following any moving scene). Well, the overly sensitive microphone causes too much playback noise, unless one holds the camera dead still, and even then, too much white background and other noise is picked up. Upon playback, loud scratchy noises from holding the camera are audible. I've had cheaper/older vid cams that were better in this regard. Though close to $200 is not considered really expensive for a camera, it is too high a price to pay, and settle for such poor sound/playback quality.
Furthermore, the touch screen is not responsive upon light touch. Instead, one has to press down too much before camera/vid response is made. At least on the camera I received, that is the case.
I also find the camera uncomfortable to hold, giving very little room for fingers without constantly, and accidentally hitting buttons (mainly, the silver side button), when held in the horizontal shooting position. If there was no issue with the sound playback mentioned above, I would have kept the camera and just trained myself to hold it differently, as well as learned to tolerate the lack of 'touch screen' responsiveness, but because of the playback sound issues, I'm sending it back. I just don't wish to tolerate cringing over the loud, scratchy sounds, while viewing final videos, nor wish to spend endless time tweaking out and separating the negative sounds, from the sounds I wish to capture in video, while using a software program to try and remove it.
I hope the warranty I purchased for this camera is also refunded, which I placed a refund claim for. They always send the warranty too soon, before receiving the item (in this case, the camera).I have had an opportunity to check out Bloggie in every scenario possible and it comes out on top in each one
Picture Quality major difference after having used a Sony Webbie as my portable/backup Camera. Pictures look professional and videos are superb
Handling all the buttons are instinctively where you would expect them and allows for operation with one hand. Light enough to do a 10 minute video without shaking
Transfer Play Memories is instinctive and fast
Limitation Battery life is too limited. Does anyone know if there is a power pack that could be used to charge the camera while at a sporting event on on the beach or in the wild where a/c facilities are not availableAfter testing out the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-TX10 16.2 MP Waterproof Digital Still Camera with Exmor R CMOS Sensor, 3D Sweep Panorama, and Full HD 1080/60i Video (Blue) as being the best waterproof camera I've gone surfing with I thought this new Sony Bloggie Sport would have been at least half has good with half its price and still be happy... Wrong!
The Sony Bloggie Sport has got to be the worst waterproof camera I've tested out thus far. Everything you can think of, it rates at the bottom.
1) Quality As bad as it gets. I shot off over 100 surfer shots using it with the Surf Camera Case | Chest Mount your Waterproof Camera and not a single surf shot was a keeper. Very grainy. I believe you'd be better of with a disposable waterproof camera.
2) Shutter speed Slowww. It takes 2 full seconds to shot a single picture after you've pressed the shutter. This is not at all good for action sports such as surfing.
3) Video Also slowww. It's not filming until 2 seconds after you've pressed the shutter. That's too much precious time when your trying to video a surfer coming down the line at you and it doesn't matter anyways because the video comes out all grainy.
4) View finder So dark you can't see anything moving fast. It's worthless. All you can do is aim and shoot and hope to get lucky.
5) Touch screen What a mistake! And I really mean it. Good luck trying to get it to work especially with wet fingers. To top it off you have to have good shade to even see what you're doing.
6) Battery life A single AAA battery would last longer. Most waterproof cameras that I've tested last at least a full two hour surf session. The Bloggie Sport will die on you in less than half that time.
7) Menu About as basic as a disposable camera (which by the way is much better). The thing that gets me is that every time I go to get a surfer shot (using it with the Surf Camera Case | Chest Mount your Waterproof Camera) I have to turn it on again because it automatically shuts off after a few minutes with no option for this.
The good:
1) It's waterproof.
2) It's small and compact
The rest is all down hill. Sorry Sony but this camera is a complete rip off to the consumer.
I hope this review has discouraged you from buying the Sony Bloggie Sport.
If you are looking for a budget value and/or a small compact camera like this, I highly recommend the GE DV1-LG Waterproof/Shockproof 1080P Pocket Video Camera (Lime Green). You can use it and many other waterproof cameras with the Surf Camera Case | Chest Mount your Waterproof Camera which I also recommend when shooting while playing in any action sport.
No comments:
Post a Comment