Footage from the Aiptek GO-HD

[Jarrod King]

Here are 22 clips of footage that I have taken with the new Aiptek GO-HD high definition camcorder. If I'm not mistaken, it uses an Ambarella chip for video acquisition. My previous experience with Aiptek is having to include them in my Ebay searches with a minus sign before the name so I wouldn't get them in my results when searching for camcorders! I am actually pretty impressed with the build quality. It's plastic, but not total crap. It is very small and could really fit in a pocket.

To view the clips, I recommend downloading the Aiptek HD-DV Decoder Software at-

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=1SHBMGB3

After unzipping the folder, double-click on SETUP.EXE to start the install.

It allows Windows Media Player to decode the camera's AVCHD .mov files and greatly surpasses the image quality I got with Quicktime. Quicktime and Quicktime Alternative playback was always choppy no matter what and lacked the color saturation and clarity that is shown in Windows Media Player with the Aiptek decoder. Be aware that the program will associate alll .mov files with Windows Media Player. The best playback I've seen from the camera by far, though, is hooking it up directly to my 52" DLP. The weird choppy, strobing motion (the cows' tails, etc.) which I see on my computer LCD looks much more natural when viewed on the television. I don't know if it is my computer being a little too slow or some other software strangeness that is causing it. I wish I could share the images that the Aiptek shows on my DLP.


The footage is here-

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=32NQNAE9

Almost all footage was taken with a tripod, as footage without it can be extremely jumpy. There aren't really any manual features other than white balance. The compression level is not adjustable either. The clips are incredibly small; it's amazing what the codec can cram into such small file sizes.

Even with all of the weirdness from the Aiptek, my previously "great" DV footage from my well-respected 3-CCD Panasonic AG-EZ1 (http://dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=93878) looks like garbage now in my eyes. My favorite thing is the Aiptek's saturated color. It reminds me of when I first got a quality prime lens for my 35mm camera instead of the plastic crap lens I had- suddenly things were just so much more colorful, sharp and alive.

I bought the Aiptek here for $249-
http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product...rodid=11218186

I don't know whether I should keep it or return it and spend more and get the Sanyo HD2. I wish I could look at the clips that Carlos Serrano uploaded from the Sanyo HD1 about a year ago. I always thought those looked really great and would like to see how they look again. It seems filefront deleted his uploads.

Jarrod

[Wayne Morellini]

Hello, are you over at Steve's forum?

What I have seen over there, the camera looks much better inside. Outside it might be similar to the Sanyo, but the one way diagonal bug is still there. Apparently an function of the way the sensor itself debayers the pixels during binning for video. I think this can be repaired at least, I hope manufacturers try this in future before compression.

[Peter Solmssen]

Your clips look quite o.k. on my 60 inch HDTV, considering the price of the camera. If you want better image stabilization in this format, you will have to go the Canon TX1, which is actually less expensive than the Sanyo. The Sanyo's are fine (I've used them since they came out) but the image stabilization is their weakest point: it is ineffective and it degrades the image.
The Canon image stabilization is optical, and works very well. The Canon uses the Mjpeg format, which also works well but uses an inefficient codec that will require you to use bigger SD cards and perhaps carry extras.

[Jamie Varney]

Thanks for posting this footage, I am quite impressed with it. If only this camera had a few more manual options I would be tempted to get one. How great would it be if Aiptek were to make a sub $600.00 'prosumer' camera based on this platform? Guess I will just keep dreaming.

[Jeff Zimmerman]

Thanks for the post looks like you took the time to get some great samples. A friend of mine mentioned this camera. Looking for an HD solution that's affordable as a helment or crash cam. Looked pretty good for what I might use it for.

[Scott Jaco]

I liked the footage but I would really like to see some humans so I can judge the skin tones.

Costco is selling this camera for $229! It would make a great backup cam for my videography business!

Also, realize that any image stabilization feature robs you of some resolution.

p.s. I just used my VLC player and it played back the footage without any problems at all.

[Scott Jaco]

Hi,

I just picked up my Aiptek GO-HD and I have to say I'm impressed. I think the only people that won't like it are those who are used to the 60i frame rate.

I shoot using an HD100 at 720/30p so I'm already aware of how to shoot with this format. As long as you keep the camera steady it puts out great looking video for a $250 camera. I love that it doesn't use tape or hard drives. It really is going to be a hit among the consumer market.

As far as how it compares to the JVC HD100? Well the Aiptek doesn't have the color quality that a 3-chip camera has and there are more jaggies when viewed on a computer monitor. However, if you watch the HD footage on a standard def. TV, it looks amazing.

I did some quick pans and waived the camera around in an attempt to break the codec but the picture seemed to hold up pretty well.

The sound isn't that great but this is the case with all built-in mics.

The focus seems decent, and the zoom is almost inaudible. I guess I got lucky.

Look, it's a $250 toy. It looks great for what it is. I don't plan to sell my HD100 anytime soon but this camera really starts to blur the lines between the two.

[Scott Jaco]

So, bad news.

I've decided to return the Aiptek GO-HD.

The deal breaker was when several of the clips that I recorded had no sound!
This seemed to happen totally at random which is completely unacceptable.

The other deal breaker was no image stabilization. This normally wouldn't be so bad, but the fact that even the slightest movement causes the picture to create a wavy distorted look is just not going to work.

Even a cheap miniDV camera with no image stabilization would at least preserve the shaky picture without it looking like an acid trip.

I will say that the colors were very vivid but the detail on the wide shots is terrible. Only close-ups keeping the camera very steady turned out decently.

The codec just can't handle real world use without looking like a cell phone camera. The sound is also very distorted. There is no MAC support.

Hopefully Aiptek will release an upgraded model with a higher data bandwidth and improved features. I doubt however, it will be as affordable as the GO-HD.

[Ray Smith]

Here's a 720p clip from a TX-1 for comparison.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=8H5FR1IM

r.

[Scott Jaco]

Originally Posted by Ray Smith

Here's a 720p clip from a TX-1 for comparison.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=8H5FR1IM

r.

I compared your clip to some of the Go HD's.

Your camera has a little better sound but still noisy as hell. The picture didn't become as distorted or wavy but it was still shaky as hell. The wide shots also lacked good detail.

[Ray Smith]

Originally Posted by Scott Jaco

I compared your clip to some of the Go HD's.

Your camera has a little better sound but still noisy as hell. The picture didn't become as distorted or wavy but it was still shaky as hell. The wide shots also lacked good detail.

The video was taken without a tripod, hence the shakiness.
I am still experimenting with the focus-lock feature.
I hope to have some better clips in the future.

Thanks for the feedback.
r.