New $279.99 720p H264 pocket camera, before anybody else (Sanyo?):

Wayne Morellini · May 16th, 2007, 09:34 AM

New information has turned up on that SD thread. Component reverts to SD resolution when filming HD, battery is unreally 30 minutes, some stuff on focus. Still great camera for the price compared to the Sanyo and anything else above the camera up to the AVCHD cameras, but needs an much bigger battery option (4 hours would be good). As was pointed out though, the Canon cameras are next more expensive cameras to buy (and probably the Panasonic 3 chip Mini DV cameras).

Bit rate:

But it is interesting that the 5mb/s mode is available for 720p30 (but no 25p) which is probably roughly equivalent to the Sanyo's 9mb/s Mpeg4 performance (noise). It would be good to have this available for the SD mode, which is around 2Mb/s. It would be better to have an 9mb/s+ top end mode to.

AVCHD comparison?

I understand that AVCHD cameras currently suffer in their early h264 codecs, I would be interested in how this camera would compare to 15mb/s footage? I understand the next generation of Panasonic codec is much better. I think I will be reluctant recommending an camera unless I know it has ambarella inside, maybe they should have an "Ambarella H264" sticker.

Now for ambarella at 18-36mb/s speed. Actually, I wonder if we will ever see an professional 10bit 4:4:4 720p/1080p 50-100mb/s cameras.

Cole McDonald · May 16th, 2007, 09:47 AM

Has anyone done any non-auto, out of the box settings footage with this thing yet? I'm curious to see what it's capable of.

Wayne Morellini · May 18th, 2007, 07:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wayne Morellini

New information has turned up on that SD thread. Component reverts to SD resolution when filming HD, battery is unreally 30 minutes, some stuff on focus. Still great camera for the price compared to the Sanyo and anything else above the camera up to the AVCHD cameras, but needs an much bigger battery option (4 hours would be good). As was pointed out though, the Canon cameras are next more expensive cameras to buy (and probably the Panasonic 3 chip Mini DV cameras).

I take this back. While the Internal shoots are pretty impressive compared to low light HD1 footage, and shape is kept well on objects, noise is not so prominent, and very little macro blocking. I zoomed in on the outside footage, and found, with the increased amount of detail to compress I presume, more blocking etc. Grass must be hard to compress, and a lot is seen, like the Sanyo, maybe different. I would say it is very good for an consumer that does not mind seeing blocks on their screen, but for the user that does not want to see them on the screen, outside footage is another thing. The size of the blocks mean that they are bigger then SD picture pixels, I forget the measurements, but maybe even the pixels of an average TV. With an good picture, and detail, and HD image can be down sampled to SD and have an better picture, and pixel accuracy than many Standard Definition cameras in the consumer range. But as is, outside this doesn't appear to be the case, with 9mb/s H264, I think it would be. Altogether, I can see what an good job the H264 is doing, it just doesn't look like it has enough bandwidth for the shots in question.

My player is working better since I downloaded the K-codec pack, or the neoplayer pack from cineform.

Frank Prinzel · May 22nd, 2007, 05:53 PM

I couldn't find a manual for the GO HD but the manual for the next SD camera in the product line shows an A/V INPUT. Does anyone know anything about this?

I have two HD1a's and I love them and to me, in light of the cost and convenience, I think the Aiptek is not too shabby.

Frank Prinzel · May 22nd, 2007, 06:10 PM

I found the manual and the access for the av in on the SD cam is used for the HD out on the HD model.

Wayne Morellini · May 24th, 2007, 01:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frank Prinzel

I have two HD1a's and I love them and to me, in light of the cost and convenience, I think the Aiptek is not too shabby.

Yes, maybe a bit, but for the price, it is what it is, and that is still good. Unfortunately ti just falls off what a professional would like, because of the diagonal problems, and blockiness in the outside/moving shots. I am impressed.

The problem with the HD1 was, in light of cost and appearance, it also was too shabby to me personally, to buy.

Stefan Hartmann · June 18th, 2007, 04:41 AM

Hi All,
I got the Z300 HD cam as it called in Germany ( in USA: Go-HD)
yeasterday and I tried to shoot a rock concert in 1280x720p.

The camera is so bad, all the audio was totally distorted,
although the concert was not very loud...

Also there is no manual mode.
The cam is always in automatic mode and tries to adjust the focus all
the time,
especially, when the light like in a rock concert is changing all the time.
So the 3 x zoom never worked and it is always out of focus.

Then I tried the "flower"-macro mode, which has no zoom,
but a contant fixed 1.5 zoom factor, which was a bit better,
but as I was far away from the stage, I got no zooming capabilities then.
But there was still the autofocus at work sometimes and
the image was blurred in this case too...

So also inside in a room where there is not so much light,
I also was not able to get a focus on some paper hanging on the wall.

So all in all, the camera is not useable.

Does anyone still have stored the firmware update, that was on the German Aiptek site and can post this to megaupload.com or rapidshare.de or simular upload sites ?
Maybe that could have fixed some issues ?

But if that does not fix anything, I am bringing back the camera and
try to get my money back...

Scott Jaco · June 20th, 2007, 02:58 PM

I've downloaded some sample clips from this camera and it's actually quite nice. I might purchase it.

Stefan Hartmann · June 21st, 2007, 11:45 AM

Hi All,
before I brought the camera back I contacted the German
Aiptek support and got an email from them with the
newest Firmware version 1.400.
Before I only had version 1.100.

Well, okay, the focussing seemed to be better then,
but still no manual mode.
Also the audio distortion problem is still there, if you want to record
louder music.
Also the 3x optical zoom is very bad, cause the lenses are
not very light sensitive, so you get a very dark picture,
if you are already in a low light room, so this is only
good, if you are outside where there are good light conditions..

So all in all I was not satisfied with this camera and brought it back.

Now I will try the Sanyo HD2 camera next.

Regards, Stefan.

Scott Jaco · June 21st, 2007, 01:35 PM

I noticed the audio sounded like crap also, but lets face it, all cameras with built in mics sound horrible.

Costco is selling them on their website for $229 which still makes it an impressive deal!

Wayne Morellini · June 22nd, 2007, 03:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stefan Hartmann

Hi All,
I got the Z300 HD cam as it called in Germany ( in USA: Go-HD)
yesterday and I tried to shoot a rock concert in 1280x720p.

The camera is so bad, all the audio was totally distorted,
although the concert was not very loud...

Surely an torture test, sorry to hear that Stefan, if it had passed I might have bought one. Yes, no manual mode (I thought that was mentioned here, probably the other thread) is an real downer, and I guess no way to lock the focus too. I think 18mb/s+ (24mb/s preferable) and better sensor, manual controls and low light. I can imagine all the flashing from dark to bright would not be well perceived.

With the Sanyo HD2, except for the manual functions I think you are not going to find anything really much better in the rock concert, and from reports, low light might not be as good. For the price, there are HDV and AVCHD cameras not too much more that might do better.

Stefan Hartmann · June 22nd, 2007, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wayne Morellini

Surely an torture test, sorry to hear that Stefan, if it had passed I might have bought one. Yes, no manual mode (I thought that was mentioned here, probably the other thread) is an real downer, and I guess no way to lock the focus too. I think 18mb/s+ (24mb/s preferable) and better sensor, manual controls and low light. I can imagine all the flashing from dark to bright would not be well perceived.

With the Sanyo HD2, except for the manual functions I think you are not going to find anything really much better in the rock concert, and from reports, low light might not be as good. For the price, there are HDV and AVCHD cameras not too much more that might do better.

Hi Wayne, thanks for your advice,
but I really wanted to have a chip camcorder.
Also the HD2 has the possibility to plug in an external microphone,if I understand it correctly, so I would try it with this.
Also I would need a very portable device that will fit into my trousers pocket and all the other
AVCHD and HDV camcorders are much bigger..

Does anybody have seen already the Panasonic S10 new MPEG2
chipcamcorder ? It is only around 350 Euros ,but can do maximum
720x576 16:9 at 10 Mbps VBR.
Maybe nice, if you want to do DVDs without having to recode to MPEG2.
So the backup should be pretty straightforward to do real DVDs.

Stefan Hartmann · June 22nd, 2007, 12:04 PM

Hi All,
the firmware version can be checked by
pressing 1 x the mode button.

Then press the mode button and the upper left
button on your display together , and it will show your firmware version.

You can get out of this firmware menu only by switching the
camera off then again.

I got the firmware version 1.400 from the German Aiptek support and when
asked why they tookit down from their webserver they said, they
wanted to have control over who downloads it, so they rather
send it by email to you.
So fill out their online form and they will send it by email to you.

Regards, Stefan.

Stefan Hartmann · June 23rd, 2007, 08:34 AM

A friend told me, that he has seen the Firmware version 1.400
also over here:

http://www.megaupload.com/de/?d=WA88IRD2

So, anyway, you should probably register with Aiptek, so they
know you are now also using the new firmware and if you have any
trouble they can help you.

Regards, Stefan.

May 16th, 2007, 09:47 AM	#32
Cole McDonald Trustee Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Sauk Rapids, MN, USA Posts: 1,675	Has anyone done any non-auto, out of the box settings footage with this thing yet? I'm curious to see what it's capable of. __________________ Web Youtube Facebook

May 22nd, 2007, 05:53 PM	#34
Frank Prinzel Contributor Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Miami, FL Posts: 14	AV in? I couldn't find a manual for the GO HD but the manual for the next SD camera in the product line shows an A/V INPUT. Does anyone know anything about this? I have two HD1a's and I love them and to me, in light of the cost and convenience, I think the Aiptek is not too shabby.

May 22nd, 2007, 06:10 PM	#35
Frank Prinzel Contributor Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Miami, FL Posts: 14	No input I found the manual and the access for the av in on the SD cam is used for the HD out on the HD model.

June 18th, 2007, 04:41 AM	#37
Stefan Hartmann Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Berlin, Germany Posts: 46	Unusable... Hi All, I got the Z300 HD cam as it called in Germany ( in USA: Go-HD) yeasterday and I tried to shoot a rock concert in 1280x720p. The camera is so bad, all the audio was totally distorted, although the concert was not very loud... Also there is no manual mode. The cam is always in automatic mode and tries to adjust the focus all the time, especially, when the light like in a rock concert is changing all the time. So the 3 x zoom never worked and it is always out of focus. Then I tried the "flower"-macro mode, which has no zoom, but a contant fixed 1.5 zoom factor, which was a bit better, but as I was far away from the stage, I got no zooming capabilities then. But there was still the autofocus at work sometimes and the image was blurred in this case too... So also inside in a room where there is not so much light, I also was not able to get a focus on some paper hanging on the wall. So all in all, the camera is not useable. Does anyone still have stored the firmware update, that was on the German Aiptek site and can post this to megaupload.com or rapidshare.de or simular upload sites ? Maybe that could have fixed some issues ? But if that does not fix anything, I am bringing back the camera and try to get my money back...

June 21st, 2007, 11:45 AM	#39
Stefan Hartmann Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Berlin, Germany Posts: 46	Firmware version at 1.400 ! Hi All, before I brought the camera back I contacted the German Aiptek support and got an email from them with the newest Firmware version 1.400. Before I only had version 1.100. Well, okay, the focussing seemed to be better then, but still no manual mode. Also the audio distortion problem is still there, if you want to record louder music. Also the 3x optical zoom is very bad, cause the lenses are not very light sensitive, so you get a very dark picture, if you are already in a low light room, so this is only good, if you are outside where there are good light conditions.. So all in all I was not satisfied with this camera and brought it back. Now I will try the Sanyo HD2 camera next. Regards, Stefan.

May 16th, 2007, 09:34 AM	#31
Wayne Morellini Inner Circle Join Date: May 2003 Location: Australia Posts: 2,762	New information has turned up on that SD thread. Component reverts to SD resolution when filming HD, battery is unreally 30 minutes, some stuff on focus. Still great camera for the price compared to the Sanyo and anything else above the camera up to the AVCHD cameras, but needs an much bigger battery option (4 hours would be good). As was pointed out though, the Canon cameras are next more expensive cameras to buy (and probably the Panasonic 3 chip Mini DV cameras). Bit rate: But it is interesting that the 5mb/s mode is available for 720p30 (but no 25p) which is probably roughly equivalent to the Sanyo's 9mb/s Mpeg4 performance (noise). It would be good to have this available for the SD mode, which is around 2Mb/s. It would be better to have an 9mb/s+ top end mode to. AVCHD comparison? I understand that AVCHD cameras currently suffer in their early h264 codecs, I would be interested in how this camera would compare to 15mb/s footage? I understand the next generation of Panasonic codec is much better. I think I will be reluctant recommending an camera unless I know it has ambarella inside, maybe they should have an "Ambarella H264" sticker. Now for ambarella at 18-36mb/s speed. Actually, I wonder if we will ever see an professional 10bit 4:4:4 720p/1080p 50-100mb/s cameras.

June 20th, 2007, 02:58 PM	#38
Scott Jaco Major Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Sherman Oaks, CA Posts: 471	I've downloaded some sample clips from this camera and it's actually quite nice. I might purchase it.

June 21st, 2007, 01:35 PM	#40
Scott Jaco Major Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Sherman Oaks, CA Posts: 471	I noticed the audio sounded like crap also, but lets face it, all cameras with built in mics sound horrible. Costco is selling them on their website for $229 which still makes it an impressive deal!

June 22nd, 2007, 12:04 PM	#43
Stefan Hartmann Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Berlin, Germany Posts: 46	Firmware version check Hi All, the firmware version can be checked by pressing 1 x the mode button. Then press the mode button and the upper left button on your display together , and it will show your firmware version. You can get out of this firmware menu only by switching the camera off then again. I got the firmware version 1.400 from the German Aiptek support and when asked why they tookit down from their webserver they said, they wanted to have control over who downloads it, so they rather send it by email to you. So fill out their online form and they will send it by email to you. Regards, Stefan.

June 23rd, 2007, 08:34 AM	#44
Stefan Hartmann Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Berlin, Germany Posts: 46	new firmware located... A friend told me, that he has seen the Firmware version 1.400 also over here: http://www.megaupload.com/de/?d=WA88IRD2 So, anyway, you should probably register with Aiptek, so they know you are now also using the new firmware and if you have any trouble they can help you. Regards, Stefan.