mini-camcorders

The PlaySport Zx5 is Kodak's update to 2010's PlaySport Zx3. The two look nearly identical, but the Zx5 ups the ante on durability. The Zx3 was merely waterproof and dustproof but now the Zx5 adds shockproofing. There are a couple of other feature differences, too, most for the better. Unfortunately, the battery is no longer removable.

The video quality from the Zx5 doesn't change much from the Zx3, but the few changes are mildly for the worse, which brought its rating down. On the other hand, the video is still very nice and the camera is a … Read more

The Cisco/Flip Video saga continues. After the April announcement that the FlipShare desktop and mobile software will continue to be functional and supported until December 31, 2013, comes word on the fate of all your videos stored on the company's FlipShare service.

As of May 12, 2011, any videos shared with "an individual, group, Flip Channel, or Twitter will only be available online for viewing and downloading for up to 30 days after being sent." Sent something before that date? Well, you've got 30, err, 29 days to get 'em before they're gone.

Clips … Read more

Back on April 19, I suggested that people hold off on buying a Flip minicamcorder after Cisco decided to close the business. Cisco's public relations gave me a wishy-washy answer about support for current and future users, saying it would have a transition plan "in the coming weeks" instead of, you know, immediately. Thankfully, weeks turned into days, and Cisco now has a plan in place for the future of Flip.

Sadly, there is still no plan to sell the business to another manufacturer. But, you're safe to buy up the models currently available with full … Read more

You might think that pocket video cameras are doomed because of smartphones and the iPhone, but there are some things those devices just can't do. The Samsung HMX-W200, for example, can survive a 6.5-foot drop, a swim down to 10 feet, and it's dustproof. It joins competitors from Kodak and Panasonic, among others, that are rugged, not just waterproof.

The W200 is essentially the same as the company's P100 pocket video camera, but rugged. It has a backside-illuminated 5-megapixel CMOS sensor for better low-light recording; records in full HD (1,920x1,080/30p) in MPEG-4 AVC/… Read more

Editors' note (April 26, 2011): Since this post, Cisco has announced it will continue to support Flip devices within the terms of the company's one-year warranty. Technical support for both the video cameras and the FlipShare software and sharing services will be available until December 31, 2013. Sharing services will also end on this date. As long as they're still available on the market, you may want to consider buying one and if not, here are some alternatives.

When Cisco closed its Flip business last week, I was treating it just like any other product that gets discontinued … Read more

Last year Panasonic started up a mini-camcorder line with one device, the HM-TA1. It wasn't very good, but Panasonic decided to press on, announcing three dual-camera pistol-grip models (HX-WA10, HX-DC10 and HX-DC1) and HM-TA20 and HM-TA2 candy-bar-style models.

For the HX-series models, they look like the continuation of Sanyo's dual-camera Xacti line (Panasonic announced total acquisition of Sanyo in December 2010). The WA10 is the highest-end dual-camera model (they have separate video and photo capture buttons) and features waterproofing good down to 10 feet for up to an hour; a backside-illuminated CMOS sensor; 16-megapixel photo capture and full … Read more

LAS VEGAS--It looks like Samsung is creating a nice little family of minicamcorders. The HMX-P300 and HMX-P100 are pretty much higher- and lower-end versions of the same model, but the P100 isn't so crippled that it's not worth checking out.

The P100 has a backside-illuminated 5-megapixel CMOS sensor for better low-light recording, a fixed focal length f2.2 lens, and a 2.3-inch LCD with an 80-degree viewing angle so you have more shooting and viewing flexibility.

The P300 gets a backside-illuminated 8-megapixel CMOS sensor, a 3x f2.8 zoom lens, and a 3-inch touch screen.

Both can … Read more

LAS VEGAS--There's only so much you can do with the design of a point-and-shoot camera, so Casio deserves credit for literally breaking out of the box with the Tryx.

At first glance, it looks like an ultracompact camera/minicamcorder with a bit of flair. Then you flip out the high-resolution 3-inch touch-screen LCD and, well, it's no longer your typical pocket camera. The display can pivot through its frame a full 360 degrees while the screen itself can rotate 270 degrees. And with its built-in orientation sensor you can hold the Tryx in your left or right hand … Read more

The Kodak PlayFull is pretty much a basic minicamcorder, albeit a tiny, attractive one.

It captures full HD 1080p movies and 5-megapixel stills and is loaded with Kodak's share software for quickly editing videos and sharing on sites like Facebook and Twitter as well as international sites like Yandex and KAIXIN001. There is a Share button, too, for tagging your photos and videos to upload to those sites as soon as it's connected to a computer.

The PlayFull also gets black and white, sepia, high saturation, and '70s film look capture effects; face tracking; electronic image stabilization; and … Read more