New SANYO Pocket HDTV Camcorder

[Jerry Jones]

"I am curious to know if the Sanyo HD1 utilizes the H.264 standard.

I can't seem to find anything specific in the specifications"


"Encoding and decoding H.264 video (the standard for HD)"
/http://news.com.com/Upstart+aims+to+bring+HD+camco%20rders+to+the+mass es/2100-1041_3-5989639.html?tag=nefd.top/

"H.264 is the next-generation video compression technology in the MPEG-4 standard, also known as MPEG-4 Part 10. H.264 can match the best possible MPEG-2 quality at up to half the data rate. H.264 also delivers excellent video quality across the entire bandwidth spectrum — from 3G to HD and everything in between (from 40 Kbps to upwards of 10 Mbps).

HD MPEG-2 content at 1920x1080 traditionally runs at 12-20 Mbps, while H.264 can deliver 1920x1080 content at 7-8 Mbps at the same or better quality. H.264 provides DVD quality at about half the data rate of MPEG-2. Because of this efficiency, H.264, an ISO standard, stands to be the likely successor to MPEG-2 in the professional media industry."
/http://www.apple.com/quicktime/technologies/h264/faq.html/

Sanyo HD1 Digital Media Camera > Specifications
Video: <HD> [HD-SHQ] 1280 x 720 (30fps, 9Mbps)

Yes, another fellow posted his test of the .MP4 clips to which I pointed some links.

The SANYO HD1 does *not* utilize H.264; it uses H.263 MPEG-4.

SAMSUNG, however, will be releasing a true H.264 camcorder in August.

It will be the "SC-HDX15."

Here's the info:

http://tinyurl.com/7k7dc

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Jerry Jones]

A fellow who calls himself "JACKIEFU" posted this to the CamcorderINFO forum:

"To be honest I am not quite happy with this little gadget."

"It does quite badly in dark condition (video + still)."

"It shoots at max. iso 1600 (manual setting)for video, not 3600."

"It does not have a focus light for stills."

"The zoom does have slow and fast speeds, but only in 2 steps, and it is audible on playing back."

"The focus and exposure stop functioning during zooming."

"It re-focus only when your finger leaves the zoom button."

"There is no slow-shutter for video."

"The max. apperture is 3.5 at wide and tele, but 3.8 in the middle."

"It has only 5-7 steps and forget it cuz you wont be able to notice any difference in depth of view."

"Auto white balance is quick in response and mostly accurate."

"Battery drains faster than you can think of."

"OLED display.. it share the same problem with plasma tv."

"It warned about "burn in" if you leave it on for too long."

"NOISE IS ALSO SIGNIFICANT AT ANY LEVEL."

So - Doc may be right - perhaps it is just a toy.

I won't be buying one unless this report concerning video noise can be debunked by a good reviewer.

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Marshmallowman]

I would think it will be a while for the (cheaper end) HD cams deal with noise in low light conditions, jumping the res that much means each sensor element gets less than half the light of a SD cam.

I would think you would need to double the size of the sensor array/ccd to get the same low light capabilties as normal SDTV (not withstanding some other tech/cost breakthrough)

well in my opinion anyway, I am defintely camera illiterate

[Jerry Jones]

David Pogue of the New York Times got one.

His review includes the following key comments:

"Those two factors — lighting and stabilization — turn out to be towering issues with this camcorder."

"Yes, it's true: park it on a tripod on a sunny day at the beach, and your home movies will be the talk of the family."

"You'll come home, plug it into your HDTV set (component and S-video cables are included), hit Play on the remote, and blow people away with the clarity and beauty of the wide-screen, 1,280-by-720-pixel picture, what the geeks call 720p high-def video."

"(The HD1 also records standard-definition video with the press of one button.)"

"The video can't touch the quality of commercial HDTV, or even the results from that $1,340 Sony HC1."

"Even so, the HD1 can look miles better than any other pocketcorder's video."

"At its best, it humbles even most tape camcorders."

"Without good light and a tripod, though, the HD1 is an iffier prospect."

"Indoor shots and low-light scenes are marred by dancing pixels and compression "artifacts" (blotchy pixel clusters)."

"...when the light is good, the camera's stable and the expectations aren't sky-high, the HD1 may just restore some luster to the tarnished reputation of the class of memory-card pocketcorders."

http://tinyurl.com/d5zha

I'm thinking I'm going to go get one of those 3CCD Panasonic DV camcorders instead.

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Jerry Jones]

Pogue's story is now on CNET:

http://tinyurl.com/ashv9

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Jerry Jones]

I am suspicious of those two clips... the baby and the child eating the ice cream... that were posted in the beginning by those who claimed the clips were from the Sanyo HD1.

I've since viewed some newer posts by individuals who've purchased the SANYO HD1 (you can see them on the http://tinyurl.com/s86z4 site).

Their new clips... confirmed to be from the SANYO... to my eye look AWFUL.

They also do not look as good as the originally posted video of the baby and the child eating the icecream, which leads me to believe the baby/child video was acquired using some other type of camera.

For me, the SANYO is a good first effort, but now is not the time to buy.

I think the smart consumer should wait until better camcorders hit the market.

And they will!

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net