Aiptek is getting into the HD camcorder business and is doing it the cheap inexpensive way. The Aiptek GO-HD digital camcorder will record 720p, high definition video onto SD cards. SDHC cards are supported and with an 8GB card you will get around 4 hours of HD footage, which is recorded using the H.264 codec. The best part? The Aiptek GO-HD will cost you under $300.
Other features on the Aiptek GO-HD include a 3x optical zoom, 2.4″ LCD, and LED video light. Still pictures can be taken at resolutions up to 5 megapixels. One nice thing about the GO-HD is that it can be recharged via either the supplied AC power adapter or by plugging it into the USB port on your computer.
The Aiptek GO-HD is available immediately from many of your favorite online retailers.
[ via Engadget ]
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.
it copy ranger. but the price is cheaper.