Posted on by Terry White

Kodak Zi8 HD Video Camera: Great for travel & video blogging

 

Kodak_Zi8_raspberry

A few days ago I wrote a post called "Are camera phones the new point and shoot cameras" and I guess the same thing could be applied to video cameras as well. I have a big older 3CCD Sony VX2000 Mini-DV camera as well as a newer Canon VIXIA HF10 HD camera that I LOVE! However, unless I'm specifically doing an event recording I'll probably just capture something quick on my iPhone 3GS and share it. The Canon is small but it's not pocket small. So this time I really do have a need for something in between. While the Canon is great, I don't always have it with me. While I do always have my iPhone with me the video is not the best. First off it's only VGA (640×480) and not widescreen. Everything I do nowadays is widescreen or HD unless it's something personal and fun just to share with friends/family. 

I was leaning towards the Flip camera until I ran it by my buddy Dave Helmly (guru of all things video) and he has both cameras and said hands down the Kodak was better. Since they're the same price, I didn't look any further and I bought the Kodak Zi8. I gotta say, I'm blown away by what this little thing does. First off it supports video at full 1080p HD! My HF10 only does 1080i. It has a built-in SDHC slot so I just stuck in one of my Transcend 16GB Class 6 SDHC cards and started shooting. My use for this camera will be mostly for video podcasting/blogging and a few interviews here and there. Speaking of interviews it has a stereo mic input. Another huge plus as I can plug in any mic I want. I'm starting with this one. The Zi8 is about the same footprint as my iPhone 3GS and maybe 1.5 times as thick.

I recorded my first video in 720p mode with it here. This is using the built-in Mic. (Don't forget to switch the YouTube playback to 720p to see the maximum quality):

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_o7JNZNctUk


The experience was great. I used a Gorillapod to hold and angle the Zi8 and once I was done recording, I plugged in the Zi8 to my Mac Pro via the built-in USB pop out cable and stared editing in Adobe Premiere Pro CS4 right off the camera. Adobe Premiere Pro CS4 natively supports these tapeless formats and my buddy Dave did this video on editing from these USB cameras. 
 

A couple of gotchas

Although the camera mounts right on the desktop via the USB plug, I will most likely just use a card reader going forward. Why? because once I was done editing and then started exporting the video using the Adobe Media encoder the Zi8 went to sleep and unmounted itself from the desktop. It appears that once it's fully charged and thinks it's "not in use" it shuts off. So from here on out I'll either edit off the card just like I do with the Canon or copy the video from the Zi8 via the cable. Another small thing is that you have to remember that there is NO ZOOM (optical or otherwise). CORRECTION: There is a 4x Digital Zoom. There is however a Macro mode switch right on the top of the unit. So while this camera is great for up close and personal stuff (what I plan on using it for) it would be very challenging to do event recording. 

 

Sample Files

Here's a 5MP still shot I shot from the Kodak Zi8 right off the camera.

Here's a few seconds of 1080p HD footage I shot with the Zi8 in the native .MOV format right off the camera so you can see the quality and test compatibility with your editor.

 

The Bottom Line

The Zi8 is a GREAT buy at this price of $199 (on sale here at $179) yes I got the black one in case you were wondering šŸ™‚ ). It also features a 5MP still camera and can do full HD if needed. The mic input is a huge plus and it even has HDMI out for connecting directly to an HDTV to watch the footage. My primary use will be HD on the web/youtube and that's mostly 720p which this camera does great at. So I'm happy. If I ever need 1080p it does that too. 

Also since I'll always have it with me it means that I can do more video reviews on the road.

19 Replies to “Kodak Zi8 HD Video Camera: Great for travel & video blogging”

  1. Totally agree with you Terry. This is a great little gadget.

    I bought a Zi8 for my wife for Christmas and she absolutely loves it! She rarely cares much about technology and doesn’t really get excited for anything gadget related. However after she had tried a Flip camera out, she fell in love.

    After extensive research I decided to go with the Kodak. We have had good experiences with their products in the past and I thought that image stabilization was crucial for such a light weight camera. Another item I liked was the flexible USB cable, the Flip’s seemed that they could snap off so easily.

    My only complaint would be regarding the zoom. Don’t know if its just our camera but the zoom is pretty choppy. Overall, I can’t complain for under $200.

  2. Terry,

    A further comment about the IPad from yesterday. You talked about the camera kit connection.

    From what I found out, I could use the the One on One software for the Iphone to shoot tethered to the IPad. If I am correct its a no-brainier for me to buy one.

    Is that correct or did you know that?

    Ken

  3. Matt,

    Check to see you have the latest firmware on your zi8. I bought mine last year, and had a similar issue with the zoom. After applying the latest firmware, the choppy behaviour seems to have been fixed. I believe the latest version is 1.06.

    -Ade

    1. Thanks Ade, I will give that a try and see if it fixes the issue. I appreciate the help!

    2. That is correct the last firmware update was on November 15 2009 and it is 1.06 for the ZI8.

      James C. Locker

  4. Hi Terry, Jim Locker I use to come to the Detroit Macintosh user group when I lived in West Bloomfield. I was the old Apple Demo Day’s rep for Apple in Detroit in the late 90’s and early 00’s. I have been working for Kodak for 3 years now and wanted to let you know of the new Kodak 1080p video recorder it is called playsport coming in April, here is the link fore the new camera.

    http://store.kodak.com/store/ekconsus/en_US/pd/PLAYSPORT_Video_Camera/productID.169976100

    I am attending the KMUG, Kalamazoo Macintosh User Group and if you ever want to come and visit us.

    We still meet the third Saturday of the month at Western Michigan University in Macintosh Computer Lab at 9:00 am in the morning.

    Well watched the iPad presentation and I am kind of mixed on the unit, it will not run Mac applications but will run iPhone/iPod touch apps.

    James C. Locker
    Kodak Imaging Expert

  6. Terry – I followed the link over here from Kelby’s blog to see your take on the iPad, etc. and was pretty surprised to see the ads for melting body fat scattered through the posts.
    It’s your blog and you can promote whatever you wish — this one doesn’t do you any favors, IMHO.

  7. My sister has one of these cameras. She let me play with it and shot some video with it. For the money it’s very good. The sound is not perfect but pretty good for such a small camera.

  8. Hi Terry! I have a Zi8 and I am so glad you like it. I was hoping to hear the lavalier because my hand held mic is too heavy for its lightweight body. (I have like a 30 ft cord on it). I ssume you iked it and since it is almost half price and only 20 bucks, I’ll try it.

    Remember when I interviewed you in L.A. when you spoke at the Convention center? http://isidragadget.wordpress.com/2009/07/19/to-digital-designers-terry-white-was-here/ My Zi6 (at the time) was dead, so I used the video in my Canon Powershot. Video has come a Loooong way!

  9. MANY THANKS to Ade Olumide!!!! I read what he posted about a firmware update for the Kodak Zi8 (who knew?) I have the Zi6 and the zoom was fluid so I was surprised that the zoom on my Zi8 was herky jerky. On his advice I went to the Kodak website found the firmware update, the instructions were spot on, and now I have fluid zoom on my Zi8!!! I also updated my Zi6 which now has the capability of reading a 32 Gig Card. Why did my husband buy the new one for me? Because it had a mic input, and an HDMI out, which for me as a journalist was important. (He now uses the 6.) Thanks again Ade and Terry!

  10. Thank you for sample files. I’ve been looking all over the web for a few seconds of raw .MOV file to test with my editor. Your stills and the excellent review were an added bonus. Thanks again!

  11. Thank you, even 3 years after , your article helped me a lot especially your raw mov file . Thanks to that, I see that Windows movie maker is compatible with the file!

  13. Useful piece , I was enlightened by the points . Does someone know if my business would be able to grab a blank TX 1899 copy to work with ?

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