Samsung Puts 1080p in a Mini-Camcorder

By Rik Fairlie
Photo

Samsung has tossed its lens cap into the pocket camcorder ring with a snazzy-looking new model that can capture full 1080p video and snap 10-megapixel stills.

Samsung U10 The Samsung HMX-U10

The $200 HMX-U10, which will hit stores in September, bests the competition by offering full-HD video recording at 1920×1080 resolution at 30 frames per second. Other mini-camcorders–the Flip UltraHD, Creative Vado, and Kodak Z16–max out at 720P high definition.

The U10 measures a pocket-friendly 2.2 by 4 by 0.6 inches and tips the scales at a feathery 3.4 ounces. No flat brick, the body of the camcorder sweeps upward at the lens to enable more comfortable use, according to Samsung. It incorporates a 2-inch LCD screen for reviewing video and images.

The U10 has a fixed focal length lens (no zoom) with an aperture of F3, which is slightly slower than its competitors; that could translate to challenges in capturing low-light scenes. As with other mini-camcorders, the U10 lacks image stabilization, so watch out for the shakies.

The U10’s battery is charged via an included USB cable (being prone to cable loss, I prefer the swing-out USB connector adopted by other mini-camcorders). It has no internal memory for storage; instead, it takes a bring-your-own SD card approach that gives you the flexibility to take advantage of more memory. But that will cost you extra (unless you have a spare memory card lying around).

In addition to the U10, Samsung announced two new K-series camcorders that record video in standard definition (720 by 480) but can be played back on an HDTV in near full-HD quality, thanks to upscaling technology.

The $500 SMX-K45 is outfitted with an internal 32GB solid-state drive that can store up to 20 hours and 40 minutes of video, according to Samsung. The $330 SMX-K40 has no built-in memory and stores video on an optional SD/SDHC memory card.

Both have a 52X optical zoom lens and optical image stabilization, and can capture VGA stills at a resolution of 800 by 600 pixels.

Look for the K-series camcorders in August.

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Larry July 15, 2009 · 6:08 pm

I love that it uses SD cards; but I wonder whether 1080p makes much sense; given that the optics are probably mediocre (esp. the relatively slow lens). Unless you’re re-shooting your own version of ‘Lawrence of Arabia,’ I doubt you need 1080p.

samsung hdtv 1080p July 27, 2009 · 8:36 am

I’m very curious to the first real test of this camera, it looks great (for these kinds of camera’s), but I think the lens and the lack of optical image stabilisation makes it not good enough for some more ‘serious’ stuff other than HD-homevideo’s.. Also we know nothing yet about the compressionrate it uses..