Samsung HMX-U20, a compact full HD camcorder

Finally I bought mine after thinking, thinking, thinking… hesitating, hesitating, hesitating… between the Kodak zi8 and this Samsung hmx-u20. Luckily this Samsung just comes out in Europe so I really had time to read some reviews and watched some videos on youtube before to take my final decision. In US, the model came out at the end of the month of may and when I started to look on internet about if it will be worth to buy it from here or wait for the European model, I read some reviews of people complaining about the clicking noise when recording a video, that zooming cutting the sound… Searching on youtube, I found similar comments

although the video is quite good for a pocket camcorder so I started to compare it with the Kodak and I found that majority of the characteristics are better for the Samsung.

In spite that the hmx-u20 came out at the end of the month of june, I was still hesitating because I read more and more bad reviews and only few good reviews. So you may wonder why I decided to buy the Samsung !!!

I decided to take the risk saying myself that the encountered problems can be resolved and indeed, I was not disappointed and really happy of my purchase. To avoid the clicking sound, Samsung recommends a SDHC memory card (not a SD) and some brands like Panasonic, SanDisk, Toshiba so to be sure, I bought a

Samsung SDHC one to record in full HD. No clicking sound, great, one problem solved. About the zooming, I configured the camcorder to turn off the sound so doing another test, I recorded with a spanish song on the background and zooming in and out many times and guess what !!! Problem solved too. The video quality is really quite good for this compact camcorder, the only point is that when I do a zoom in, the light dims a little. The smart auto function works pretty good, it allows to detect the environment automatically and by this way, adjust the settings according to it. If you plan to buy a camcorder, take in mind that this one is a pocket compact camcorder so don’t expect to get the same quality than a normal one. If you are like me, looking for something small, easy to use, possibility to have free hands, light weight… it can be your style.

July 9, 2010

I´m thinking to buy this new little gadget Samsung HMX-U20 Compact Full HD Camcorder when it will be on the market, normally the next month. Always using the video function of my camera and/or my cell phone to record things, this toy will allow me to create easier videos with better quality.

Very compact with a size of 2.07"(H) x 4.09"(H) x .061"(D) and very light with a weight of 0.245 lbs, I compared with other camcorders of its category. It has a 3x optical zoom and a 10x digital zoom, majority of its competitors have only a 5x digital zoom and none have an optical zoom.

Like you know, the digital zoom increases the size of the image by expanding it to the full size, reducing the quality. In the contrary, the optical zoom draws the image closer without affecting the quality.

Video can be done with a resolution of 1920x1080 with different speed modes so it means that I can choose to record it in speed and/or slow motion for example (that’s great ;-). The function “smart auto” allows to optimize the recording with its 6 settings (night, portrait, action, macro, landscape and backlight).

The other cool function is the one touch upload button. After connecting it to the computer with its integrated USB and selecting the files I want to share, I will just need to press it. Looks like very simple. Unfortunately, may be because of the size, no hard disk is integrated so I will have to buy a memory card.

This small camcorder of 14MP (7.8MP Effective) will be very practical, quick and easy to handle for what I’m thinking to do for my blog so if I decide to buy it, I have to spend at least, normally, 180 euros in Europe or $199.99 in US. If you also are interested, and you want more information, here the official page of Samsung HMX-U20.

May 12, 2010

 

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