This review is from: Zoom Q3 Handy Digital Camcorder Video Recorder with Transcend 8GB SD Card, TourTek Q3 Case, Tripod, & 6 Foot 1/8\" Stereo Audio CableI did quite a bit of on-line research before purchasing this item. I am very pleased with the performance and usability of this product. Many reviews complain about the video resolution. Yes, it is low but very adequate for my purposes. Perhaps some day a higher res version will come out but expect the price the jump it bit.Another complaint I heard about was about poor performance in low-light situations. I did not find this to be the case. As long as the 1.02 software update is loaded then it's very adequate as far as I'm concerned.Naturally the sound is outstanding and I don't remember reading any reviews complaining about sound quality.I've already used it to record some of my musician friends in performance and they have all been very pleased.As the company states it's a lot of audio with a bit of video. If you are musician looking for a simple to use video camera with great sound to capture your gigs then I would highly recommend the Zoom Q3....
This review is from: Zoom Q3 Handy Digital Camcorder Video Recorder with Transcend 8GB SD Card, TourTek Q3 Case, Tripod, & 6 Foot 1/8\" Stereo Audio CableThe only thing I can offer to the reviews that hasn't been covered too much is the fact that the unit records .MOV Quicktime Movie Files. This can be a problem in several different ways:Quicktime Files are not compatible with Windows Movie Maker and many other common PC applications for editing and working with video files or trying to make home DVD's. Most inexpensive or available PC-Windows apps will not be compatible with .MOV files. Adobe Premier will cost you hundreds of dollars and is like using a jackhammer to drive in a nail when it comes to simple editing, and not being an A/V professional engineer/software expert.When converting .MOV files to a different format (AVI, WMV, MP4,FLV, etc.), there always seems to be a problem with the video syncing up with the audio. I have yet to see it work well in ANY of the common apps/or a sensible fix for average home users.When viewing the .MOV files (640x480) in full screen using the latest version Quicktime Player 7, you will get audio/video sync problems. This happens after copying the files to my hard drive. I also have a "more than decent" PC with a core2-dual 2.6GHz Pentium CPU and 2GB RAM, SATA HD, good video card.When uploading .MOV files to YouTube, if the files are longer than just a couple minutes, the conversion causes audio/video sync problems, and the longer the video, the worse it gets out of sync.The "HandyShare" application that comes with it on the supplied Memory Card is a total joke. The only function it performs is simple trimming and saving files. There is absolutely no accuracy in the trimming of a movie file and to just get it close to where I wanted it was extremely frustrating. It does not provide a timeline, so you have to "eyeball" it. when you get it close to where you want it trimmed and you would like to audition it to make sure it's correct, the stupid thing goes back to the beginning making precision editing impossible. There is no timeline or any other editing functions available. You can not adjust the sound level, fade in or out, and 99% of the time it is impossible to trim it accurately to a starting or ending point. There will ALWAYS be unwanted footage at the beginning and end of your clips if you use the "HandyShare" application.The "HandyShare" application runs within its own folder and will allow you to view/work with files either inside the camera (on a memory card) or in your "MyDocuments/Zoom..~/Media/" folder. You have no other options to create folders or save them anywhere except those locations.The .MOV files are very large. It will use 40 (forty) MB per minute. A 12 minute video will render a file size of almost 500MB or 1/2 GB (0.5 GB) - this could take well over 40 minutes (or much longer) for most home users to upload to YouTube. The silly "HandyShare" app will not help you out with your ISP Bandwidth speed.If you are an "avid home user" and are used to working with Windows Movie Maker type apps and Windows DVD creator programs, you may find this format quite cumbersome and frustrating.If you are looking to save money and get great audio with mediocre video, you may find that this .MOV format will aggravate you, especially if you have to spend more money on a "suitable" video editing & creation application. I would check with my friends who are ".MOV savvy" and check the programs you are used to working with and see if this format is compatible. If you are a regular "average" computer user, it probably will not be compatible and definitely will not be "user-friendly."I am an advanced user and still have "general problems" with this format.I did buy this unit and for my purposes, quite happy with it compared to what else is available in its price range.The batteries lasted a lot longer than I expected. I was able to record our band with good clarity, three 45 minute sets and then a little more on one set of batteries. (2-AA's) I would turn the unit off for our 20-minute breaks in-between sets to let them refresh a little. There is no adjustment for the "auto-power-off" feature.If you need to record LOUD bands, concerts, events with clarity at an affordable price, you need this unit, but beware of the .MOV format which could cause bunches of problems for "average" users. The video is merely an added bonus and really not too shabby! If you have good lighting it is fantastic! At mid-level LED stage lighting it does well. I recommend checking out some Q3 footage on YouTube. It has a measley 2X digital zoom ("faux" zoom as it's called) and this camera would not work well at places like sporting events where a more powerful zoom is needed from a parent on the sideline.The little speaker has no fidelity whatsoever, ...
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