Kodak Flips the Bird to Mino HD With Newest Pocket Camcorder
So, what does Kodak do for an encore to its inexpensive, über-popular Zi8, Zx1 and PlaySport camcorders… and, well, Flip the bird to the Mino HD and its pocket-dwelling, video-on-the-fly brethren?
It does this.
Say, Kodak, we’d love to see a PlayTouch live, up-close and personal as soon as you can send one along for review.
—Mike Russell
Kodak Adds Touch to Its Mini-Camcorder
By RIK FAIRLIE
Kodak’s PlayTouch Video Camera
The $230 PlayTouch is just 0.6-inch thick and weighs 3.5 ounces. The screen lets you view video in horizontal widescreen mode, although shooting is done vertically.
I had a quick look at the PlayTouch at a Kodak event a month ago, and the touch interface and menu controls are very intuitive and add a lot of appeal to the camera. The larger screen, which has a glare-shield feature that lets you apply two filters to the LCD for better viewing in bright sunlight, is also a great addition.
The PlayTouch has the same 1080p high-definition video capture as its predecessors and employs a 1/3.2 CMOS sensor that’s one stop more sensitive than that of the Zi8, according to Kodak. The mini-camcorder can also capture 720p video at 30 frames per second and 60 frames per second (the latter for slow-motion playback). It includes a jack for an optional stereo microphone.
As with other Kodak models, the PlayTouch has the familiar swing-out USB connector for shuttling video to a computer (it’s compatible with the Windows and Mac operating systems), and the included video-editing software lets you grab still images from video clips.
Of course, there is a Share button that lets you upload videos to popular social networking sites and send them to as many as 32 e-mail addresses.
The PlayTouch uses SD/SDHC cards for memory. It has an HDMI output for connecting to your HDTV, and Kodak even throws in an HDMI cable.
Look for it this fall in five colors: black, magenta, orange, teal and silver.
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