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Kodak Zi6 High Definition Pocket Video Camera - Black | 
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| Brand: Kodak
Category: CE
List Price: £129.99
Buy New: £89.99
You Save: £40.00 (31%)
New (8) from £89.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  21 reviews
Sales Rank: 361
Media: Electronics
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 6.5 x 2.8
MPN: Zi6
Model: Zi6
UPC: 041778586495
EAN: 0041778586495
ASIN: B001F51KVC
Release Date: October 26, 2008
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
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| Features:
| • | KODAK Zi6 POCKET VIDEO CAMERA | | • | Pocket Video Camera | | • | Includes 2AA rechargeable NiMH batteries and charger. | | • | 4GB high performance SDHC memory card. |
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| Accessories:
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Kodak's Zi6 could well be the new king of camcorders, because it makes it so easy to shoot HD footage! This camcorder is able to film 720p videos with ease, capturing 60 frames per second. It even takes still photos with resolutions of 3 megapixels and saves them onto its 128 MB memory, which you can extend by popping a memory card into the SD/SDHC slot. If you're after a simple, smart camera that doesn't compromise on performances, then the Zi6 mini camcorder from Kodakis made for you!
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| Customer Reviews: Read 16 more reviews...
 An excellent budget HD camera December 29, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This little beauty is a pocket sized HD video camera suitable for everyday use. It makes bulky cameras a thing of the past and is so simple to use that even I can use it!
The image quality of the HD footage is remarkable for a device at this price. Outdoor and well lit environments look absolutely stunning, but much darker environments will be quite grainy (so make sure that when shooting in these environments you provide some kind of decent light source).
SDHC support up to 32Gb means no more knackered tapes and is quick to get started recording and reviewing recorded material on the device. Getting the video of the device is simplicity itself - on Macs (and PCs, I believe) these are presented as external drives and one only needs to copy or move the files from the device to your hard drive. All recordings are stored in the efficient H.264 video codec within a MOV container.
That said, the Kodak Zi6 is not going to be for absolutely everyone. To get the very best of out the device may require some post-production work.
The biggest issue for most people is going to be the lack of an image stabilizer. This was omitted to keep costs down, but in my humble opinion is not entirely a bad thing. This at least guarantees that the quality of video shot is top class. How stable the shot is depends on you. There are several ways of getting around this. For starters the Zi6 has a tripod mount which will fit any standard tripod fitting. As the Zi6 records in H.264 MOV format, footage can be brought into editing and FX packages and there are plenty of software available that can take of fixing stabilization issues.
As a Mac user, I use iMovie 7 (part of iLife 08) which manages the shot footage just fine. I use it to produce non-HD but high-quality widescreen videos suitable for YouTube when I want to both HD and non-HD material. PC users are catered for with software that's bundled with the camera.
Switching between macro and non-macro mode is easy enough, but if one wants to get in real close you'll have to stop recording, flick a switch, then start recording again. The switch is situated in an awkward place to be able to do it while filming at the same time. But this is no problem - just stop recording, flick the switch, start recording again and join everything together in your preferred video editing package.
I'd highly recommend getting a USB extender cable because trying to fit this device on a Macbook is a little crazy when you have a mouse plugged into the other USB port.
I like the inclusion of the soft cover carrying bag which also acts a decent lens wipe too when you accidentally put your fingers over the lens (although I still carry proper lens cleaning cloths to be safe).
The little joystick operates just fine, even with my sausage fingers as do the buttons that sit next to it.
The inclusion of the battery charger is well thought out along with two rechargeable AA batteries, and the fact the device can take regular standard AA batteries as well is excellent.
Kodak are onto a winner here and with a bit of practice and some post-production skills, you too and produce excellent high-definition home videos at a price that's just right.
 Quite good but watch out for camera shake! December 18, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I already have a Flip Mino (see Flip Video Mino - Black (2GB)) and was very pleased with it, but was considering an upgrade to the new HD model. However that's not yet available in the UK so, having read good things about the Kodak I decided to give it a try.
The Kodak is larger than the Flip and not in a good way - it doesn't sit quite so comfortably in the hand and after a while I found that my hand would begin to shake. This revealed quite a serious drawback because while the quality of the video is stunning in HD mode, the Kodak Zi6 cannot cope with shake or any type of motion. A simple panning shot leaves it reeling.
For example, I used the Flip on a rollercoaster and obtained great results that look fantastic on a large screen HD TV (remember this is standard definition). I tried the Kodak on a Ferris wheel going at a moderate pace and you can't make out a lot of it. Apparently it has to do with the Flip having a slightly wider field of view and if true it's amazing Kodak didn't think of this as for me it turns it in to a major disappointment. If you're going to be doing anything other than static filming, you might want to give the Flip a go or wait for the HD version which will be out soon.
The Kodak scores over the Flip in that it uses a secure digital card so I currently have 4Gb in there compared with the 2 gigs of non-extendable flash memory on the Flip. However this translates in to an hour of HD versus an hour of SD. (You need to buy an SD card separately, by the way, so order one at the same time as you buy the camera!) Of course you can carry several cards with you which means no running to the laptop to transfer video. Here again I ran in to problems: the camera automatically appears in iPhoto on a Mac which is a good thing if you want to use iPhoto to store your video, and only a minor inconvenience if you don't. But I found getting the camera to be recognised a chore - you have to turn it on first, plug it in to the USB socket, where the camera turns itself off, then wait for it to mount on the desktop. The USB stick is inconveniently placed for me, compared with the Flip. I have a lock on my laptop which means one of the USB ports is blocked (for the camera, anyway - it's fine for everything else) so I have to use the other one. That means unplugging the power cord or sitting with my finger on it to keep the charge going! The USB stick that pops out seems quite flimsy too and I'm not convinced it will last. For some reason the camera won't work with a USB extension cable.
Sound is okay. I used it outdoors to record a walk through the snow early in the morning and the camera shot beautiful video and excellent sound. Later that day I used it to film some student presentations indoors and the sound was dreadful, as was the video, even though there was more light (it seemed to overload the camera so faces were underexposed).
The camera isn't as easy to use as the Flip. The joystick is fiddly and everyone I've given it to has immediately commented on it. Getting the camera to play video back isn't particularly intuitive and I think the Flip wins hands down on this.
The phone can shoot in two HD modes (the higher framerate HD mode is pointless unless you will be creating sow motion video and soon burns through batteries and drive space) as well as standard definition and a still mode that was pretty poor.
So a mixed review really. Great video sometimes, and good sound too, sometimes, but I wouldn't shoot a wedding with it if you wanted to be sure you could see and hear everything, and I wouldn't shoot a kids party with it because of the camera shake. If I had a choice I'd probably stick with the standard definition Flip for ease of use, lack of camera shake and decent sound and video, but I may still be giving its HD successor a go the moment it arrives here in the UK, which shouldn't be long.
 A handy cheap video recorder. December 18, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a great simple to use video recorder. THe device is about the same size as a mobile phone and is operated in much the same way. The image quality is O.K.
Small but useful December 11, 2008
The Kodak Zi6 is an intriguing device. This Kodak video camera is designed as essentially a point and shoot device that sacrifices features and complexity for ease of use and size. It is quite radically different from most video cameras; it's more or less iPod size and has very few settings to configure.
It's probably easier to list what it doesn't have, there is no autofocus and no optical zoom; it has a close-up and normal focusing mode that renders most subjects reasonably sharp. The digital zoom is quite satisfactory though if you are expecting a zoom similar to an optical movement then you'll need to look elsewhere. Similarly the rest of its features are restricted to being able to set the date and time, set PAL or NTSC, the quality settings for capturing video and whether you want to record audio.
The device also has a built in USB jack (accessible by pressing the self-portrait mirror on the lens-side of the camera) and video and audio composite sockets for connecting directly to a TV.
The device takes SD HC cards and I found a 8GB card more than sufficient for most purposes. Conveniently the device is supplied with 2 rechargeable AA batteries (plus a charger) which makes a welcome change from inconvenient proprietary batteries supplied with most devices that can be expensive to get replacements for. This makes it a cinch to carry spare batteries.
This device is aimed at a very specific owner - the casual user that just wants to grab video as conveniently as possible. You just switch it on and start recording, the most technophobic user would be able to use his device. You pay for this convenience as it dispenses with any feature not needed for simply recording video. The "less is more" works because most users never explore anything like the number of features the average electronics device provides. Something so portable makes itself more useful; I have owned several video cameras over the past decade and the reason they nearly all end up unloved in cupboards because they're too tedious to use or too bulky to carry.
The camera has some serious downsides however; it records in QuickTime format (.mov) which is not terribly convenient for PC users. Windows MovieMaker simply can't use this format so you'll need to convert it to something else. The lack of autofocus is a problem; admittedly Kodak have probably removed it to reduce cost and save battery life, but frankly sharpness of images is of such importance it's a mistake to leave it out. The device is expensive, it sells for about 130 which is not cheap considering its small feature set though the build quality is high. Another major failing is the fact that many mobile phones can record video probably as well as this device can.
It's an interesting camera that is well thought out; it's not for everyone - it's sparse features are deliberate and you must learn about these limitations before purchase as to not be disappointed. It is well made and designed but I can't help but feel mobile phones can already duplicate its features and it is expensive relative to what it can do. However, if you want a very small, convenient camera that doesn't try to bewilder you with hype over substance, you could do a lot worse.
Ok for Youtube, no good for weddings! December 11, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The Kodak Zi6 is part of a new breed of small, mobile-phone shaped handycams designed for easy use. There are no bells or whistles, not even a flash or a light. Its more basic than the most basic of point and click cameras, but this is half the point. Its target market is teens who want to be able to quickly and simply record their mates doing something stupid so they can upload it on to Youtube or Bebo.
In this respect, its a success. The camera is very quick to start up and is incredibly easy to use, being operated almost entirely by the central stick, which is similar in style to some Sony Ericsson mobile phones. The SD slot is a brilliant addition, meaning you can have up to 32GB of memory available. I have an 8GB card in mine which is plenty.
In addition to the camera you receive rechargeable batteries, charger, a carry bag (cheap 'felt' sack), and cables to allow you to view files straight on your tv.
There are 4 options for capture - stills, VGA (standard definition), HD (720p) and HD 60 (720p at 60fps - the highest quality). I've only used stills and HD 60 so far. Performance is very dependent on light levels - the camera performs very poorly in anything less than daylight, with blurring occuring in both video and stills at all resolutions. This is the camera's most disappointing fault, as it makes the camera fairly unusable inside buildings, and at night. This is not helped by the complete lack of image stabilisation, which makes even daylight images quite jumpy, and the zoom is stuttery.
File sizes at HD 60 are huge, over 1MB per second, which makes playing the files on a computer difficult as you get a stuttery performance. This would be alleviated at lower resolutions, but I imagine most people will want to get this in order to record in HD. I assume that recording it on to DVD would also stop this, but most of my clips have been short, and I am not inclined to burn them on to disc. Luckily, the included cables allow you to plug the player directly in to your HDTV and view files that way.
The camera is a bit big, much larger than your average mobile, but its still just about pocket sized. Its not very sexy, and feels a bit weird in your hand if you're used to using more traditional camcorders. However, people who use their mobiles to take pictures will be right at home.
In all, this is a fun camera which will be great for taking informal videos during the daytime, and the included software makes uploading to Youtube a breeze. However, it has some major faults which make it unsuitable for anything more serious. Unfortunately the price point might make it fall in to the gaps between these markets.
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