The Aiptek AHD-200 boasts an HD Widescreen (1280 x 720 720P) Camcorder and 8 Mega Pixel still camera for under £150 UK (in fact I paid Less than £120). The equivalent USA model (which looks exactly the same except for the writing on the outside of the fold in LCD screen) is the A-HD 720P which has a price of $159.99 which is a real bargain compared to the UK price.

What Does it Do?

Records HD 720P widescreen video or up to 8 Mega Pixel still shots to an SD or SDHC card. It connects to your PC and charges the onboard Li-on battery via a USB port. Charging can be through your computer or with the supplied AC adaptor. It connects to your TV with a component HD connector (NOT HDMI) or an AV connector.
Full technical specs are given at the end of this review.

Why Would You Want It?

There are several reasons why the Aiptek could appeal to you:

It is a low price way of getting HD video along with still photographs.

It is lightweight and fits in your pocket. It starts very quickly giving you a handy “point and shoot” camcorder or still camera all in one package.

At this price point and size you can ignore some of the worries and inconvenience of larger and more expensive camcorders or still cameras for certain situations.

Features:

• 1280 x 720 H.264 Video @30fps
• Personal Media Player & Recorder
• Up to 8 Mega Pixel Digital Camera
• .MOV Video Format
• 2x Digital Zoom w/ Fixed Focus
• 2.4″ Swivel-Reversible LCD Night Shot
• Flash w/ Red Eye Reduction
• 32GB SDHC Card Slot Expansion
• Easy Charging via AC or USB
• HDTV Component Output
• Lens Cap Included

Why Did I Buy It?

I have an expensive HD camcorder which is quite bulky, lots of options and produces excellent results. It records to DV tape because this is better quality than you can get with recording to hard drive or DVD, etc. The downside is the size and the fact that I worry about damaging it or loosing it in certain situations. I also have a reasonably good digital still camera it will fit in my pocket so size isn’t a problem but again I worry about loosing it and it doesn’t take anywhere near reasonable video sequences.

I realised the Aiptek was the perfect solution when I saw it on TV for a low cost camera that would take pictures in all sorts of situations where I would worry about my more expensive equipment or it would be inconvenient to carry.

What’s My Opinion?

When I bought the camera I understood that for the price there would be an equivalent specification and quality. I therefore base my views on this expectation. Their was also a restricted feature set compared to more expensive makes and models.

The quality of the video is fine for “point and shoot” type situations where you want some footage of an informal family occasion, the children (or grandchildren), or something you see when out walking or watching sport where capturing the event as a memory is more important than high quality results.

I particularly notice with the video that there are artifacts from the compression process and some blurring with movement, but not to an extent that I find unacceptable. Of course this is matter of personal taste and standards but I believe

Similarly with the still shots I value the convenience and peace of mind that allows me to take pictures where I would not have carried my more expensive camera.

In fact the only real downsides I have experienced so far are:

Because it is so easy and convenient I sometimes take the Aiptek when I should have taken the better cameras.

The movies are shot in .MOV format which I like to convert to .AVI for convenience in viewing on my PC so this is a bit of added work.

(Review to follow on conversion software )

So far I have no regrets with this purchase, It has performed well under conditions from inside lighting to bright sunlight, snow scenes to seaside, children and grandchildren to landscapes while walking. The pictures may not be perfect but the memories are!

Technical Specs:

(from Aiptek website)

For AHD-200

A-HD 720P

(From Aiptek USA website)

Image Sensor – 5 Mega-Pixel CMOS (2592 x 1944)

Still Image

3200 x 2400 Pixels (8 Mega Pixel)
2560 x 1920 Pixels (5 Mega Pixel)
2048 x 1536 Pixels (3 Mega Pixel)

Movie Mode

1280 x 720 Pixels (H.264) up to 30 fps
720 x 480 Pixels (D1) up to 30 fps
352 x 240 Pixels (CIF) up to 30 fps

Video Format – .MOV

Macro Mode

Macro Mode: 30 ~ 50cm
Normal Mode: 50cm ~ infinity

Digital Zoom – 2x

LCD Display – 2.4” TFT Panel with 270° Rotation

Internal Memory – 6MB for Storage

External Memory – SD Card Slot (256MB – 32GB)

AV-IN – YES, Record at 720 x 480 (D1)

TV Out

HDTV (Component Out)
NTSC/PAL Color System Supported

Interface – USB2.0

Battery – NP-60 1000mA Li-Ion battery

Useful links

For more information see:

PocketDV AHD200

Or USA (Check here for detailed US Technical Specs)

A-HD 720P High Definition Camcorder

What Other Posts are Relevant?

Convert “All” Video Formats to AVI with ALLToAVI

Why I decided to Write this Blog

Save Time, Effort & Maybe Money – Use Web Reviews Before you Install or Purchase – Part 1

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This entry was posted on Thursday, May 15th, 2008 at 4:14 pm and is filed under CamCorders, Digital Cameras. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.