Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I bought this camera for backpacking, where size and space is critical and any equipment is subject to harsh conditions so expensive cameras can be a bad idea.
My main computer is a Mac, so I had some reservations about the MZ-DV, since it uses Microsoft's proprietary ASF video format. That's right: it says "MPEG-4", and MPEG-4 is indeed based on QuickTime, but the MPEG-4 standard is implemented as more of a framework than a specific codec, so any vendor who doesn't like to play ball with open standards (sound like our friends in Redmond?) can make their own proprietary variants and it's left to the consumer to sort out the confusion.
Fortunately, I found a handy little software tool called EasyWMV which is dirt cheap and does a great job of easily converting ASF files for use on a Mac with any QuickTime-based program like iMovie.
And the photo format is JPEG, requiring no conversion at all to use on any computer.
I've only had the camera a couple days, but so far it seems a good value for what it does. With all of its features at such a low price it isn't best-of-breed with any one of them, but to have them all in one convenient device is pretty nifty, and the folks at Aiptek have done a competent job with this model.
The quality of low-light video is as reported by the others here: There is a low-light setting, and it's good for pictures but the video is indeed of much lower quality. But in all fairness, I've not seen any hybrid camcorder that didn't have similar issues. You'd have to go up in price and abandon other features if shooting in low-light conditions is important to you.
So far the only limitation I've seen is the one disclosed on the packaging: when mounted on a Mac, the camera acts as a read-only volume. This means you can't load MP3s into it, or use it as a portable drive. I've written Aiptek technical support on this, and if I learn anything useful I'll post it here. I also run Windows under Parallels, and have no trouble loading MP3s and other files into the camera from there.
But aside from the download limitation, everything else on the camera works a treat, with very intuitive controls that often provide multiple ways to change modes conveniently. And with EasyWMV, it's a breeze to use video from it on my MacBook.
I would rate it higher, at least a 4, if I was using Windows primarily. But even for Mac users, if you need something inexpensive that offers these features, I shopped around and couldn't find a better model.
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Aiptek's MZ-DV is a hand held multi-functional Media Player/Vieo Recorder which allows you to connect to your TV/VCR/DVD player to record your favorite tv shows, movies, and video clips and play them back on the built-inswivel-reversible 2.4" TFT color LCD screen or on your 60"TV for under $200! Record videos at 30 frames per second in MPEG-4 Super VHS quality (640x480 VGA resolution) with image stabilization and sound and take pictures at up to 8 Mega-Pixels enhanced resolution with a 5 mega pixel CMOS sensor.On top of all this, it's anMP3 player; voice recorder; andSD card reader/Removable Hard Disk. This product comes with 16mb of internal memory and has a built-in SD card slot that can hold up to 4GB (Card not included). It ships with a built-in lithium battery and charger, usb cable, av output cable, camera bag, and ear bud headphones.Also includes Camera Manager, Muvee AutoProducer, ArcSoft Photo Impression, ArcSoft Media Card Companion, and ArcSoft Media Converter software.Requires Microsoft Windows 98SE/ME/2000 /XP;Direct X8.0 or above, 128MB of Ram, 64MB Video Card, 4x Cd-Rom.
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