Howdy Chaps.

Just wanted a little advice. I'm looking to buy a Video Camera, as I'm going to start doing track days on a more regular basis, and would love to record this and put the videos on my YouTube channel. I know that a Camcorder is maybe not the most practical thing for this type of stuff, but I would also want to use it for general videos of day to day stuff, as well as things like Mountain Bike rides and other things, hence why I need something portable.

My budget is around £100-150. Looks aren't really a concern, but the main thing is for it to pick up sound very well (For instance, sound from inside my car on a track day) and good quality, preferably HD? Super duper high zoom isn't a concern either. Just something which is well packaged, reliable and has a good microphone.

I've only looked online at the moment, but will goto a proper store at some point this week. I did however discover a Vlogger that I watch regularly on YouTube (Shay Carl for those who care. ) uses a Flipcam HD, and the picture and sound quality look great. Are Flipcams any good?

Kind Regards,
Frenchy

Yes, go for the Flip Ultra HD, me and my brother use one, and the video and sound quality is phenomenal

Quote from imthebestracerthereis :

Yes, go for the Flip Ultra HD, me and my brother use one, and the video and sound quality is phenomenal

So you would definitely say it's a good choice then?

Think I might have to talk to my buddy who works at a electronical store and try and get a demo for a few days.

Cheers Dustin.

I just came across another camera called a Kodak Zi8? Any of you guys ever had the use of one?

Hrm, just checked out the specs and whatnot on the Zi8, looks solid.

I would still go for the Flip for quick run-of-the-mill captures or the Zi8 if you want 1080p and extra options.

Think I might go for it.

I looked at some side by side specs, and the Zi8 trounces the Flipcam in almost every aspect. The only thing it lacked was poor in-built memory (A SD card would need to be bought, but you can get them for peanuts) and the in-built mic is pretty poor too, but again, this can be rectified by buying an external mic and plugging it straight into the jack.

You could also try the GoPro HD Cam. Brilliant for bike riding. and you could probably fit it on the side of your car aswell for better angle

Quote from imthebestracerthereis :

Yes, go for the Flip Ultra HD, me and my brother use one, and the video and sound quality is phenomenal

Kodak Zi8 > Flip

Quote from -=SB=- :

You could also try the GoPro HD Cam. Brilliant for bike riding. and you could probably fit it on the side of your car aswell for better angle

That looks great, yea. Seen few videos and the 1080p is impressive.

I bought this for £40 @ PC World.

Samsung HMXU10 Black Full HD Video Camera/10.0 MP Camera


It's pretty damn good, I took it with me for the LFS kart meet 2010 and gots a few good vids.

I does 1080p @ 30fps and 720 @ 60fps+30fps, but also has a really cool feature of super slow-mo videos @120fps.

I will link a few slow-mo shots from my youtube when I upload them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKQ9uwc9fBk

Focus more on whats going to be best for you, rather then the definition etc.

I bought a GoPro, which is shithouse (ok, it was good, but not HD, and especially with the sounds, only hearing wind that they apparently overcame) for karting. It worked well on a supermotard for some reason.

Something that would create minimal drag would be good, though if its going inside a vehicle then you have to worry about hearing the engine more than anything. The GoPro video qual was excellent in my Subaru, which mind you was extremely loud with a sports exhaust and carbon fibre air filter to briefly list, yet i could hardly hear the engine, all i could hear was clicks and rattling from the movement.

Point is, focus on setup, what's the best to setup for your needs. A HD camera that would wobble here and there will give you the worst quality ever.

PS, i wasnt happy with the GoPro one bit, and the videos that you see on their site they had to have been using a different camera.

Preferably, I would like something HD.

The bundle I was thinking of buying was a Zi8, a Gorilla mount (It's like a twisty piece of tubing, which you can bend around pretty much anything) and a suction mount, and then a 8gb SD Card and a uprated Microphone. In total, it shouldn't come to anymore than £140.

I did realize that some cameras are prone to wobble, hence why the Zi8 seems like a good buy. It can do 1080 and 720p HD videos, with the 720p being in 60FPS. It also has a anti-shake feature.

I'm waiting for my Friend to get back to me on finding me some models to take home for a few days.

Quote from -=SB=- :

You could also try the GoPro HD Cam. Brilliant for bike riding. and you could probably fit it on the side of your car aswell for better angle

The quality on the GoPro HD Hero is brilliant, I don't own one myself but here is two pretty nice videos to show you:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49ESrrbItsU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8_SGPCMtK8

The Zi8 has an external microphone input, so you can mount a microphone inside the engine bay or near the exhaust for example. In fact it records in stereo, so you can attach two mono microphones and mix the audio afterwards.
Personally I don't like the GoPro HD. The image quality is excellent, but I don't like the fixed fisheye lens and it doesn't have a display. On top of that it's twice as expensive as a Zi8.
I'm using a Kodak Playsport, which is basically a Zi8 in a waterproof casing (and without the external microphone port unfortunately). I mostly record in 720p60.
I also have one of these magnetic lenses: http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.39814 , which is actually pretty good and gives me the ability to record with both a normal FOV and a wide angle FOV. Look at this video to see how it looks (skip to 1:16): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKxUu1d5EB8

GoPro HD. Just dont get the wide lens as it looks a bit silly (although might look ok mounted behind the front seats?)

Quote from sil3ntwar :

GoPro HD. Just dont get the wide lens as it looks a bit silly (although might look ok mounted behind the front seats?)

The HD is only available with a wide angle lens (and depending on the resolution it records 127 degrees or 170 degrees). The GoPro SD (the old one) was available in two versions, but I wouldn't bother buying a non-HD camera these days.
Also the GoPro HD sells for around GBP 260, roughly twice his budget

http://gizmodo.com/5617213/a-f ... sanyo-does-1080p-at-30fps