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Photograph courtesy of SHARP
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Tech TIME Archive
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By WILSON ROTHMAN
Not long ago in our Digital Camcorder Spring Preview (You Ought To Be In Pixels), I introduced several upcoming camcorders, including the latest Viewcam Z model from Sharp. With its arrival in stores this month, I finally had a chance to take the Z for a spin.
The design is an improvement in camcorder ergonomics. Because the grip swivels independently from the lens, you can put your wrist in any position and keep shooting. I walked about ten blocks with the camera rolling, holding it comfortably at about the waist level. At one point I decided to readjust my hand, and was able to do it without upsetting the camcorder's view too much. The tiny size of the camcorder does have limitations: you have to use a joystick for standard controls like Play, Stop and Fast-Forward. Also, the number of digital-processor effects is limited to widescreen and fade in/out, plus sepia, black & white, and a few other playback options. There's a low-light setting, but no option for Gulf War-style night shots.
Outside on a very sunny day, you'll immediately notice the advantage of the CG Silicon LCD screen. Sharp's technology offers a miraculously bright color picture even when the sun is beating down. The difference between that and the LCD in the digital camera I was also using was, well, night and day.
Speaking of digital cameras, the VL-Z7U doubles as a 1.3-megapixel still camera, and it stores shots on an included SD memory card until you unload them to your PC via USB connection. In the digital camera world, 1.3 megapixels just barely toes the line of usefulness, and the quality of the Sharp's still shots aren't exactly remarkable at that resolution. If you're taking pictures for insurance or other record-keeping reasons, this will be fine. But if you're trying to capture memories, save yourself $100 or so and buy the step-down VL-Z5U. It's got about half the still-photo resolution but is otherwise identical. Then you can put your savings towards a nice digital still camera.
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