Samsung's HMX-H106 Full HD camcorder with 64GB SSD takes first peek at retail

Here's one that might trigger an electrical pulse across the synapses, Samsung's HMX-H106. This tiny Full HD camcorder with a 64GB SSD tooling about its inanimate innards has been quietly preparing for May launch ever since its reveal back in January at CES. That's enough storage for an impressive 12 hours of 1920 x 1080 pixel video with further expansion by SD/SDHC card. Word has it that it launched this morning in its hometown Korea and is set for a May 22nd Stateside launch according Amazon.com. 900 bucks for a H.264 camcorder with an optical image stabilized Schneider Kreuznach Varioplan HD lens touting a 10x zoom and 37mm wide-angle focal length -- is that new baby worth it?

Read -- Korea launch
Read -- Amazon May 22nd pre-order

[mahmud @ May 6th 2009 3:03AM]

Yes.

[hablas @ May 6th 2009 3:05AM]

It's a sausage!

[why not the LS2LS7? @ May 6th 2009 3:10AM]

Presumably this is 1080p/30, right? Not 1080p/60? 1080p/30 isn't "full HD", it's no better than 1080i/60.

Still very impressive.

[loopyoyo @ May 6th 2009 3:24AM]

don't be hatin biotch! looks awesome..not your grandmas vhs camcorder

[dagamer43 @ May 6th 2009 3:39AM]

I'd much rather prefer 1080p/24.

[jdang @ May 6th 2009 4:37AM]

why not the LS2LS7?, are you implying blu-ray movies at 24fps are not Full HD?

Or that you commented before thinking it through?

[why not the LS2LS7? @ May 6th 2009 11:54AM]

jdang:
That's an interesting point. Blu-ray movies at 1080p/24 are fully reproducing the content they are being asked to reproduce (24 fps film), so in a way you could call 1080p/24 full HD for their application. But this camera is pointing at full-motion objects (essentially infinite frame rate), so reproducing it at 1080p/30 is not catching as much as at 1080p/60 (or even 1080i/60), so it's not full HD.

Flip video's new device says it's 720p, but it's only 720p/30, whereas the 720p you see on TV is 720p/60.

Once you start saying 1080p/30 is full HD, why can't you say 1080p/15 is full HD too? Maybe 1080p/8! If you want the marketing assholes to be able to call anything they want "full HD" even though it doesn't provide the full experience, then I guess you should be all for saying low frame-rate 1080p is "full HD". But the idea of "full HD" was it was supposed to indicate you have the highest resolution (spatial and temporal) that can be supported by your TV. 1080p/60 is that, 1080p/30 is not.

[lakersin2025 @ May 6th 2009 12:26PM]

Why is he low ranked? He is right, we need 1080p 60fps not 30. I had a Canon that did 24p but looked like crap on playback.

[bandigolo @ May 6th 2009 1:40PM]

I don't understand your point. You're saying that 1080/30 is NOT full HD because it films live action existing in an infinite frame rate universe at only 30fps. Yet you say that 1080/24 filming the same infinite frame rate universe at 24fps IS full HD because... how? I'm lost.

[ifalldownstairs @ May 7th 2009 12:08AM]

what you're saying makes little sense. The idea of High Definition is based upon the number of pixels that makes up the image, not the framerate of the video. In a universe that contains basically an infinite number of frames (how many plank-time units are in a second?) why is 30 frames per second not HD, while 60 fps is? Some screens have a refresh rate of 120 per second, so wouldn't 1080p/120fps be even more HD than 1080p/60fps? In fact, what if I claim only 1080p/120fps is real HD, and everything else (including 1080p/60fps) exists in some sort of non-full HD limbo?

[Richard @ May 19th 2009 10:34PM]

The only consumer camcorder that does 1080p/60 is the Sanyo Xacti HD2000. It looks like a fantastic camera with a low price and exceptional low light performance but once again Sanyo went with a digital image stabiliser. After having a HD1000 I wouldn't even consider the HD2000 since it's impossible to get steady shots. Even Samsung have got their act together by putting an optical image stabiliser on the HMX-H106.

I'm considering the HMX-H106 but it just isn't as good as the HD2000 in most areas. I don't know whether to wait to see if Sanyo finally get their act together and do an update of the HD2000 with an optical stabiliser.

[Manas K @ May 6th 2009 3:12AM]

With specs like those, at least on paper its worth it.

[darkmax @ May 6th 2009 3:11AM]

Even though I'm a big fan of Samsung in recent years, for some reason I still prefer the Sanyo Xacti. The ones that are made like a pistol. Feels more natural when filming.

[loosely_coupled @ May 6th 2009 3:30AM]

A pistol grip video camera feels more normal filming?? You gotta be joking...

[jdang @ May 6th 2009 4:39AM]

Maybe he meant the pistol grip felt more natural when "shooting"

[seriousam7 @ May 6th 2009 3:14AM]

I wish more consumer oriented cameras would support 7.1 channel sound recording, or at the very minimum, 5.1 channels. This would be a perfect camera if it did, but it doesn't look like it does.

[darkmax @ May 6th 2009 3:20AM]

that would, at the moment, require very professional equipments or very advanced sensors, either of which the regular consumer cannot afford.

[Michael Scrip @ May 6th 2009 3:22AM]

How well does 5.1 work on consumers cameras anyway?

I can imagine recording something... and hearing people talking or sneezing behind you. Regular camcorders seem to pick up the camera operator's voice too much already...

Good sound is lacking in many consumer camcorders... I can't imagine cramming 5 microphones in a space already too small for two.

[seriousam7 @ May 6th 2009 3:27AM]

I've seen a few already with 5.1 recording, but it doesn't seem to common. They usually have Dolby Digital support or something-or-other, so I imagine it's at least decent sound. If you're going to have HD home videos, why skimp on the sound?

[seriousam7 @ May 6th 2009 3:29AM]

Yes, I know, *too* common(first sentence).

[Michael Scrip @ May 6th 2009 4:20AM]

>> "If you're going to have HD home videos, why skimp on the sound?"

That's my point... 5 tiny microphones recording sound isn't gonna be any better... you will just have crappy sound coming out of every speaker in your home theater.

I say ditch the surround mics and put in a decent sized stereo mic. You're right... microphones the size of a pencil eraser with crisp, clear HD video is stupid.

Most new camcorders are recording to hard drives or SD cards... which are usually put onto a computer... bypassing a good home theater receiver. You have to burn a DVD with the 5.1 sound intact (assuming your editing software can understand 5.1 channels) AND play it on a home theater receiver... or else you won't hear the surround sound anyway.

5.1 surround on camcorders is just for marketing.

[why not the LS2LS7? @ May 6th 2009 11:56AM]

5.1 and 7.1 sound fields are created "in the mix". That is, you put out a lot of microphones and then assign each one a position in the sound field while mixing down the audio.

The average camcorder user does not mix down their video at all, so unless you want to set up 5.1 microphones in a fixed pattern relative to the camera before beginning recording, you'll never get a useful sound field.

[darkmax @ May 6th 2009 3:17AM]

the girl in both read links are kawaii.....

[xlaxplaya @ May 6th 2009 3:19AM]

Holy crap this thing is hot.

[sam @ May 6th 2009 4:34AM]

I'm not a big fan of the current generation of video cameras. They're so small and toy-ish. Remember the full sized VHS tape video cameras? Now those were badass. You come onto the scene with one of those babies and people are turning their heads thinking "film crew! where's Bruce Willis?"

If I'm paying $900 for something I want it command at least a little respect. A $900 DSLR still camera makes you look like a photographer whereas a $900 video camera makes you look like you just got out of Toys R Us.

[Stereo Sean @ May 6th 2009 7:08AM]

Could your badass full sized VHS tape video camera play Crysis? Just saying.

In all seriousness though, as a musician, having a camera with these capabilities in such a compact size is a godsend on tour. Try fitting your VHS camcorder in a backpack in your one seat in the van packed with five other guys' things. Eff that.

[PowerHouse @ May 6th 2009 4:40AM]

Man, I really wish I had an extra G lying around... that thing's sweet!

[RichardBronosky @ May 6th 2009 7:08AM]

(extra M)

[PowerHouse @ May 6th 2009 12:01PM]

OK Mr. Roman Numeral Smarty-Pants. I said "G" as in an extra GRAND. Sheesh...

[sam @ May 6th 2009 5:35AM]

64GB internal memory is nice, finally a usable amount, too many 16GB cameras around. Wish they'd up the bitrate though, 12hrs for 64gb must be a very low bitrate, blurays could only manage about 4hrs of video with a good bitrate for 64GB of space so the bitrate must be rather low. Things are improving nicely in the HD camcorder market though.

[Neg @ May 7th 2009 9:06AM]

Blu-ray uses low-compression MPEG2 encoding to decrease the amount of processing power required in the players to decode it. This uses H.264, which is a far higher compression MPEG4-based codec that can fit the same 1080p/30 video in roughly 1/8th of the space.

--neg

[JPB @ May 6th 2009 9:21AM]

What sets this camcorder apart, at least for me, is the H.264 recording. AVCHD camcorders are a deal-breaker for me.

[marke @ May 6th 2009 10:07AM]

thank you for my 'laugh at the simple' item of the day
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AVCHD

"AVCHD is a format for the recording and playback of high definition video. Video is compressed in MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 format, and audio is recorded in Dolby Digital.[1] AVCHD and the AVCHD logo are trademarks of Panasonic corporation and Sony corporation.[2]"

[Robert @ May 7th 2009 7:30PM]

I know what you mean, I have high blood pressure so I instead of salt I use sodium. I'm also allergic to Band-Aids® so I can only use adhesive bandages.

[Crazy Serb @ May 6th 2009 9:42AM]

And still no mention of how long the battery lasts...

I mean, just like with all other camcorders, you can add terrabytes of space as far as I am concerned, but if the battery that comes with it craps out after 45mins, what's the point?

Let me know when they start shipping these with either 1) extra, replacable batteries or 2) long lasting batteries that can run this baby for 2+ hours or so.

[Tb311 @ May 6th 2009 12:47PM]

That is my only complaint too. They need to increase the battery life on these suckers to make then usable.

[TJ @ May 6th 2009 11:24AM]

It's a shame that it's not in the same angled shape as the other new Samsung camcorders.

[swilson23 @ May 6th 2009 11:41AM]

Just for looks? Or is there a good technical reason?

[TJ @ May 6th 2009 11:45AM]

Operator comfort. I haven't gotten to hold one of those yet, but they look comfortable as hell. Should also be great for getting shots from a low angle, looking up (I realize how that sounds, but I'm actually NOT thinking perverted things, believe it or not.)

[dexwest @ May 6th 2009 1:48PM]

Can someone tell me where to go to compare HD camcorders. I'm new to the field and just want to get started learning what to look for and what to avoid.

Thanks

[Mike V. @ May 6th 2009 6:59PM]

Check out camcorderinfo.com. It's been very helpful for me. Good luck!

[Jeebus_ @ May 6th 2009 3:30PM]

dexwest: google "hd camcorder reviews"



SOME OF U need to use ur head! 5.1 and 7.1 in portable HD camera??? WTF?! i felt dumb for reading the comments

some bloke said he prefers 1080p/24fps over 1080p/30fps?

http://www.cdfreaks.com/hardware/product/88494-Samsung-HMX-H106BP.html says it captures at 60fps

[Josh @ May 6th 2009 11:00PM]

I was actually looking forward to this one, but I found out this has no microphone jack.
I'm majoring in film and wanted to make a short reels during summer, but since this lacks mic input, pass!