Cameras & Camcorders

[AgilityMach]

Apparently Best Buy currently doesn't carry the Creative Labs' Vado HD flash memory pocket camcorder.  Can one of the Online Support Team please tell me if and when Best Buy will be stocking this item? 

It was released in December 2008, and has received very good reviews. PC World gave it top marks, and in many reviews, seems to equal or surpass the Mino HD.  

I prefer purchasing my electronic items from Best Buy, so I just need to know if it will be in your stores soon?

Sincerely,

Agility Mach

Nashville, TN

[Terrence]

I'm not sure what you will be using this camcorder for or what exactl;y sparked your interest in the Vado HD, but there are a couple of other options at Best Buy for that style camcorder that are a bit higher level than the Flip.

Take a look at the Sony Webbie

This one is available in most stores, and contrary to the review on site at the moment, the high speed memory stick pro duo 4GB card is usually priced near a reasonable $50.

You could also look at the Insignia HD  camcorder.  It has an 8x zoom (much better than the flip with 4x) and you can use an SD memory card for the video storage.  This one is probably my favorite for the ultra portable handheld camcorders.  It also will get you 5MP stills, which the Flip will only do at something like 1MP or possibly lower.

Hope that helps you a bit.

[AgilityMach]

Thanks for the response.

I'm looking for a tiny pocket camcorder for quick "down'n'dirty" uploading.  I already own a really nice JVC Everio HDD camcorder; but get tired of having to convert footage I shoot.  I'm looking for something easy and simple just to upload some of my dog agility videos from the ring. I like the fact that with the flash memory portable camcorders, you can do this with no conversion for You Tube, My Space, PhotoBucket, etc.  I do know the limitations of these devices, but since I have a regular handheld HDD camcorder, I'm willing to sacrifice some of the quality for size and ease of uploading.

The Flip Mino HD seems to outperform the Webbie flash memory portable model (not the bigger one), at least from the reviews I've read.  That's why I narrowed my options to the Mino HD, the Vado HD, or the Kodak ViX, and I'm not a fan of Kodak.

Can anyone from Best Buy tell me if the chain has plans to carry the Vado HD?

[AgilityMach]

P.S.  to my previous posting:  I just checked out the Insignia per your suggestion.  Hadn't noticed this one before and hadn't heard of it on any of the review sites I've been researching. It looks interesting for sure, but the consumer reviews don't make it seem like it's particularly well made or that the audio/video quality is comparable to the higher-end HD models (the ones in the $200+) range.

[Terrence]

Well, with cameras you do tend to get what you pay for.  I didn't realize that you wanted the ease of uploading before I posted about the Insignia HD cam.  I don't think that one is going to be the best option for you at this point.  The video from that one would need converting before up[loading to youtube and the like.

Do you have any type of price point in mind?  I know there is a JVC 16GB flash memory camcorder with the youtube functionality in the software that is priced around $350 or $400, but of course it isn't a pocket cam.