Allen WeinerFor a few months now, I have been putting my Kodak Zi6 videocamera loaner through its paces, and the verdict is quite positive. Slightly larger than the Flip Mino pocket-sized HD camera, Kodak’s version-one that has been in market for quite while—has received far less fanfare but is comparable in many ways to the Flip version and surpasses in many ways.
I give a thumbs up to the larger viewfinder, better zoom, ability to take SD cards (which is great as HD clips take up lots of space) and ArcSoft editing/distribution software which facilitate one click upload to YouTube. Yes, the Flip camera also offers one clip uploading, but the ArcSoft program allows you to enter clip title, description, category and tags in its programming while the Flip in-camera software does not enable those features. A thumbs down to the fact the Kodak camera has virtually no on-board storage, meaning you need an SD card to get started (I recommend a 4GB card at minimum) while the Flip Mino HD has 4GB of memory built into the camera.
Size is where the rubber meets the road. My Flip Mino HD fits into my pocket and is 3.94 inches high, 1.97 inches wide and .63 inches deep. The Kodak Zi6 is 4.5 inches high, 2.5 inches wide and .9 inches deep. The Kodak is one-half ounce heavier than the Flip Mino HD. For me, what it boils down to is that the Flip Mino is great for more “clandestine” video scenarios while the Kodak is a hair too large to fit comfortably in one’s pocket.
Comparing prices on Amazon.com, the Kodak is $152.60 ($2.34 cents less if you want one in pink) while the Flip Mino is $201.61. Below is a clip I shot using the Kodak Zi6. To see the HD quality, click on the “watch in HD” tab at the bottom right of the player window.
Category: Video blogging citizen media videocameras Tags: Flip, Flip Mino, HD cameras, Kodak, Kodak Zi6, videocameras
2 responses so far ↓
1 Joshua Baer February 21, 2009 at 7:08 pm
I have had a Zi6 since October and I’m very happy with it. I agree that the size isn’t quite pocket-comfortable but it is small enough that I can keep it in my backpack / bag all the time so its always nearby or stick it in my pocket if I really have to. The quality is great and with a 16GB card you’ll run out of batteries before you run out of space, even at 60 FPS.
Another differentiator between the Zi6 and the Flip that you didn’t mention is that the Zi6 takes AA compatible rechargable batteries. What that means is that you can keep a spare set of AA’s around and swap them out in 5 seconds if you run out of juice. Most of the time, I don’t even think about batteries and just use the rechargable batteries it comes with. But there have already been MANY times when I really appreciated being able to just grab 2 AA’s and not miss out on a special moment even though the camera batteries were dead.
Combine that with the removable SD cards and you get what is the most significant difference for me between the Zi6 and the Flip. With the Flip, you can record until you run out of battery or you run out of space and then you are dead in the water until you can get to a computer and spend an hour transferring files and recharging. With the Zi6, you can keep recording forever by just swapping out SD cards and AA batteries.
2 Nancy July 6, 2009 at 10:46 pm
But can you make vidios with the Zi6 and burn them to DVD’s? That’s what I wanted this camera for!
Please Help!
Nancy