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| Brand: Aiptek
Category: Photography
List Price: $179.99
Buy New: $135.99
You Save: $44.00 (24%)
New (20) from $128.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  35 reviews
Color: Silver
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: Yes
Optical Zoom: 4
Display Size: 2.4
Shipping Weight (lbs): 3
Dimensions (in): 1.5 x 3 x 5
MPN: A-HD+
Model: A-HD+
UPC: 653886020732
EAN: 0653886020732
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 Excellent Device For The Price June 21, 2008
10 out of 14 found this review helpful
I purchased the A-HD+1080p camcorder at Best Buy when I was passing through Lincoln, Nebraska about a week ago for $169 dollars plus tax. To be honest, I purchased it with relatively low expectations. I already have a Sony HC3 HDV camcorder I've had for about a year that produces excellent video so I figured there was no way this Aiptek product could even come close.
To my surprise the video quality is actually quite amazing. It's possible to get great video out of this unit, provided you know the device's main limitation, i.e. the fixed-focus plastic lens. Cell phone cameras can have multiple megapixels but the optics are almost always limited to a cheesy plastic lens, yet if you know the device's limitations it's possible to take good and sometimes even great pictures with them.
To get great video out of the Aiptek, follow a few rules. (1) NEVER use the digital zoom function -- always keep it zoomed out. Move closer to your subject if you want it to fill more of the frame. (2) Remember to use the manual focus switch -- macro for around 20 inch away close-ups, the medium postion for a bit farther away, and the full infinity position for anything more than about 6 to 8 feet or so away from the lens. (3) Hold the camera as steady as possible if it's a hand-held shot, and if possible use a tripod. (4) Use the white balance feature as necessary depending on your light source. (5) Pay attention to the basic prinicples of good photography, i.e. the "rule of thirds" -- if you don't know what that means, look it up on Wikipedia.
I've posted a video I put together entirely with the Aiptek from Riverside Park in West Fork, Arkansas. The HD 720p Apple TV format file is located at http://m.podshow.com/media/131/episodes/116107/truckertom-116107-06-19-2008.mp4.
 If you want 1080p quality, look elsewhere. July 26, 2008
10 out of 13 found this review helpful
People want 1080p for the quality, not the pixel count. This product only delivers the latter.
I was really excited but also very skeptical of this product when I found it at Best buy. 1080p for $150? Somethings not right. After reading the generally positive reviews I figured that the lack of expensive lenses or mechanical parts must be the reason for it being so cheap.
I tested the camera multiple times giving it the benefit of the doubt. I started in lower light settings, then moved to sunny motion and finally tried sunny still shots, all with very disappointing results. Even a subject just sitting and talking, not moving much was fuzzy and choppy. I tried All except the lowest resolution setting. Even at 480p the video just didn't look right.
The first thing you notice is the frame rate. It's bad, upon slow motion inspection, it's not that there are less than 30 frames per second, it's that the high compression causes any movement to undulate and warp giving the impression of low frame rate as well as inducing nausea.
The quality is bad too, as with the frame rate, the pixel count is there but it still looks blurry, like they upscaled a lower quality image. The 720p at 60 frames per second is a joke. It looks arguably more choppy than the 1080p 30fps.
The one thing I can say for this camera is that it is simple and easy to use. There is no differentiation between the still and video mode. To shoot video push the front button, to shoot pictures push the back button. The little menu navigation there is is straightforward. It's also nice that it comes with component video cables to hook it up to an HDTV. Too bad the video that comes through it is no good.
The sad thing is this would be an awesome camera if it had usable quality, but again the frame rate is bad, the quality is bad, and the way the compression handles motion makes me nauseous just looking at it. I have a Sony Cybershot Digital Still Camera from a couple years back that has much better video capability.
Hard to Use July 20, 2008
5 out of 14 found this review helpful
I was a happy owner of a Flip Video camera, but lost it.
I was going to reorder and saw this one, about $30-$40 more expensive, but it seemed to be an upgrade.
I am so disappointed and unhappy, that I wasted time. I have to return this and now order another Flip camera.
The directions are sparse, I see nothing about how to erase anything. There is supposed to be a focus, but I can't find it. The 'joy stick' is made to be used by the fingers of the same children who go blind making oriental rugs.
I see that most of the positive reviews come from people who have some technical expertize. However, if you don't want to mess with this, just don't order this camera. Try the Flip!
However, this is going back as soon as possible and I am ordering my new Flip Recorder and giving them a very high review. (I do publicity videos for small business people and they are amazed at the quality that comes from that little Flip Video camera)
Aiptek A-HD+ great value July 1, 2008
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
I did a lot of research for an inexpensive HD camera. There are a ton of blogs and information out there for the AHD and AHD+. I have been very impressed. Like most others the sound is ok...but where it sets itself is the picture and price. I recently shot my son's bday (all indoors) and compared it with a Mini DV camera I shot last year at the same place. Picture is better with the AHD+ and get this...it took all but 2 mins to move about 30 mins to my PC...guess how long it takes to move a mini DV to a PC - 30 mins. I purchased a 16GB card for it as 720/60fps eats memory...about 1GB per 15 min of footage. Sweet spot seems to be 720/60fps vs the other settings.
Fantastic gadget for the price! June 21, 2008
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
Pros: 60fps 720p recording, Cheap accessories, Good still shots, Size, Price.
Cons: Low light recording mediocre, No stability control, Battery life.
I was on the fence between the Flip Mino camcorder and the Aiptek A-HD/A-HD+. I made the decision to go with the A-HD+, simply because it had 60fps 720p recording, and I would be taking a LOT of action shots. The camera's main attraction is the 1080p recording, but I have not yet tried this, and will update when I use it in detail. On that front, it delivers! In broad daylight, the A-HD+ shoots a very clean and bright HD picture, in the full 60fps as advertised. The generated files are having a hard time playing back at the full frame rate on my laptop (Core2Duo 2GHz, 2GB RAM, 256MB Video), but when playing back directly to my HDTV, it runs at 60fps without a hitch. The camcorder has some trouble recording at the full 60fps indoors or in low light situations though... the Night mode improved the brightness of the picture, but at the cost of half the fps and some artifacts in the picture. The zoom feature does what it needs to do, although I do wish it zoomed in more smoothly. Recorded audio quality is OK, I encountered no clipping or distortion that was reported on the A-HD. Accessories for this camera are dirt cheap, and three add-ons are essential for getting the most out of this one - Tripod, at least a 4GB SD card, and extra batteries. Thankfully, all three are relatively cheap, so nothing to worry about on that front.
Still shots are very nice and I feel 5MP is the optimal setting for taking pictures. There is a one second delay from when you click and when the flash actually goes off, too much time for human error... any tripod alleviates this issue. For the price, this one trumps any other camcorder out there in it's price range.
The loose battery problem is definitely there, but I fixed the problem by cutting a playing card in half, and taping it to the inside of the compartment, absolutely no problems now!
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