Customer Reviews

Aiptek IS-DV2 6 Megapixel MPEG4 Image Stabilization Digital Camcorder

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

One of the problems with devices like this, is the lack of reviews by professional camera/camcorder review sites. In the rare case that they do a review, they will be given a poor score because the reviewers seem to always look down at them from a prosumers point of view rather than as a consumer. Consumers quite often are simply looking for a fun device that provides convenience, is inexpensive in case of loss, and does the job rather than something that produces output fit for a movie theatre with a price to match! Therefore customers like you and I either have to take a chance and make sure the store has a good return poilcy or hope that another customer has already done so and written a basic review, and here is mine.

The video quality in it's high quality mode of 640x480/30fps is very good and clear for the price of the device. It is very easy to use and you can get it up and running without much reference to it's manual. You can record up to 80 minutes of video in high quality mode per 1GB and considering it can take a 2GB card, this should easily be more than enough for most people.

One thing you have to remember though, is that these devices are very poor in low light such as indoors in the evening unless you have very good lighting. If you intend to use it mainly outdoors you won't be bothered by this.

The device has a small non swivelling 1.5 inch LCD which makes it a little more awkward to use than those equipped with the swivelling type. The SD/MMC card slot is at the rear under a rubber flap and there is a tripod socket on the bottom.

This is one of the first devices of this type to incorporate an LED video light to help with the low light but unfortunately it seems to be little more than a gimmick. It is not that the LED's are not bright enough (They are almost blinding!) or that they don't illuminate a close subject enough. It just seems that the devices sensor is only sensitive enough to pick out the very brightest center portion giving you a tunnel effect. If used to film someone in low light or darkness for example, you get a similar effect to a flash light being held up to their face in that it is only a their face and little else that is visible. I don't expect miracles with a cheap device like this, but I would've thought it would've have been at least better than this so it would pick up their shoulders for instance.

The summary is that this camera seems like it would take a few knocks and is very compact ie a true palmcorder. If you ignore the useless LED video light and only intend to use it during daylight hours outside, then this would make a great beach camera for instance as you wouldn't be as worried dropping this in the sand or water given its price!

This is a great camcorder if you are filming sloths with a tripod. If anything moves, it blurs. The video is noticeably choppy, the stills are blurry. The sound is questionable. You can't fill up a 1 GB memory card on one set of batteries (about 40 minutes). From the time you hit the button to take a picture until it actually takes it is at least 3 seconds. It does not remember settings from power off to power on, I had to set the flash to auto repeatedly.

It is small, it is light, it will fit in you pocket. It is actually quite amazing for so small a device.

If you are filming for your website, this is cost effective, buy rechargeable batteries. If you are filming for posterity or a DVD to give grandma, don't bother.

My 10 year old daughter just love it. Very easy to use. My computer inderstood the camcorder right away. Perfect for youngster. Not the best pictures.

This was purchased for my 12 year old son to take on a trip to Europe. It is a great camera/camcorder for the money. He took 1,000 on a 1 GB card we purchased for him. Some of his pictures were better than ours. While you will not get top quality videos and pictures, it is excellent quality for the money spent. He loves it!

I bought this video camera for my 12-year-old son who enjoys recording moments and events with his friends. It does not provide the best quality and since I purchased it a week ago, he has had to change the AA batteries three times.

This camera is okay for the price, but I would not recommend this camera if you wanted to record high quality material.

This camera is a poor excuse for a camcorder; the picture quality (and I hate to use that term here) is pretty terrible; whatever stabilization this has seems non-existent. Don't bother using this without a media card or you'll only have room for about 20 seconds of video or 5 poor resolution pictures. To even compare this camera to camcorders from legacy manufacturers would be an insult to those fine brands. One additional note- if you are an Apple MAC user, don't even bother. Repeated attempts to install drivers or upload pictures only resulted in failure, frustration and hostility. Spend more money and get a real camera.

Easy to use -- lightweight -- nice for someone just starting out -- the picture seems very nice too -- even my husband the "camera enthusist" was impressed with the quality of the picture.

i purchased this for my husband for when he goes offroading. we have a 500$ one and there was no way i would let him take that one out there. so i bought this one for him at a circuit city for $80. def good for the price. since he may end up breaking it or losing it on the trails this is a great inexpensive camera. he loves it and the videos come out pretty good on it. i would recomend this camera to anyone that wants one for recreational use or cant afford for drop half a grand on a great one.

Sure, it's nice and compact and has a cool flip screen, but if your subject is not perfectly still, it's blurry. It doesn't zoom out enough and when it does, it's choppy. I'm in college trying to take pictures of my friends doing weird stuff and that stuff usually happens once, hard to repeat. This camera takes nearly 10-13 seconds from "power on" to the first picture. By then, the moment has passed. If you want your 11 year old to have a camera for a short time (sucks batteries like a hoover), consider it. However, my strap broke due to normal use in only 2 months. I concur with the other reviews concerning poor quality and sound and shoddy LCD light.

Still, I got it for Christmas and it's there when I need it.

I do not understand all these reviews knocking the product. This is a superb camcorder for the money. I suspect that these negative reviewers do not know how to use the product. One reviewer actually said he didn't like it because the battery wouldn't recharge. It doesn't even have a built in battery. It uses two AA batteries. I use NiMH 15 minute rechargables so I seldom have to buy new batteries. This product takes great pictures and great videos. The SD card slot makes it easy to save your pictures and videos on an SD card. The camcorder comes with a whole raft of features and settings and you really have to read the manual to understand them all. The only criticism I would agree with is that the picture display is hard to see in bright light.