Customer Reviews

JVC PICSIO GC-FM1A HD Camcorder (Black Ice)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

After reading the specs I had high hopes for this camera. Unfortunately, it failed to perform in every way. The build quality was cheap and flimsy, the controls were awkward and counterintuitive, the video was unwatchable, and the stills weren't sharp. Thankfully, Amazon accepted my return.

First, the PROS:
--It is small.

Then, the CONS:
--The control buttons are recessed and difficult to press. Usually I would have to press a button several times before it actually worked. When in still camera mode there is no audio or visual confirmation that you have actually taken a photo so you never know for sure until you scan through the images and video saved.
--The video is violently shakey and not as sharp as 1080p should be. Even on a tripod the video shook and wobbled. Basically the video is unwatchable. Everything looks like "Blair Witch Project" outtakes.
--Video and stills are grainy in any light, indoors or out. Don't bother trying to use it in low light.
--The audio is average.

In short, a very disappointing product that has turned me off to the compact video camera segment.

I tried several similar gadgets and JVC PICSIO is one of them. Despite good overall design, there several problems that turned me off.
CONS:
- good overall designe
- low cost

CONS:
- poor of image stabilization: practically absent
- poor HD quality: image "wobbling"
- not posible to use indoors: grainy picture; inaccurate colors; etc.

I returned my JVC PICSIO back to the store. Do not recommend anyone to buy this model.

The User Guide's states:
"When the battery life is too low even if it is in full charge, the battery comes to the end of its life"
This statement should be rewritten:
"When the battery life is too low even if it is in full charge, the CAMCORDER comes to the end of its life"
The battery is internal meaning that you can't replace it when it begins to have trouble holding a charge (as they all eventually do).
So the question is: What is the life expectancy of the battery?
I have posted this question on the JVC site forum but, of course, never got published. They also removed another post somebody made to this forum in this regard.
Stay away from it..
Who wants to buy a camera with a 1-2 years (maybe less) lifespan?

First: I really didn't expect the device to perform miracles and my expectations were set low given the price. It does what it's supposed to do. It does shoot higher quality video in better lighting. I was able to upload the videos easily and the still shots were decent. It is however better quality than a smart phone such as my blackberry storm. I wanted a dedicated device that would capture better than the blackberry and it did just that.

Second: I noticed very very poor quality on my laptop running vista which would only play through quicktime. The videos looked like crap. I connected the device to my desktop computer running windows 7 which is setup to display on my 42 inch 1080p TV and was very impressed with the video running through Window Media Manager/player. I also uploaded a my own video to Youtube and was again impressed with the quality. I firmly believe that the output quality has everything to do with the how your receiving device handles the videos.

PS3 does not support the device's captured format. Therefore you will need to convert the videos using a free converter downloaded from CNET.com

Conclusion Good affordable functional video camera that is highly portable and low maintenance.

It only records for 29 minutes at a time. This makes no sense. What a waste of money.

I had the worst time trying to get good quality video out of this device. It performed sub-par in extremely well-lit areas, on all of the available settings. The device is extremely light (good) but also very cheap feeling.

Needless to say, I ended up returning the device.

First off, let me clarify that I am a still photographer, not a videographer. That having been said, I purchased this camcorder for its price, the HD capability (LOL) and the fact that it was easy to use. The camera hit the mark on 2 of these 3, but failed miserably on the other.

Saying that this camcorder is HD is like saying the express stagecoach is high speed transportaiton in the day of 200+ mph trains & planes. I returned the unit the day after I purchased it having played around with the camcorder to familiarize myself with it and recording 1 event.

I recorded the event in 1080P mode, the best quality that the camera has to offer. The event was my daughter and a friend making a presentation with a slide show on the screen to their left. I set up so that the wide angle would get the girls and the screen and the zoom would pretty much fill the screen with the girls. (NOTE: The zoom on this unit is very limited, but you should know this from playing with it in the store pre-purchase, so this is not a factor in the negative review.) I tried to give this a 0 star rating, but Amazon only goes as low as 1 star.

When I transfered the files to my computer, I was unimpressed with the wide angle picture quality and when the unit zoomed in on the girls, you could not even recognize them due to all the noise in the video. The sound quality of the unit was pretty good, but the picture was apallingly bad. Figuring that this must improve if I plug it into the HDTV in the living room, I did and the results were equally bad. When I took the camcorder back, the vendor has a policy of 15% to restock. I showed them the video on one of their computers and they agreed that it was not as represented by the manufacturer and they waived the restocking fee.

I must say, I had no problems with the buttons or the build quality of the unit that others have noted, but the purpose of any camcorder is to provide quality video. When the manufacturer goes out of its way to indicate that the unit has "HD" quality, one expects the results to live up to that claim. I actually get better video from my even less expensive, entry level Coolpix still cameara that I leave in my briefcase for those times you just need a camera and don't have the good stuff with you.

Conceptually, having a small video/still camera handy is a great idea - if it can deliver on the image quality. I am not sure if others have made it work in the small form factor camera, but JVC needs to go back to the drawing board.

The PICSIO seem a little light and not very sturdy. My brother's flip was much better made. I compare his Flip mino HD during dinner and both the quality of the Flip and the ability to take videos in low light rooms was easily bettered by the Flip. My vidoes on the PICSIO in low light was extremely grainy but on the Flip was 5-6 times better. If you plan on using the PICSIO in well lit areas it is probably ok but in low light the Flip wins hands down. One more thing, people with fingers larger than a childs should use the Flip. The power button is hard to push. I ended up returning the PICSIO and getting the Flip; much happier now. Even better my Flip mino HD was $20 less. I purchased it for $159 on amazon. Amazon took back my PICSIO return and gave me full credit. This is the way to shop for Christmas!

I love this camera despite what I have read about in my researching for a pocket cam. This model comes in three colors; Black, Blue & Purple. It has 1080p HD video, DIS for the video, internal 128MB memory, SDHC card slot, Rechargeable Li-on battery & 8 MP stills which is great of not having to carry two different cameras for great video and great stills. I use it every where I go & it is perfect for me to get my kids in their football games. Being able to take it right out of my purse and get recording right away is a snap. Having 128MB of internal memory & a card slot to expand the memory is great so when the games go into OT I have enough space to continue thru. I would recommend a 4GB memory card or higher for lots of storage space. I am not a techy person and the simplicity of camera is perfect for me of not having to figure out all those menus. All you have to do is push the buttons and the camera will do what it is to do. You have a power button, video/camera mode, a review, trash can, index & the center button is for record mode/snap a picture. You even get a 4x digital zoom by pushing the up & down buttons for when you need to get a little bit closer. I just love taking my videos & sharing them online to You Tube so my mother back east can see the boys in their games right away. Even when they have night games you can still see the video very clear & steady just like in a traditional camcorder. I used to make DVD's which takes me forever to figure out the software & takes time mailing it over. If it will even reach over the mail in one piece. I can't begin to tell you how many times the DVD disc was broken on delivery to then make it all over again. Now the moment is lost and forgotten. But now just plug in the camera to the pc & the software loads instantly so I am able to share online to You Tube in an instant. Now my mom gets to see it right then and there. She is very happy & feels like she has not missed anything at all. My older boy loves the fact it will share right to his iTunes library. He puts his videos of the game right on his iPod where he can share it with his friends. How cool is that. I have taken quite a bit of stills and wow how great the quality is & you can print very large too. I did a poster print and looks very clear & sharp. The playback is awesome as you even get a HDMI port, which is very important to me as to match my new HDTV. You can see how clear and how sharp all the colors are. It's not grainy at all & even in lower light. I was able to take a video of an underground parking garage with low light & to my surprise it is very clear & you can see everything just like you where there. I am so amazed of how steady the playback is. I give this product a two thumbs up. Try the model yourself you will be amazed of how great this little cam is.

Works as advertised. Nice, compact unit that is easy to use. Works good indoors or outdoors so long as you don't need to zoom. The zoom appears to be all digital and picutre quality falls away quickly. I thought 1080 res would allow me to crop but it doesn't. Okay for shooting quick utube clips but that is about it.