Review on Zoom Q3 Handy Video Recorder (Metal Blue): Unavailable from Manufacturer, but Still Worth Checking Out! by Jeff Kickthedogband

So first I want to start by answering some of the people who ordered this product and wrote some negative reviews because of the supposed video quality: why not do your research before you order and get yourself then complain that it doesn't do what you expected. It's not really a handheld video camera like most people think, but actually a digital audio recorder with video recording capability. It is intended solely for people in the music industry who want to record their performances with great sound and mediocre video for those performances to be shared with the world on YouTube or used for personal viewing or listening. So if you're looking for something to mainly record your kids' soccer practice or your cats' soccer practice, this is definitely not the device for you. Now onto the product, on the top front you have the camera lens and a small red LED just below it that shows when it's recording and a built in speaker on the left side of the camera. The sliding door for opening the batteries is located in the entire lower area and of course two stereo condenser directional microphones at the top. The rear is dominated by a decent LCD screen with the following controls along the bottom: Right: Play, Menu, Delete. At the bottom you have a nice big REC button with a red dot on it and fast forward, rewind, up and down buttons criss-crossed around it. On the left side you have: a 5V 1A DC AC power outlet, a headphone or line in, a switch to select between camera and sound modes, a microphone gain control and a power button. On the right side you have: an integrated USB 2.0 port, a TV-out port and an SD HC card slot. (Don't worry, despite the fancy name, it's just a standard SD card, which you can now buy at any pharmacy). On the bottom you have a standard tripod mount and three tiny rubberized feet. GOOD:1. I bought it directly from Revain and received it on time. I loved the ability to track your purchase as it goes through the mail. Also, Revain offers one of the best prices as $140 plus free super saver shipping is a great deal as most online retailers sell it for around $200.2. The processing quality is pleasant. Despite being made entirely of hard plastic, it feels sturdy and doesn't feel like a toy.3. The LCD screen offers a nice, crisp picture with a good balance of color and contrast, which is great for previewing your test shots to make sure everything is where it should be. It also has a small built-in speaker on the front, which is by no means an accurate indication of sound quality, but it's nice if you just want a quick check to see if it's a recording. To really hear a realistic version of what your recording will sound like, you need to use headphones by simply plugging them into the 3.5mm headphone jack on the side of the unit. Make sure you use good quality headphones as you may be disappointed with what you hear if your headphones don't produce good sound. I had this problem, so please consult and try another headphone before writing a negative review about the sound quality.4. The unit comes with a windscreen for your microphones, which is great for recording outdoors, 2 standard AAA batteries, a soft cloth case (which doesn't offer protection from bumps and drops but is great for keeping it clean and to protect the LCD screen ). Advertisement). screen and camera lens from scratches) and a 2GB SanDisk SD card made in Japan! The card comes with free video editing and preview software and a user manual. (**Please note that the connected SD card does not have enough space for a decent recording session. You won't get more than 35 minutes out of it if you use the highest video and audio quality settings. My advice is to invest a few bucks more and another SD card of at least 8GB.) 5. The Zoom Q3 is amazingly easy to use and ready to go right out of the box. The visual menu is very well designed and easy to understand without having to consult the user manual. However, I still encourage you to do so if you are unfamiliar with some of the terms used such as gain control, low cutoff, PCM, etc. The main screen shows information about: the remaining recording time you have, the battery life. , and left and right mic levels at the bottom, as well as: status, mic gain level, and audio format at the top of the screen. Peripherals without having to carry an extra USB cable.6. The device itself is quickly discharged. From off to full recording readiness in less than 5 seconds! The menu response is also very fast, as are the playback and delete functions. (I'm not sure if that will change with a larger SD card as I haven't received it yet.) 7. The most important thing for people reading this review though is the sound quality and here I can like to say that zoom doesn't fail. You have a wide range of different sound quality settings, the lowest being MP3 48kbps and the highest being PCM 48kHz 24bit. Before you react to that, let me say that this is the highest quality sound. If you turn off the video at Video, the highest sound quality increases to: PCM 96 kHz 24 bit. I'm not sure why you can't record video with this audio setting, but I can assure you it's quite different. I bought this device to record videos to listen to and it works great. As a trombonist I was a little concerned that it might lack the low end needed to fully display the trombone sound, but once again the zoom is a treat. As this device is primarily used by rock bands and guitarists, I'm happy to report that it works equally well for brass and classical players in general. However, the microphone level must be set low in order not to distort the recording of instruments such as trombone or trumpet. Another tip for brass players is to experiment with bell placement. I find it best not to aim directly at the mic, but it all depends on the actual hall or room you're recording in, so make sure you use lots of different positions and pick the best one that suits you Convenient for you. NOW THE BAD: While the Zoom Q3 is great value for money, it has multiple streams.1. I'll start with the obvious. NO MICROPHONE IN SLOT. Come Zoom! This is perhaps the most important thing that should be in a device of this type. Personally, I could do without the built-in USB cable and even the built-in speaker, but a microphone connection is simply part of such a device. (In their next Zoom Q3HD, they've fixed that issue, so if you don't have the budget I have and want to spend an extra $150-$200, I suggest you do that.) 2. I'm a bit disappointed the mic gain setting. There are only three different settings available: low, high and automatic. I would like to be able to manually adjust the microphone gain to the desired sensitivity, as three basic settings are not enough. Another big disappointment was the lack of a built-in battery. Why zoom? Why? You basically have two choices: either you continue to buy standard AAA batteries (which I would strongly advise against) or you buy a set of rechargeable NI-MH batteries. The thing sucks battery juice surprisingly quickly. On a full charge I don't get more than 1 hour and 20 minutes of video recording using NI-MH batteries, so do the math if you still need to buy AAA. The next stupid thing Zoom has done is that you can't charge batteries in the device, which in itself isn't a big deal, but every time you take the batteries out to charge them and then put them back in, you realize that you have to adjust the date again. So I find it quite annoying.4. If you remember my description above, there is an AC adapter in the jack BUT yes, you guessed it right, the Zoom Q3 doesn't come with an AC adapter! The?!?!? I can buy a $20 electric hair clipper that comes with one and even a built in battery, but the $200 unit (that's the normal list price) doesn't come with it and you have to buy it separately. Again a very cheap and actually unsuccessful attempt by Zoom to make a few bucks more as you can buy a much cheaper third party power supply that works just as well as the original. It reminds me of the Apple iPhone 4 that came with a micro SD card, and just a few days later a series of videos appeared on YouTube showing how to use kitchen scissors to cut an existing SIM card to size it works.5 . Finally, a camera lens protector would also be a good feature as its position makes it easy to scratch if you're not careful. The reason for this is that if you want to connect your device to a computer, for example, you need to place your device on the front so that the camera lens hits an underlying hard surface. I suggest you use the carrying case as a pad on the surface underneath to protect the lens. CONCLUSION: Advantages: - Excellent value for money - Very compact and easy to transport - Good build quality - Excellent sound recording quality, very easy to use and fast operating system. Cons: - no mic/line in jack - no rechargeable battery - no power adapter - mic gain not manually adjustable In the end, despite its flaws, this is still a great little device. With the capabilities of the Zoom Q3 you simply can't find a better price, making it a great buy for all those hungry musicians on a budget.