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Current Video Technology For The Masses

Technology is always getting smaller, faster, and cheaper. One segment of technology that will have a major impact on how society experiences new events is video capture. Video capture devices have become pocket size but the quality of video has grown steadily. Let's delve into the different current technologies and give you a feeling of what to expect when you buy one of these pocket devices.

First let's talk about the quality of video. Not long ago home video was absolutely horrible to watch. The graininess and sometimes out of sync audio was deplorable but doable. Today we have pocket cameras that produce video only laserdiscs provided. The high definition resolution for these pocket cams are 720p. So watching the video produced by one of these cameras on a 720p resolution TV or HDTV will utilize all the resolution provided by your expensive TV. You will be able to make out details that you would otherwise have a hard time seeing on other inferior quality video.

The easiest way to think of HDTV resolution like 720p, 1080i, and 1080p is to break them down into their resolutions that you would normally see when modifying your laptop or desktop's resolution. 720p = 1280 x 720, 1080i  = 1280 x 1080, 1080p = 1920 x 1080. Now to go along with this list is the caveat that the difference between 720p and 1080i is negligible. It really is up to the viewers preference.

Now let's take a look at one of the latest pocket cam offerings from Creative. The Creative Vado HD records 720p quality video at 30 fps. The fps or frames per second of a recording can give you an idea of what to expect the video to look like. Anything less then 30 fps might look choppy. Although the true test is for you to view the video wherever you will most likely watch it. For example on your computer or on your TV. It also possesses an HDMI output port so you can plug the device directly into your TV and play the videos from the device onto the TV. The video recording uses the H.264 codec. This means that in order to play the video you need a player that supports this codec. For most players on your computer you can download a plug-in that will enable you to watch this format. A popular codec pack for Window's users is the Combined Community Codec Pack.
If you want to transfer the video files over to a DVD, CD, Playstation Portable, or another device like a DVD player with a USB port you may have to transcode the video into another format. To do this you must purchase a program that will handle this process for you. Transcoding video can be a painstakingly slow process so allow yourself time for this step. A popular transcoding application is Magic Video Converter.

Moving on from the quality of video the 2 most important factors when buying a new video camera is battery life, how long can the device shoot without needing to be recharged or have its battery replaced with a backup, and space / memory, these high quality videos take up a lot more hard drive space then the older low quality videos. The more space the better.

The best way to compare pocket cameras to each other is to seek out video from each camera posted on the internet. There is always an early adopter eager to show what their new device can do. The main thing to remember when critiquing a video is to pay attention to the conditions around the subject. Is there lots of natural sunlight? This simple fact will allow sub par cameras to shoot amazing video. How about the audio? Are you able to make out everything that the subject is saying? Most pocket cams will have sub par audio but it pays to have the least sub par if that is an important factor for you.

As technology advances and shooting high quality video and audio becomes easier many things will change in society. Media is king but high quality media is the bizness. What are some of your favorite pocket cameras, and is there any new video capture tech in the works that you are excited about?

Moving Pictures & Nostalgia

I don't have many home videos of myself as a kid as we weren't well off enough to afford our own camcorder but I know when my wife and I have our own little rugrats, you can bet I'll have terabytes of video of them playing with puppies, eating cotton candy and talking about Star Wars much to their father's pride.

The crazy thing nowadays is that I don't really think of video in terms of length of time but in how much capacity it will take up in one of my hard drives. It wasn't long ago that we were still using mini-dv tapes and HD video was a high end proposition. Most, if not all, video cameras in big box electronics stores are now memory based (either by memory card or built in hard drive) and promise different resolution options when recording. 

An even crazier thing is that I can't see how the quality of these digital recordings will degrade over time. Imagine finding an old VHS tape or maybe a recording from a super 8 camera. You know you've seen these play out on TV, the fuzzy lines, the skipped frames, the washed out colors... analog technology at its nostalgic finest. I know when I see video with those degraded characteristics, I think to myself: Wow, that's an old recording from a long time ago.

In 30 years when I play back video I captured with my digital device (camera, phone, camcorder) it will look exactly the same as when it was recorded. Will that detract from the nostalgia? I mean, I will see in the video that the clothes are old. The haircuts were old. The faces were younger. But the video will look the same as when it was recorded. The video won't feel old.

Who knows? Maybe pixelation will replace film dust and faded hues. Maybe our children will feel nostalgia through out of place pixels. Shoot, maybe we'll have holograms by then. Or there will be an analog renaissance, at least through video filters in software programs that mimic the characteristics of degraded film. I suppose in the end it doesn't matter. The memory captured on these moving, talking pictures is nostalgia enough.