Sony announces new pocket camcorder, claims it isn't 'full of stars'
(Credit:
Sony Electronics)
If you ever wanted to videotape your pets fighting to Romanian dance music while on a trampoline, Sony has a new pocket camcorder for you. Sony's NSC-GC1 Net-sharing CAM is targeted specifically at the YouTube crowd, with a low enough price tag and just enough power to throw clips up on the Web. The Net-sharing CAM can shoot video ranging from QVGA (320x240) at 15 frames per second to VGA (640x480) at 30 frames per second. It records to Sony's Memory Stick DUO memory cards, so if you already have a PlayStation Portable or a Sony Cyber-shot digital camera, you're probably set. The included Picture Motion Browser and PMB Portable software helps streamline uploading videos to the Web; instead of going through YouTube and other sites' uploading pages, the software can directly publish your videos to the Web. If you want to shoot more than videos, the Net-sharing CAM also doubles as a 5-megapixel still camera with a built-in flash.
With a retail price of $200, this pocket camera seems pretty steep. Most sub-$200 digital cameras have a 30 fps VGA movie mode that will produce YouTube-worthy videos. Worse yet, the Net-sharing CAM doesn't even have an optical zoom lens, a feature nearly every digital camera and camcorder have. If you just want a cheap, simple way to put video clips up on the Web, you might want to check out the RCA Small Wonder EZ201. It doesn't have the same still image abilities as the Net-sharing CAM and its 1.5-inch flip-out screen dwarfs the CAM's 2.4-inch screen, but it costs over $70 less than Sony's offering.
The Sony NSC-GC1 Net-sharing CAM will ship in September, though you can preorder it starting July 19. Whatever your decision, consider this: over 4 million people have watched this.
When will SONY get it!