Toshiba Camileo H30 Review

After a long absence in the U.S. consumer video market, Toshiba recently announced the Camileo line of digital camcorders.  The trio of devices includes the entry-level Camileo S20, a compact camcorder with 3″ LCD screen and 4x digital zoom and the top of the range Camileo X100, which features a 3″ LCD touchscreen and 10x optical and digital zoom.  All Camileo models provide 1080p full HD resolution, a YouTube hotkey for instant uploading, HDMI and USB 2.0 connectivity, and up to 32 GB in SD/SDHC memory.

We took a closer look at the H30, which has a traditional camcorder form factor and weighs only 227 g (8 ounces).    The Camileo H30 features a compact 3″ LCD swivel touch screen display with 5x optical and 4x digital zoom.

The H30 has four shooting modes, namely 1080p/30fps, 720p/30fps, WVGA/60fps (wide-screen SD resolution) and VGA/30fps (4:3 SD resolution), in addition to still mode, which supports 16 megapixels, 10 megapixels, and 3 megapixels.  For a $250 device, it has far more options and controls than other devices in its price class. Options include choices for resolution, effects (such as slow motion and digital image stabilization), and white balance.

I found the H30 very easy to set up and use; most controls were easily accessible through the touchscreen or dedicated buttons.  The display itself flips 90° and rotates 180°.

Image quality in well-lighted locations was very good.  I was less happy with the poor quality in low-light situations, however, although the device’s night scene setting and digital light helped a bit.

Toshiba includes an HDMI cable so users can watch videos directly on a flat-screen television but the H30 lacks a microphone jack, which should be standard for units in this price range.

-Paul Riegler is a contributing editor at Executive Road Warrior.