Toshiba Camileo Z100 3D camcorder – Hands on

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Posted on 11 Jan 2012 at 03:34, by Seth Barton at CES in Las Vegas

Everyone knows that 3D devices cost more than traditional 2D ones, particularly when it comes to camcorders, as you need to have two lenses. Sony was first to break the mould with a budget 3D camcorder, the 3D Bloggie, and now Toshiba has released this more traditionally shaped model.

The stand-out fctor here is the price, the Z100 will cost just $219, which should equate to well under 200 pounds inc VAT in the UK. For that you’re getting a comfortable to hold and easy to use device with two 5-megapixel CMOS sensors that shoot surprisingly good-looking 3D footage (at least in the bright lighting conditions we tested it under). It’s only a prototype model at present it must be added, but the appearance of depth on the TV it was hooked up to was remarkable and we didn’t see any obvious image quality problems.

The camcorder itself has a 2.8in glasses-free 3D display, so you can see what you shooting in full effect. Like the parallax barrier display on the Nintendo 3DS, it takes a little getting used to but once you’ve got it you’re fine. It’s a bit grainy, probably because it’s a touchscreen as well, but it works well enough.

The only big downside here is that despite the traditional design, the Z100 (like the Bloggie) has no optical zoom. So you’re stuck with the either walking closer or using the digital zoom and sacrificing quality. Still it’s a lot of fun for the money if you’re looking to shoot your own 3D home movies. It should be out in Europe in March.