Sanyo Xacti VPC-E1 6MP Waterproof MPEG4 Camcorder with 5x Optical Zoom (White)
By: Sanyo Average Rating: 4.0 Total Reviews: 54
More Information
 On: 2008-07-17
I bought this video camera becase it was waterproof to five (5) FEET and it was excellent. we had a great vacation and got some great videos.
 On: 2008-07-14
Camera works great. Underwater option is amazing. Easy fast download to my mac and youtube. I would say the only small issue is that it is not super clear, but for a fun all purpose camera that goes underwater it is more than clear enough.
 On: 2008-06-27
This was purchased December of 2007, it was used 3 times, and never submerged. I brought it to the lake and it was splashed a few times. I went to take a picture with it, and the view was all cloudy. I turned it around and there were water bubbles inside the lens! 3 days later the moisture remains, and there is no possible way to contact Sanyo from their website, or some place to send my camera to have it repaired. 380 dollars down the drain.
On: 2008-06-27
I bought this camera before my yearly fishing trip to Alaska and the camera functioned beautifully! I was looking for a camera that I could put in my pocket or backpack with out taking up a lot of room. The Sanyo Xacti VPC-E1 has worked out perfectly. I dropped it in the frigid Alaskan waters a few times and the camera came out working like a charm! Dont let a few of these negative reports scare you into not purchasing this camera. This camera is not a professional camera! Dont expect professional quality! Do expect to have a lot of fun with it!!!! Any digital camera isnt going to produce the best results with out light, DIGITAL NEEDS LIGHT!!!! Its compact, rugged and easy to use. Do remember to make sure the battery compartment door is shut and locked before getting it wet. I have not experienced any of the problems that some of the other users mentioned in their reviews. Hope this review helps in making your decision. This is a great camera for the price. Have fun with it!!!
On: 2008-06-21
I bought this for my daughter and she loves it. But the on-board memory hold only 13sec of video, so make sure you purchase memory... Or like me, you will wait a week for the memory to arrive. (Amazon as the best price on the memory that goes with this camera... the camera has an 8 gig max. I purchased: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000P9ZBFA
On: 2008-06-17
I have now taken several hundred photos and a couple dozen videos with this little camera. It has functioned very well with no problems. I have been impressed with battery life and the quality of the images is realy quite good. Sound could be better but is fine and this should not be bought for purposes requiring great quality sound. I have used it in the rain and while kayaking and though I have not submerged it entirely, it has perfromed without a single issue. I used anothers smaller version of the Xacti (not H2o proof version) and though they commented on the size diferrence I thought it was hardly noticeable. It fits easily in a shirt or pant pocket and spent much of its time recently in my zippered eyeglass pocket in a light raincoat (ie it is that small). I can highly recommend this camera for travel and all around use.
On: 2008-06-10
I bought this camera for my 13 year old son to take with him to a snowboarding camp. It is perfect for him! We also wanted this since we lived on the coast and may want to take it in the boat and not have to worry about it getting wet.
It is awesome for my son! Simple to use, he was able to figure it out instantly without looking at the directions. He was happy that it came with editing software (even though we havent tried that yet). And we love that he will be able to load things on itunes for his ipod. I loved that the camera fits right in the palm of your hand.....a very natural feeling. The picture was clearer than I expected as well.
We are extremely pleased with this product and I definitely recommend it for anyone that has preteens or teenagers and wants to let them use it w/o worrying about damage to fragile equipment.
Awesome product! :)
On: 2008-06-01
I raft and Kayak whitewater rivers. We took this camera on a class 4 run on the NF American a couple of weeks ago. There was lots of carnage and rescues that I had to do. At one point during a rescue the camera was lost track of and ended up on the bottom of the raft for a few class 4 rapids. When we realized it was missing and looked for it we found it on the floor of the raft floating in between the floor and the tube, It must have been threshed well where it was. It came out just fine and we enjoyed viewing videos of rafts flipping that night.
The picture quality isnt great but very adequate
I recommend this product
On: 2008-05-30
I purchased the Sanyo Xacti VPC-E1 to take on an Alaska cruise. My wife didnt like the size or shape of the E1 and kept trying to get me to return it. After a lot of research, it seemed like the E1 was the best fit. It replaced a Pentax Optio WP10 that leaked during a trip to Hawaii.
The E1 takes decent pictures in brightly lit areas, but for low light situations, it is very grainy. Since Alaskas waters are still cold, dispite global warming, I never had the chance to use it underwater. Now that I see Pentax is releasing a new waterproof camera, I might be selling the E1 and never finding out how well it stands up to being under water.
Likes:
-Standby mode when the screen is closed.
-Records video at full resolution for as long as you have power and disk space.
-Nice photos when taken in bright light.
Dislikes:
-The flip out screen has to be fliped out to record video or take pictures. You can fold it into the body with the screen facing out, but its very awkward.
-Zooming in and out can be heard while recording video.
-Poor low-light performance.
-No way to connect the E1 to an external pwer source to extend video recording times. At least I dont know if it is possible.
-Resolution for video is good for sharing online but not as nice when viewed on a large tv screen.
Bottom line:
-Decent performance but, I dont think the E1 will be going with us on our next vacation.
On: 2008-05-23
Nice underwater camcorder. So far, still dry.
Easy to use and makes good mpeg4 videos. The light sensor on mine tends to overexpose videos and overreact at times when the light changes abruptly. The USB cable (a AV/USB type) is not easy to find. Its one of those ones with a very flat end. Good luck finding another one in your USB cable collection.
 On: 2008-05-18
its an ok point and shoot. its a sub-par camcorder. looks nice but is not meant for low light filming. you can ruin pictures since it only offers an on/off flash and "on" is usually way too much. great red eye feature that is pretty easy to use. the interface overall is nice and it even talks. great interface overall which is why i can bump it from 2 to 3 stars. but way more show than go. if you are looking for a good all around camcorder/camera to use day or night, try another model or brand.
On: 2008-05-15
A few comments about this camera. I took it with me to India, and the standalone battery recharger was fried by a power surge after a short time. Fortunately, I found a cheap universal charger in a local shop which saved the day. Since the recharger would appear to be easily damaged by power spikes I recommend a good quality surge protector when travelling to countries where fluctuating voltage or power outages are common (e.g. India, China, and other developing countries)
The camera itself is very compact and straightforward to operate. The zoom buttons are tricky to operate with one hand without causing camera shake, so I suggest using a second hand to stabilize the camera when zooming in or out.
You have to be careful to protect the lens because there is no lens cap. So the lens will need to be cleaned regularly.
The camera adapts very well to different lighting environments automatically, even in dim light (e.g. dusk) the image will be quite acceptable.
I have not tested the camera underwater, but I have used it in heavy rainfall and it didnt skip a beat.
The quality of the H264/AVC codec is superb, especially when you record in the highest quality mode (640 x 480 resolution). However, at the moment this codec is not very widely supported by standalone players.
Sony Blu-Ray players and Xbox 360 can play these mp4 video files directly however. Other DVD players claiming "MPEG4" compatibility will NOT work with H264/AVC (i.e. when the mp4s are burned straight to a data DVD/CD or accessed on a memory card).
This means conversion to DVD-VIDEO format will be necessary in most cases. For this purpose, I do not recommend the software that comes bundled with the camera as it is quite poky and the converted quality is not great.
Instead I suggest you download the software "Total Video2DVD Author". This converts the H264/AVC mp4s in very high quality (virtually no pixellation/artefacts) and is no slouch either.
** But be sure to configure the target for NTSC DVD-VIDEO and not PAL, otherwise fast-moving sequences will appear jerky **
(same goes if using the bundled conversion software)
I assume the reason for this is that Xactis native video format conforms more closely to NTSC standard in terms of framerate, etc. All DVD players can handle NTSC discs anyway so this shouldnt be a big deal.
I tested the Xacti with 8Gb SDHC card and it works perfectly. I also tried inserting a 16Gb Toshiba SDHC card and this was also recognized by the Xacti so I assume it would be compatible (you could record a *lot* of footage onto 16Gb, due to the efficiency of the H264/AVC codec)
By the way, the recorded sound quality is very good. When zooming in/out, some mechanical noise will be picked up, but otherwise is great.
Still image (camera) mode works quite well, sometimes the photos appear over-exposed in broad daylight but you could manually adjust for that. If you try to take a photo in the midst of recording a video, the photo will be limited to 6MP resolution (2816 x 2112). If the photo is taken when no video recording is taking place, the resolution can be up to 10 megapixel (3280 x 2760). Even though it is claimed to be a 6MP camera, somehow it can manage the 10MP resolution, which is a plus.
On: 2008-05-10
The camera itself is great. The large, easily maneuverable and bright display makes setting up shots and picking camera settings a breeze. Its very light and has good ergonomics as well. The images, both still and moving, are excellent. The problem comes if you should go looking for tech support. When you do youll rapidly find out youre on your own.
I encountered a communication issue between the camera and my desktop. Just finding a tech support phone number on the Sanyo website is a marathon Easter-egg hunt (no number is listed in the documentation that comes with the camera)! Finding the relevant number, I was repeatedly put on hold for 10 to 15 minutes and then dropped. I could not get through despite repeated attempts. As their tech support line is only open during business hours, Monday thru Friday, youd best hope your boss is an understanding soul. Fortunately, I was eventually able to resolve the issue with my own resources but it took hours to do so.
Its really too bad to see a product this well engineered compromised by thoughtless customer service.
On: 2008-04-27
I recently just bought this item off amazon about a month ago and have been looking around for six months trying to see if it was worth it. Now that I actually have it I absolutely love it. Its very small but very stable and doesnt feel cheep like i was afraid it might. The video quality is very good for what it is and amazing in good lighting. I made a whole short film with this camera alone its just plane fun to have around. Dont hesitate i did for a while but have absolutely no regrets. Just a side note... the fact that its water proof never gets old take it anywhere film for no reason.
On: 2008-04-25
I love the camara/video waterproof capabilites. It took fabulous videos and also 85% pictures. You have to practice to get yur best videos, but once you perfect it the videos are wonderful to have.
On: 2008-04-04
Ive been using this camera regularly for six months, and Im satisfied. There are good things and bad things about it, though, so Ill start with the highlights.
I bought the camera for its waterproof feature, which is at the top of my list of good things about the Sanyo Xacti. It has survived the snow and has functioned while being fully submerged.
This camera is comfortable and stylish. It gets compliments wherever I use it. Because of its shape, I can rotate the screen 180 degrees to view when taking self-portraits or group photos.
It takes good quality pictures and videos. I am not a professional, and I use this camera for fun, so I havent played around with a lot of the settings, but Im happy with the results.
Now for a couple downsides. The most obvious disadvantage to this camera is that it has no red-eye reduction flash. Almost all of my portrait photos that are taken in low light show everybody with red eyes.
Even though it has a cool shape, it means I had to get used to using the buttons. The power and playback buttons are conveniently located on the side, but the rest of the buttons for capture, recording, and navigation take some practice. I like using this camera in the snow, but its impossible to do with gloves on.
The battery doesnt last as long as expected, since the camera is always on standby (unless I turn it off manually). Im used to cameras that turn themselves off after five minutes of not being used. As a result, Ive been caught off guard by a dead battery and missed the chance to take some good pictures.
Overall, I recommend this camera if you will use its waterproof feature. Otherwise, there are probably other cameras that have better features for the price. At the time I bought this camera, Amazon had the lowest price I could find online. If you would like to see samples of what I have taken with this camera, visit my blog at http://timmyjimi.wordpress.com/
On: 2008-03-26
Camera had a bad battery. Never worked. Clearly, it wasnt tested before it was shipped. Very poor quality control. I think this will be my last Sanyo purchase.
On: 2008-03-10
A very good buy IMHO, with a some caveats though.
One pretty well advertised feature of this camera is its capability for shooting pictures while recording. This feature has some less advertised drawbacks, however. First, its quality is automatically set to 6M, which in most cases will not bother you. Also the flash will not shoot, which can make this feature unusable in some cases. However, as the camera doesnt have a lamp or low-light mode, in most situations you arent able to shoot without the aid of the flash you wont be able to record decent video either anyway. What makes this feature really unusable in my opinion however is that while the camera records the picture to the memory card it will stop recording video, so your video ends up with annoying cuts in the moments you took pictures. Im using a Transcend 8GB SDHC Class 6 card, which as far as I could figure out is the fastest type of card on the SDHC realm, and the clipping is still too noticeable for my liking. In my opinion its much better to stop recording and take the pictures or extracting the stills from the video, using the cameras own edition features even. All these peculiarities are not advertised, but they are detailed on page 53 of the cameras instruction manual.
The autonomy is 80 minutes, which is ok, but I recommend buying at least a couple extra batteries. Just today I used the camera at a family reunion and I went through two batteries. I must add however that even if it wasnt used continuously, it wasnt given much rest either between playback and recording. Personally I bought and recommend Lenmar DLSAL20 Lithium-ion Batteries. Onlyne I found discrepancies about the capacity of the original battery, but in the end I found both the original and the Lenmar "replacement" have the same 720 mAh capacity and hence the same autonomy and can be used with the same charger. The Lenmar ones cost about one-third the price of the official ones though, so even if they have lower lifetime (which Im not sure is the case, but cant be sure because I still havent had time to exhaust one) they are still worth it.
As for recording space, the 8GB card mentioned earlier allows me to record over 5 hours of video at the maximum possible quality (TV-SHQ, 640x480, 30 fps, 3 Mbps = aprox. 1.26 GB per hour) and also over 300 pictures at the maximum possible quality (10M = 3680x2760). Lowering the quality one step or two almost doubles the quantity of video and images. In my case thats more than enough. In the manual it warns that the video will stop recording after reaching a file size of 4 GB. I think this might be a restriction imposed by the FAT file system the memory cards use. This is a pointless warning though, as you need over 3 hours of continuous recording at maximum quality to reach that file size and the battery lasts only about 80 minutes and the camera has no socket for an external power source.
I was a bit surprised at the small size of the camera, and a little afraid as my hands are big (and clumsy too, yeah). After using it however I found it quite easy to handle and practical. It is very light and adapts fine to the hand, providing a decent grip. The display is comfortable, clear and reasonably big. It does have a socket for fitting on a tripod, and I mention this in hopes it helps someone because I couldnt find this specific detail mentioned anywhere when I was researching information on this camera prior to buying.
To be honest, I havent had the necessity or the heart to test its underwater resistance yet.
The soft case included is barely enough to protect it. I would strongly recommend buying a better case along with it.
My most firm complains about this camera are related to the picture shooting, and being it a camcorder I consider picture shooting an incidental plus, so I wouldnt take that much into account. The only recording-related thing I would change is the autonomy, but Im not sure I would trade its compact size and light weight for some extra battery time, so Im not going to complain about that either.
Overall, I think its a pretty good camera, and although I agree there are better ones on the market, Im not sure there is one as good as this one for a similar price.
On: 2008-03-07
We recently had a baby and everyone tells you to get a video camera to record the moments. I have hated video because people always have these tapes all over the place and you never end up watching them. I am however always on my Macbook Pro. This allows me to download directly into iPhoto and iTunes to put on my iPod. The photos are great quality and the video is great (for the price) even when viewed on a big screen. It comes with a USB cord to connect to my computer and also one to connect to the TV. Very easy to upload to youtube or onto a blog. Instead of sending out annoying e-mails with photos of our child I post everything to the blog and let people go there on their own.
The only thing I wish it did is hold the photo for a few seconds after the shot. Not a big deal but I would recommend purchasing an 8 gig sd card and an extra battery. All are on Amazon for less the $20 each. The large card lets you shoot more pictures and video then weed them out later. I also recommend the underwater hand strap. We have not used it underwater yet but we have only had it a few months.
If you are a Mac user I can not stress how easy it interfaces with iTunes, iPhoto and iMovie. Not sure with PC but still very cool and small. I carry it with me always. It fits in my pocket and is quick to use.
On: 2008-03-03
I took this product to Australia to film my little surf trip. The main intention was to film some water shots. I was able to do so but it was actually pretty hard. Not because of the camera but the surf kept pounding me. I figure with practice I will get better. I also found this camera quite good at taking stills. My girlfriends digi camera busted half way through the trip so we used the xacti for the rest of the time and it was great. The buttons are not as hard to use as people have been saying. My only qualm is that you have to open up the screen to film. I wish you could just force it to record without opening it. It feels somewhat flimsy and easy to break underwater or in the waves. But it didnt. I would suggest buying it if you are just looking for a camera to get yours ears wet and are going on a trip. Its size is perfect.
On: 2008-03-01
Well this is a pretty sweet camcorder. But It does not soot very good video in dark settings, it loses focus alot when your shooting video in dark settings. The pictures are great during the day, basiclly everything is shoot fantastic during the day. Night pictures get blury easy. I really like the E-1 over all.
On: 2008-02-27
Just got back from a trip to Antarctica, and this video camera was fantastic. When we were cruising around in the small Zodiac boats, everyone else had to put their cameras away because of the water spray, but this camera was always out, taking both very good quality videos and reasonable still photos. Lots of examples at http://leler.com/video/
The only improvement I could think of would be a water repellant coating for the lens, so that water drops dont form on it. Oh, and it does have a rather small battery, but I bought a 3-pack of spare batteries and just pop in a new one when it needs it.
On: 2008-02-24
I like the camera. The video gets jittery when you try to pan a scene. Also, the stabilizer is not real effective. The camera has trouble figuring out the light level but that is remedied by half clicking the shutter on an area with medium light for the picture.
Ive had it underwater. That is a great feature in itself for the price.
On: 2008-02-15
I wanted to buy an underwater camera to take on our recent vacation and was delighted to find this one which happened to be a camcorder too! Big bonus! On vacation we snorkeled twice per day, for 8 days and had no problems whatsoever with the camera. I did as instructed and rinsed the camera in fresh water each time and then dried it. Id bought a spare battery because of the reviews stating that the battery life was poor, but I really didnt need it. There was no problem at all with battery life! I also bought the underwater wrist strap and would recommend it for the peace of mind it gave us as we swam around. The velcro strap ensures that there was no way you can drop the camera.
I was so impressed with the ease of use, quality of the stills and video, and with the ease of downloading the images to my laptop that I used it out of the water too. Its small size means that I can slip it in my bag in its light, but protective case. I think I will get a lot of use from this camcorder!
On: 2008-02-13
I fell in love with this camcorder the moment I saw it. Its design is sleek and it looks so cool. Knowing that looks isnt everything I did lots of searching before buying it. It surprised me that there was no consistent opinion about it. People either loved it or hated it.. and I was REALLY concerned about the reasons why they didnt like it.
Those who complained basically nagged about the too-short battery life, and the low-picture-quality. Some mentioned that the gadget suddenly refused to work.. this didnt happen with me till now :)
Regarding the batteries: They are OK! They dont run out after 20 minutes as some complained - unless you are shooting in very low temperatures. I took with me while skiing at Mont. Tremblant in February and still could get many good videos.
As for the low image quality: Give me a break! The thing is still fine. Please remember that this is an adventure-trip-cam. You dont expect an oscar-winning performance using a cam like this. The still images -though- could be a little bit better.
I deducted 1.5 stars off my rating for the not-so-great still images, and for the case which is not so resistant against occasional scratches (my camera is white)
If you are the type of person who is adventurous and on the run.. this could be just your type of camcorder. It may NOT be the best, but it is really a good choice.
On: 2008-02-13
The one thing that bugs me is that on the sheet inside the box (i forgot which one-i think it was the warnings), it said you have to replace the waterproof seal after one year! To me thats ridiculous cause they said we have to pay for it. I could understand that you would need to replace it, but come on, it should be free, (but of course, nothing is free these days)!
But besides that one issue...
I got this camera for my birthday and I like it alot! On the video review on here that that lady and guy made showed that the video quality was not very good; this made me almost change my mind because the video looked so crappy; but as you see I decided to go with it and just take the leap; and it turned out to be so much better than that crappy video review on here. Alot of the reviews on here said that the video quality was like the videocameras in the 80s. I agree on that one video review on here. But I disagree besides that. I think that it is not the best quality in the world for making fancy movies, which you shouldnt expect from this kind of camera, but its good for the every day regular person. Its not very good quality in low light though, but its not like I expected it to be. The buttons may be a bit small for guys fingers, but it works for me. I also like the design and the shape of the camera. The voice-recording quality is very, very good. Its really clear. The camera can have up to 60 minutes of recording/using, but I reccomend getting a SanDisk 4.0 Ultra II memory card, because you just take the memory card out of the camera, then it comes with a little thing that you put the memory card into, then you stick the whole thing into your USB opening in your computer. Then your movies/pictures just come up. This way is much easier than hooking up your camera with all those cords. Overall, I think the Sanyo Xacti E1 is great! I have tried it outside and it works great also. I have not tried it in the water yet, but Im looking forward to it when I go surfing this weekend! :)
This is a great camera for someone who wants something very easy to use, small, and waterproof! But I really recommend it to everyone!
To sum it up, GREAT CAMERA! DONT LISTEN TO THE BAD-REVIEW-ERS ON HERE! ;D
--Brianna, age 14, and yes, just because I am fourteen, doesnt mean that Im stupid.
;D
On: 2008-01-25
I got this camera on the net from the asia/europe market. Its called the VPC-Ca65. Its the same exact camera..
It is a fantastic camera, it works great, even underwater. I was VERY impressed with the audio and the camera works great except it is more of an outdoors camera for use in good lighting. It doesnt work that well in dark situations. I would say it is comparable to other cameras without a night shot mode.
If you shop around you can get them for much cheaper. I got mine shipped for $286 from a site online. It is a great deal, i would recommend it to anyone looking for a good, small, weatherproof camera that does it all.
On: 2008-01-22
This camera is uncomfortable to hold, making it hard to hold still. The still photos are okay (and only okay) out in the sunlight but in any other surrounding the photos are pretty rotten. Changing settings didnt help much. Red eye is the worst Ive ever seen in any camera. Still, it is fun to jump in the rapids while filming and the super macro focus is handy. The small size and dual use are the main attraction for this camera. It serves a purpose but keep another camera for the still photos that really matter.
On: 2008-01-18
I gave this camera to my husband for Christmas. He is a total camera buff, so he turned up his nose quite a bit, especially with the Sanyo name.
We went on vacation to Costa Rica and he refused to even take it with us, so, I took it anyway.
The video I took in and out of the water of my girls surfing and the accidental run-in with jelly fish was excellent. The picture looks a little blue, but after running it back at the house with the quick hook up, everyone was oohing and awing. Now he wont let me use it, like it was all his idea.
So, the zoom was great, still pictures, awesome and all and all, a fun, easy to port little camera. I will take it with me anywhere. It was a no brainer.
When the kids went down the waterslide, the camera was able to film the above and below portion of the dive seemlessly. There was no light adjustment time. I had to guess a lot at where I was filming underwater as you cannot use the screen at all under there, but after one trial, I was getting all of the action, no problem at all.
For the price and convenience, I would say an amazing success story.
Highly recommended for my family and all families out there.
On: 2008-01-07
Simply wow! Very nice product. I hope SANYO would make HD waterproof camcorder that can go deeper.
On: 2008-01-06
Pros: compact, great video quality, waterproof
Cons: poor audio quality, low battery life
Other thoughts: I bought 5 additional batteries on eBay (for $20). The camera died while I was snorkeling, be very careful when you are using controls under the water. Anyway Im very glad I bought this camera.
On: 2008-01-05
This was a Christmas gift for my son. Ordering was easy, Delivery was fast. Hes experimenting, but so far is very satisfied. Hes in the military so the compact size is a huge bonus as he has limited space and its a great way for him to stay in touch with us at home, since it came with computer software to send still pictures and video.
On: 2007-12-20
Have you ever been in a situation where itd be great to have a camera, but you didnt want to risk the wind, the rain, or the water on your pricey electronic equipment? This camera fills the gap and gives you the opportunity to take good images in places where other cameras would stay covered in the camera bag.
Lets start with the obvious. This camera works great underwater! You can take underwater stills or video, and the camera handles them all with ease. The buttons are big and easy to operate. Taking video in the water opens up a whole new world of fun photo opportunities! But its more than just snorkeling or swimming in the pool. You can take this camera kayaking, boating, in the rainforest, skiing, you name it, places where youd probably never dare take a traditional digital camera or video. Thats the beauty of this camera. You have no fear taking it virtually anywhere.
I got better photo results from this camera than I did with the Xacti HD700. The video output of the E1 is not HD, but its perfectly fine for everyday family and fun use. If I were making a serious movie with top quality video, I wouldnt be using any of the Xactis. This camera has virtually no startup time. As fast as you can flip open the viewing screen, its ready to take images.
Another great feature of this camera for traveling is that you only need to bring the camera and a small portable wall charger to pop the battery into. If you upgrade to an HD700 or similar, you will the triple the weight in your charging accessories. Those devices require two long cords (one with a heavy brick) and then an additional charging base station. Those three cords and bases can take up an entire sandwich size ziplock in your suitcase, vs. the E1s wall charger which is the size of a few sticks of gum.
Battery life on this device did seem pretty short. I would highly recommend a few additional batteries if youll be traveling or using this for extended periods of time. I also wish the device came with a lens cap to protect the lens.
Bottom line, youll take this camera places youd never take other cameras. Recently I was on a pontoon boat trip along the Napali Coast in Kauai. It was the most beautiful scenery on earth, and no one else could photograph it because everyone was petrified of getting salt water spray on their camera equipment. Not me! Its not perfect, you might get better pictures with a Canon or Panasonic camera, but if youd never use those cameras in a wet spot, whats the point! I am very pleased with this camera.
On: 2007-12-10
Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R1LLJVSOGFMNRI A video review done by Chris Christensen of the Amateur Traveler podcast for the PodShow Christmas gift ideas series of videos
On: 2007-12-10
The E1 is a great little camera for travelers. It is compact, durable ( no moving parts ) weather, and water proof and very easy to use. The video quality is good and it is extremely easy to upload video to my Macbook from the camera. This camera integrates extremely well with my Apple Macbook as the H.264 ( Quicktime ) video imports right into iTunes and can be viewed on my Mac, iPod, iPhone, or Apple TV. The video also imports right into iMovie for quick editing and export using iDVD to DVDs.
Getting video online is quick and flawless too. I just pop out the SD card from the camera and put it into an SD card reader which I plug into my Macbook and up the video goes straight to YouTube. So cool !
We took it on our recent trip to Cancun Mexico and it was so useful on land, in the pool and in the ocean during snorkeling. No other camera is so versatile. People really looked at me funny when they saw me taking my camera from the beach right into the ocean. They thought I was crazy !
Sure it does not take video with the quality of more expensive cameras, nor is it as feature rich, however the compact size, durability, simplicity, and weather/water proof make for an unbeatable travel video camera. I highly recommend it.
 On: 2007-11-22
It is a nice camcorder. But for $400, I expected a reasonable quality. There is a white spot in all images or videos I took. I remembered one previous review mentioned about this issue. He did an exchange, and still have the same issue.
Also, the navigation button is too small. It is hard not to accidentally hit the wrong button. Another previous review also mentioned this problem.
The image is ok if the light is good. Otherwise, the 6m (10m as claimed) is worse than my 3m Olympus.
Also, the focus is also kind of slow. If the subject has a sudden move, it takes a noticeable time to focus. Again, for $400, it should have issues like this.
On: 2007-11-08
Camera died for no reason. Still trying to find out if it can be fixed. Buttons are too small for me so you want to be sure to have small fingers to be able to use it well. The lense has odd ratios so aspect is a bit unusual.
On: 2007-10-28
This is a great little camera is many ways. It also has some shortcomings, but they are few and minor, so I am very happy with my purchase. Ill review both my likes and dislikes about the camera.
Let me state first that I work as a film editor (using Final Cut Pro), videographer, compositor, photographer and anything multimedia related for the largest county in the US. I am fortunate to have access to the latest and greatest equipment and have a ton of fun doing my job! On occasion, though, I have wished I had a camera like the Xacti with me - particularly when I wanted to take some personal photos or video during an event I was covering, or if I had some kind of video or photographic equipment failure and needed a quick stand-in. The Xacti is not a pro-series camera, but in a pinch it can do a pretty good job of standing-in. It is a 6-megapixal camera, so the photos are clear and sharp, you will find many adjustments, filters, focusing options available in its easy-to-use menu. Same goes for the video. Easy to adjust, set it the way you want, and its ready when you are. It is incredibly easy to use - cant say this enough - there are only three buttons - one to take a picture, one to start video and one for zoom. Because the Xacti uses flash media, all you have to do is open the viewfinder and the camera is ready to shoot. There is no tape to spool, nothing to wait for - instant shooting, and no shot to miss. Transferring to your computer for editing is just as easy - either use the included USB cable and attach the Xacti to your computer, or use a card adapter. I purchased two 4GB flash cards and have been pretty amazed by how much they will hold. The flash cards came with a USB card adapter, and I remove the flash card from the camera, insert it into the card adapter and plug the adapter into my Mac. The batteries, however, are not as robust. I ordered a couple from a vendor here on Amazon and paid about $10 each - a great deal for camcorder batteries. Dont worry about finding batteries to mach the VPC-E1 - I think the camera is too new to cross reference - any battery for any Sanyo Xacti will do just fine. Sanyo has a steady-cam feature - be sure to use it while videotaping. While it does a pretty good job, youll probably want to come beck home and run it through your smoothcam editor if you have one to really make your video shine. Of course, there is the waterproof feature of this Xacti. I have seen footage shot underwater with this cam, but have not actually had the opportunity to do so myself. However, in my job we do end up in some pretty dusty, dirty, abusive situations for our cameras. This is why I was excited about the Xacti VPC-E1 6MP Waterproof. I probably wont get a chance to try it in the pool until next summer, but i have already washed it off several times in the sink after days of filming in the desert. So it is not just the underwater feature, but the easy-clean feature I enjoy as well. On last note: I really like its size - it is really small, as in "easy to fit in your pocket" small. For me this is great because when I am called to shoot I have to leave very quickly, and I can easily grab my Sanyo and pop it in to my pocket and head out the door.
What do I dislike? Not much. Im not crazy about the MPEG4 codec that Sanyo uses. I tend to use Apples Macs more than PCs in my editing at work and probably would have preferred a more robust codec. I have read, after purchasing my Xacti, that Sanyo is coming out with an HD Xacti, which would be nice - but the model I read about is not waterproof. Would it be worth the tradeoff? Not for me right now. I also find the zoom extremely touchy. I have looked relentlessly for settings to adjust this and cannot seem to find any. If you use a feather-light touch it gets better, but this is an issue with me. Another minor issue is that the camera does not give much warning as to when you will be running out of memory while you are shooting. There is some warning, I would just like more. And finally, if I was in Sanyos design department, I think I would make this underwater camera less slippery. The black strip down the center of the camera is ridged with a zigzag pattern, but the rest of the camera is very slick and slippery. I would think that for any underwater camera, additional rubberized or grip zones might be in order.
As you can see, I am very pleased with my Sanyo Xacti VPC-E1 6MP Waterproof MPEG4 Camcorder. When Sanyos HD model comes out in the near future I may look at that model as well. The few minor gripes I have with the camera are minor in comparison with the outstanding features and performance.
On: 2007-10-21
Build quality is crisp and precise and the unit is attractive. Screen picture quality is average. Controls are surprisingly limited. But the biggest problem is the video quality. Connected to a TV, I was surprised to see that for shots taken both indoors and outdoors on a sunny day, greens looked oversaturated, outlines were blurry, and very noticeable digital artifacting occurred in images of a running child. Overall I was reminded of my first VHS camera circa 1983.
For shooting underwater its affordable and brilliantly small. Unfortunately I wont get that far as Im returning it for picture quality reasons.
On: 2007-10-03
I purchased this after seeing an ad in MacWorld detailing its waterproof capability which would be useful for skiing and kyaking. The video is of a higher quality than I expected - like a much larger camera. It zooms well and the image is very sharp. The still pictures are very good but the shutter button takes practice to smoothly operate. The on screen info is very complete and will become more useful as my experience grows. The moveable screen allows a great deal of versatility and ability to do candid shooting. I bought a 2 gig SD card for $20 which I think will be adequate for an upcoming vacation.
On: 2007-09-15
I purchase this camera a couple couple months ago (July 07) and all in all its worked out well. Ive spent a lot of time with it under water and Ive been pleased with its performance.
Pros:
1)Pretty good video resolution, even on my 32 inch TV.
2)Its passed several underwater video tests without any problems. The seal has held and the images were surprisingly clear.
3)Very portable, fits easily in my front trouser pocket.
4)Battery holds a decent charge, though a back up battery is probably a good idea.
5) The menu is easy to navigate.
6) Seems to be fairly durable.
Cons:
1) The buttons are awkward to use. I attribute this to the "pistol grip" nature of the design which requires you to use your thumb to press the buttons while trying to hold the camera in some fashion with your fingers. Difficult to master.
2) As another reviewer mentioned, the fact that the lens is not perpendicular to the grip takes a little getting used to. You find that you have a tendency to aim too high.
3) Audio is only mediocre. Though Ive never owned a video camera that had what I would regard as good audio so it wasnt a surprise.
4) The 6 mp sill images are OK but not great. I think my old 3.2 mp Canon Elf takes better looking pictures. Proof that good images arent just about how many mega pixels you have.
Bottom Line:
None of the cons were problematic enough for me to regret buying this camera. I was looking for small, weather proof video camera that took at least decent stills and the E1 has, thus far, satisfied or exceeded those requirements.
On: 2007-09-14
Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R1M6ZG13R4TXMW The video shows various photos and videos taken with the Xacti. This is a fun camera that my wife and I really like. We go to Hawaii often and like snorkeling. Weve been looking for a camera for this purpose for some time and have finally found it! The video was produced with software that is included with the camera, Adobe Premiere Elements.
On: 2007-09-13
I hook mine to a kitesurfing kite or kiteboard (wetstuff.com) and am having a ball figuring out how to mount it best. Some of you wont get past the fact that you cant see sh/t on that little screen when you are in the Sun ...that the voice/noise prompts are not loud enough when theres other noise ...the buttons are too small for manly fingers ..but if you surf, paddle, boogieboard ..or do the nasty underwater and want to remember it when youre 60 ..then this is a little jewel. Just rememeber to close it tight! (I got sand in the seal and had a slight leak..)
I get about 1 hour+15 min out of the supplied, 729mAh battery and a 1meg SD card. Just perfect for my uses. I bought 875mAh, bigger/better batteries on Ebay - they last 35min ea. So much for leaving the reservation.
My bigger problem, at the moment, is learning iMovie or Quicktime Pro so I can make the hour into 3-5minutes of something that doesnt trigger narcolepsy in non-kiters. Have fun!
Jim
Salisbury Maryland
On: 2007-09-03
I bought this waterproof camera on July 21st. I was satisfied by its easy of use. the still picture is too bad, if youre used to use canon rebel. but still, I wanted to keep it. but after 40 days, it refuses to work any more. the screen is black in either photo or video mode. recording is black. playback still works though. Im not sure if I can exchange a new one from the seller "the factory depot". Ill keep you updated.
I would suggest buyer to take the product quality into consideration. When it breaks, a lot of hassle will come with it.
On: 2007-09-02
After reading the positive review in "Wired" magazine, I went ahead an bought this camera. I was looking for an easy to use, durable still and video camera for capturing family activities (vacations, sporting events, everyday life, etc). From an ease of use standpoint, Im very happy! This is a very easy to use, ergonomically friendly little camera if youre looking to capture memories, not professional quality videos.
Im not happy, however, with the software thats included with the camera. Playback is choppy, response is slow (i have a Vista machine running with 2GB RAM at 2GHZ), and Im now looking around for the right software to use for making movies out of my footage.
I understand there are codec issues with Windows Movie Maker from Jasons post. Trying to find the downloads he references. I cant play my clips using my WMM (v 6).
The individual clips work just fine if I view them using QuickTime player. Id buy QuickTime Pro, but I understand you cant make DVDs with it.
Any suggestions here would be appreciated. Thanks!
On: 2007-08-28
I was lucky to get it as a deal of a day promotion. At first I thought I was going to regret this compulsive buy, but a what a great surprise....
I took it to my vacation trip as a video camera back up for my everio and once I started shooting I forgot completlly of my JVC camera....
Really,.... is is that good, and the video under water is very clear.
I will really recomend this camera to anybody, even if you already have another video camera, with the additional feature of under water video it is a killer...
Go and get it.
On: 2007-08-24
I knew I should not have brought this out without more testing.
As a video camera, it pretty decent. I wanted somethig to record to SD cards.
I have been trying to find a hybrid camera/video device for years and this one had me excited. I figured even if the 6MP was as good as a 3MP regular camera, Id be happy.
Well I took it to my daughters play. I usually bring video and a regular still. This camera can shoot stills while you shoot video (I thought that was amazing).
Too bad the stills are awful. Unless you are outdoors on a sunny day, this camera is pathetic. I took some pictures inside near a bright window and they looked like you took them on a circa 1990 Apple quicktake.
Saying this camera does not work that well indoors is an understatement. Its more like, this camera does not work indoors.
Its a shame because its a cool package. However, Id rather have great pix and ok video that I have been taking from my handheld PS camera.
When I want quality, I bring my Canon DV and my Digital Rebel. I was hoping this would be a compromise. If I got one decent shot, it would be a compromise but every picture I shot was blurry.
The autofocus on this camera is bad and I think its cumbersome to take a photo.
If you need a waterproof camera that records to SD, this is ok. If you really think you are getting a 6MP digital camera (or even a reasonable ok digital camera, look elsewhere).
Back to Amazon goes the Xacti.
On: 2007-08-23
I purchased this camera for our vacation in Hawaii. It worked exactly as advertised. The underwater pictures were great. The still photos were also great. It wasnt hard to point and shoot. I would recommend this camera.
On: 2007-08-23
I got this camera for a couple reasons:
1. to videotape my golf swing at the range
2. to film my kids swimming in the pool
The camera itself functions very well, lots of tweakable goodies and great picture, no complaints there. The underwater capability is great for pool parties, it even records sound underwater! However, when it came time to transfer the files to my PC (Vista Home Edition) thats where I started running into problems. The Photoshop sw that ships with the product is nice, but playback is choppy. Next, I found out you cant play the mp4 files in Windows Media or Windows Moviemaker out of the box, so you are forced to use the Photoshop sw which produces jittery output. And good luck trying to send the videos to the grandparents that dont have the codec.
Luckily I found some codecs on the web (took several hours of research) that allow Windows Media and MovieMaker to load the video, it also allows other video applications to decode the mp4 format. They are free here: w w w . cccp-project . n e t (remove spaces)
Second problem is the battery life. I have the power saving mode set to 1 min camera, 1 min playback, brightness set to lowest setting, yet after just 20 minutes of video recording throughout the day, and a couple of days sitting on my deskb, the battery had drained out! I recharged the battery for a whole night and again, it ran out in less than 20 mins of on/off recording in the span of a day. Either I have a bad battery, or there are some serious energy consumption issues with this camera, thats why im giving it 3 stars and will likely return it.
On: 2007-08-19
I recently visited the Canadian side of Niagara Falls and took a whirlpool jet boat tour. If you want more details on the tour then google it. Basically, the tour involves a high speed / open air jet boat that takes you through category 5 rapids of Niagara Falls. You dont just get soaked or drenched...you get hit with 8 to 10 ft waves. I was shooting for almost 45 mins of non stop water spray and this unit held up flawlessly. If you film in wet conditions then this is a very inexpensive unit. OK, enough about the waterproofing. What about the rest?
Pros:
1. Waterproofing- I dont know of any other camcorders that compare or even exist in this price range.
2. Overall good pic quality- Overall quality is roughly mini dv quality. Sometimes slightly worse / slightly better. Very impressive considering the small footprint of this unit.
3. Very easy to use. I dont know why other reviews over the web knock the usability. This this is super simple to use. Just point and record.
4. Build quality- Compares favorably with Sony, Panasonic, etc. This is very well built and even though it is made in Indonesia it has typical "Japanese" fit and finish.
5. Lightning quick boot times.
Cons
1. Seems to be incompatible with Apple tv. I will have to try and reencode the stock videos. I think the bit rate is simply too high at the highest quality setting for Apple TV to support. However, the videos play perfectly using Quicktime.
2. Slippery when wet. My advice to Sanyo...the included wrist lanyard should offer the ability to be velcroed. However this is an easy fix with an after market lanyard.
3. It would be nice if an extended life battery were offered. However, aftermarket batteries are dirt cheap (around $10 per battery).
Bottom Line
It is very easy to over look this product because of the lack of pizzaz about the Sanyo name. If you can get over that then you will have one heck of a camcorder. It is up to you: Would you rather have good video quality and shoot a ton of video or would you have HD quality, but shoot much less video because you dont want to lug around a bulky cam corder. Heck, I like this camcorder so much that I will now use it for most of my shooting and use my Sony HD cam only for very special events.
On: 2007-08-18
After watching a video review of the Sanyo Xacti E1 camcorder, I was sold on it before I could get rid of my current camcorder. I ran to the nearest store to buy one and took it straight to the beach. The video quality was amazing. As a current widescreen camcorder and widescreen TV owner, I missed 16:9 over the 4:3-only video recording (even though it surprising shot 16:9 digital stills!). The flash was strong, and underwater recording was even better than expected. The battery life is estimated at about 80 minutes, but its so easy to find spare batteries (as low as $20 for 5 on eBay!)
Of course, even though it was waterproof, it certainly isnt pebble-proof. Sitting at the beach and having the waves rush into me and the camera was fun, but not when I couldnt flip or close the screen, as pebbles got caught in and around the hinge. Needless to say, it got pretty scratched up on its first day trying to get the flip-out screen to close and open properly.
As a new Apple user, owning a MacBook, iPhone, and Apple TV, what sold me was the blatant mention of H.264 and AppleTV, right on the box. I wasnt expecting a grand suite of Mac applications, but it was easy enough to just drag into iTunes to sync up. This is where the fun ended on the Mac side. The H.264-friendly iPhone rejected every video created with the E1, and the AppleTV played back every video with such artifact corruption that I was so embarrassed when performing a live demonstration of the ease of use of both the E1 and the Apple TV to family and friends.
Sure, I could drag all the H.264 movie files into iMovie and re-render them, but then what makes this camcorder different or better than others that I would have to re-encode anyway? Sanyo should really reconsider the mention or detail the specifics of Apple compatibility if they want to gain the trust of Apple users in the future.
Ultimately, the camera went back to the store, and my quest continues for a decent-price, widescreen-capable, high compression, flash storage-based, Apple-friendly ultraportable camcorder. They might be able to fix these problems with a firmware update, but I doubt it. Perhaps Ill revisit Sanyo again when the Xacti E2 or VPC-HD3 (speculative names) come out.
On: 2007-08-14
I purchased the camera right before leaving on a family cruise. It was used for taking stills as well as video. There was plenty of water activity such as snorkling and swimming with dolphins and the waterproof camera came along for all the activities. The underwater video came out great..although it was challenging to see the view screen under water. I also liked the feature of not having to switch modes, being able to take a still while continuing to video.
On: 2007-07-19
This is not your average camcorder. We recently purchased a new Canon Digital Rebel XT 8MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f3.5-5.6 Lens (Black) to replace our old point and shoot and realized that we missed the "Video" features of the point and shoot. We have owned an older Canon camcorder but really hate lugging around tapes and getting the video to the computer is not fun. So we purchased the Sanyo Xacti VPC-E1 and have been very impressed. I have never seen such a small lightweight waterproof camera anywhere. If you are looking for a great easy to use camcorder and you arent worried as much about video quality, the Xacti VPC-E1 is the way to go.
Good:
small
light
Easy to use.
Very nice zoom for a small design.
Convenient waterproof design.
Creating video starts very quickly so you wont miss that shot.
Seems to be well constructed. Some people seemed to be worried that the buttons where mushy, but that is just so they can make it waterproof.
Bad:
The menu can be a little bit confusing at times.
You have to have the screen open and the battery hatch open to sync to your computer.
No matter which front color you get the back is white, dont be fooled.
I read that you need to replace the "seals" on the camera after around a year of use, but I cant figure out how to order them.
On: 2007-06-28
I used to be a sony/panasonic/canon user on AV products. After my 3-year-old sony Mini DV cam decided to quit, I was looking for a next-gen video cam that doesnt use those ultra-annoying tapes. (I cannot believe any people out there will still buy a tape-driven-camcorder in this century.)
There are basically 3 options on the market: DVD based, hard disk based and flash memory based. I think among these three options, flash memory based is the true future solution for all the camcorder products out there since it the smallest, lightest, and fastest to load. You dont have to hook up you camcorder to the computer to download the clips like what you would do with a hard disk based camcorder. And with a 2GB, you can shoot high quality video for 1.25 hr. Which is essentially more than a mini DV tape can offer. Plus, you can get 8GB SD HC card these days. Means you can shoot 5 hrs of video without swapping. (Of course swapping in additional cards is no-brainer anyway.) I appreciate the large storage of a hard disk camcorder. But hey, who is going to shoot over 5 hours of boring family video on a single trip?? Beside, even if you need to shoot over 5 hours, you can always buy/bring more SD cards. But thats not the case for a hard disk camcorder. Once it ran out of space, you are doomed. Also dont forget that you are putting all the eggs in one basket if you think storing all the clips in a 40GB in-camera-hard-drive is a convenience. I think majority of us have experienced the capital punishment of hard drive crashes.
Enough words with the reason to buy, lets talk about my experience with this product after using it for one week. First of all the color of this product is blue on the side you see from all the pictures you can find on the web. However, on the opposite side, it is actually plastic-white. I kind of dislike this color combination. But its not a big issue.
The build quality is quite solid. The flip screen is even more solid than the sony I used. The button feels a bit "spongee" to touch. It doesnt give you a firm feeling. I think its due to the reason that its a water proof camcorder and the buttons are actually pressing on a gasket instead of a solid circuit board. Again, once you get used to it, its no big deal.
The handling is quite comfortable for a vertical-holding camcorder. The tilted angle of the lens and slim body let you hold the camera without too much stress. But since Im coming from a horizontal-holding world, it took me some time to get use to it. I found that the best way to hold it is putting your index finger above the top of the lens and your midde finger below the bottom of the lens. That way you use these two fingers to firmly hold the camcorder while you use your thumb to control the shutter and zoom. The down side is you will have some camera shake when you push the zoom since the key is "gasketed" and it takes stronger than normal force to push.
The video quality may be many peoples concern since its a "Sanyo". That was my biggest concern too. But to my surprise, I can truely say that it is very good. Its much better than my 3-year-old sony which always give wrong white balance and grany picture when shooting in low light condition. I didnt compare it to the latest generation of sony/canon. But I think it is very acceptable for family videos. The still photo function is so so. The shutter is kind of hard to control since you need to half-press it to focus. But then again the button is not very firm so you need to get used to the half-pressed-spongee-button feel.
One more good thing about this cam is the fast startup time. Remember the time when your wife screaming at you to shoot the babies once-in-a-life-time moment and you missed it because it took 10 seconds plus to turn on your tape driven camcorder? This camcorder can be put in sleep mode. As soon as your flip open the screen, it will be ready to shoot in about 3-4 seconds. A small difference in seconds, a giant leap for mankind.
I didnt have a chance to test the under water capability. But I guess it will be okay for pool parties, etc. Its either water-proof or water-leak. There isnt much to talk about.
I did compare this product to the latest Canon TX-1 before I bought the E1. But the awkward handling and inefficient data compression ratio have pushed me back.
I would have given it 4 stars because of the spongee buttons. But since its a Sanyo and it is forgiven and rewarded for a extra star.
DT
|
|
