Zoom Q3 review

Now here's where we'd love to say that the Q3's video quality is equally matched by its aptitude for audio--but it's simply not true. In fact, compared with the glut of smaller, cheaper, HD-capable camcorders competing in this space, the Q3's video quality is downright disappointing.

The problem is more than just a pixel count. Many of our recordings demonstrated poor white balance, hazy contrast, washed-out colors, and an odd grainy quality. Similar to the video camera found on the fifth-generation Apple iPod Nano, we did appreciate the accommodating wide-angle lens (0.8mm to infinity focal length), which allowed us to capture subjects and scenes from shorter distances than the Flip.

Image samples can be found in our slideshow and First Look video. To fully understand the unique audio capabilities of the Q3, be sure to listen to the selection of audio samples at the end of this review, as well.

The Q3's battery life is rated at 2 hours of video recording, or 4 hours of audio-only recording.

Final thoughts
We can think of several examples where the microphones on our camcorder or digital camera have let us down: windy recordings of childrens' soccer games; interviews imbued with a nagging mechanical whine hovering in the background; or concerts where the sheer volume overloads the audio into an unlistenable wall of noise. The Zoom Q3 is an admirable attempt to remedy the problem of bad sounding videos, and it may find an audience with musicians and journalists who value sound quality over all other considerations.

That said, we now live in a world where expectations for digital video quality have dramatically increased. Our TVs are HD, our portable media players are HD, and even YouTube recently announced 1080p HD video streams. No matter how great it sounds, we have a hard time justifying an investment in a standard definition video camera at a time when the world is going HD.

Recording samples

Flip Ultra HD test, No. 1 (YouTube):

Zoom Q3 test, No. 1 (YouTube):

Flip Ultra HD test, No. 2:

Zoom Q3 test, No. 2

Flip Ultra HD test, No. 3:

Zoom Q3 test, No. 3: