Kodak PlaySport (ZX5): The Rugged Take-Anywhere Camcorder

If you need to capture some digital video in a rough and rugged situation, then you'll need a camcorder that can take a beating which is what the Kodak PlaySport (ZX5) offers in spades.

Design

While it builds upon the upright design of its predecessors the Kodak PlaySport (ZX5)'s proprietary built-in battery lets it have slightly slimmer design. This lets you slip it into a pocket with ease. The grip and build quality are quite solid, with easy to reach controls that you can deal with one handed. A 2.0” LCD screen viewfinder rests above these controls. Most of the controls and buttons are responsive so you can take videos while scaling a sheer rock face with ease.

Features and Specifications

Since the Kodak PlaySport (ZX5) was designed to be easy to use there are very few menus to wade through but as such, the functions are also similarly simple and somewhat limited. It still provides for functions such as saturation effects and underwater correction along with auto and macro focus modes and you can control the LCD brightness or boost the microphone gain. The camcorder also has a reasonable macro mode on top of the solid auto focus mode. It can take a videos with resolutions up to full HD 1080p but you can also go for 720p at 60 frames per second or the standard 720p resolution if you're pressed for space. The camcorder offers 128MB of internal memory which can easily be upgraded up to 32GB via the SD or SDHC card slot.

Performance

Ease of use has always been the mainstay for this type of video camcorder and the Kodak PlaySport (ZX5) excels at this. Thankfully you can throw this camcorder into just about any situation including underwater recording up to a depth of 10-feet, which is good enough for a snorkeling trip or two. While video quality is good, still image quality is only average with rather poor performance in low light conditions.

The video is still quite clear in murkier conditions, so rest assured for a clear picture if you want to bring it skinny dipping in the lake. The macro mode works surprisingly well in both video and still image modes. The camcorder is also dust-proof and shock-proof up to five feet, so you can drop it from shoulder level and not have to worry about it. The share button lets you automatically transfer files to sites such as Flickr, Facebook and Twitter but you can also do this manually.

Conclusion

All in all, the Kodak PlaySport (ZX5) is a great video camcorder that you can take anywhere and put through practically everything (although deep-sea scuba diving might be a bit much). Since it is also very easy to use it makes for a great family and kid-friendly device, especially if you're looking to capture a family adventure in full HD 1080p.