Samsung HMX-H105
Manufacturer: Samsung Part number: HMX-H105BN/XAA
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Product series
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- An interesting design doesn't offset the so-so video quality and performance, especially for the higher priced HMX-H106, H105, and H104. If you're set on this series, though, the no-memory-included Samsung HMX-H100 is probably the best deal of the bunch.
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CNET editors' review
Samsung HMX-H105 price range: $18.95 - $729.99
- Reviewed by: Lori Grunin
- Reviewed on: 08/25/2009
- Released on: 05/15/2009
The good: Attractive design; comfortable rotating grip; manual shutter speed and aperture controls.
The bad: SSD adds unnecessary price premium; so-so video quality; slow, inaccurate autofocus.
The bottom line: An interesting design doesn't offset the so-so video quality and performance, especially for the higher priced HMX-H106, H105, and H104. If you're set on this series, though, the no-memory-included Samsung HMX-H100 is probably the best deal of the bunch.
Samsung attempts to differentiate the bulk of its HD camcorder line by incorporating SSD--solid-state drive--storage compared to competitors' traditional hard disks, regular old built-in flash, or simply removable flash cards. This is a rather flimsy thread to hang a strategy on. While SSD theoretically confers a size advantage over hard disks, Samsung's core line of four HD camcorders--the HMX-H106, the H105, the H104, and the H100--are nevertheless relatively large, and larger than a typical card-based model. The models are identical save the built-in storage, which starts at none (SDHC card only) and tops off at 64GB.
Given that you pay a price premium for the SSD--the differential between the no-memory HMX-H100 and the 16GB H104 is about twice the cost of a Class 6 16GB SDHC card--and the absolute dollar gap widens as capacity increases, the SSD ultimately ends up a marketing gimmick. This series review is based on tests of the H106.
| Comparative specs: Samsung HD camcorders | Samsung HMX-H106 | Samsung SC-HMX20C | Sasumng HMX-H105/H104 | Sasumng HMX-H100 |
| Sensor | 2.2-megapixel CMOS | 4-megapixel CMOS | 2.2-megapixel CMOS | 2.2-megapixel CMOS |
| 1/4.5 inch | 1/1.8 inch | 1/4.5 inch | 1/4.5 inch | |
| Lens | 10x f1.8-2.5 3.3-33mm (actual) | 10x f1.8-2.5 6.3-63mm (actual) | 10x f1.8-2.5 3.3-33mm (actual) | 10x f1.8-2.5 3.3-33mm (actual) |
Image Stabilization | Optical | Electronic | Optical | Optical |
EVF | No | No | No | No |
| LCD | 2.7-inch, 230,000-pixel touch screen | 2.7-inch, 230,000-pixel touch screen | 2.7-inch, 230,000-pixel touch screen | 2.7-inch, 230,000-pixel touch screen |
| Primary Media | 64GB SSD | 8GB built-in flash | 32GB/16GB SSD | SD card |
| Maximum bit rate | n/a (Samsung does not report bit rates) | |||
| Manual shutter speed and iris | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Accessory shoe | No | No | No | No |
| Mic/headphone jacks | No | No | No | No |
| Audio | 2 channels | 2 channels | 2 channels | 2 channels |
| Body dimensions (WHD, inches) | 2.5 x 2.4 x 5.1 | 2.6 x 2.7 x 5.4 | 2.5 x 2.4 x 5.1 | 2.5 x 2.4 x 5.1 |
| Operating weight (ounces) | 14 | 16 (est) | 14 | 14 |
| Mfr. Price | $899.99 | $849.99 | $729.99/$649.99 | $579.99 |
While the camcorder's design is attractive, the feel is a mixed bag. Physically, it's quite similar to its progenitor, the HMX10. A tad more compact than nonflash competitors, it looks and feels pretty solid despite its all-plastic construction. All the operational controls--zoom switch, photo button, power, mode, and record--fall comfortably under your right thumb or forefinger. The top zoom switch is one of the skinny, wobbly types that I find uncooperative when trying to maintain a smooth, consistent zoom, however. In a hatch below sit the miniHDMI, the USB, the AV, and the power connectors.
The grip rotates about 150 degrees, and though you can leave it at any point in the rotation, it locks into only two positions. The first slight rotation drops it by about 5 degrees, increasing the height for larger hands. You can continue the rotation to about 150 degrees, useful when shooting at a low angle. This is a clever, older design that I've yet to see copied.
Inside the LCD recess are a power switch, photo flash, display, full auto Easy Q, and image stabilization buttons. On the LCD bezel sit a secondary zoom switch, record button and Q(uick) Menu button. The battery and the SDHC slot sit on the bottom of the camcorder, a poor location if you plan to shoot on a tripod, which completely obstructs the hatch. It also provides a built-in electronic lens cover, a nice feature that has become typical in camcorders in this price range, and the stereo microphones sit on either side of the lens, gaining more separation than we typically see in consumer camcorders.
Unfortunately, though, the touch-screen interface is relatively annoying. I generally find that touch screens aren't very comfortable to work with on the 2.7-inch displays common to this class, and Samsung's proves to be no exception. I found the system to be frequently unresponsive, and require multiple presses to recognize input. That said, the menus are organized fairly well. However, even though the camcorder offers some manual adjustments, like shutter speed and aperture, they're inconveniently buried in the menu system. You can't even pull them up with the Q Menu button; that's reserved for switching storage media (SD or SSD), scene modes, video and photo resolution, white balance, exposure compensation, and focus (auto, manual, or TouchPoint).
The camcorder records 1,920x1,080/60i, as well as 720p and 480p, video using MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 encoding, similar to that used by AVCHD. Though Samsung doesn't report its bit rates, QuickTime reported that most of my test clips encoded at about 17 megabits per second, which is pretty typical for this class; some camcorders can handle up to 24 megabits per second, but if you're not planning on editing the video you probably won't notice the difference. You can fit about 7.5 minutes of footage per gigabyte of storage at highest quality; clips are limited to a maximum of 1.8GB.
| Key comparative specs | Samsung HMX-H106/H105/ H104/H100 | Sony Handycam HDR-XR100 | Canon Vixia HG20 |
| Sensor | 2.2-megapixel CMOS | 4-megapixel Exmor CMOS | 3.3-megapixel CMOS |
| 1/4.5 inch | 1/5 inch | 1/3.2 inch | |
| Lens | 10x f1.8-2.5 3.3-33mm (actual) | 10x f1.8-2.2 42 - 497mm (16:9) | 12x f1.8-3.0 42.9 - 514.8mm (16:9) |
EVF | No | No | No |
| LCD | 2.7-inch, 230,000-pixel touch screen | 2.7-inch, 211,000-pixel touch screen | 2.7-inch, 211,000-pixel touch screen |
| Primary Media | 64GB/32GB/16GB SSD; SDHC | 80GB hard disk | 60GB hard disk |
| Maximum bit rate | n/a | 16Mbps | 24Mbps |
| Manual shutter speed and iris | Yes | No | Yes |
| Accessory shoe | No | No | Yes |
| Mic/headphone jacks | No | No | Yes |
| Audio | 2 channels | 5.1 channels | 2 channels |
| Body dimensions (WHD, inches) | 2.5 x 2.4 x 5.1 | 2.8 x 2.8 x 5.1 | 2.9 x 2.5 x 5.4 |
| Operating weight (ounces) | 14 | 14.5 | 17.6 |
| Mfr. Price | $899.99/$729.99/ $649.99/$579.99 | $749.99 | $899.99 |
Compared with many of its competitors, especially the higher priced ones that go head-to-head with the H106, the performance doesn't stand up very well. The autofocus especially seems slow, and has more trouble than usual finding and locking on the correct subject. I ended up having to use the TouchPoint focus more frequently than normal, and between the occasionally nonresponsive touch screen and the subsequent slow focus--even after being told where to look--I missed several shots. The optical stabilizer works pretty well out to the end of the zoom range, though.
While the video quality isn't bad, it lacks the sharpness and color saturation we expect from HD models. Edges are noticeably fuzzy, especially when viewed on a large-screen TV. Even in good light there's some color noise in the video, and low-light video looks perceptibly noisy and overprocessed. In normal daylight, the white balance is overly cool and there's some clipping in the highlights. Still photos just look smeary and overprocessed.
There's not much to recommend in Samsung's current HMX series--the H106, the H105, the H104, and the H100--over similarly priced competitors. They don't stand out in any particular aspect, and weak, though not terrible, performance and video quality may be turnoffs for many people. Before committing to one, check out our list of top HD camcorders.
User reviews
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Unit started to give problems after 4 only four days
by davbargolf on July 20, 2009
Pros: It's looks, it's ease of use and the functionality are great.
Cons: The camera as not undergone enough testing prior to release. If it had it would not have failed so quickly and all of my memories of our holiday would not be un recoverable!
Summary: The lack of support! The early failure! the fact that if a problem does occur all data is lost due to the way it is constructed. The menu system is ...
Summary: The lack of support! The early failure! the fact that if a problem does occur all data is lost due to the way it is constructed. The menu system is also more complex than it needs to be. Following the manual to connect to a computer brings up a system does not recognise device message, hence backing up for storage or editing is difficult, transfering to SDHC (class 6) is ok but then trying to find a device to read the card is again difficult, This is a camera to avoid intill they get the bugs out!!!
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Samsung
- Part number: HMX-H105BN/XAA
- Description: HMX-H100 series comes with the wide 2.7-inch touch screen LCD, and an optical image stabilizer, you'll easily capture every precious moment in breathtaking Full HD detail. The powerful SSD used by Samsung camcorders is smaller and lighter than a conventional 1.8" HDD. Weighing light, the SSD enables the H100 series camcorders to be small, light, and super strong. The Samsung H100 series uses an exclusive controller chipset which enables them to be ready to shoot in less than a second, ensuring that you never miss an opportunity to make a memory that lasts a lifetime. The Samsung H100 series are camcorders you can trust in even the most extreme environment. Because the SSD has no moving parts, it is more solid than HDD, proving resistant to shocks, knocks, and even drops. Whether you want your camcorder to work in an Arizona desert or at the top of Everest, the Samsung H100 series won't let you down. Tested in extreme conditions against several leading HDD camcorders, the H100 series continued to record reliably long after the others had died. There's no finer viewing than Full HD images on a Full HD screen. Full HD images achieve superior clarity and depth of detail, by shooting in Full HD, the Samsung H100 series matches the resolution of Full HD TV, giving you memories that appears as exquisitely detailed as the day they were made.
General
- Product Type Camcorder - 1080i
- Enclosure Color Black
- Digital Zoom 100 x
- Optical Sensor Size 1/4.5"
- Optical Sensor Type CMOS
- Min Illumination 3 lux
- Analog Video Format NTSC
- Digital Video Format H.264
- Image Stabilizer Optical
- Min Shutter Speed 1/12 sec
- Max Shutter Speed 1/10000 sec
- Shooting Modes Digital photo mode
- White Balance Custom, Presets, Automatic
- White Balance Presets Cloudy, Daylight, Fluorescent, Tungsten light
- Camera Flash Built-in flash
- Widescreen Video Capture Yes
Main Features
- Camcorder Sensor Resolution 2.2 megapixels
- Camcorder Interpolated Still Resolution 4.7 megapixels
- Color Support Color
- Still Image Format JPEG
- Remote Control Remote control - Infrared
- TV Tuner None
Memory / Storage
- Flash Memory 32 GB Flash - Integrated (soldered memory - 32 GB )
- Supported Flash Memory SD Memory Card
- Image Storage JPEG 2880 x 2160, JPEG 1920 x 1080
- Media Type Flash card
Lens System
- Type Zoom lens - 3.3 mm - 33 mm - F/1.8-2.5
- Focal Length 3.3 mm - 33 mm
- Lens Aperture F/1.8-2.5
- Optical Zoom 10 x
- Lens system type Zoom lens
- Min focal length 3.3 mm
- Lens Manufacturer Schneider-Kreuznach
- Max focal length 33 mm
- Features Built-in lens shield
- Filter Size 37 mm
- Focus Adjustment Manual, Automatic
- Zoom Adjustment Motorized drive
Additional Features
- Digital Still Camera Function Yes
- Additional Features DPOF support, Direct print, Built-in speaker, PictBridge support, Touch-screen control, Backlight compensation
- Remote control Remote control - Infrared
- Included Accessories Hand grip
Viewfinder
- Viewfinder Type None
Display
- Type LCD display - TFT active matrix - 2.7 in - Color
Digital Player (Recorder)
- Type None
Microphone
- Type Microphone - Built-in
- Microphone Features Wind noise reduction
Connections
- Connector Type 1 x Composite video/audio output, 1 x USB, 1 x Component video output, 1 x HDMI output
- Expansion Slot(s) 1 x SD Memory Card
Audio Input
- Audio input type Microphone
- Microphone type Built-in
- Microphone Operation Mode Stereo
- Microphone Technology Electret condenser
System Requirements for PC Connection
- Operating System Support MS Windows XP, MS Windows 2000, MS Windows Vista
- Peripheral Devices USB port, CD-ROM drive
Miscellaneous
- Cables Included A/V cable, USB cable
Power
- Power Device Power adapter - External
Viewfinder / Display
- Display Form Factor Rotating
- Display Format 230,000 pixels
Physical Characteristics
- Width 2.3 in
- Depth 5.1 in
- Height 2.4 in
- Weight 13.4 oz
Product series
Manufacturer info
- Samsung
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Samsung products on Shopper.com
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- Website: http://www.samsungusa.com/
- Address:
105 Challenger Road, Ridgefield Park, NJ 07660 - Phone: 1-800-726-7864
- Fax: 1-973-601-6001











