Kodak Playsport Zx3

Low Light Sensitivity (10.23)

The Kodak Playsport did an exceptional job in our low light sensitivity test as the camcorder required just 5 lux of light to hit 50 IRE on our waveform monitor. This is more than half the amount of light the Sony Bloggie Touch needed. (More on how we test low light sensitivity.)

Required Illumination *

* the lower the lux required, the better the performance

Keep in mind that part of the reason ultracompact camcorders do so well on this test is because the models usually implement slow shutter speeds in low light situations and they have wide fixed apertures. While most of these camcorders did quite well in this test, they did run into other problems in low light such as blurred images, discolouration, and artefacting.

Low Light Colour (8.01)

The color accuracy measured on the Kodak Playsport in our low light test was quite good, and the camcorder did a whole lot better in here than it did in our bright light color testing. The Playsport managed a color accuracy of 4.44 with a saturation level of 65.72%, both of which stand up decently to the competition. (More on how we test low light color.)

Auto Low Light Colour Performance
Colour Test Chart (above), Colour Error Map (right)
The Kodak Playsport produced a colour error of 4.44 and a saturation level of 65.72% in our low light color testing. (The map on the right is a diagram of the color error. The length and direction of each line indicates how the camcorder processed each particular color.)

The main reason for the Playsport's success in this test was due to the camcorder's ability to properly white balance the video image we recorded during our low light testing. It seems the Playsport—as with many ultracompact camcorders—had far less trouble working with the LED lights we use in our low light testing than the halogen bulbs we make use of in our bright light test. Still, despite the Playsport's good performance, we got slightly better results from some competition. The Kodak Zx1, for example, managed a colour error  of 3.21 and a saturation level of 97.67% in this test and it had a brighter image as well. The other two camcorders, the Picsio GC-WP10, and the Sony Bloggie Touch had less accurate colours, but a better saturation and brighter images. 

Low Light Comparison
Kodak Playsport	Kodak Zx1
Picsio GC-WP10	Sony Bloggie Touch

Low Light Colour Score Comparison		Compare the Kodak Playsport to the Kodak Zx1
		Compare the Kodak Playsport to the Picsio GC-WP10
		Compare the Kodak Playsport to the Sony Bloggie Touch

Low Light Noise (11.29)

The Playsport Zx3 continued its strong low light performance with some very good noise levels in this test. The camcorder registered 0.825% noise in our low light testing, which is only about 0.3% more noise than we measured in our bright light test with the camcorder.  (More on how we test low light noise.)

Noise at 60 lux Auto
Kodak Playsport 100% Crop	Kodak Zx1 100% Crop	Picsio GC-WP10 100% Crop	Sony Bloggie Touch 100% Crop

We're not saying the Playsport's low light image looked perfect, but take a peek at the comparison images above and judge for yourself. Notice how much cleaner the Kodak Playsport's cropped image looks compared to the Kodak Zx1. Both the Sony Bloggie Touch and the Picsio GC-WP10 have cleaner pictures, although the Bloggie produced a sharp image, while the GC-WP10 has a bright image without much sharpness or detail. The Playsport still has some discolouration and blur, but overall its image looks quite good.

Low Light Noise Score Comparison		Compare the Kodak Playsport to the Kodak Zx1
		Compare the Kodak Playsport to the Picsio GC-WP10
		Compare the Kodak Playsport to the Sony Bloggie Touch