Link: http://reviews.digitaltrends.com/review/5767/samsung-hmx-h106-review
Samsung HMX-H106 Review
July 8th, 2009 | by David Elrich
Introduction
Flash memory marches on! Samsung recently introduced a trio of high-def
camcorders using advanced solid state drives (SSDs) rather than hard drives—
or ancient media like tapes and shiny three-inch disks. SSDs read and write
faster than HDDs, are lighter, use less power and have no moving parts making
them just right for capturing video on the fly. Samsung sent us one with a 64GB
drive—the HMX-H106—but the -H105 and -H104 are available with 32GB and
16GB storage, respectively at lower prices. The new AVCHD camcorders are
fairly tricked out and it would be good to see if Samsung should be considered
a key player in the HD Camcorder Game.
Full Review
Features and Design
Compact size and lengthy
recording times are the real
pluses of SSD- and HDD-based
camcorders—and the HMX-H106
has both of these traits in
spades. It has attractive styling
with primarily gray body that’s
easily held in one hand.

Measuring 2.32 inches wide, 2.4 tall and 5.06 deep, it weighs 14.2 ounces
loaded with battery and optional SDHC card. The 64-gig drive holds a
whopping 8.3 hours of Full HD Fine quality AVCHD video—more than for enough
for handling multiple events and occasions.
The front of the HMX-H106 is dominated by the 10x Schneider Krueznach
Varioplan HD lens which starts at a 37mm equivalent, a bit wider than the
typical camcorder which is around 42mm. It’s not the true wide angle we
appreciate so much in still photography but it’ll help for group shots and
landscapes. You’ll also see a built-in lens cover, a flash, remote control sensor
and recording light indicator. Flanking the lens barrel are the left/right portions
of the stereo mic.
The right side has a comfortable
swivel-mount Velcro adjustable
hand strap. It can be locked into
position for traditional straight
ahead, eye-level shooting or you
can move it to a variety of
angles in conjunction with the
adjustable LCD screen. In other
words you can easily shoot
overhead or hold the camcorder
near the ground. It’s a welcome
addition.
The top of the new Samsung has the wide/tele toggle switch and dedicated
photo button nestled in an attractive metallic accent. In front of them is a notch
that acts as a finger or thumb rest, depending on how you’re holding it. There
is no hot shoe for an optional light, unfortunately.
On the left side is a swingout 2.7-inch 16:9 touchscreen LCD rated an O.K.
230K pixels. We say O.K. because although the screen handled direct sunlight
well, it really didn’t have the pop and contrast we like. On the far left bezel is a
Quick Menu button, a W/T zoom adjustment and the record button. We found
the menus—Quick and otherwise--to be nicely designed and coupled with the
touchscreen, drop-dead easy to use. There are a few logos here with SSD the
biggest; we guess Samsung is proud of this breakthrough so we’ll cut them
some slack.
The controls opposite the screen
on the body are the usual:
power, display to eliminate icon
clutter on the screen, OIS
(on/off), flash adjustment and
Easy Q which is Samsung’s
version of no-brainer shooting
like Sony’s Easy Handycam
option. A tiny speaker is here as
well.
The rear has the record and
mode buttons and a compartment for various inputs/outputs including DC-in,
USB, A/V and mini HDMI. The bottom of the Made In China HMX-H106 has a
compartment for the battery and optional SDHC card.

What’s In The Box
The camcorder comes with the basics. You get the body, battery, AC adaptor,
Quick Start Guide, remote, USB and component cables. The bundled CD-ROM
only has the full 147-page manual as a PDF. There is no software because it’s
built into the camcorder like a Flip. Samsung calls it intelli-studio and it’ll handle
basic edit chores. After handling the chores of charging the battery and loading
a card, it was time to started recording videos and taking snapshots.
Full Review - More Testing and Conclusion
Performance and Use
The Samsung HMX-H106 has a
2.2-megapixel CMOS sensor so
it records 1920 x 1080I video at
a maximum bit rate of 16 Mbps,
not the best AVCHD
compression option available
(24) as delivered by Canon, JVC
and Panasonic. Samsung, like
Sony, does some digital hocus-
pocus claiming the 2.2MP chip takes 4.7-megapixel 2880 x 1620 stills when in
reality it’s a native 2.1MP. They’re not fibbing just using interpolation to get
the bigger number since marketing types always like things BIG. We used both
options for stills but kept the camcorder at maximum video quality in all modes.
Before getting into the results lets just state the Solid State Drive really sped up
the video operations of this camcorder. It popped to life quickly, immediately
responded to start/stop controls and the unit barely got warm even during
extended use (something not the case with any HDD).
We started shooting in Easy Q, then iScene (Samsung’s version of intelligent
auto), tried appropriate scene modes then moved to manual which offered a
surprisingly good selection of f/stops and shutter speeds along with white
balance variations and so on.
Since it was a holiday weekend
in small-town America we had
the chance to record a vintage
baseball game (circa 1893), clog
dancers, a horse drawn carriage
and other “quaint” subjects
including smiling faces and
expansive landscapes. Once
done we viewed the material on
a 50-inch HDTV, examined stills
closely on a monitor and made a
number of letter-sized prints.
Overall the video—given enough light—was quite good. Black pants of the old
baseball uniforms were nice and inky, skin tones were accurate as were red
church doors, cloggers’ costumes and overflowing flower pots. You’d be

happy with the results. That said we could see a bit more noise in a cloudy sky
compared to AVCHD cams using 24 Mbps compression instead of the 16 here.
The iScene handled the exposure and focusing required for quick pans around
the baseball diamond including close-ups. Where this camcorder disappointed
was indoors shooting with available light as there was noise galore. To be
honest, we’ve found this to be the case with almost all 2.2MP CMOS sensors.
Another negative was the OIS which did a fairly good job removing the shakes
from handheld videos but Canon and Sony do a better job.
As for the stills what can we say? They were decent but with minimal focus
points, this is no Canon HF S10. Colors were fairly accurate but don’t expect
major enlargements with these files. Surprisingly, the camcorder saved images
fairly slowly, with the iris graphically closing down onscreen.
Conclusion
Samsung is to be congratulated for introducing the first SSD-based
camcorders. They’re another nail in the coffin for tape and disk-based home
video makers as flash memory and HDDs rule. You’ll pay the price being the
first kid on your block with this toy but it’s just a matter of time before prices
drop to more acceptable levels. By way of comparison a 2MP CMOS Sony
HDR-XR200V with 120GB HDD is $999. The HMX-H106 does a good job
capturing videos when there’s enough light with few focusing and exposure
issues. Indoors with low light expect to swim in a sea of digital noise. And the
snapshots are just O.K. Still with introduction of three SSD-based camcorders,
Samsung is officially a player in the HD camcorder sweepstakes.
Pros:
• Ample onboard storage (64GB)
• One of the first SSD HD camcorders
• Quality HD video with enough light
• Easy to use, nicely done menus
• Comfortable, adjustable strap
Cons:
• Expensive
• Higher bit rate, please
• Noise in low light
• Stills are passable, no more
• LCD should be better
• No hot shoe