Is That HD In Your Pocket or Are You Just Happy to See Me? [Creative Vado portable HD video recorder]

Sometimes, smaller isn’t better, but we all know that when it comes to electronics, this holds a lot of weight. With everything from cameras to cell phones going Lilliputian little, it’s should be no big surprise to find a pretty wide range of portable video recorders following suit. The problem with most of them seems to be that their small size often comes at the expense of cool features. As always, there are exceptions to every rule and the creative types at Creative Labs have just the thing to fill your pocket with high-definition fun.

The Creative Labs Vado HD video recorder, the big brother to the Vado pocket-cam, is small – 3.9″ x 2.2″ x 0.6″ (100 mm x 55 mm x 16 mm) to be exact. It’s also lightweight, hitting the ring at a featherweight 100 grams with the battery. What this little beauty lacks in mass it more than makes up for in bells and whistles.

• True HD recording with 2X digital zoom and wide-angle lens feature
• 2-hours of recording and playback time
• Built-in editing and transfer software makes editing and posting simple
• The latest H.264 video compression technology provides unprecedented video quality at ultra-efficient file sizes for the best possible viewing experience
• 2-inch anti-glare LCD screen
• Rechargeable Li-ion battery is removable so you can carry a spare
• Nice accessory availability with cases, batteries, and chargers

The Creative Labs Vado HD is a welcome offering amongst a sea of less-than-stellar products. On the flipside, it doesn’t have expandable memory, so you are pretty much stuck to the original 8Gb. It captures video with just the touch of a button and its included HDMI cable (the only portable recorder to offer this) provides true 720p output to any HDTV. Just think of all the things that you can now record in HD. And remember, just because you can record it doesn’t mean you should record it. You can pick up your own Vado HD for $229.99 and make movie history (or embarrass yourself completely).