We have now had the Samsung Q1 Ultra Device for a couple of days and had time to get to grips with them. Several pros and cons have arisen in this time.
Pros
My first impressions are that they are great for activities such as video diaries or capturing a discussion.
The option of either using the front or back camera is extremely useful, especially in combination with the preview screen which allows you to see exactly what it is you are filming. The microphone is sufficient to pick up a conversation.
The size of the device is respectable; whilst still portable the screen is big enough to see what you are doing which out having to squint.
The option of using either the mouse function or the Stylus Pen is also effective as it allows the user to select either option dependant on what they are doing; different functions lend themselves better to the different options.
Cons
When filming, any fast movement makes the footage distorted and blurred. Although the lens focuses quite quickly on a subject, it is much more effective for slow moving or still action.
Upon first use and without a helping hand the devices are not the easiest devices to operate, however once you get used to the functions it is quite straight forward. The mass of buttons of fascia can appear quite confusing and until you learn what each one does it is luck if you can right click or change the screen brightness! So much so, I have created my own ‘Quick Guide’ to hand out to those using the devices!
For anything more than short filming the device is very slow and hard to operate. I would not use it for word processing or web browsing. I found it is best to pull the footage off the device and then edit it using the PC or a laptop.
When our Prince’s Trust Team took the device out to a team building day, the device froze and crashed several times, we suspect this may be due to the cold weather.
I am still yet to connect the device to internet so have not had chance to test the speed of uploading footage straight to a blog or internet site; something which I will be interested in doing.
Conclusion
First impressions are good, despite a couple of drawbacks, the device appear to be perfect for creating video diaries and capturing indoor group activities. Depending on the ease of uploading footage to the web, these may be ideal for what we want to achieve with the Prince’s Trust students.
The next couple of weeks will really test the devices as we start to get more footage and create PodCasts.
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