Zoom Q3 Video Recorder Gets Its Stereo On

Zoom is looking to one-up its H4n handheld recorder with the Q3 Handy Video Recorder, which captures VGA video and high-quality stereo sound.

Audio gear maker Zoom (owned by Samson Technologies) has long been known for its high quality portable audio gear, favored by everyone from journalists to podcasters to audio professionals for field recordings, interviews, and other on-the-go work. Now the company is looking to improve on its well-received H4n Handy Recorder with the Q3 Handy Video Recorder, which puts professional-quality stereo audio recording in a compact gizmo that can also capture VGA video—and the whole thing runs off AA batteries and stores data to SD/SDHC media.

“Portable camcorders are very popular today, however, one significant feature that’s been missing is professional audio quality,” said Samson president Scott Goodman, in a statement. “With our outstanding audio technology and studio-quality microphones onboard, the Q3 is the best sounding video camcorder you’ve ever heard.”

The Q3 features integrated stereo condenser mics in an X/Y configuration, similar to Zoom’s H4n recorder—and the Q3 cam record at up to 48 KHz/24-bit audio, providing lots of digital headroom for editing and post-processing. The Q3 can also record VGA-resolution video in MPEG-4 SP format at 30 fps—although, as a camcorder the fixed focus lens and low resolution might limit usability, it should be more than good enough for the YouTube generation. The unit also features HTSC/PAL output, USB 2.0 connectivity (with a built-in cable), an integrated speaker, a 320 by 240 2.4-inch LCD display, and a tripod mount.

The Zoom Q2 Handy Video Recorder carries a suggested price of $249.