Manufacturer: Geeks.com
Product Name: Jazz Elite HDV-188 5MP HD Video Camera w/3" Screen
Review Date: 09/17/08
Author:
It seems everyone has a video camera, a still camera and a portable media player, sometimes tow or more of all of the above, wouldn’t it be nice to have a decent, inexpensive product that that does it all for you?
Today for review I’ve got the Jazz Elite HD Video camera and not only does it film videos in HD, but it’s also a fully featured multimedia player as well so you can take videos, take stills, listen to music and even watch movies on it. In my time with it I’ve used it quite a bit, I’ve found it’s easy to use, takes good videos and it has a great battery life. Did I mention it’s inexpensive? So read on to check out the Jazz Elite HD Video camera from Geeks.com…
The Jazz Elite comes packaged in a sealed plastic clamshell style package that of course you must cut open to access the contents. You can see the camera plainly through the front, and there are specs and features listed on both front and back. (I didn’t include a picture of the back as there was a large inventory label obscuring the view).
Once you get the package open, you’ll find loads of stuff in there including the camera itself, battery, software/driver disc, user manual, HDMI cable, composite AV cable, power adapter, carrying case, wrist strap and even a set of headphones.
The Jazz Elite camera is actually fairly small, about 4 inches by 1 inch by 2 inches in dimensions. On the front side you can see the Jazz and HDMI logos, above that is the speaker.
On the back, or bottom is the battery cover and a small slider switch for changing to Macro from landscape or long distance.
The back of the camera is where you’ll find all of the function buttons needed to do most of the operations with the camera, and the USB and TV out connections as well. Most of the buttons have two functions depending on what mode you are in.
On the top of the camera you’ll find the microphone and power button, but the camera does also turn on and off when you open the display. On the front of course you’ll find the lens, below that is a little white box which is actually an LED that acts as a flash or assist light, and all the way down is the access for the HDMI port. On the bottom is just a hole for a tripod.
The screen can be placed in several positions depending on how you want to us the Jazz Elite, it can also rotate all the way around so you can film yourself.
You can use a standard SD card to expand the memory, it gets inserted on the bottom under the battery cover so you’ve got to remove the cover to access the memory card. Kind of a pain, but you can also use the included cable to transfer the contents of the camera if need be.
Specifications:
Jazz Elite HDV-188 5MP HD Video Camera w/3" Screen
Part #: HDV188-BP
Warranty: 1 Year
Manufacturer: Jazz Products LLC
MFG Part #: HDV188
Your Price: $147.50
Capture memories with this Jazz Elite HDV-188 5 Megapixel high-definition Video Camera. The Jazz Elite HDV-188 is a Digital Camera, Video Recorder, Voice Recorder, PC Camera, Mass Storage, MP3 Player, and PMP in one device.
The HDV-188 features a 3-inch TFT LCD with 8x digital zoom and HDMI, NTSC/PAL AV Out. Other features include a USB 2.0 interface, 64 MB internal memory, and an SD/SDHC memory card slot for adding up to 8 GB. Order today!
Features/Specifications:
Jazz Elite HDV-188 5 MP HD Video Camera with 3-inch Screen
General Features:
* Color: Black
* Image Sensor: 5 Megapixel CMOS sensor
* Maximum Resolution: 11 Megapixel interpolated
* Internal Memory: 64 MB
* External Memory: SD/SDHC card slot up to 8 GB
* File Formats: JPEG/AVI (H.264)/WAV/MP3
* Display Screen: 3.0-inch TFT LCD
* Digital Zoom: 8x
* Interface: USB 2.0
* AV Out: HDMI, NTSC/PAL
* Motion Detection
* Night Mode
* Movie Stabilization
* Power Source: NP60 Li-ion battery
Modes:
* Digital Still Camera
* Video Record
* Voice Record
* PC Camera
* Mass Storage
* MP3 Player
* PMP
Video Resolution:
* HD: 1280 x 720 @ 30 fps
* D1: 720 x 480 @ 30 fps
* VGA: 640 x 480 @ 30 fps
* QVGA: 320 x 240 @ 30 fps
* Dimensions:
* 4.1 x 1 x 2.5-inches (H x W x D, approximate)
These are the basics specs listed, you can read all of the specs on the Geeks.com site HERE if you wish.
Using the Jazz Elite is very easy and actually fun, the instructions are easy to follow.
When you’re using the camera there’s few things on screen to let you know the status. In the top left corner is the amount of pictures you can take, the top right corner has the time to record video and the resolution. The right side has a sliding bar that tells you the focus or zoom, under that is the battery indicator, memory card indicator and whether you are in macro more of not.
Pushing the slider button in opens up the menu, I’m not going to list all of the options as there are quite a few of them, you can click the pictures to see them.
Switching to the media player mode turns the Jazz Elite into a portable media player that can play music and movies, or look at pictures and listen to notes.
Included with the camera is Arcsoft Media Impressions and Media Convertor, two very useful programs for manipulating videos and pictures and converting video to other formats easily.
Back to using the camera, the still pictures are ok, it’s not a high end camera but for what it is they look very good. The videos are a bit grainy but still decent for such a low priced camera that is much more than that.
I’m not including videos in this review for you, but I do have 10 videos that I shot using the Jazz Elite over on the TestFreaks Viddler account. You can check them out at your leisure HERE. They all were shot in either 1280×720 or 720×280 resolutions. The HD makes it more of a wide screen with black lines on top and bottom, so I don’t prefer that so most were shot in the 720 resolution or D1 on the camera.
I did find one small design flaw, the flash or assist light is in a bad place really, every time I wrapped my fingers around the a camera my index finger covered it up. I had to keep reminding myself not to do it, but after using it several times I became accustomed as to how I had to hold the camera correctly.
Also, I don’t really care for having the SD card located under the battery cover, using the cable is fine, but you get a faster transfer rate with a card reader so I prefer to transfer them directly from the card, and having to remove the cover is a hassle. Other people might not care, but I’m taking a lot of videos, and to me it’s a pain…
The battery life of the Jazz Elite is very good, I charged it once when I got it and haven’t charged it yet, I’ve shot at least an hours worth of video for reviews and quite a bit more just playing around.
The screen for watching movies is decent enough, of course it’s only 3", but movies look pretty good on it overall. It makes a nice little media player really.
Conclusion:
The Jazz Elite seems to be one of the nicer and feature packed Digital Camcorders out there on the market today.
The Jazz Elite is very easy to use and honestly it’s a lot of fun, I enjoy using it and will be using it for some time to come. I plan on using this camera for all of our reviews so it’s going to be getting quite a workout, and it already has really.
The battery life is great, I’ve shot quite a bit of footage, at least an hours worth and the battery indicator has just finally dropped down by one.
The Jazz Elite is inexpensive considering everything that it can do besides record videos and take pictures, you can have a nice little portable media player that just happen to take movies and pictures!
Pros:
-Very good battery life
-Easy to use
-Decent quality movies
-Feels well made
-Good sounding as PMP
-Inexpensive
-Lots of extras included
Cons:
-Bad placing of flash/light assist
-Must remove cover to access memory card
Grades:
Overall: 
Design: 
Performance: 
Tags: camera, elite, geeks, hd, hidef, jazz, video
5/10 - 2008 at 23:15
i am in need of a owners manual for my jazz hdv 188 and am having no luck finding help,could you please help me many thanks kim
6/10 - 2008 at 13:05
manual in PDF is on way to you now..
7/10 - 2008 at 0:30
HI,, we have lost our charger for our jazz elite,, can anyone help me please.. its my nine year old daughters and she just started using it and it wont charge with any other charger…thanks.. marion
7/10 - 2008 at 19:33
I bought my Jazz HDV188 used and I need an owners manual and of course like Kim I can’t find an address or phone number….can you help me out??
7/10 - 2008 at 22:31
Sent manual to both of you..
12/10 - 2008 at 18:00
i have a jazz camera, worked great for about 2 weeks, now i can’t take a picture with it, it will take video. but not pictures. i turn it on ,go to take picture, hit the button, it go’s off. don’t understand why it takes video, but not pictures. and i didn’t get a warentty. bad for me. if you could tell me what i am doing wrong. it would be great. thanks
12/10 - 2008 at 18:01
yea, i have owner’s manual, but it don’t say anything about, this problem.
13/10 - 2008 at 14:05
Hi i have grandkids who lost my operating instructions and set-up disk for my recorder.What can you do to help a old man to get replacements for these items.
13/10 - 2008 at 22:29
Bought my jazz used and the oweners manual is not here with it, can I download a copy or order one from somewhere?? Would be greatly appreciated, anyone. Thank you. Lisa
14/10 - 2008 at 16:54
Hey, anyone who needs the guide, just email me at kbrozio @ gmail.com remove the spaces from the email address of course
15/10 - 2008 at 19:01
hiya i have just bought one what type sd card do i need to get for it and how long will the memory last. im having a party and my party will be at least 6 hours long - how much memory will i need for this?
16/10 - 2008 at 17:44
I need disk to upload cam into my computer also, need another port cable how do i get these?
16/10 - 2008 at 17:47
please email me at sheltonrocklin@yahoo.com and tell me how i can receive the disk and a port cable for the jazz hd188.
16/10 - 2008 at 23:57
HI, has anyone found a lens cap that fits over the lens on this camera. It would be much more convenient to just put a cap on the lens then to carry it around in the bulky case. Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks, AJ.
1/11 - 2008 at 12:46
Where can I find a replacement battery for the HDV178 ?
1/11 - 2008 at 12:55
I lost the owners manual can someone please help Im trying to charge it threw the usb and dose not seem to be charging any suggestion appreciated
3/11 - 2008 at 4:14
to all wanting more info on Jazz 188, cable/ CD, user guide etc etc…call this number:Please call Jazz Products @ 732-572-7050
good luck - love the 188 !!
3/11 - 2008 at 5:11
Hi ,I have Jazz HDV-178, I need manual in PDF,thankx
6/11 - 2008 at 4:49
I have not been able to download music on my jazz because I have no cd for the program, I guess. Any one have the ability to burn a copy of the cd for me, or some other magical way to help me, I will pay for the cd and be eternally grateful!!. Lisa @zprchk13@yahoo.com
14/11 - 2008 at 2:13
hello i could really use a owners manual and i need info on how to get mp3s on my camera please
18/11 - 2008 at 4:56
why is it when i take pictures, it looks terrible but others look terrific? can you send me the owners manual and where can i get a chager for this? thanks
19/11 - 2008 at 21:52
Can’t get Jazz video to play on any player, Windows Medai, Quicktime. All I get is sound and no video. What codec is this video camera using. It says AVI, but not sure that is true.
20/11 - 2008 at 17:55
Hi Kristofer Brozio:
I visited your Viddler site and checked out quite a few videos, but it is not clear to me which might have been shot with the Jazz. Can you mention the products names/dates?
Thank you,
kwc
20/11 - 2008 at 17:58
It’s like the oldest ones.. LiteOn, Wicked Lasers, and NZXT Avatar and HeadPlay
20/11 - 2008 at 21:01
I would like to see the videos you made with the Jazz camcorder and like someone else asked, which videos were shot with that camera?
THANK YOU
26/11 - 2008 at 19:05
need owners manual mand software cd gessner40@verizon.net
28/11 - 2008 at 17:54
Where can I purchase a replacement battery charger for my HDV188?
Thank you.
3/12 - 2008 at 18:08
Hi - does this camera (and the Jazz 720 that sells for $99 work with Mac computers? And by works I mean you plug it in, it recognizes it and immediately does what it’s supposed to do.
I’m trying to decide which pocketsized camera to buy; I want simple and small!
thanks, Laurie
4/12 - 2008 at 18:43
Hi, does anybody know the exact weigh of this camera? i know the 178 is just about 6 oz but i can not find the exact weigh anywhere. i am into rc helicopters and planes and this small camera would do the job but i need to make sure it is light enough to have the remote control plane or helicopter lift it with no issues, thanks.
6/12 - 2008 at 6:38
Just a quick question…my pictures, both stills and video come out with a blueish color when I do shots of snowy landscapes. This only happens when I shoot snow scenes…the camera works fine otherwise. I know a little about photography.. maybe the snow scenes are ‘tricking’ the sensors?…is there a different setting I could use for this? Other than that this the HDV 178 works like a charm.
7/12 - 2008 at 3:49
I also am need of a owners manual. Bought my Jazz HDV188 used. Could you email me a copy??
10/12 - 2008 at 1:25
I bought mine just a week ago but it only came the a basic guide…is there anyway to get a full manual??
Thanks
11/12 - 2008 at 18:37
I also need a copy of the owners manual for the Jazz HDV188. Thanks
13/12 - 2008 at 15:57
hi, here’s a link to get the manual. Just copy and paste in you’re adresse bar browser
http://qcjnimages.googlepages.com/manuale.pdf
I’M on linux Ubuntu, i didn’t install the h264 codec, but it works anyway. Do you think that can affect on the quality ? or do i have it and don’t know ? And does HD format only works on a hd tv, cause it’s pretty bad on the computer ? And as for the mp3, does it take a specific format, or can i have a permission problem, cause there are some mp3 file that the jazz didn’T see, althought it was there ?
Thanks !
QCJN
15/12 - 2008 at 0:09
I have the camera and can’t figure out how to download on to pc, I plug it into the usb port and into the camera but it still doesn’t work. I do not have the software to download or a owner’s manuel SOMEONE HELP ME PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!
16/12 - 2008 at 16:30
WTF…when i play my videos my player says they are many hours long yet they are only a fey minutes….?
19/12 - 2008 at 5:22
I need the manual and driver can you please help me. There are pages that say you can charge it using the usb cable how do i get it to work See we had i fire and the cam was in the car every thing else was destroyed please help thanx and merry christmas
23/12 - 2008 at 0:07
Do you know what you need to do to record sound with the video? I was trying it the first time and noted there was no sound? Seems a pain if you have to do extra steps to get sound instead of it recording both automatically. The manual isn’t overly helpful.
Thanks.
PJ
23/12 - 2008 at 19:14
need software cant play back video on my laptop (vista) just sound please
25/12 - 2008 at 16:57
Hello, I just received this camera for X-Mas, it was used but in great condition. However it did not come with anything other then the HDMI cable and video cable. anyone know where I can download the software / drivers / ect. Thanks RJ in Nevada
25/12 - 2008 at 17:00
please help i need an owners manual for my camcorder jazz hdv 188
26/12 - 2008 at 0:00
i JUST GOT THE jAZZHDV178 AND it’s Christmas day and my laptop has no cdrom drive. can someone please help me out with pointing me in the right direction to get this ever ellusive driver? I’ve been at it for 6 hours now. Thanks in advance for any help given…
26/12 - 2008 at 13:52
Mine didn’t come with a CD for the drivers to make it work as a webcam on my pc, does anybody or can anybody please make a link for the drivers to make the webcam work? I have the Jazz HD 178 Elite model.. Thanks in advance.
26/12 - 2008 at 14:25
I found the drivers that also works with Vista, this is to make your Jazz HD elite 178 work as a webcam, it also works for XP. Took me a while to find it but sharing my find for the rest.
http://rapidshare.com/files/176942619/JazzHDElite178WebCamDrivers.rar
26/12 - 2008 at 15:18
I uploaded the webcam drivers @ http://rapidshare.com/files/176942619/JazzHDElite178WebCamDrivers.rar
26/12 - 2008 at 17:22
Got the JazzHDV188 camera recently sent over from America & am having problems with it! Cannot get any sound playback with video can you help? Cannot really take it back to Walmart for a repacement as I live in Scotland!!
26/12 - 2008 at 20:40
When you do the playback in the video camera itself do you have sounds? Or does this just only happen when you play it back in your computer? If its only doing it in your computer then its just only a codec problem that you just have to download. If the playback inside the camera has no sound then go to settings and turn on the sound option.
26/12 - 2008 at 21:03
As Bruce asked, how can you get this to record video and sound at the same time?
Thanks.
27/12 - 2008 at 3:28
Hi. I bought the Jazz HDV188 camera about 6 weeks ago. Due to an unforeseen situation, I have misplaced the charger for the camera. Will the usb cable charge the camera? The battery is so dead that the camera will not even turn on even with the usb cable plugged in.
I bought the extended warranty, but due to some flooding in our home, have also misplaced that paperwork as well. Does anyone have contact info for Jazz products?
Also, can I purchase another charger separately?
Thanks for any and all help anyone give me.
28/12 - 2008 at 3:44
FYI,
Best Buy sells a re-branded Jazz 178 & 188 under their Insignia brand. They have the manuals listed on the Insignia Support site @ http://www.insignia-products.com/c-52-digital-camcorders.aspx
1/01 - 2009 at 2:21
My camera broke easily… The part that flips out is really delicate and it broke so i went and bought a Kodak 716 camera.. You all should go buy this instead!
2/01 - 2009 at 13:53
Hi, got a Jazz for Christmas and am having trouble zooming in/out when recording. I am pretty sure I did when I was just playing around with it in the beginning, but don’t know if I changed a setting somehow and need to change back so that I can zoom when recording, please help?
3/01 - 2009 at 5:36
I’m using a Mac and am having trouble using the AVI files from the camera. There’s sound but the video is black. I want to use Imovie to edit, does anyone have any ideas what I need to do? Thanks in advance.
5/01 - 2009 at 1:28
Can I get rid off sound when opening screen? For weddings in church etc it’s annoying.