In Part 1 of this series I covered three strategies for ultra mobile video editing and decided that the traditional, PC-based solution was the only real choice for today. I also set out some parameters.
The solution comes in three parts.
1 The Camera
2 The PC
3 The Editing Software
The parameters I’ve set for the project are:
- PC and software to cost less than 600 Euros
- PC to be less than 1.5KG with 12 inch screen or less.
- Total camera + PC solution to weigh less than 2KG and cost less than 1000 Euro
- Source video should be 720p
- Video sent to YouTube should be 480p minimum
- Editing solution must include watermarking, overlays, crossfades, and multiple audio tracks.
I have personal requirements for the camera that mean it also needs to be able to take photographs for the site. It should also include self-shooting (front or swivel viewfinder), built-in stereo microphone. 28mm wide-angle capability. Good low-light performance and long zoom range for close-up to press conference zoom-ins. An external mic input and hot-shoe would be an advantage.
It this stage I have two cameras in mind. The Canon SX20IS and the new (currently unavailable) Fujifilm HS20 EXR which is said to have some good, and very helpful, low-light options. It doesn’t have the self-shooting viewfinder though. I’m still looking at other solutions but for this post I want to refine the choice of PC down to a shortlist.
The current shortlist is shown below. Please feel free to propose alternatives.
- 12 inch Intel Atom solution: Asus 1215N (Intel N550 + Ion2 with 16-core CUDA) 1.45KG
- 12 inch AMD Fusion Solution: Asus 1215B (AMD E-350 APU) 1.4KG or HP DM1Z (AMD E-350)
- Intel Core i3 solutions: Lenovo Edge 11 (Intel Core i3 1.5KG) or Acer Travelmate-8172T (Core i3 1.4KG)
- Netbook solutions (*1): Samsung NC210 (N550 dual-core + 6-cells 1.22Kg) or N350 (N550 + 3 cells 1KG) or NF310 (N550 + 6 cells + 1366×768 screen 1.3KG) or ASUS 1015PN (N550+Ion2 1.25KG) or ASUS 1015B (AMD C-50) or Toshiba NB550D (AMD C-50) or Acer Aspire One 522 (with AMD C-50)
13 inch devices will remain out of scope because of size. I have to draw the line somewhere and I feel that 13 inch just goes beyond what is acceptable on a seat-back table, in one hand and in a small bag.
(*1) At this stage it seems fairly clear to me that a dual-core Intel Atom alone isn’t going to be enough on its own to process 720P video which means the pure netbook solutions fall away leaving only the Ion2-enhanced Asus 1215N where CUDA could help push the performance. The E-350 CPU performance isn’t a huge step forward from the N550 but with the 3D and HD decoding support, should help the editing experience and, possibly, a 720p-to-480p conversion stage that allows faster editing. Note that the ION2 in the Acer P1015PN doesn’t have the CUDA core required for enhanced video rendering performance. The AMD C-50 based solutions aren’t as powerful as Intel N550 for general purpose computing but do include video decoding support (not hardware encoding) which could help in a 720p to 480p pre-editing conversion process. Due to this, the NB550D and 1215B stay in the shortlist.
Interestingly, the new Intel Oaktrail platform includes 720p encoding and decoding in hardware. Unfortauntely this won’t help much in the video rendering process where almost everything is done in software. It could help with a 720p to 480p conversion process before editing but the CPU and GPU is then unlikely to be strong enough to support a smooth video editing experience.
Am I considering tablets like the Hanvon B10 and the EeePC Slate E121? No, because being lap-capable is critical and inputting text around a video is a requirement for almost everyone. Adding a USB or Bluetooth keyboard is considered a point-of-failure and would bring the weight up by 200gm.
In summary, we have an entry point of 11.1 inch screen and a minimum weight of 1.3KG. I’m surprised that I can’t find anything in the 1.0-1.2KG range. The only solutions available are all close to 1K Euro which puts them out of scope.
Prices of the items on the shortlist range from €300 to just over €600
Note: Why limit the price? I want to come up with a solution that as many people as possible can consider.
Where do we start?
I will say now that I’m looking for someone that can supply these devices for testing because i’m not about to go out and buy 5 laptops so – Free series sponsorship to any reseller that can help us with this project – but I will put my own funds into the pot and start with the smallest, lightest, cheapest option. Later today I will be heading out to pick up the 299 Euro Acer Aspire One 522 with the AMD Fusion CPU and 720p screen. For that price, it would be stupid not to!
Update: Unboxing and first impressions article is now up.
Stay tuned because I’m likely to do a live session with it if I get it. (Follow @chippy on Twitter for notifications.)
Ultra Mobile Video Editing Part2 – Refining PC Choices http://www.umpcportal.com/?p=23355
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well on the netbook level there might be the hp mini 5103 with a video accelerator card instead of the modem (same machine i mentioned already).
Good summary of the choices we have. I have myself been looking for a netbook/subnotebook with similar performance requirements. i am surprised you did not include any HP with Intel. don’t they have an Optimus or Gpu version of their Mini at all?
Also, another thing you did not talk about was thickness. did you not consider that as a key characteristic. It certainly would be important when thinking about bag where a Samsung Tab must also fit…
Why not the ASUS 1215N? Its got the dual core Atoms and the NVIDIA ION 2 GPU.
Ahem, its the first in the list! No we know who doesn’t read the articles ;-)
You can do “Why not” for weeks without coming to a consensus, he has picked his weapons, now it’s time to hammer out the results.
My concerns lie with the price point and weight restrictions, longevity and durability need to be considered at some point, especially while traveling.
I’m happy to have some suggestions at this point. Its still open although I’ve already started with the first device. I agree with thoughts about longevity and build quality is definitely something ill be thinking about. I doubt there will be one winner bit a range of devices that will suit different pockets and requirements.
Hi Chippy,
for a new camera consider the upcoming Sony HX100V. Here is one person collecting everything about the new Sonys:
http://hx9v.blogspot.com/
And here are the first pics from HX100:
http://www.photographyblog.com/previews/sony_hx100v_photos/
The Sensor in the new Fujis should be the same Sony Exmor Sensor as in the new Sonycams.
I am waiting for the smaller HX9.
And dont forget the new Olympus SZ-30.
All three cameras are using the same sensor, so it will be interesting to see who can make the most out of it.
I have the acer 8371 which is outside your specs (13.3in, 1.4ghz core2 duo culv), but a similar build to the smaller i3 8372T. They are both in the timeline series, so business focused notebooks with great build quality and long battery life.
The 8371 blows away any atom netbook I have tried, and can be found for the same sort of price. It is bigger though at 1.6kg
Will be interesting to see what you make of the 8372.
Giles
I don’t want to sound as an apple troll, believe me I’m not although I start to look as one ;-) because I already commented on the Mac book air, general blogging and objectivity and apple issues in another thread.
However, specifically for video editing I see that one apple option still isn’t considered. Mac book air is rightly dismissed as too expensive, and ARM phones (including iPhone) as not powerfull enough for real editing, plus that this setup brings along a camera that may not have the right quality.
The option not yet weighed, is the option of the iPad in combination with the camera connection kit. This connection kit is an adapter, costs 29 euros, and makes it possible to connect the USB cable of the camera directly to the iPad and then import movies and photos on the iPad. iMovie can open these movies and you can edit the movie on the device. iMovie also supports uploading to YouTube. The only thing of the required editing options I doubt iMovie has, is watermarking. But if you’re happy to drop that requirement and you take an el cheapo iPad1 for this, (although it probably will go much smoother on iPad2) you have a very nice budget solution that shines on portability, if other options are 1.2 kg PCs.
Then there is the text input issue of tablets. iPad touch screen is so good, that it isn’t a problem to write a very long text on it ( at least not for me), so it shouldn’t be a problem at all for most YouTube texts.
And some iPad2 models still stay under the 600 euro limit. ( I’m really looking for an excuse to upgrade my own iPad but cannot justify it, have to wait till iPad 3 before mine is old enough…)
I was thinking about exactly this solution last night after i was on the UK tech talk podcast. I really have to see how the ipad2 performs and I remain open to it as a solution. When the tests start rolling in on th 11th ill take a closer look at the capabilities.
Regards
Chippy
Just discovered that iMovie won’t be compatible with ipad1. Ipad1 probably lacks gpu power. Hmmm… Maybe I will upgrade after all.
i would not recommend imovie for anything clowlse to what chippy describes. I had to do a project with imovie on the desktop and it really lacks all kinds of features that you need beyond trimming an sequencing.
I also doubt that the touch interface will be fun to use repeatedly. Even the desktop interfce is cumbersome for repeated use…
My unboxing video of the Acer Aspire One 522 is now up:
http://www.umpcportal.com/2011/03/acer-aspire-one-522-amd-c-50-netbook-unboxing-overview-first-tests-video-and-report/