Pocket camcorders made such a big splash at last year’s CES show, it created a rather significant consumer niche made up of easy-to-use, compact, affordable cameras for recording digital clips that can easily be uploaded online. Quick and easy. Sony is looking to cash in on that trend by coming out with the Bloggie, a new line of pocket camcorders that target the internet generation (yes, it’s designed to cater to the millions of twits, book-faces and Tube-yousers. What can you expect from something called the “Bloggie?”).

Two pocket camcorders fall under the Bloggie line; the CM5, which is built with a more conventional pistol-type camcorder body with an LCD display that swings out to the side, and the candybar phone-shaped PM5. Both models essentially carry the same specs and functions, with the ability to shoot HD (1080p) MP4 videos and 5 megapixel stills, plus the usual in-cam tech that includes face detection and Sony’s SteadyShot shake reduction—just enough tech to allow you to pull it out of a bag, shoot a short clip of a dog chasing a jogger down the street, and uploading it to the internet. Any more would bring the price up, putting it out of its target market’s price range.

Priced at $200, the CM5 comes with a little more features, coming with a 20x digital/ 5x optical zoom lens and a slightly larger 2.5-inch LCD screen that twists and pivots around for multiple angles (including self-portraits from an arm’s length: a Facebook staple). The PM5 is cheaper at $170, but is limited to a 4x digital zoom, and a fixed focus lens. It does make up for it with a more pocket-friendly body though, with a lens that can swing 270 degrees to the front or back, making it good enough to take self-portraits.

Designed for instant recording and quick uploads, both models come with one-touch recording functions and a swing-out USB interface so you don’t have to pack a separate cable to charge or transfer files. Both models also store recorded photos and videos on Memory Sticks (Duo, PRO Duo, PRO-HG Duo) and SD/SDHC media cards.

The tech’s all there, and the simplified designs certainly serve the purpose. But here’s our single problem with the Bloggie cams: Let’s say you’re the typical guy—the average late-20’s-to-early-30’s sports-watching, PS3-playing, beer-drinking dude who spends late nights parked in front of an HDTV, wondering if he should place an order for a knife that can cut through a shoe (the average guy who’ll also insist that he buys Playboy for the articles). Would you buy something called the “Bloggie”? Think about it.

We thought about it, and yes, the Bloggie was created for a certain kind of user. So here’s a checklist to see if you qualify.

You need a Bloggie if…

…you own an active account on Twitter, MySpace, and Facebook

…said accounts have at least two status updates per day

…you feel the need to “tweet” something when something remotely interesting happens. But we’re just being polite. An update that describes how hungry or sleepy you are, or how much you really want [insert consumer product here] is NOT interesting. Here’s a noteworthy tweet: “OMG! A Tyrannosaurus strolled into our backyard and ate our dog! RIP Sparky.”

…whenever you see something funny or interesting, you think “man, that was a perfect YouTube moment right there. I wish I caught it on video.”

…New haircut or clothes? A photo of you with the new look will be on your Facebook profile within 24 hours.

…you have a pre-set “picture-face,” which means we can find multiple photos of you online with the exact same expression/smile, with the exact same facial angle and head-tilt. Basically, we can cut out your face off one photo, slap it over another photo of you and no one would know the difference. Not even you. Or your mother.

…whenever you snap a photo, you have every intention of putting it on your blog. Photos of an ice cream sundae, a taxi ride with a friend, at Starbucks with a B-list celebrity, your dog licking its nuts, and “you at your new office desk.”

…you and your friends learn about big news from your social network feeds. Jacko’s death? You learned it from a friend’s Twitter feed. Earthquake somewhere in your area? You didn’t feel it, but someone uploaded video footage on Facebook. (if this is the case, you might also want to check out Sony’s Dash.) Asteroid hit your town? Chances are, you’re already dead, but your friends will probably announce the event of your passing through multiple tweets (by the way, “killed by asteroid” would be an awesome way to go. Now that’s tweet-worthy.)

…you maintain a YouTube channel and you really don’t want to let your three subscribers down.

…you backtrack to June 2009 and you posted something about Michael Jackson (go on, check your social feeds. see if we’re wrong).

If you said “yes” to any three of these, by all means, get a Bloggie. You’re going to need it, and they had you in mind when they made it.

Tags: Digital Camcorders, Sony

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