First of all let me clear that I purchased this camera only because of its price (below $[price]) and I am going to use it only for some fun. If you are considering a camera for any serious work think twice. And if you are willing to spend $[price] +, you will be better off with other brands.
Now let me share my experiences of my VL Z1U with you. I own this since last 2 weeks and I am extremely happy with this purchase. Camera is super compact and its swivel grip is just brilliant. One remarkable feature to notice is, its super sharp LCD, no other camera can match it. Picture quality (movie) is amazing, very rich and vivid colors. Zoom is effortless (but stay clear from the so called Digital Zoom). Digital Image Stabilization works. For casual use (outdoor / brightly lit indoor shooting for family and kid or travel) this is very good pick (remember the price thing I mentioned earlier!)
However everything is not that good. This camera is good only for outdoor and bright light conditions. Indoor shooting with low light is just useless. No Infrared (0 Lux) shooting available. Still picture quality is poor and it is better not to use it. And this is true in case of many other Camcorders, better equip yourself with a decent Digital Camera and use this camcorder only for movie purpose; you can't have both things in one. The menu system is awkward and difficult to use. But soon you get used to it. Battery life could be a problem, as it last only for an hour or so and you need to keep a spare battery. No big size battery available. Battery charges in camera only (a stand alone, external charger (and replacement battery) is available on ebay)
Overall it is a good camera, provide you get it under $[price].
Hope this helps, have a great day.