Nisis DV2 Pocket Digital Video Camera

Gadgeteer Hands On Review by John Styles

February 12, 2003

So you want a digital camera, a digital camcorder, a PC web cam, a voice recorder and a data storage device. So many gadgets but so little money after Christmas. Will say hello to the Nisis Pocket DV2 Digital Video Camera which delivers all these features in a truly pocket size gizmo and for only $140.

Well if you are like me I was very skeptical about this device. We all know the saying " You get what you pay for ", but there is also another saying " All good things come in small packages " and this small package really does deliver what it says on the box.

I ordered my DV2 camera from www.amazon.co.uk along with a extra 128mb compact flash card. It arrived in a couple of days and my first impressions of the packaging where not great, a bit cheap looking. As always I ripped opened the box, threw the instructions on the floor and set about playing with my new toy. This camera really is pocket size, about the size and weight of a standard PC mouse. The camera is a bit plasticky but appears to be fairly sturdy.

After playing with it for about 10mins, you soon realize that it is packed full of simple but useful features. There is a colour LCD screen that can be used as a view finder, a preview screen and also to navigate around the simple program interface. The screen is easily viewable indoors but doesn't show up very well outside in bright light. Taking pictures / video is as simple as pushing one button and the picture / video can be viewed or deleted via the LCD screen. Picture / video quality is not bad considering the camera uses the cheaper CMOS image sensor and certainly is great for capturing those holiday snap images. Picture / video quality does really suffer in bad lighting conditions and seeing as there is no flash pictures taken inside a pub or club are a waste of time. You soon realize that this little camera eats batteries alive and the original batteries it comes with only last for about 45 - 60 mins. You must invest in some rechargeable batteries. The other worth while investment is a compact flash card.

Outdoor picture. Click to see full size image.

Indoor close up picture. Click to see full size image.

Although the built-in memory can store up to 80 pictures at normal resolution it will only store about 2-3 minutes of video footage. With a card you can hope to achieve the following, also loads of space for pictures.

• No card - approx 2-3 mins
• 16MB CF Card - approx 4 mins
• 32MB CF Card - approx 6-9 mins
• 64MB CF Card - approx 20-30 mins
• 128MB CF Card - approx 30-50 mins
• 256MB CF Card - approx 50-70 mins
• 512MB CF Card - approx 80-120 mins

The camera will also capture sound along with the video footage or can be used as a voice recorder for recording memo's etc. Unfortunately recording and play back is of poor quality but it does help to capture the moment. You could also use the camera to transfer any data from PC to PC via the compact flash card.

Other useful features are the included tripod, to help with those shaky hands and A/V leads (to connect to TV/Video) for when you don't want to use your PC to preview your images / movies.

The included software does the job well but a tip to improve video capture when attached to a PC is to use some freeware software from www.virtualdub.org. This allows higher frame rates amongst many other tweaking settings.

 

In conclusion I have found this camera to be more than adequate for my needs. I wanted a pocket size snapper that if I lost or broke it, it wouldn't break the bank and something that didn't need a new mortgage to purchase in the first place. This funky little tool filled this criteria and also came with the fun video capture, sound recorder and data transfer capabilities. This camera may not match up to a $800 camera but then it doesn't cost that much, but for what it does cost it certainly delivers.

Price: About $140.....99 pounds Sterling

Pros: 
Size
Cheap
Features ( Digital Camera, Digital Video, Sound recorder, Data transfer )

Cons: 
Battery Life ( needs a AC adapter )
Photo quality in bad light ( needs a flash )
Sound Quality could do with improving