INK & TONER
Kodak Mini Video Camera Review
 
Editor's Review
Kodak Mini Video Camera by Andrew Hall 10/12/2010 OVERVIEW:
Kodak's Mini Video Camera is an extremely small pocket camera built for durability and portability more than it is for image quality, making it a good choice for users who simply need to capture video and need a device that can take a beating more than they need professional results. The camera offers a very limited feature set as far as its video capture and especially its still image capture capabilities go, but to make up for it, it offers very serious damage resistance. The camera can handle being dropped or submerged in water, which few electronics can, and can even take video underwater if necessary, a feature not offered by many models.
Editor's Pros & Cons
PROS: The camera measures an extremely small 2.4" by 3.5" by .5" and weighs 2.5 ounces, making it compact enough to transport virtually anywhere in anything. Furthermore, given its largely damage-proof design, it can be transported safely without a case or any additional bulk, which few cameras can be.
The camera captures images using a 1/5-type VGA CMOS sensor with an aperture of f/2.4, equivalent to a 35mm camera with a 40mm range. It offers a 3x digital and no optical zoom, a 1.8" display (and no viewfinder, obviously), and 128 MB of internal memory alongside support for MicroSD or MicroSDHC cards up to 16GB in size. Only fixed focus is available, and its range is between 50cm and infinity. White balancing is automatic only.
The camera captures video at a maximum resolution of 640 by 480 at 30 frames per second and a minimum of 320 by 240 at 60 frames per second. Still images can only be captured at 640 by 480, well under what any even low-end point and shoot digicam manufactured in the last ten years captures,
The camera has a monaural microphone and a speaker, as well as a USB 2.0 port (for data transfer and battery charging) and an integrated lithium-polymer battery. The camera's USB port is accessed by swinging out an arm containing the port, then connecting it to an external system, though a standard USB cable can extend this if it proves difficult to use for some reason. A card reader could also sidestep this issue, though it would not be able to access the camera's internal memory for obvious reasons.
Because it's an ultraportable consumer video camera, the Mini Video Camera is built for considerably more abuse than many other devices, offering waterproofness up to ten feet deep and a casing designed to withstand being dropped or hit by accident, making it a good choice for kids or people constantly on the go.
The camera includes a 2GB MICROSD card so that users can begin saving additional material almost immediately, potentially reducing costs and increasing convenience.
The camera includes some limited editing software.
The camera is available in gray and red. CONS: The camera cannot be mounted on a tripod for steady shots, as it includes no tripod mount at all.
The camera's resolution for both video and still images is extremely low, comparable with what cameras were offering in the late 1990s. Though producing a compact package was clearly Kodak's goal, there are several other cameras only slightly larger than this that offer at least HD video recording and similar durability.
The camera's included software is not supported by Mac OS X. Furthermore, the software is stored in the camera's internal memory, occupying space that you may rather allot to additional still images or videos.
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INK/TONER NEEDS:
Accessories for the camera include larger MicroSD cards (up to 16GB in size), additional rechargeable digital camera batteries and external chargers, a floating wrist strap for water use, a resilient camera case, a stretchable bungee neck strap, and a USB cable designed to extend the camera's connector for situations in which it is impractical, tedious or frustrating to connect the camera directly to a USB port (for example, if the only free port is on the back of a monitor or tower). 
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