Aiptek IS-DV2 Flash Media Camcorder

Well, considering this product runs about $100, you're not getting a bad piece of equipment. First, the camera weighs less than half a pound. It fits easily in your had with a length of 4 inches. For as compact as it is, point and shoot is as simple as pressing the button on the top. A 2 inch screen flips out to act as your view-finder. The screen can be rotated for your convenience to take shots at varying angles. It can even be rotated to fit on the side of the camera for taking shots around corners.

Well, dimensions isn't what it's all about. It's all about the specs. And that's one of the impressive points. This camera can shoot up to 5 mega pixel stills. Despite this impressive notion, the sensor is only rated for 3 mega pixels, so your larger (5 mega pixel) shots look only slightly better than the 3 mega pixel shots. Even so, you can shoot video at 320x240 or 640x480. With the 320x240 resolution, you gain longer film, but loose that near DVD quality. The 640x480 is close enough to the DVD standard of 720x480, so making home movies for DVD is a cinch. At a 30 fps (frames per second) recording speed, playback of your videos is silky smooth.

The digital zoom enables you to zoom in 4 times closer to what you see. Handy for pulling the action toward you. For still photos, you can use one of 4 light settings or allow the camera to automatically adjust itself to the light present. There are 3 modes of still imaging effects. You can shoot in normal (color), black & white, or with an old fashion camera filter. The old fashion camera (classic) is more for nostalgic shots, but really doesn't serve much beyond artistic value.

Do, how well does this work? The Aiptek IS-DV is one of the best cameras I've seen for the price. The ability to take shots on the move is fantastic. Still or moving targets don't matter. Just point and click. Pretty much all shots will come out clear (unless you are using your flash). If you are shooting with your flash, action shots become more difficult to capture and are usually blurred. While recording, you can pan around or point in whichever direction you want. The IS-DV will capture with good quality. As for self portraits, just flip the screen around and make sure you have the desired shot lined up. Once click of the shutter, and you have a self portrait. With the addition of the shot stabilization option, you can prevent those jittery moments from ruining a good photo opportunity.

What's more? The Aiptek IS-DV is not only a video recorder/digital camera, but it also is an audio recorder. You can record those moments when you need to make a quick voice note. Dictation is simple. Just set it into dictation mode, then hit the shutter button. You'll start recording instantly. Hit the shutter button to stop your dictation. To add even more audio fun to the IS-DV, you can use this device for MP3 playback. As an MP3 player, it performs the basic functions. Just load your favorite songs and you're on the go. The built in speaker will distort when playing any audio, so it's recommended that you use the earplugs that come standard with the IS-DV. Audio clarity will then be limited to the quality of your head phones. The basic earplugs that are package with the IS-DV can produce decent enough sound. Nothing exciting, but not horrible by any means.

Well, to sweeten the deal, the IS-DV comes with 3 major softwares. Ulead Photo Explorer allows you to open photos in a folder a simple right click. This software is great for performing a batch job to adjust multiple photos at once, however requires an insane amount of system memory when adjusting more than 20 photos. The Ulead Photo Express has a somewhat longer splash screen when you open it, but can perform adjustments to multiple images without chewing up a ton of system resources. Finally, the Cyberlink Power Director does a fair job of editing the videos produced by your IS-DV. You can take the native Mpeg 4 (.asf) format and convert it to a DVD ready format, Mpeg 1, or Mpeg 2. These formats are much more useful for distributing your videos on the Internet or through other mediums.

Speaking of Video, the internal 16MB doesn't allow for much recording time or many picture. You could squeak 3 minutes of recording time at the 320x240 resolution. However, if you want the nice 640x480, you're looking at only 30 seconds of recording time. The 16MB of internal memory is 16 photos at the 5 mega pixel resolution or 26 photos at the recommended 3 mega pixel setting. As with more digital cameras, don't expect much out of the box. Instead, this camera supports up to a 1GB SD Memory card. With a 1GB SD card, you'll have 45min of recording time at the 640x480 resolution or over 1,000 still images at 5 mega pixels. So, consider your options well. Personally, I prefer the 1GB stick because anything less, and I could be missing photo opportunities of precious moments with the family. The battery life is fairly good on this product. I've recorded a 45 minute video and still had battery life left. Although, I don't recommend extended us as the battery does warm up quite a bit when recording for 20 minutes or longer.

Sharing your images and videos is the focus of any digital camera. With the IS-DV, you can plug your camera into any television with the composite input. This will allow you to play your images and videos on almost any standard television. You can also use the USB port to upload images from your camera into your PC. You can then post them on your Blog or personal web page.

Well, this may be a great, little device, but it's not without its flaws. When zoomed past 2 times, shots can become blurred if subject to motion. The flash works, but may have a negative effect in some shots. The flash also takes about 5 seconds to charge, if the battery is less than 90%. This is longer than most digital cameras that I've seen. When plugged into a USB port, the IS-DV may occasionally shut off. After about the 4th time this happens while transferring my photos, I find myself annoyed. To combat this, you need to move the peg on the back every once in a while. It's similar to remembering to move your mouse to avoid your screen saver from activating. Also, because the SD Card is loaded through the bottom, mounting the camera on a tripod may cause the SD Card to eject. The IS-DV is so compact, that it seems they ran out of locations to load the SD Card, so it's on the bottom less then a centimeter from the mounting for a tripod.

Other than a few minor inconveniences, the IS-DV is an exceptional device for the price. Not only do you get a digital camera, but also a camcorder and a voice recorder all in one. I love my IS-DV and STRONGLY RECOMMEND this product to others. It's the right price for the most essential functions.