SiPix StyleCam Blink

Whether it's just bad timing or a consequence of Murphy's Law, it's inevitable that, when that perfect picture presents itself, you don't have a camera handy.

Unless, of course, you happen to be the owner of one of the cheekiest little gadgets on the market at the moment: the StyleCam Blink digital camera.

This dinky device is barely bigger than a matchbox, slips into the pocket of all but the tightest trousers and means you can be ready within seconds to be snap happy. You can even turn it into a mini video camera or perch it on top of your PC for use as a webcam.

The picture quality isn't great at the maximum resolution of 640 x 480 but the end results aren't that bad, especially when you take into account the fact that the camera costs only £40.

We successfully captured a rainbow on a really grey day in Stornoway in the Western Isles at 7am and then managed to film the traumas of travelling on the bus in central London.

Both venues were gloomy but the results were quite reasonable and there is always the option of enhancing the pictures on your PC with the supplied photo-editing software.

The StyleCam comes with a respectable 8MB of built-in memory and offers 24-bit colour. Up to 100 high-resolution or 300 low-resolution images can also be stored.

The file format is JPEG and it won't cost an arm and a leg to power the camera as it uses a single AAA battery.

Images are easy to transfer to PC via the USB interface and supplied cable. While the instruction booklet is clearly written, users should give it a good read before installing the supplied software to prevent any confusion regarding the various transfer procedures.

For your money, you also get a couple of somewhat gimcrack accessories such as the tilt base and battery neck/wrist strap. However, the camera's main selling point is the fact that you can use it when you don't fancy carrying your best camera.

Price: £40 (inc. VAT)

Contact: SiPix 020 8899 6026
www.sipix.co.uk

Also consider: Creative PC-CAM 600
A webcam hybrid that can be used to take still snaps at a decent resolution. £140 - Worth It.