Nisis Pocket DV2

Don't be deceived by its name. The Pocket DV2 is not a DV camcorder. It captures avi files on its internal 8MB memory, which fills up so quickly you'll soon be putting the Compact Flash I slots to good use.

Officially it captures up to two minutes of video, which our tests confirmed.

Its packaging boasts 1.3megapixels, but only for stills; opt for video and it drops to a paltry 320 x 240. Your masterpiece is framed using either a poorly positioned viewfinder, or the rather more convenient 1.4in LCD.

This has a fast refresh, but poor resolution and luminance, so it's not particularly pleasant to use. After a couple of days ours broke, whiting out to nothing when switched on, but working fine, if a little dark, when the LCD switch was in the 'off' position.

The DV2 connects to your PC by USB, refusing to talk to anything earlier than Windows 98SE, or anything from Apple. You can transfer files either by using it as a drive or with its own dedicated software.

Once they are on your system, though, the problems really start. We could find little to play them - indeed, apart from the bundled software we could only view them in Windows XP Media Player. Even Adobe Premier 6.5 wouldn't touch them.

It might seem easy to put all of these to one side on account of the price, but what you're essentially getting is nothing more than a low-spec digital camera, or an untethered webcam with a Compact Flash slot.

Inelegant, but perfect for taking to the pub, the DV2 is the kind of camera you'll take where a real digital snapper would fear to tread.

Specs:

• 1.3megapixel CCD
• 1,280 x 1,024 max resolution stills
• 320 x 240 max motion capture
• 1.4in LCD display
• Internal Flash memory/Compact Flash Type I expansion
• 10-second self-timer
• 125g without batteries
• 4 x 7.87 x 8.38cm (w x d x h)

Contact: Nisis 01622 873 339