Che-ez! Moni-Me Digital Camera with LCD Screen [0.3MP]

The camera is about half the size of a pack of cards and weighs a mere 58 grams without battery, yet has a full metal body with sliding lens cap. With most cameras in this price bracket you have no means of reviewing the shots you have taken until you upload them to the computer. However, the Moni-Me is equipped with a 1.5" STN colour display that makes this possible. Although the LCD screen is not a patch on the latest displays from Sony et al, being relatively dark and sometimes difficult to see in bright sunshine, it is an immense improvement over its competitors and will mean that you may well end up with 30-60 images that you want to keep rather than hundreds of pictures you won't.

The design of most cameras in this price bracket has tended to compromise on build quality, optics or feature-set. The Moni-Me seems to have reversed this trend and has many other advantages over its rivals. The camera uses flash memory rather than RAM which means that battery life is enhanced as there is no need for a constant current to maintain the memory. Another key difference is the ease of installation, as the camera installs as a mass storage device and appears as a new disk drive in Windows Explorer. This also means that you could even use the Moni-Me to transfer documents from one machine to another.

Controls are straight forward and comprise six buttons; shutter release, power, mode, delete and menu navigation. To take a picture is simply a question of turning on by holding the power button down for three seconds and then pressing the shutter release. Another nice feature of the Moni-Me is that it will still take pictures in low-light conditions--some other cameras in this price bracket will just beep if light levels are too low. You can also use the Moni-Me as a WebCam when attached to the PC but this will require additional software.

Although image quality at this price point will never match that found in more expensive models, the Moni-Me generally delivers well-exposed images with natural colours, especially when used outdoors. While the Moni-Me will record a picture at any light level, image quality will degrade rapidly as levels drop including correct colour balance. If you are looking for a miniature camera with a flash then have a look at the Splash, also from Che-ez!. Images also appear to be free from noticeable barrel distortion--something quite common in cameras with such small lenses.

The Moni-Me is supplied with CD, wrist strap, USB cable and instructions. Note that it uses a single AA battery which is not supplied with the camera. Despite using just one cell, the battery life is pretty good and works well with rechargeable NiMH units, although you will notice the screen will seem less bright than with a good quality alkaline battery. --Nick Baxter