Mini Sports DV Video Camera, Digital Camera & Voice Recorder - Black

You get exactly what you would expect. It's cheap so I was not expecting much and that is exactly what I got, not much. Locating and removing a micro SD card was difficult and after 3 uses it failed to lock in position. When charged it runs for about 2 hours but after 3 charges both lights came on a stayed on and it would no longer record, not sure if this was due to the micro SD card no longer locking in position properly or some other fault. At under £10 it's not worth the effort of returning it. Picture quality was also what you would expect, i.e. wouldn't amaze you with it's definition but considering the price I thought it was very good in decent light. Obviously not so good as the light got poorer. Would have been perfect for what I wanted it for had it kept working but it didn't. I may have been unlucky and got a dud but at under a tenner I reckon there would be quite a few duds knocking about. Wasn't expecting much, but thought it was worth a gamble at the price. I lost.

Addition - Matrix Discounts contacted me out of the blue and offered a replacement after reading my rating, this was without me requesting a replacement (I didn't think it was worth the bother at under £10). Obviously they have faith in the product and a first class customer relations ethic. With that in mind I have upper my rating from 1 to 3 stars - assuming you get it from Matrix Discounts.

This device is surprisingly capable of quite impressive results for the dirt-cheap price it actually costs albeit largely dependant on lighting conditions as is the case with pretty well most basic cameras. As a webcam, it renders as good results as many built-in computer webcams.

There are YouTube links that act as a learning curve in its use. It's from where I learnt to operate it properly although I took a photography course some 10 years back which does indeed help in the general sense. There are also blogger websites more or less dedicated to this series of camera too. Kevin Campbell's Blog will instruct one in how to remove the date. I don't wish to remove it on mine.

If the camera freezes and won't switch/on off, release the SD card (no need to remove it completely) and press it back in. The camera should now switch off. When filming, wait for the red indicator to flash slowly (recording mode) and switch on the sound via the 'Mode' button. That's it.

One should make sure to be ready to start videoing within a very few minutes, otherwise there's the loss of precious filming time on the battery charge. To stop recording, hold down the grey recording button for just 2 secs. Press the 'Mode' button to turn audio off too. Finally, press the 'Power' button to shut down the camera itself.

Effective positioning of the camera for filming comes with the usual trial and error learning curve which makes it more interesting too. It is probably more advisable to walk or bike around the immediate vicinity of one's house for practice because of not having to go far to access one's computer for the results.

IMPORTANT

Insert the microSD card (copper contacts facing up and towards card slot entrance) at a very slightly tilted angle because it's essential to make sure that the card goes over and not under the silver metal plate that's just visible inside the slot. To remove it, turn the camera back-to-front and use thumb nail (or nail file tip) to gently coax it out should it show resistance. Keep an eye on it when in use as the camera might possibly release the card inadvertently from time to time. Stick sellotape over the slot just in case.

If one has trouble with the camera hardware device showing up on the computer (can appear as 'F' drive, for example) that perhaps keeps disappearing in the 'Computer' section of the PC, unplug the camera from the computer and remove the SD card. Don't forget to switch the camera off to conserve battery life. Place the card in the accompanying adapter, (copper contacts facing up and towards card adapter entrance) and place the whole thing in a USB card reader. The computer should accept it as a recognised piece of hardware and the 'disappearing' problem should cease. From then on, one can edit videos and such like as desired.

Batteries can be bought for this camera from Hong Kong and China currently for £2.57p + free postage on (e-bay). A soldering set will be required, but various types can be picked up quite cheaply on the Internet. Drapers, a long established UK manufacturer, does a multi-headed set for £15.

Its not perfect, the instructions are a little confusing (although a little google action soon turns up some better ones!) it does not feel like a quality product... but a perfectly functioning video camera for little over a tenner?!?! What do you expect?!?!!?

Once I had deciphered the instructions, I was up and running... very easy to use, and produces useful footage, considerably better than most mobile phones (I would say the footage is on a par with high-end mobile phones, e.g. iPhone4, Galaxy S2, etc...)