Ezonics EZ-308 EZDual Cam

Ezonics has combined the worlds of PC video camera and digital still camera with their EZDual. Because it uses USB connections, installation proved simple, although installing the myriad software titles bundled with the camera took a while.

As a PC video camera, the EZDual worked well. Although the first time we video conferenced our frames-per-second rate stayed very low (less than 5 fps), in subsequent uses, the EZDual corrected this, and we had a much more useable 20+ fps. The EZDual worked flawlessly with Microsoft's NetMeeting, allowing us to see and chat with friends and family around the country.

As a still camera, the EZDual offers a lot of nice touches. It can hold up to 20 pictures in its memory at fairly high resolution. It also offers a screw port for mounting on a tripod, a 10-second delay to let you view your own pictures on the camera, and an automatic power-down to save battery life. At only 320,000 pixels, it's not as high quality as some of the other digital cameras on the market, but it gets the job done.

Using a USB connection, it was easy to unplug the camera and take it on the road without any hassles. Once we returned, we simply plugged the camera back in and downloaded our pictures. From there, we had the option of recording and sending video e-mails, video conferencing, and editing our still pictures into photo albums, thanks to the 10 included software titles.

Overall, we were impressed with the EZDual, although the cable connecting our PC's USB port to the camera was a bit short, and there was no monitor stand to hold it in place for videoconferencing (we found the EZDual slipped off the top of a curved monitor). But for the price, the EZDual gives you some good features--if not the best--of both PC video and digital still cameras. --J. Curtis

Pros:

Easy installation
Very portable
Still and digital camera options

Cons:

Short cable
Didn't see 30 fps when used as video camera
Camera slides off top of curved monitors

Owner Reviews, Ratings, Comments and Criticism
The new EZ Dual Cam by Ezonics is a great idea that finally arrived. Software and camera worked flawlessly and simply right out of the box. The best feature is the ability to use the camera as a handheld still digital camera which really does take very nice pictures for the money. The color video mode is also exceptional for online teleconferencing. This camera is worth TWICE the money they're charging for it.