RCA Small Wonder EZ200 – nice low-light performance
Thumbs Up:
Flip-out display; ships with 1GB card; better low-light performance
Thumbs Down:
Inbuilt software only compatible with Windows; no rechargeable battery; mediocre video quality.
The Whiz Kid Speaks:
RCA Small Wonder EZ200 is a pocket-sized mini-camcorder that supports NTSC analog video. It has micro-SD card slot for external storage.
The camcorder has inbuilt 1.5 inches LCD display, microphone and built-in speakers. The connector set includes 1×composite audio/video output, and 1×USB.
The Small Wonder EZ200 runs on two AA alkaline batteries. Accessories supplied inside the box are drivers & software disc, two AA batteries, one USB cable, an A/V cable, 1GB micro-SD card, neoprene carrying ouch, power adapter, and wrist strap.
Razzle Dazzle:
RCA Small Wonder EZ200 is 2.5 inches tall, 3.5 inches wide and 1 inch deep and weighs 5.2 ounces. It is not so compact like the Flip Video Mino and the Creative Vado, but is small and lightweight enough to fit easily in pants pocket.
Inside Dope:
RCA Small Wonder series is a tough competitor for Flip Video and Creative Vado products. The Small Wonder series include – the EZ200 and the EZ205. They do not deliver the high quality like that of Flip Video, but it has some features that are missing in Flip Video such as expansion slot and flip-out display. $89.95 priced the RCA Small Wonder EZ200 can record up to one hour in Web mode with its MJPEG mode, whereas the EZ205 can record up to 2 hours due to its more efficient MPEG4 codec. With 8GB card, the Small Wonder EZ200 can record up to 8 hours full length video and the EZ205 can go up to 16 hours. What’s more – there is also quality difference between two Small Wonder models due to different video codecs.
1.5 inches LCD display can be flipped out completely, which makes it easy to see while recording. The USB dongle is hidden behind the LCD display of the RCA Small Wonder EZ200. You can as flip it out for connecting to computer and the camcorder also ships with USB cable. We like the tweaked operational buttons located beneath the display on the rear side.
The micro-SD card slot is located behind the battery compartment and accepts up to 8GB cards. The company provides 1GB card with the RCA Small Wonder EZ200. You can record 30 minutes video within 1GB space at high-quality setting. Longer video scan be recorded in low quality modes including Web Sharing settings.
The RCA Small Wonder EZ200 is inexpensive and more compact than the Creative Vado. The EZ200 mini-camcorder provides good video recording performance even in low light. It is powered with two alkaline batteries and comes with neoprene carrying case. On connecting it with the computer, inbuilt RCA Memory Manager will automatically install the drivers and software for the EZ200. However, this software is compatible to Windows only and does not work on Mac machines. Noteworthy that an external drive will be created on creating the camcorder with Mac machine that allows transferring of image files.
There is a one-touch Share Tab for uploading videos at Box.net and YouTube on the RCA software, but it requires respective accounts at sharing Web sites. The RCA Small Wonder EZ200 worked perfect in indoor shoots. It also delivered better outdoor exposures, but with more compressed artifacts and visible color shifts with pixel blocks. The pictures were sharp for 640×480 pixels resolution. The overall image quality was good, but the expensive Flip Video Mino and Ultra delivered better quality.
Nitty Gritty:
If you need an affordable pocket-sized camcorder with completely flip-out display and can work with average video quality, then go for – RCA Small Wonder EZ200.
However, we will recommend you to also check RCA Small Wonder EZ205 that delivers better quality and records larger videos at only $10 more cost.
