Kodak DVC323

Kodak has a long tradition of producing excellent cameras, be they video, still or, most recently, digital. Indeed, Kodak's DC-210 scooped a PC Pro Recommended award back in issue 40 (p183) and has featured since on our A List. With the DVC323 Digital Video Camera coming from such a successful family, the question is will it make its ancestors proud?

The DVC323 isn't quite on a par with some of the miracles of miniaturisation we have seen from Connectix, most recently with the QuickCam VC (reviewed issue 43, p170). That said, the Kodak may not be as small but it's definitely more stylish, squeezing all the necessary electronics into a case that looks strikingly like a Star Trek phaser.

Moving on to the other end of its generous 3m-long cable, the DVC323 reveals itself to be something of a first, being the inaugural appearance of a USB digital camera in PC Pro. So what's it got to offer? Well, I'll move on later to address the performance gains of the universal serial bus over, for example, a parallel device. First, though, USB plays a big part in the installation procedure - just install the software, plug in the camera and you're away.

For the installation process, Kodak does deserve a pat on the back for remembering one of the USB fundamentals - only Windows 95 OSR2.1, released in October 1996, actually offers OS level support for the USB. All previous implementations are blind to the possibilities of a new bus expansion method. Handily, the DVC323's installation will upgrade OSR2 to OSR2.1 to give the all-important USB support.

Now to the performance advantage, where USB's data throughput of 12Mbits/sec shows its benefit over the humble parallel port. Because the DVC323 can shift this much data, it can capture full-motion video at rates of up to 30 frames per second. As for possible resolutions, the Kodak supports anything from an Internet-usable 80 x 60 to a watchable 320 x 240. Still capture is of equal quality too, as the camera's CCD (charge coupled device) image sensor can operate at its full 640 x 480 in a colour depth of 24-bit. Indeed, on a subjective level, it produces natural colours and hues alongside impressively sharp image quality.

However, power is nothing without control, and the DVC323 supports its hardware with an intuitive suite of software - Kodak's Pictureworks Live. There's a preview window that lets you see what the camera's trained on and simple menu options that give you an impressive amount of control. It's possible to move through a digital zoom, telephoto and even wide-angle view, use time-lapse photography, adjust the shutter speed and manipulate colour balance for anywhere from outdoors to the harsh florescent office.

Also bundled is Picture Easy, a utility that lets you make the most of the images and videos you store. You can email, manipulate and edit pictures, organise them into an album and even, with a subscription, get hard copies via Kodak's Image Magic Print service. Finally, there's also a copy of Microsoft's NetMeeting software in the box which will allow you to videoconference over the Internet and intranets. However, you should be aware that you'll need to fit a microphone to your PC if you intend to use video communications, as the DVC323 does not feature one as standard.

Overall, the Kodak DVC323 is an impressively well-built camera, backed up by some strong hardware features and topped off with an extensive bundle of software. If your application demands high-quality still or video images, then it's well worth the price. When top image quality is not essential, particularly in videoconferencing where frame rate and bandwidth are paramount, the QuickCam VC is a better buy at £93.

Author: Martin Cooper