Hands-On, Epson
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Epson
Epson's PhotoPC 750Z is an excellent digital camera for educators. Priced within most schools' budgets ($699), the 750Z lets you capture high-quality images that can be used to enhance school Web sites, lesson presentations, reports and more.
Using Epson's HyPict image enhancement technology, which enhances images before JPEG compression, you can increase resolution up to a true 1,600 x 1,200 or 1.92 million pixels. This means images up to 8' x 10' can be printed without any loss of quality. The camera's 3X optical zoom and 2X digital zoom combine to give a 6X zoom enabling photos ranging from 34mm up to 102mm, with the ability to customize images for exposure, white balance, macro, panorama, and black and white modes. Other options include High Sensitivity mode (ISO equivalent of 360), Slow Synchronized Flash mode, Quick Shot mode and Continuous Shoot mode.
The PhotoPC 750Z features 4MB of internal memory and an 8MB Lexar Media CompactFlash card, letting you capture up to 178 images. Included in the package are four AA rechargeable Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries and a fast, portable charger (and, yes, it is fast).
Although we could mention even more camera features, we'd rather tell you what we thought of the PhotoPC 750Z. Having used a number of digital cameras over the past few years, we'd have to say this Epson is definitely one of the most user-friendly units we've experienced. Any time-strapped educator will be able to immediately start snapping pictures and downloading them to their Windows or Macintosh PC. Another thing that surprised us is that, while the camera is reasonably priced, its image quality is on par with digital cameras costing hundreds of dollars more. Another plus is that Epson throws in a nice, padded carrying case that has enough room for you to carry around the NiMH battery charger. We were so impressed with the Epson PhotoPC750Z that we want to buy one for ourselves! You can't get a better recommendation than that. Epson America, Inc., Torrance, CA, (800) 463-7766, www.epson.com.
-William Willis
[email protected]