Gadgets: Ultra portable video camera trades fun for video/audio quality

The uCorder video camera from iRes Technology is not the greatest you can buy, but it might be the one you can have the most fun with.

Measuring just 3.5-inches long and about 1-inch wide, users can wear the camera around your neck and film hands free, use it as a webcam or even hide it for undercover work with the included clothing clip.

I wore the camera and had one person after another being filmed ask me what that was around my neck; most everyone replied "cool" or "wow."

As for controls, it's pretty simple - just press the record button to start it and the same button to stop the recording. Audio is recorded with the internal microphone.

My unit (IRDC250) had 2GB of internal memory; there is a 1GB (IRDC150) model available. The video is filmed in AVI files with a 640-by-480 resolution.

For those who want even more room to store video, there is a built-in Micro SD memory card slot, where you can add up to 8GB of storage. This can store up to 7 hours of video combined with the internal memory.

Videos were downloaded and played on my Mac and the instructions indicated that it can play on PC's also. After plugging it into a USB port, your computer will recognize it as a USB device.

It's powered by a Lithium ion battery, which you charge via USB.

The bottom line is that the camera is a lot of fun but if you're looking for top-quality, this isn't the one for you. But, it's more than usable, especially for web quality.

Details: ucorder.com, 1GB - $79.99, 2GB - $99.99
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Awhile back I reviewed the NC300 Noise canceling headphones from AblePlanet.

I combined them with the AblePlanet LM1000 Clear Voice Linx Microphone for a nice combination to use as a telephone headset, for video gaming or even with an iPhone.

The noise canceling microphone provides excellent sound quality, at least that's what I was told by the people I was talking to while using it.

This is all done by "Award-Winning Patented Linx Audio and Linx Microphone technologies for unsurpassed sound quality and speech clarity" according to the company's web site.

The portable device features an in-wire volume control that also has a mute function.

Those who use it with a cell phone will like the push-to-talk feature, enabling it to operate hands-free.

The microphone is on a flexible boom, which can be positioned for comfort depending on the user and has a foam windscreen

For compatibility, adapters are included for the iPhone, BlackBerry's and gaming headsets.

Details: ableplanet.com, $39.99
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With video and still cameras demanding more and more memory, Lexar Media recently announced they are shipping 16GB and 32GB Professional 133x Secure Digital High Capacity (SDHC) Memory Cards.

The SDHC memory cards have the maximum Class 10 speed rating. This provides photographers with a minimum write speed of 133x (20MB per second).

This also enables the digital files to be downloaded to a computer faster.

Included with the professional memory cards is a free downloadable copy of Lexar's Image Rescue 4 software.

Details: lexar.com, 32GB - $259.99, 16GB - $149.99

(c) 2010, Gregg Ellman.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.