RCA Small Wonder Traveler EZ210 Camcorder Reviewby Kaitlyn ChantryPublished on Oct 30, 2008 3:00 PM
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Ease of Use (9.75)RCA's entire Small Wonder line was created for the sole purpose of having a highly portable, easy to use, video recording device. It's a good thing, then, that the RCA EZ210 lives up to its purpose. Like its rivals, the Traveler has a minimum amount of buttons, controls, and options. It is, in fact, easier to use than an iPod, a Playstation Portable, or most cell phones. It's certainly easier to use than the vast majority of digital cameras and camcorders. Just turn it on and press the big red button to record.
While recording, the + and - buttons on the directional pad control the 2x digital zoom. If you want to watch your clips, simply press Play and use left and right to cycle through the clips. The controls are very intuitive, especially if you've ever used a VCR, DVD player, CD player, or MP3 player. The one quirky interface is deleting clips. On most devices, pushing the Delete button will bring up a warning. "Are you sure you want to delete?" You would then use the d-pad or joystick to select Yes, then enter. On the Traveler, you push Delete once, then hold down the Delete button for as long as it takes to delete the clip. If you let go too early, the clip will not be deleted. It's an odd design choice.
The one extra feature on the Traveler is the ability to take still photos. It's as easy as recording video: just push the Web Photo button and you'll have yourself a digital photograph.
When it comes time to share your videos and photos, you'll have to grapple with the Traveler's odd design feature: the removable "carrying handle." It's not particularly easy to remove the handle, but once you do, it's a simple matter of sliding the USB arm out and plugging it into your computer. The RCA EZ210 also ships with a USB extension, since most computers won't have room for the clunky Traveler to squeeze in among ports. There's software built right into the camcorder, but it's for Windows only—Mac users will be stuck uploading to YouTube the old fashioned way.
Handling (4.5)
Though the name "Traveler" could mean many things, it's quite obvious that the RCA marketing team had its own specific idea of what it would be. The RCA EZ210 is not a time-bending device named after a Star Trek character, nor was it commissioned by ABC for a short-lived TV series. But it also isn't a camcorder designed for your next cruise or vacation. With its rugged plastic and rubber casing and distinctive black and dark green design, the Traveler looks and feels like a device you would take camping or backpacking—but not on your honeymoon in Europe. Quite simply, it doesn't feel fancy or delicate in your hand. Some people might like this design, but we thought the Traveler was a parody of the L.L Bean aesthetic: too plasticy, too rubberized, too chunky.
While the Traveler is certainly the least chic of the RCA Small Wonder series, the benefit is that there's a little more mass to wrap your hand around during use. The Flip Mino and the Creative Vado are tiny objects and sometimes felt awkward in the hand. With its extra heft, the Traveler fits better in the average hand, but is almost too heavy to balance comfortably.
As with the Flip and the Vado, the Traveler handles in much the same way you might use a cell phone to shoot photos or video. The most comfortable way to hold it is to place your index and middle fingers across the face of the camcorder, just below the lens. The ring and pinky fingers support the camcorder from underneath, while the thumb operates the buttons. If you want added support across the face of the camcorder—it is a bit top-heavy—you can move your ring finger up so that you have three fingers on the front and just the pinky below. You can also balance the camcorder on your pinky, while your index finger braces it from the side. And if these three options don't give you quite enough control, there's always the Gameboy method: eight fingers on the front and two thumbs on the back.
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| There's more than one way to hold the RCA EZ210. | |
With the added size and weight of the Traveler, it actually feels a lot like an original Gameboy, though not as big. And because it is top heavy, we were more comfortable watching playback footage in our lap than holding it up to record video. The controls, however, are not nearly as responsive as the beautifully designed directional pad from out Nintendo days. More often than not, the large, rubber buttons made our fingers feel thick and fuzzy; there's nothing delicate or responsive about this camcorder.
There are other, more minor details that take away from the experience. Though the casing feels quite rugged and scratch resistant, the LCD seemed to collect fingerprint grease more quickly than most. Plus, for a camcorder that's designed for the "outdoors" market, it isn't waterproof—or even water resistant. Sure, the surface is highly grippable, but it's difficult to tell whether the Traveler's design is just a marketing ploy or actually practical for the great outdoors.
There's also the somewhat silly "self-record mirror" on the front of the camcorder: even if you can see yourself in its tiny, curved surface, you'll be recording yourself off to one side of the screen. And finally, there's the absurd "carrying handle," which is far too impractical to be used as an actual means for carrying the camcorder. There's no obvious way to attach a neck strap either, so it feels like more of an afterthought than a carefully considered feature. Unless the hidden purpose is to serve as a roll bar, its only real function is to make the task of accessing the USB connector as laborious as possible.
The Traveler may be a rugged device for your next rock climbing excursion, but it doesn't feel at home with our most beloved personal electronics.
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| The "carrying handle" on the RCA EZ210 is not practical. |
Menu (6.5)
There is absolutely no menu interface on the RCA EZ210. There is onscreen text to indicate how long you've been recording and a scale that pops up when you use the digital zoom. During playback, the screen tells you which clip you're in and how much time is left in the clip.
The lack of a menu is not surprising; the Traveler strives to be easy to use and there aren't any manual options to adjust. It does mean there's no way to access some traditional menu settings, such as formatting the memory card and changing the date and time. But considering how unwieldy most camcorder menus have become, we don't really miss it.
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The RCA EZ210, with pouch,
wrist strap, and lens cap. |
Portability (10.0)
Camcorders in the RCA Small Wonder series no longer feel much like a Small Wonder. Even the slimmer models in the series seem bulky compared to the sleek, minuscule Flip Mino. The Traveler represents the bulkier end of the Small Wonders. Weighing in at 385.55g (0.85lbs) and measuring 74.93 x 31.5 x 125.22mm (2.95 x 1.24 x 4.93 inches), it is nearly twice the size of the Creative Vado and Flip Mino and weighs more than four times as much. Of course, the Traveler seems minute compared to traditional camcorders, but it won't be as appealing to anyone looking for a tiny camcorder. The RCA EZ210 will not fit in most pockets.
As for the rest, the Traveler certainly seems durable, so you can probably give it a few good knocks and it won't break. The surface is relatively scratch-resistant, but the LCD is unusually prone to fingerprints. There is an external lens cap that is loosely connected to the camcorder by a thin cable. It should protect your lens well enough—if you remember to put the cap on between uses. The Traveler also comes with a flimsy wrist strap and a small carrying pouch. Neither offers much protection, but it's better than nothing. The pouch will keep away dirt and grime, but not hard bumps or deep scratches. The wrist strap will prevent you from accidentally dropping the camcorder, but you're not meant to carry the camcorder by dangling it from this tenuous connection.
If you want to carry the Traveler, why not try using the built-in carrying handle? Well, because that would be just silly. There is, in fact, a small plastic bar that RCA calls the "carrying handle," but it's too small for even the smallest adult hands to grip in any meaningful way. You could, presumably, thread a neck strap through the handle, but it isn't well designed for this. You're better off just holding the damn thing as you would a cell phone, camera, or portable game system.
As for what to pack in your bag, you'll probably want a few spare AA batteries, although the battery life on the EZ210 is quite impressive. You'll also want a few SD/SDHC cards, which are, fortunately, very small and can take a lot of wear and tear. You'll also probably want to bring the USB extension cable that comes with the camcorder, since the Traveler is too bulky to plug straight into most computers.
All in all, the Traveler is a very portable device, though not as small or convenient as some of the competition.
LCD and Viewfinder (4.25)
The RCA EZ210 has a 2.4-inch "sun-filtering" LCD with a resolution of 230,400 pixels. This is actually quite good for this class of camcorder—you'll be able to see exactly how poor the video quality is before transferring your footage. The LCD does appear to reduce some glare, but it also dulls the display overall, making it hard to see what you're recording sometimes. The "sun-filtering" feature seems a little extraneous in any event, since overexposure will plague you in any sunny environment (see Video Performance). If you're better off traveling in overcast weather, the sun filter won't do you much good anyway.
Battery Life (12.0)
We tested the battery life of the RCA EZ210 by using two standard AA alkaline batteries and recording continuously until they were drained. As it turned out, the battery life was about twice as long as the expected capacity of a 2GB SD card. So, you should be able to fill up the card and spend time watching the footage in playback before you need to replace the batteries.
The total battery life was 115 minutes and 11 seconds (1 hour, 55 minutes, and 11 seconds). This is a decent performance, though not as good as the Flip Mino or Creative Vado, which both run off their own lithium-ion batteries. The Traveler did not last as long as the Flip Ultra, which also runs on AA batteries.
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Slide off the face of the RCA EZ210 and you can
access the two AA batteries. |
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