8 months ago
WASHINGTON, DC (WUSA) -- Digital camera manufacturers keep coming up more features.
Now, there's a hot new camera that comes with a built-in projector. The footage may look like a grainy home video, but Nikon's Coolpix is the first digital camera with a small built-in projector.
"Like many new, innovative products, the Nikon is expensive. It costs around $430," says consumer expert Elias Arias.
To test the Nikon, Consumer Reports projects 40-inch diagonal images at a distance of six-and-a-half feet onto a white screen.
But the images could only be viewed if the room was extremely dark.
Elias says, "We found the projected images to be pretty good, but your photos will look better, more detailed on a computer."
And the remote control buttons don't light up, so they're tough to see in the dark.
Also, a full charged battery will only last an hour in projector mode or less.
"If you've been taking photos and then you want to use the projector, you're going to find it drains much more quickly," Elias says.
But, if you don't need a projector, there are two subcompact cameras that do a very good jog for a $100 or less.
"In the past, subcompacts under $150 usually don't perform well enough for us to recommend," he says.
But that's changed with two Kodak EasyShare cameras. Both performed very well in tests and at $90 and $100 are Consumer Reports' Best Buys.
If you want to get a compact digital camera, which are slightly higher and the controls can be easier to operate, testers recommend the Canon Power Shot A-1000-IS.
It costs $150.
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