Philips KEY0010/17 128MB 2MP USB Key Ring Camera

by Philips

Product Details

Product Manual [581kb PDF]

• Item Weight: 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0001GV5F2
• Item model number: KEY0010/17
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #19,270 in Camera & Photo (See Top 100 in Camera & Photo)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 2, 2001

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

A wearable camera--who'd have thought? The tiny 2.0-megapixel, 128MB Philips keyring camera is just that. While not the most stylish accessory one could want, the camera is tiny enough to carry conveniently or to conceal, and also small enough that users will frequently be met with "That's a camera?" upon taking it out to shoot a picture.

The best picture we took with the Philips Keyring camera. (See larger image.)

Because it's so easy to take anywhere, we tried taking pictures with it everywhere, with widely varying results. We concluded that it's perhaps best to think of this camera as something of a novelty item--not something you'd want to rely on for births, weddings, holidays, and so on, but something that's fun to have for taking quick, fun snapshots on the fly.

Our best results with this tiny device came happened while we were using it at a cafe: The sky was overcast, we were sitting in a window seat, and we snapped a picture of a friend who was facing the sun. When the camera was in our friend's hands, though, and it came time to snap a picture that was ever-so-slightly backlit, the results were much less exciting: A lot of dark and a lot of bright and not a lot in between.

This shot was framed very differently in the viewfinder.

And creative framing? Forget about it. With the camera back in our hands, we set about composing a picture of what we thought would include our friend, the windows behind her, and a beautiful piece of cake sitting on the table in front of her. Instead we got the photo you see at left.

A photo from sunrise in the mountains--nice, except that the climbers (circled) were meant to be in the center of the image.

In addition to problems with framing, which occurred frequently due to the camera's simple viewfinder and lack of LCD, we also found that with the camera's one-exposure-fits-all internal settings, we could never quite guess what our shutter speed was. Pictures with complex lighting--in the snow, at dusk, inside, in bright sunlight, mixed bright sunlight and deep shadows, etc.--tended to be muddy. They also tended to have a mysterious gradient effect, which could be a function of some problem with our particular sample.

But despite all this, we enjoyed using the camera and found that if we weren't precious about making every shot a keeper, we could enjoy the ease with which the camera could be pulled from a pocket or from around our neck and a nice moment captured almost instantly. It's almost a camera phone without the phone part--or perhaps in this case, like a mass storage drive that just happens to have a lens. Since the camera is charged and photos are downloaded via a capped USB interface, the camera can also be loaded up with 128MB of images or data for easy storage or transfer.

In summary, this is a handy, fun little camera, worth its price for the novelty factor but not a serious enough piece of equipment to be your main camera.--Sarah Sternau

Pros

• Tiny enough to be carried anywhere
• Just flip open the shutter and it's ready to go
• USB interface for photo transfer and recharging is extremely convenient

Cons

• Picture quality is low
• Focus, framing, and exposure are unpredictable
• Cover for USB interface is not attached to camera and is easy to lose

Product Description

At 3-1/2"H x 1-1/4"W x 3/4"D, it isn't easy to find a smaller digital-camera than this. About the size as a typical key-ring attachment, this is one camera you can take with you anywhere. With 128MB built-in memory, this pocket-sized photo companion takes up to 300 pictures at 2.0 megapixels. A direct USB connection allows for quick and easy downloading to your PC without a cable (works with Windows 98SE, Me, 2000, or XP). So don't miss another valuable photo opportunity. Get the Philips KEY01017.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great second-take anywhere camera!, August 4, 2004

By 

donny "don130" (Maryland United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Philips KEY0010/17 128MB 2MP USB Key Ring Camera (Electronics)

More like 3.5 stars.

I've been waiting for someone to right a review of this camera to see if I made the right decision, but no one has...so I'll write the first one.

Got this camera today, and I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the pictures. Definitely a true 2mp camera.

Light as a feather, easy to use. I was having a hard time keeping the camera steady, but the pics still came out clear and focussed.

The color leaves something to be desired, but that is easily fixed in software like photoshop or iphoto (mac), etc.

Haven't tried indoor shots yet, but not expecting much without a flash.

I would not suggest this as an everyday camera! It is a great second "take anywhere in your pocket camera." Literally fits in your pocket w/o a problem. About 3"x1"by 1/2" (all estimates).

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great little camera to add to your line up., August 19, 2004

By 

S. Grootaert (Minneapolis, MN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Philips KEY0010/17 128MB 2MP USB Key Ring Camera (Electronics)

I bought this camera based on reviews from a pervious generation of this camera (key 007) and one person put some sample pictures on a web site for all to see. I would have bought the key 007, but I did some research and saw that a newer one was coming out (this one, key 0010) so I bought it thinking it has to be better than the pervious version (higher resolution and more storage space) In my opinion it is. I think that having a true 2mp camera instead VGA (640x480) is a huge deal. most camera phones use VGA or maybe 1mp, but with 2 mp the picture really becomes usable and decent. I took this camera (and other cameras) on a trip to Europe to visit family. It held up very well and was easy to use. The only ware and tare so far is the shiny finish on the notch to turn on the camera and expose the lens is coming off, probably because I used it so much. When I was there it was nice to know that this little camera was always with me in my pocket. This camera is the small, about the size of two nine volts butted together (keep in mind the corners will be rounded off) I would go and take pictures with my regular camera for touristy type stuff, or important events, but then I would have my key10 on me to take great candid shots, of my friends or other people and places. I feel much more free to take pictures because now the opportunity is always there. No more "oh I wish I had a camera" I also think that the type of picture you will take with this camera will be different as well, you'll see things that capture your eye, whatever it might be and you'll be able to capture it. I think that the philosophy here should be: a picture is better than no picture, when considering image quality. To be honest the pictures are better then I expected yet by comparison to lager camera they are still relatively poor (a little blurry at times with low light the picture is grainy with artifacts, and in strong light the colors can be washed out). But I knew that going in. I really could not expect a 2mp camera, with a fixed lens, that fits effortlessly into my pocket, would produce 8x10 prints.
in a nutshell:
super small and light for what it is. a great camera for a great price (149.99 from Amazon, preordered) now I can take pictures whenever, within reason- this camera needs enough light (it'll let you know, anything less and the picture will be VERY poor) so I take many snapshots now that would have gone previously unrecorded. I love this LITTLE camera. If your going to a planned event and you want/need to bring a better camera for better pictures-fine. but this camera is great for the unplanned events, when you don't want to lug around a bulky camera. Oh and did I mention that another selling point was at the same time this is a USB jump drive. a great solution. lots of storage for the pictures, or whatever else, then you can just plug it into you computer (in this case a mac, it appears on the desktop as a drive and opens iPhoto (also use the enhancement to fix up some washed out color)). it also comes with a USB extension cable incase you can't reach.
ok, so much for the nutshell... I just can't say enough about this little guy. I think it's great (I would have reviewed it sooner but I was away on the afore mentioned trip, testing it out)
some cons that I can think of after using it for a while:
the view finder... well is more like at least "this" will be in your picture and you'll get some more around the top and right edges. not such a big deal just a little off center (it could depend on how you hold the camera or look through the viewfinder.
no flash...but I fully understand that adding one would add more weight, and size (a control to turn it on or off) and draw more power ect. not really worth it to me.
lastly, I wish it would start up faster... although all things considered, 4 seconds is not a bad start up time. with about 2 sec. between pictures.
The beep can be annoying (when it powers up, and then another when it takes a picture or is plugged into the computer), especially with real candid shots. -Through some sort of bug or "defect" may camera has stopped, very recently, beeping altogether (to me a blessing in disguise).
that's it, the bottom line: a great addition to a photographers line up, pro or not but defiantly not a stand alone "capture important events" camera but more of a "capture candid moments" camera.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Almost perfect for a truly portable camera, August 5, 2004

By 

Osvaldo (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Philips KEY0010/17 128MB 2MP USB Key Ring Camera (Electronics)

This is a great camera to carry along at all times and snap whatever takes your fancy. If you expect good quality, you'll be disappointed however. The quality is good enough for low res computer pictures and that's it.

The pros:
- truly portable, very light, no charger!
- autonomy does not seem to be an issue, after 137 pictures over 3 days, the camera was still ready to take more pictures
- truly point-and-click, there is nothing to set, the camera is ready to shoot perhaps 1 second after being turned on and the click to shoot delay is perceptible but well below 1 sec., time between two shots is also about 1 sec.

The cons:
- if the sun is in your photo the center of the sun will likely be ... black! Unacceptable really.
- it is very difficult to frame properly, this is due to the small size of the camera which does not give you a good sense that the focal plane is parallel to the scene you want to photograph. Some practice and taking several times the same photograph takes care of this most of the time.
- the quality is on the poor side, colors in particular are washed out.
- the camera beeps each time a picture is taken and there is no way to turn it off

In summary don't buy this to take pictures that you want to print. This is a great gadget however to carry around permanently because it is so light and small, and to take pictures at the slightest whim.