Casio's Exilim Zoom EX-Z77 provides only basic features and functions for beginning photographers, but it offers two key components for an ultra-compact digital camera: A very low suggested price ($179) and an extremely thin camera body (0.78 inches). Some photographers will want to spend a little more money for a few more powerful features, but budget-conscious buyers will have a hard time ignoring the low starting price for a very usable digital camera.

The extremely thin camera body is great for carrying the EX-Z77 in a pocket, but we found this model a little difficult to hold comfortably. Because of the placement of the buttons on the back panel, it can be tough to find room for your thumb without inadvertently pressing a button. However, some people might not experience the same problem. You'll definitely want to try this model before you buy it.

The EX-Z77's 2.6-inch LCD screen occupies most of the back panel, but it could be a sharper screen, and it could be brighter in outdoor lighting. We'd especially like to see a better screen because the LCD serves as this digital camera's only viewfinder.

This unit struggles a little bit in low-lighting conditions with its auto-focus function. Otherwise, the EX-Z77's image quality is very good for a camera in this price range, especially in outdoor photos, which are sharp and bright. With its 7.2 megapixels of resolution, the EX-Z77 can capture film-quality prints up to 11-by-14 inches.

One interesting aspect of this model's auto-focus feature is its Face Recognition Technology. With this feature, Casio allows you to program the EX-Z77 to record and "recognize" faces that you'll shoot often, such as family members. When the camera finds a recorded face in a group photo, it will focus specifically on that face, guaranteeing proper exposure.

For a budget-priced model, the EX-Z77 has surprisingly good response times. You can shoot your first photo a little less than 2 seconds after pressing the power button. Shutter lag is not noticeable. Shot-to-shot delays are between 2 and 3 seconds, even when using the flash. Continuous-shot modes vary, but you can capture at least two photos per second in most modes.

If you want more than the most basic point-and-shoot functions in a digital camera, you'll have to look beyond the EX-Z77. It works best as a fully automatic model. You can control a few manual settings, but they're extremely limited.

With only 11.6MB of internal memory, you'll have to buy a storage card almost immediately with the EX-Z77, which adds a little to the initial cost of the model.

Finally, if you're looking for some interesting basic digital video capabilities, the EX-Z77 has a capture mode specifically for YouTube-quality video. This feature fits into the stylish emphasis of this ultra-compact digital camera model. To add to the unit's style, you can find the EX-Z77 in black, blue, pink or silver. The EX-Z77 doesn't provide enough features for a serious photographer, but it does give beginning photographers a cool, low-priced, extremely thin option for shooting photos -- and YouTube videos -- on the go.


Pros: Low starting price, four body colors available, very good response times, good image quality, very thin camera body, easy to use, interesting video options
Cons: Some will find camera difficult to hold, internal memory is too small, no optical viewfinder, LCD could be sharper

Warranty
1 year, limited