Unless you're going to be printing A3-sized prints of your photographs you don't really need a 5megapixel digital camera.

The PRD-2300 is Toshiba's 2megapixel offering, and what it lacks in resolution is made up for in ease of use and price.

Unlike many digital cameras where you have to go through a barrage of menus and submenus to change various settings, the PRD-2300 provides access to the most needed features, such as resolution and compression settings, via shortcut buttons on the top of the camera.

Two resolution and three compression modes are available. For example, you can cycle through three compression settings (high, medium and low) for both 1600 x 1200 and 800 x 600 resolutions.

The 7MB of built-in memory is good enough for 10 images at the highest resolution (1600 x 1200) and 83 at the lowest (800 x 600).

The PRD-2300 is heavier than its rivals, probably due to the fact it needs to be powered by four AA batteries. Its weight and size makes it feel like a traditional 35mm camera though, which we liked.

The 2megapixel resolution is bolstered by a 3x optical zoom and 2x digital zoom. At maximum optical zoom length the PRD-2300 performed well, detecting impressive details.

The digital zoom isn't worth bothering with, since it does nothing that an image editing application can't perform.

All the usual digital camera features are present: red-eye reduction, a macro mode for close-ups and a handy night-shot function too.

There's also a movie mode that records short video clips, but the 7MB memory is only good for about 15 seconds' worth. This can be strengthened by adding an additional SD memory card to allow for longer video clips or dozens more images.

Another nifty feature is the video-out port for displaying any image on a Television, and a video cable is supplied. The software is simple to use and those using Windows XP will have no problem installing the camera.

Toshiba 0870 444 8949