WHAT'S HOT: The 3100Z's unusual but ultimately useful design unites on-camera controls with menus on an LCD. Seven buttons flank the LCD on the right and bottom. Each button's function displays in text on the LCD panel, and the functions of the buttons change as you switch among modes, so you don't have to leave the current image to access a separate menu. As a result, one button can be used for many clearly defined tasks, making the camera versatile and easy to use. Shutter- and aperture-priority modes, as well as a full-manual mode and four preset program modes offer total exposure control, and a dedicated print-tagging button lets you quickly mark shots for printing.

WHAT'S NOT: Because of the menu system, you must keep the LCD switched on much of the time; you can't conserve the batteries by turning it off. Also, picture settings displayed in the LCD could be more informative; for instance, three stars and an H can mean either that you're creating a TIFF file or that you're in the camera's interpolated mode of 2544 by 1904. The 3100Z offers limited control over manual focusing and white balance.

WHAT ELSE: The 3100Z produced 271 shots on one set of four AA batteries, slightly fewer than the average number of shots for all the cameras we tested. In general, pictures taken with this camera looked sharp, especially lower-resolution shots displayed on screen. Print quality landed in the middle of the pack--the exposure and color reproduction looked good, but some shots could have had clearer details.

UPSHOT: Epson's $699 PhotoPC 3100Z is an excellent general-purpose digital camera that's very easy to use.

SUMMARY

Epson PhotoPC 3100Z 3.34 megapixels, 2048 by 1536 maximum resolution, 34mm to 102mm focal range (35mm equivalent), f2 to f8 aperture range, shutter speeds from 8 seconds to 1/1000 second, optical and LCD viewfinders, USB and video connections, 16MB CompactFlash media, four AA batteries, 16.9 ounces with batteries; Sierra Imaging Image Expert, Epson File Converter, Panorama Stitcher Light software. One-year parts and labor warranty; 24-hour daily toll-call support. $699 800/463-7766 www.epson.com