A portable image analyzing system (100) for capturing and processing sampled images for features of interest in a compact and portable instrument includes an image capture unit (112) and a very small sized processor (122). The processor (122) should be miniaturized to be palm sized or smaller. The image capture unit (112) captures images of the samples (142) within a field of view and the palm sized processor (112), which is operatively communicative with the image capture unit, analyzes features of the image for the predetermined information obtained from the image. Additional features allow communication with remote sites to transfer the predetermined information for viewing or for more powerful analyzing and to further enable local downloading of information and desired software by the user in the field.