Remmington Security 00760 B/W Camera with Built-in Microphone

This product has excellent picture quality for the price and was very easy to install and set up.

Camera pretty much worthless. Even under a roof the camera wont adjust to any light from the sun even tho the camera is way under the roof.No good for any type of outdoor security in tha day time.

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Sony Alpha NEX-3 Compact Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/16mm Lens (Silver)- 14.2 Mpix

I'm experienced with 35mm SLRs and Digital Point & Shoot cameras, and I recently bought this camera (Sony NEX-3 with 18-55mm lens) because I have been disappointed with the quality of photos I can achieve with Digital Point & Shooters. Having been originally spoiled by my Nikkormat and Minolta 35mm cameras I found myself taking fewer and fewer pictures on my small Digital cameras simply because the pictures were just OK. So, with some important life events coming in the next couple of years I decided to upgrade, yet I dreaded the thought of carrying around a bulky and heavy DSLR.

The NEX-3 has solved this problem for me: Great pictures, excellent indoor pictures often with no flash needed, and much better portability than a DSLR.

Before purchasing I read the reviews and noted some were especially critical of the user interface Sony designed for the NEX series, so when I went to the store to try one I was expecting the worst. Instead, I found the NEX to have an extremely elegant and seductive interface, much better than any of the Digital Point & Shoot cameras I've had. I repeat, the interface is actually seductive. Now, if you compare the interface to a DSLR you will immediately see that the controls are not always visible and at-hand, they must be pulled up on the screen via the menu buttons. Therefore, I do not recommend this as a "downgrade from DSLR" camera until you have tried one in person. However, with my SLR experience I was pleased to see the animated representation of the P-A-S-M knob. And once "A" (aperture priority) is chosen, for example, the aperture adjustment is directly available as part of the viewfinder display. The interface is immediately recognizable to anyone with DSLR/SLR experience.

The second thing that struck me while testing the camera at the store was how fast it is. It powers up very quickly, and the delay between shots is better than any digital point & shoot I've seen.

Based on these in-store observations and the consistently strong reviews regarding picture quality, I decided to purchase the NEX.

There are several cool and innovative features on the NEX that I've not encountered before, and I'll mention the two I think most people will find useful.

The panoramic photo feature will knock your socks off. The camera automatically captures a series of images while you pan from one side to the other (or up-down) and then stitches the images together into a single panoramic photo. This performs very well, and is very useful for many outdoor scenes.

The integration with Eye-Fi wireless SD memory cards makes for a very nice automated transfer of your photos to your computer and to online sharing sites. When I'm shooting in my house the photos are uploaded right then, while I'm shooting. If I'm away from home then when I return I simply turn on the camera and the photos automatically upload and after a minute of idle time the camera shuts off. If you buy a Sony NEX I strongly recommend you consider getting an Eye-Fi wireless SD card.

Upon buying the camera I left the next day for a trip to Colorado for a wedding and to visit friends and family. Everyone that saw the camera was enthralled with it. My daughters immediately took to it and snapped many excellent photos using it. My wife's reaction during the return trip: "That camera has already paid for itself!"

Other details:

I'm getting about 300 pictures on a battery charge, and will probably purchase an additional battery within 6 months or so.

The high resolution view screen is part of the secret to liking the camera. You get immediate satisfaction from seeing the excellent picture quality.

The flash is workable but will not impress anyone with DSLR experience. I hope Sony comes out with an improved version.

If Sony introduces a normal lens (30mm) it will be tempting, since it may allow the camera to be easily carried in a coat pocket.

I don't take a lot of videos, but the NEX-3 video is quite good and will suffice for any purpose I will ever have.

I highly recommend this camera for someone upgrading from a Digital Point & Shoot.

I own numerous cameras ranging from small pocket point-and-shoot, underwater cameras, to high end heavy SLR's. If I had to pick one camera to replace them all, this would be the one! The two most outstanding features that put it in this position of distinction are its light weight, and the large APS sensor which produces excellent images even in dark rooms without flash, that are equal to those produced by an SLR.

The images are sharp and free of the "grain" that the small cameras produce. It is light enough to carry around all day. Others have commented about battery life, but I am able to shoot 300 images using up only 30% of the battery. This means it is capable of shooting 1000 images on a charge ( without flash ).

The zoom 18-55 mm zoom lens is of good quality, and since I usually shoot indoors, is of more than adequate resolution, even with ISO of 1600. The wide angle 16 mm does appear sharper however. I also purchased the full frame Fisheye attachment which is much fun to use and even works in Panorama mode.The video mode is quite good, and even the sound quality is surprisingly good with the built in microphone. The flash does work but is slightly clumsy, and I had to read the instructions to get it to work ( It has to be screwed in and flipped up ).

Cons: The menu system is overly complicated, and more buttons are needed in the camera. I have been using Sony cameras for years and know the system well, but even I had problems with it. I would like if a Macro Lens were available, and also a short zoom of about 100 mm, and a normal portrait lens of about 50 mm f/2.0 for available light narrow focus. It should be noted however that there is an adapter of other Sony lenses available. I love the Panorama mode, and set it to wide and vertical mode, and then turn the camera sideways. However it is not really that that sharp. My tiny Sony DSC-WX-1 takes higher resolution shots.

Summary: Light weight and image quality of a full size SLR camera, great for low light and travel.

Addendum for the next 1000 images: Great quality images outdoors although the screen is difficult to see in bright sunshine, the battery seems to last forever with about 300 shots on using only 20% of the charge, quiet, lightweight and much easier to carry around compared to an SLR and does not attract attention when photographing questionable subjects for artistic purposes of course. It works very well with LENSBABY lenses ( and adapter to attach to the body ) because the manual focus can be enlarged 14x. This is much better than the expensive SLR's. Also, I recently shot close ups of flowers outdoors and found that the anti-shake software actually sharpened the motion of the flowers in the breeze.

GREAT TIP: I use the "continuous advance mode" for almost all pictures at 2 1/2 frames per second and find one image is always much sharper than the rest. With people I get varied expressions and eliminate blinking. Since the battery charge lasts forever and the memory cards hold many thousands of images, this is the only way to shoot, even with scenics.

Buy Sony Alpha NEX-3 Compact Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/16mm Lens (Silver)- 14.2 Mpix Now

I just bought this camera a week ago. I wanted to upgrade from a point and shoot and head into the DSLR world. It's just a hobby for me. I'm not a professional and really don't know too much about cameras. I had in my mind that I was going to go buy a Nikon D5000. I had read lots of reviews and that camera got pretty solid reviews for someone who was new to the DSLR world. I went into the store and didn't like the feel of the camera. I am 5'1 and have very small hands. I felt that the D5000 was bulky and heavy for me. I thought I would not want to carry something like that around. The store clerk showed me the Sony NEX-3 and explained what it was. He spoke very highly of it and said for someone like me it would be a great camera. I bought it and have been playing around with it. I am not certain I am going to keep it. I really liked using the Macro setting on my point and shoot for taking photos of flowers to get just a little more detail. The macro setting on this camera is not great. My point and shoot does a better job and there is not a macro lens out yet for this camera to my knowledge. I don't feel that I have very much control over the camera when it's in certain settings. The camera will disable certain features when you are using certain settings. Something as basic as wanting to shoot in black and white is disabled. My point and shoot can do that in any setting. I dont understand why I cant in this camera. I can't change the focus area in most of the settings which I don't like. Therefore the camera focuses on what it wants to whether than what you intended unless you are in PASM. I am not skilled yet with using the PASM settings but would like to learn and I'm not sure this is the camera to learn on. The camera does not have a lot of buttons, it's all built into the LCD. It can take a few minutes to change the settings and you have to push like 6 buttons to get to it so you may miss your shot if you want to change something and need to do it quickly. I will say that this camera does take great photos and is definitively an upgrade in that respect from my point and shoot. It takes great photos in low light. I haven't even used the screw on flash because I dont feel like I have needed it. The other con is the battery life. It's awful. I rate it about a 3. If you are going to be out all day I would have a backup. They cost about $80. The manual says you can shoot about 300 photos. That's not very much. Overall, I do think this camera shoots great photos as a point and shoot but if you want more control over you will need to get a DSLR. I think I may return it. I will get used to the feel of it hopefully.

UPDATE:

I did end up keeping the camera and there was an update that I downloaded from Sony and it fixed the battery life so it now does not drain as quickly. I am very happy about that. The camera is in the shop for repair right now. The LCD screen turned black at the top and cut off abuot 1/3 of the picture. Sony is fixing it under the warranty that came with the camera. I dont know what caused this and have not seen any other reviews where this has occurred so may just have been my model. Now that I have been using the camera for quite some time, I am glad I bought it and not a bulky DSLR. It is so light weight and I can carry it with me any where I go. It takes fantastic photos in almost no light. I havent even had to use my flash. I cant wait to get it back from the repair shop. I have missed it.

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As a photography enthusiast for many years, I've been looking for something that was not as complicated or as costly as a DSLR. I stumbled across the NEX-3 and the price point was appealing. After a lot of research, I purchased this camera several weeks ago from Amazon Warehouse Deals as a "used" item, saving me over $100! I wasn't sure what to expect, but this camera was basically brand new. It was labeled as "Like New" so I'm guessing it was purchased and opened, then immediately returned. As of writing this review, I see there are none left at the price I paid, so I got lucky.

Since receiving the camera, I have taken close to 2000 photos with it. Every review I've read here and on popular gadget websites is spot on. This is an amazing upgrade from a P&S and will not disappoint. In fact, I purchased this camera right about the same time as my cousin purchased a Nikon d5100 and she was questioning if she made the right choice after seeing the photos I uploaded to Facebook. I've managed to take some pretty amazing shots with very little knowledge about shutter speed, aperture and ISO. Meanwhile, my cousin is struggling with her DSLR. I've learned a lot about photography from using the NEX-3. The Intelligent modes are great, but now I shoot mainly in A/S/M which offers me a lot more control. That's the beauty of this camera. It's pretty good even in the auto modes, but really excels in more experienced hands.

Without getting into too many details, I'll just say that this camera is amazing if you're a looking to get into photography as a hobby. And if you're getting into photography, you also know that lenses are important, even more so than the camera itself. Sony's E-Mount system is still young so we only have a few to choose from, but it appears that this is the future for Sony. You're buying into a system that should have some longevity. Although E-Mount lenses are expensive, that's the price you pay for OSS and a fast autofocus, keep in mind that there is a very robust market for adapters that let you use some amazing manual lenses. I've just purchased a few inexpensive lenses and adapters and can't wait to try them out. I also have some comfort in knowing that if I do purchase more expensive lenses, I can use them on other bodies as well if I ever do decide to upgrade to a DSLR. Now here's the big thing...I may never need to upgrade. This little camera performs as well, if not better than many of the entry level DSLR's! If there are any downsides, it's the battery life, which has been improved on the newer NEX-C3 and the lack of an external flash. The latter being rather minor because it really defeats the purpose of having such a small camera in the first place.

I'm very happy with my purchase and would highly recommend this to anyone that is getting into photography. If you're a Professional photography or are looking to eventually go pro, I'd say stick with a DSLR, but this would make a great addition to your arsenal if you've got money to burn. Make sure you purchase an extra battery pack! (reason I gave it 4 stars)

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I was debating to get the NEX-3 or the highly hyped Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF2. After reading numerous reviews and especially this article from PC Mag I chose the NEX-3 for one important feature: the sensor type and size. The sensor used in NEX-3 is a real sensor that used on Sony's DSLR line-ups. On the other hand, Panasonic GF2 use Micro four-third spec sensors that is smaller than Sony's APS-C sensor. According to PC Mag, GF2's Micro Four Thirds sensor is more than five times larger (225mm²) than Canon PowerShot S95 (the king of point and shoot). APS-C sensors (370mm²), like those in the Sony NEX-3, are 8.5 times larger than Canon S95's 1/1.7-inch sensors and 1.6 times larger than the Micro Four Thirds sensors. APS-C sensors also perform a bit better than the GF2's in low-light. I tested all 3 in real life (borrowed a GF2 from a friend who bought it from Asia, and I own a S95), and result is exactly what PC Mag says. NEX-3 is simply better! I was glad I made the right choice.

Samsung Digimax L73 7MP Digital Camera with 3x Advance Shake Reduction Optical Zoom (Black)

I have had this camera for about two weeks and I must say I'm very impressed. After three plus years of owning my bulky, chunky Panasonic Lumix 3megapixel Camera I decided to try the Samsung Sleek and Sexy Lifestyle (L-series) Digital Camera. Correct me if I'm wrong but for you cost conscious consumers out there, this camera is almost identical to the NV11, the differences are: 10megapixel instead of 7 (only important if you are planning on printing Poster Size pictures), the Schneider Lens in the NV is "world renowned" but my L73 takes breath taking pictures as well, and finally the NV11 has a flip up Flash instead of a front built-in flash like the L73 and I like the flash being built in instead of flip open because having to manually flip open the flash seems like a bad design choice. The MAJOR difference between the NV11 and the L73 is the price the NV11 costs $250 and the L73 is $150

Picture Quality/Features: As stated above, I've gotten nothing but fantastic pictures out of this camera. The Auto feature does give average picture quality indoors, and outdoors you will want to play with features, but that's the beauty of this camera, adjusting a setting and taking a test shot is as easy as sliding your finger over a touch sensitive button and changing lighting settings, exposure, scene variables like motion shots, dark shots, super close-up macro shots, there's tons of easy features. The best is when you're first getting used to the camera and the features, it's defaulted to telling you what each little picture means, so you don't have to guess what a stick figure stands for in the options. Night shots are great I just bought a 53" tripod on Amazon and gone around the lakes to take amazing shots, it reminds me of my old SLR back in high school and that amazed me. So taking great pictures is easy to do right out of the box, but you'll fall in love with the features and tweaking them so you get the absolute best result you wanted.

Battery Life: The lithium Ion battery was new to me, I'm used to using two AA batteries about every time I go out (talk about wasting money) but the this little battery has kept a full charge after one week of light use. Since initially messing with features and waiting for my tri-pod to arrive in the mail I've used the camera about 6 or 7 times and the battery is still at it's full three bars. **make sure with any lithium ion battery operated device, that you drain the battery completely when you first get it and then charge it the maximum number of hours it states in the manual. To avoid over charging, don't charge it again until that full charge is once again depleted. This will give you maximum battery power from then on** I considered getting a backup battery but I think I'll wait because this battery lasts long enough for my needs. If you are planning on taking lots of pictures or going on vacation where you can't access a Powered USB connection or AC connection I'd recommend an extra battery. It's a SLB-0837 3.7v lithium Ion battery you can buy them online for about $10-$15.

Cost-Benefit: This camera was a great purchase, Circuit City doesn't carry them in their store (most likely because it's so similar to the NV10 and NV11 that it'd hurt the sale on the more expensive models) but you can buy it on their website and shipping is fast. All together I bought the camera($153+$4 shipping), slim carrying case($10), 2 Year Protection Plus Plan Damage Protection ($48), Laminate Screen Protector ($5) and 53" aluminum tri-pod($15+$3 shipping) so all together I spent about $238 for a camera that's protected for years to come and I couldn't be happier, it's slim enough to fit in my backpack and durable enough to withstand a day in the life of a college student, and then it also takes great pictures and with a little messing around you can get any situation shot perfectly.

The DEAL BREAKER for me was the Video Capturing Abilities! Normal Digital Cameras take low resolution video, but this Camera takes near DVD quality Video. The resolution is actually higher than a regular DVD. It's 800x592 and it's captured in AVI format. ALSO, you can pause the recording instead of starting a new video it resumes recording from where you paused! I plugged it into my 40" LCD and of course it was nothing High Def but it sure wasn't bad coming from a little Slim Camera.

High On Features, Low On Cost. Go check it out for yourself! Also check out YouTube and search for the Samsung L73 and you'll see the TigerDirectBlog video review of the camera.

I sort of fell into this camera, by accident. I was looking at the 7.2 MP Digicams in Walmart, and wrote down what I thought was the correct model number. Looking them up on Amazon, I found them for a slightly higher price, but with the addition of a free 2 gig card. I ordered one that night.

What I really found was the better L73, and not your standard Digicam. My only experience with digital cameras was a crappy DXG camera, and a four year old Kodak.

From going from a dated Kodak, to a state of the art Samsung wasn't really all that big of a stretch. I read the book, and spent a couple hours playing with it, and was taking quality pictures with it right away.

If I could have given the l73 camera six stars, I would have. It takes great pictures and good video also. It has everything a novice could want in a camera, and much more.

There were a few things the book didn't cover very well, but were easily looked up on the internet.

To the guy who said he didn't get his memory card. You did know, you were supposed to add it to your shopping cart, right?

Buy Samsung Digimax L73 7MP Digital Camera with 3x Advance Shake Reduction Optical Zoom (Black) Now

I just bought this camera today, July 5 2007, from a local Superwalmart. I'm fourteen and my birthday was just a few weeks ago, so i'm not really a big shopper. This is my second Samsung camera in just over a year. Last year, I got the Samsung Digimax S500 for my birthday, and I absolutley loved it. After about 9 months, the design got kind of old, and it had been through some bad times. I currently own the new Samsung L73, and I love it. Of course, the 2.5" LCD screen is large, but now pretty basic for camera's. But i'm not complaining. However, because of the large picture size, and a smaller screen, the pictures look some-what low quality. HOWEVER! The pictures on the computer are amazing! It's love. The shutter delay on Auto mode is pretty slow, because it is trying to focus it so you can have the best quality pictures. However, the ASR mode, (Anti Shake Reduction) takes crisp, clean pictures. I was literally shaking the camera half to death, and when i looked at the picture, you wouldn't have known if i was holding it still or not. I love this camera. Also, the rechargeable batery compared to the older models of Samsung camera's is a pig plus! Thank you samsung for a well built camera!

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I bought this camera to replace my bulky old 3.2 mp fuji camera. The pros are small compact size, fits in my pocket without being uncomfortable,large display screen,great battery that lasts a long time and quickly recharges,I love the touch pads that allow you to quickly navigate through most functions.The cons are low quality video,but at this price you can't expect HD Quality.All in all this is a great point and shoot if you don't want to spend $200 plus for the sony.

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My only point of comparison are Canon cameras just so you know where I am coming from. I was trying to decide between this or the Canon SD1000. Finally, I decided on this because of cost. After using this camera for about 2 weeks, I should have bought the Canon. The handling of the camera is decent but there are just too many buttons and cheap, unnecessary features. The smart touch works well but I prefer the old wheel found on most cameras.

Overall:

Pros:

-many features for the price. 7MP

-looks great and well built

-awesome high resolution video mode

-the viewing screen is bright and high res

CONS:

-the shutter lag is just horrible

-larger than the canon.

-too many buttons. interface is not simple.

Apple Mini Display Port (DisplayPort) to HDMI Adapter w/ 6 feet Male to Male Hdmi Cable, and a Auxi

The adapter and HDMI cable work perfectly for my Macbook and Vizio TV. The items arrived quickly and I am completely satisfied with my purchase.

Works like a dream. Nice to connect the laptop up to the TV to view shows and movies since I don't have cable anymore

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Works just as directed. If your tv screen isn't reflecting your computer you have to change the output settings on your Mac. We looked on YouTube for a video.

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The HDMI cable is pretty shotty, but the adapter is worth the price alone. Save yourself some cash and go for it.

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Everything works great and the price is much cheaper than buying these cords in a store. It did take a few tries to get everything plugged into the right place on my TV.

HP Photosmart 8250 Printer (Q3470A#ABA)

This is an excellent printer for the serious photographer. The images are clear, sharp, and crisp, and professional in every way, at least to my amateur eye. I am a picky amateur photographer, and I bought this printer so that I could easily print 8x10, 5x7, and 4x6 photos from my several digital cameras. This printer does the job. This is a beautifully engineered and solid piece of equipment.

Some technical issues. Beware, when the ink first prints, it smears easily, so let it dry for a few minutes--it dries quickly enough. I am happy to say that the photo download from the card reader slot (I measured it on the CF card reader--I haven't tried it for my SD cards yet) is lightning fast, as compared to my older HP printers, I guess that is the USB 2.0 that this device features. This is a welcome improvement--earlier HP printers lagged behind even cheap card readers in speed. No more.

So far my print feeds have been flawless and jam-free. You can effortlessly switch between 4x6 and 8x10 prints, and the feeds are fine. (Haven't tried 5x7s yet, but I expect no problems.) When you first take the printer out of the box it will prompt you to put paper in the printer and let it test the ink cartridges. Beware--you need to install them first. This only takes a second, and these are the most foolproof printer cartridges I have ever seen, but the printer does not tell you that the cartridges are not yet installed, at least not until you try to run the diagnostic. No big deal; I installed them, and the printer calibrated itself perfectly!

The printer installed perfectly and effortlessly the very first time. Simply insert the supplied CD and follow the instructions. Remember not to insert the (not supplied!) USB2 cable into the computer until the software prompts you to do so.

It appears to me that some of the other reviewers (here on Amazon) of this printer made the same initial mistake I made. Specifically, here is the deal: this printer can detect what kind of paper you are feeding it (if it is HP paper anyway)--it detects it from a code on the back of the paper and it adjusts the ink application accordingly. Further, this printer is very precise as to how it applies ink to a given paper type. So if you try to manually tell it what kind of paper you are using, and if you guess wrong, you will get lousy pictures with the ink incorrectly applied. Once I figured out the rather amazing fact that this printer KNOWS what kind of paper it is printing on, I started getting wonderful pictures. (It literally never occurred to me that it could do this--I had to, you guessed it, read the manual to find this out). This is cool--you can insert different kinds of HP photo paper in the same stack, e.g. matte, glossy, etc. and expect to get perfect pictures without having to look in the printer to see what paper is next. Just tell it on the print menu to automatically select the paper type. I love the 21st century!

Personally, I think that HP has hit a home run with this one. While I cannot compare this one to its rivals from Epson or Canon (I have not reviewed these), I can say that I am completely satisfied. Recommended.

I bought this printer a few weeks ago, and I have been delighted with the results thus far. I use the printer for some document printing, but primarily for photos. Some of the pros are: built-in image editing, support for most digital camera memory cards, USB 2.0, and individual ink cartridges.

I have to disagree with some of the issues presented by other reviewers. With regards to the "dpi issue", I too noticed the dots in some of the photos, but only when I held the photos extremely close (less than 6") to my eyes. No one looking at the photos would hold them that close, and I don't think the dots are noticeable under normal viewing conditions. Some of the other reviewers also spoke about inaccurate color rendering. I had some color issues as well when I first started using the printer, but after tweaking some of the settings, my printed colors are a dead-on match with my monitor colors. Proper color management is absolutely critical to getting accurate colors regardless of what printer you have. Whether you're working in the sRGB or AdobeRGB colorspace, this involves correctly calibrating your monitor, and correctly setting up color management in your photo editing software (I use Photoshop CS2) and printer.

The only gripe I have about the printer is that it would be nice to have larger ink-cartridges, and make them transparent so that a visual check could be done against the built in ink sensor.

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Pros:

Print speed is great (once it has performed it's maintenance cycle).

Dedicated tray for 4x6 photo paper.

Photo printing top notch, including great automatic refinishing options (red eye, smart focus, smart sharpness) as good as any photo lab on the best HP paper.

Direct print from media cards, including still capture from some movie modes.

Hopeful ink cost should be better than combined cartridge models, has 6 individual carts that are ~ $10 a pop.

Cons:

Long and noisy "start up" maintenance cycle or as I call it the daily regiment. Once completed it's fairly quiet and FAST.

Slow transfer to PC from media card readers will not replace your dedicated USB 2.0 card reader that's for sure.

HP's lovely virtual print driver...if you want to share the printer (or use it for home printing from office VPN/Remote Desktop connections) the driver needs to be manually installed on all PCs don't bother calling HP for help on that though ;-) had to figure it out on my own.

Black and white printing ... not really black, more of a greenish grey. Oh well, it's a photo printer first.

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I must first disclose, that this is my first in-depth experience with printing color photos in significant volume. I am using the HP Photosmart 8250 for a work project, and cost of printing is not a major issue, as my employer is demanding near photo quality.

Personally, I have always been a "gray-scale" fan for my own personal ink jet use, and if given a choice, I would use our color laser printer for printing the photo brochures that I am printing on this HP 8250 (yeah, I know....lasers do not give a real photo-like image, but at 10% of the cost.....).

So, here is my experience.....a co-worker bought this printer, and since the boss demanded "a quality product" for our advertising brochures, the laser printer I prefer using was voted off the island. My first prints on this printer were horrible! I started with regular copy paper, then bright multi-use paper, and finally Office Depot glossy presentation paper. All of these showed blurry, smeared prints, with no color definition.

I learned, by accident, that this printer wants HP brand paper. Any HP paper. I know many say they have had good results from store brand paper, but I had no luck, even after adjusting the printer settings. Even the cheapest HP multi purpose paper showed a nice photo, giving a better result than the high dollar Office Depot brochure paper. Thankfully, HP paper is not much more expensive than store brands. HP really scored a victory here -they are ensuring, by whatever auto-sensing method this machine uses, that users will likely buy their paper.

I am printing mostly on glossy 44 lb stock, and there are some minor defects where dots are visible, or the photo shows some scaliness. However, one must look very closely to see these defects. I have gotten much better results on matte brochure paper---visible dots disappeared. But, the boss likes "the shiny ones."

Finally, and most important, is ink cost. I have printed about 250, 8.5" x 11" brochures, all full color with about 80% image coverage, and my ink cost is now over $300.00. HP represents that the 8250 has a low ink cost, and perhaps this does represent a low cost. Since my experience in printing large quantities of photos with inkjets is limited, I do not know. Do single cartridge inkjets use this much ink? Perhaps those of you that print lots of photos are used to this cost. I love gray-scale.

One observation that could save you a fortune: the cartridges in the photo pack ($35 for all 6 refills, plus 150 4x6 photo sheets) seem to last about as long as the individually sold $10 cartridges. In fact, I tried to find out the volume of ink in the photo pack refills. I called HP to get an answer. Somehow I got switched to what seemed to be their India division (hope I don't get a long distance bill), but the foreign lady still was willing to try to help. After about 20 minutes of persistence, I was told the photo pack 'custom' cartidges have 9 ml of ink in each. Hmmm....

If that number is accurate, they contain much more ink than standard cartridges (3.5 ml to 6.0 ml each), and at a cost more than 40% less than individual refills. Actual testing is needed to confirm, but HP seems to go to great lengths to hide the ink volume for 'custom' cartridges. However, after going through 40-50 cartridges, I have noticed no difference in longevity. Further, the actual ink volume is not important, as the sensor on the cartridge estimates ink levels. So, give the photo value pack a try---you may lower ink costs by 40%.

So, to recap: this printer does produce images most would call very good, at least if you use HP paper. It is easy to use. I can confirm the paper feeding problems others have described, especially with heavy papers. Any volume printing requires many ink cartridge changes. And, printing gets very expensive, however perhaps the expense is not unique to this model.

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WOW! That is all I have to say about this printer. HP has finally shown that once again it will always lead the pack and make everyone else copy their technology. I just got this printer about a 4 days ago, and the speed and quality of the prints are faster and just as close as my i9900. The first thing that allured me was the ink and printhead being seperated which allows for a more continuous flow of the ink which by the way seems like it never runs out. There is a new closed tank system where the ink is recycled when it is used during maitenance procedures!!! Great plus! Also the printhead has 3900 nozzles which makes this puppy push out photos faster than some of my other pro photo takers have ever seen. I love this printer and suggest for anyone into photography from casual printers to serious ones (that can take the limit of 8.5" x 24) to go get this printer. For around the $200 price range and only $34.99 to replace the ink and get paper!!! IT IS THE BEST DEAL AVAILABLE! HP you have once again won me over. Keep the creativity flowing.

BlueRigger High Speed HDMI to DVI Adapter Cable (3 Feet/ 1 Meters)

I am a retired 25-year computer professional and still builds custom PC's for high-end clients. I have yet to see a cable of this quality, for a consumer product, and rarely for even data centers. It may cost a little more -I ordered because of the specific length requirements but it's great. The cable is thick enough for great signal strength and insulation, gold-plated contacts (friends, ALWAYS look for gold plated contacts as gold conducts electricity better than even copper and does not oxidize as much) which is always a sign of a better quality cable. But the cable is not so stiff and thick as not to bend easily for routing purposes (you know to keep those high-tech cables from being ugly).

This is now my preferred cable. I use it, will always buy for my computer/Multimedia installations (I do Home Theater, HDTV stuff too), and will recommend to my friends.

Oh yeah, great seller too: Prompt ship, product exceeded my expectations, and for the quality definitely a fair price.

This HDMI to DVI cable works great. I used it to connect the switched HDMI output of my home theater receiver to my older-style HD TV monitor (without an HDMI port). The picture is clean and vibrant. This cable is an outstanding value.

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The cable feels like it will last a long time, it's flexible, and works great. I recommend the product and would buy it again if needed.

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Works great. I needed this adapter to run from my video card (HDMI output) to my new LED monitor (DVI input). Easy hook up right out of the box, I only wish I went with the 6ft cable vs the 3ft cable because I barely had enough room to hook up my second monitor.

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I ordered two of these for use on Mac-Minis. They are the right length for my desktop setup and work well. Would by again.

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