Panasonic SDR-S150 3.1MP 3CCD MPEG2 Camcorder w/10x Optical Zoom (2GB Card Included)

I have been using this camera for several weeks in lots of different conditions: indoors, outdoors, action, stills, etc. Overall, it is a great camera if you are looking for good video performance, acceptable still performance for a video camera, no tapes, and an incredibly small size which truly does fit in your pocket.

I have not had any of the dark video issues mentioned above.

I have owned many previous miniDV cameras including a JVC, Canon Elura, Panasonic 3CCD, and Sony DCR-PC1000. To my eye, the video this camera produces video as good as the others in terms of sharpness and color accuracy. I tested it side-by-side with the Sony (the most recent model of those shown), and it performed about the same to my eye as the Sony with video, although color was a little more accurate on the Panasonic, and the still images were noticeably better. I was concerned about getting an MPEG2 camera thinking the compression would cause artifacts and have trouble with action video. I have had no problems with either.

The real reason I tried this camera is that all of the above cameras have broken after a couple years of use due to a broken tape handling mechanism, and I was thrilled about the idea of a tapeless camera! The battery lasts much longer due to not having to drive a tape, and the startup time is great since it doesn't have to get the tape across the recording heads after you switch it on. I also prefer no hard drive for durability and battery life issues, and none of the hard drive cameras are even close to this in size.

Now the trade-offs you make with this camera. At first I thought it didn't go very wide-angle which was disapponting (44mm 35mm equivalent, I think?), but I tested it side-by-side with the Sony and it was nearly identical, and I never noticed lack of wide angle on the Sony. Also, the MPEG2 format is a bit of a pain. I use Final Cut Express and iMovie on a Mac, and neither reads MPEG2 directly. That said, there is a free utility which seems to be very good called Streamclip, or you can buy a $20 add-on for your QT player to play and convert MPEG2, but it's still an extra step in the process. I believe that Premiere does not support it either. Just be aware that it's not as compatible with as many editing apps as ubiquitous miniDV and a conversion step is required.

The only other camera I seriously considered (after ruling out tapes and hard drives) was the Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD1A, which is also an SD-based camera. Despite having a 5MP still image resolution, most video reviews for it were extremely negative. Some surmised that this is really a still camera at the core, marketed as a video camera. Furthermore it does not have optical image stabilization, which I consider a near-must for such small cameras if you want smooth video. It does indeed record in HD, but at least one review said the video quality was poor enough that it didn't really matter. It does indeed record in MPEG4, though, which is natively read by iMovie.

So if you don't mind a significantly larger camera and tapes, there may be more compelling options like the Sony HDR-HC3 which records in HD, or perhaps one the hard-drive models. But if you're looking for a tapeless video camera, and especially an SD-based one which takes truly high quality video, this appears to be the only real choice out there at the moment (Nov 2006).

After reading the reviews here and at on this baby, I was a little cocerned about its low-light and indoor performance. Let me be the first to say that my fears were largely unfounded.

Yes, if you film in very low light, it will darken many colors. But we're talking 60 lux, which is the roughly equivalent to the light put off from the candles of a birthday cake. Just keep the lights on when your kid blows out the candles, and viola! Seriously, I have had absolutely no problems with it filming too dark indoors, outdoors, or even when I film local bands playing in dark bars.

The reason I wanted to try this camera was because it is the only flash-based camera that is receiving even mildly positive reviews. I do not want a tape mechanism that will break, nor a fragile hard drive that cannot be used in many film-worthy conditions (think snow skiing, as the drive mechanism will freeze up on you in very cold weather).

As I said, I was skeptical when I purchased it, but no more. The videos are far better than any other camcorder I've owned. My last was a Canon ZR 50 mini DV, and this camera takes VASTLY superior videos than that one.

The four stars is only because of the mpeg2 format this records to. I have a mac, so editting requires that I convert to DV with streamclip so that imovie can import the movies. Mainly, I just don't edit my home videos so that hasn't been a problem. But if would have been nice for it to be an easier option, and it could have been if they encoded to mpeg4 with h264 and mp3/aac, which appears to be the next standard.

If that concerns you, or if you want HD, you might wait until the Panasonic SD1 is available because it records in AVHDC which is a form of mpeg4. Of course, imovie doesn't yet support that either, so you may have to wait until iLife 07 to really use it.

In parting, I will also mention that the size of this unit is absolutely fabulous. I no longer dread lugging around even my smallish mini DV camera. This thing literally fits in my jacket pocket, so I end up filming a lot more than I did with previous cameras. If you're looking for small, flash-based, and good quality video, get this camera, you'll love it.

Buy Panasonic SDR-S150 3.1MP 3CCD MPEG2 Camcorder w/10x Optical Zoom (2GB Card Included) Now

Panasonic SDR-S150 is a wonderful camera.

I am extremely happy with it and recommend it to everyone.

Popular Mechanics magazine has named it the best in its class and I completely agree.

I bought mine in the end of September of 2006 and was using it every day for the last 10 months.

The sales person at J&R store has recommended it to me, based on customers feedback and I am grateful to him for good advice.

The camera makes very decent videos.

Excellent optics, 3-CCD, and true image stabilization do their job.

The videos are bright, sound is excellent.

But most important for me is how easy it is to work with the camera and with the video clips once you made them.

One can use the cable and software provided with the camera, but I like things simple. I take the SD card out, insert it into a $10 USB card reader and copy the files onto my computer with the mouse. Then I rename the clips I change extension MOD into MPG.

These clips are in true mpeg-2 format, which is the same format as

in regular DVDs. So many DVD players will natively play those clips without any editing or converting. Also on most computers you can simply double-click on the clip to make it play. If not you can dowload one of the many free or low-cost software players. I like the VLC player (just google for vlc player) it is available for both Window and Mac and it is free.

I made our grandmothers very happy. I burn a collection of video clips of our baby on a regular CD (yes, CD, not a DVD) and mail to them. They can play those video clips on a computer or on a DVD player (portable Phillips is a good choice).

The camera is very easy to operate.

The built-in battery lasts for ~ 70 min (use a spare one or use an included power supply if you need more).

Camera also makes decent still photos.

I have many more expensive cameras at home (photo and video), but I found that once I bought this camera I use it almost exclusively. Partly becase of ease and convenience.

With this camera I don't need huge disks, powefull CPUs, lots of RAM, or hours of video editing. It makes your video production very easy and fun.

Camera comes with its own editing software. But I prefer to use Adobe Premier Elements ($99). There is also some good software for Macs. So I can easily make videos with titles and menus, or make mp4 or flash videos for iPod or web.

Cons:

1. No input for external microphone. But the built-in stereo microphone is very good I tested it by making a recording of a concert violin and then extracting the audio and analyzing it using Adobe Audition software. The recording is very clean, because there are no motors in the camera.

2. The compression artefacts can be visible when you making fast movements with the camera. This is rare, though.

Camera can be mounted on a standard tripod.

It is very light and small.

Overall I really enjoy it.

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After opening the box and charging the battery, I had it shooting without cracking the user manual. Easy to use and confidence-inspiring. The menu system is mostly self explanatory, the only changes I made were to put it in XP (highest) quality mode, 4:3 instead of widescreen aspect ratio, disable digital zoom. Most of the options you'd want are there.

This is a tiny device, about the size of my 4-yr old 3x zoom digital still point and shoot. As such, the screen size is a little small, particularly if you are shooting 4x3 instead of widescreen. The case is mostly plastic but feels solid nonetheless. Be sure to attach the included grip extender to the tripod socket. This is crucial for one-handed operation of the zoom.

I like the use of thumbnails to identify each clip. So you can delete unwanted clips in the same way you would delete photos from a still camera.

I was pleased with the image quality. I tested it indoors in daylight and with bulbs and fluorescent lights. I didn't see the low-light problems some people have mentioned, but I wasn't shooting in candlelight... I've heard good things about the still image shooting so having a still camera with 10x optical zoom is a nice bonus.

I had no problem with the Mac connection, just download Mpeg Streamclip and Apple's $20 mpeg2 plugin, and you can convert to DV format for iMovie. Though some users may find this difficult or annoying.

UPDATE May 2007. Just a quick update on my earlier review, I wrote up instructions for transferring video from this camera to iMovie on a Mac. Once I'd written them out I realized it's more involved than I had thought, but hopefully these step by step instructions will help someone. Also hopefully Apple will make this easier in the future...

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**UPDATE MAY 2007************

I just got back from Turkey, and really put this camera through its paces. All I can say is WOW. The convenience is absolutely an overriding factor to any flaws. Flipping back-and-forth between video and still photos is a snap. I can't prove it but there were many still photos taken while in a moving car that should not of come out...I wonder if the "stabilizing" video feature works during still shots as well. The instance (2 second) "on" feature meant I also got shots I would have missed with any other camera. The absolute best travel camera I've ever owned. If I could, I'd change my ratings to five (5) stars.

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I was looking specifically for the magic combination of an all-around video and still camera that was compact and built very solid that I can travel with easily. I have had this camera since Dec 19th, 2006.

I had very bad luck with my previous camera, a Canon Elura that used MiniDVs. When it worked, the videos were great, but the cassette mechanism kept falling out of adjustment and failing on trips or gatherings, and I lost many unrecoverable moments! I had an extended warranty and sent it back 3 times, but they were never able to fix it properly. Perhaps this was an unusual lemon, but I did not want to take the chance again! Of the many media types, I've been told the SD cards are the most durable and almost indestructable. I liked the idea of no moving parts for recording videos.

In addition, I was tired of having a separate digital and video camera, and the technology has finally arrived to combine the two.

For the non-professional camera person looking to catch candid home and travel shots and videos, I've found this is to be a great little camera. It is amazingly small, and really will fit in a coat pocket. Extremely solid, it is also a snap to use, yet still provides powerful manual override abilities. The camera turns on within a few seconds. The video colors are extremely natural and not oversaturated in any way, and the resolution very fine. The microphone works well, and of course there is no "tape hiss" since there is no tape. The still photos are of fair quality. I printed some at 8 x 10 and they looked decent: However, if very-high quality photos are what you are after this is NOT the camera for you. Again, this is definitely for the snap-and-shoot-for-memories crowd, not for people who want to win photography awards. The miniscule pop-up flash is amazingly powerful.

I also looked at the Sanyo which has a competing SD model with a higher still photo resolution ability, but it does not have any motion compensation ability. Given how small these cameras are, it is not possible to hand-hold without jiggling it a lot, so I ruled the Sanyo out.

Okay, now the negatives. There are quite a few, but for what it does I still found this to be the best camera for my purposes:

(1) The camera does not record well in low-light conditions, I'm sure due to the light required for 3CCD color processing and the small size of the lens (cost of being compact!). Filming indoors requires pretty good light to ensure decent videos. My christmas tree light pictures were disappointing, and my backlit scenes came out looking like shadow-puppet plays.

(2) The cost of buying additional 4GB cards is high, and I am worried about misplacing them because they are so small.

(3) I experienced wide swings in overand under-exposed still photos using the flash, although I was (usually) able to balance the brightness and contrast with my photo editor. I'm sure this is partly due to not being used to the camera yet, but the whole idea is not to have to worry about such things. Flash fill-in on backlit subjects works amazingly well.

(4) The LCD display on the camera is not synchronized to the same level of brightness and contrast as your TV set or your PC, which you will have to adjust upwards during playback. Thankfully, my Sony TV allows custom adjustments for each input source. Ditto when you are creating DVD's...you will need to increase the brightness and contrast to match what you see when playing back a scene through the camera's own LCD viewer.

(5) There is no still photo zoom playback on the camera (at least I have not found it yet). Frequently, I think a snapped photo comes out okay, only to realize when "zooming" the image on the pc to review the details that it is slightly blurry and I need to retake it.

(6) You will need to use the included software to view the MPEG2 videos, as MPEG2 is not an included driver in the editing tools I've reviewed.

(7) There was no still photo editing software included, only video software. I supposed Panasonic assumes everyone has their own photo editing software already, but I didn't. My Canon photo editing software works for these photos, so I am using that.

(8) Finally, the battery fits inside an enclosed compartment, so you are not able to buy an extended battery pack. Since there is no energy required for running a hard drive, DVD burner or tape, admittedly the batteries seem to last longer before recharging, but I still can't see taking a trip with less than 2-3 packs. I guess I will be spending extra on more batteries!

Even with these drawbacks, there is no doubt that this is an amazing sleek winner with really no competitor in its class that I intend to use heavily at home and on my travels!

Sony MVC-FD88 Mavica 1.2MP Digital Camera with 8x Optical Zoom

This camera has a lot going for it. The first picture I took turned out great! The camera is very user friendly which is good because the manual that Sony provides is not very well organized or well written.

I find the floppy disk storage to be easy and convenient. The camera allows you to make a copy of the disk right in the camera so you can share copies of photos with friends on the spot.

The Mpeg movies are a fun little add on. I am taking the camera to England in April and I think it will be fun to capture little movie clips over there.

The rechargeable battery seems to be adequate. I am planning to purchase the more powerful one that provides longer charge.

The video and audio cables provided allow easy viewing of the photos on the TV set.

The only negatives with the camera are the difficulty holding the view steady when the zoom is on (but no other digital camera maker provides a zoom this powerful) Also, the light that leaks out of the window at the top of the LCD screen. This can be annoying in a dark room.

Overall, this camera delivered the features that I was looking for.

We bought this and are 100% satisfied. We borrowed ourfriend's MVC-73 and took about 100+ pictures before our MVC-FD88arrived. The thing about this camera is that you don't worry about running out of storage media just about any store sells floppies and cheaply. And, the secret to getting those great pictures is to take alot of them. We have coworkers who own more than 2 digital cameras made by different manufacturers, that use other storage media, and are still looking for the right combo of features and performance. If we get another camera it will be an upgraded Mavica. If we had bought a camera that used a memory stick, compact flash, smart media card we wouldn't have the hundreds of photos that we have now (our camera arrived in January 2000). Floppies are so cheap! Sony does it again with ease of use as well. Compared to other cameras, Sony's menu really is intuitive. It just makes sense. If you buy this camera, buy the accessory kit. The battery that comes with the kit is cheper than buying the battery by itself! Tips: Here's the way we use it. We carry about 3-4 floppies on short outings, more on longer outings. Sometimes we carry my notebook. If we run out of floppies, we upload them to the notebook, or on the nearest computer. We leave the default file names alone (mvc-xxxx) serialnumber and place each disk's worth in a folder for that month (2000-03 for march, 2000-04 for april). We then erase and re-use the diskette. Next when we get the chance, we upload our pictures from the notebook or friend's computer onto one of our free photo storage accounts on the web again leaving the filename as the first part of the description along with an additional description, if we have time. We also download our pictures or copy them off the notebook to our main computer. Then we make backup copies of the folders with the pictures on our main computer's hard drive. So we usually have 3 copies in accessible places main computer drive, web and CD/Orb. Hard drives do crash so you'll want to keep backup copies on another site or media. When we're out with our camera at friend's homes, sharing pictures is so easy, since we can leave them a copy of our pictures on their computer. (more backups!). I suspect by the end of the year we will have several CDs filled with our pictures taken by this camera. Finally, read the manual so you'll know how to work all the features packed into this camera. END

Buy Sony MVC-FD88 Mavica 1.2MP Digital Camera with 8x Optical Zoom Now

What an AWESOME camera -I can't say enough good about this camera. It is so user friendly that we purchased it for my 70+ year old parents for Christmas, and they are already using it to sell things at online auction sites. Resolution is EXCELLENT, ease of use is exceptional, and you cannot beat the convenience of just popping a disk into your computer and pulling up the images -WHY would anyone waste their time (and more importantly their money) on those digital cameras with dumb "smart cards" that require cabling into your computer and all kinds of fancy software. The Sony comes with respectable software, but I HIGHLY recommend purchasing PICTURE IT software -it is ideal for use with this camera. If I had one criticism it would be about storage space the floppies don't hold as many pictures as I'd like, but it's really not a big issue unless you're going out somewhere with the intention of taking a lot of pictures and plowing through them later (in which case you just need to take some spare floppies with you). Truly a camera you will buy and be enjoying immediately.

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After carefully studying the features, using them inside thestore, and viewing the pictures on one of their display PCs I washappiest with the high resolution photos that the FD-88 produced as well as it's special effect's capability. I also appreciated the lack of legacy adapters and wires. Its use of standard 3.5 floppies is great. You'll be hard pressed to find a computer without a floppy disk now or in the future.

I worked up the courage to buy it, I've been using it for several months now, and I have NO regrets. A couple friends have some of the newer Kodak, AGFA, and Olympus models and they're all disappointed with theirs compared to the FD-88. The disk writes pretty fast and you can get usually 10 or 12 highest quality photos per disk. Movie resolution is good for PC and Web use, but, its 15 sec or 60 sec recording limit can be a little limiting. END

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I was a little hesitant to purchase this model, because every review I read about it mentioned the bulky size. I decided to compromise on the size to get the feature of being able to store the pictures directly onto floppy disk. To my surprise, the size did not bother me at all, and the camera is actually lighter than I expected. The features of the camera are really great, and the different image size and quality settings allow for a lot of versatility. I love the fact that I don't need any cables or special equipment to download to my computer. I just pop in the floppy disk and it's ready to view or send. I only have two criticisms of this camera, which prevented me from giving it a perfect score: First, the instruction manual is not very clear, and left a lot of questions in my mind. It seems that it was translated hastily into English by a non-native speaker. Second, the e-mail function, which stores the same picture onto disk twice, one regular size and the other compressed for sending through e-mail, is a great function. However, the quality of the compressed e-mail picture is not very good. One helpful hint: If you are going to send your pictures over the internet to your friends, take a regular picture (don't use the e-mail function) and make sure to use a program like NetZip to compress the information first before sending. If you don't, your friends will hate you for making them wait so long to download so much information!

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H3 8.1 MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Zoom with Super SteadyShot Image Stab

I've been looking for a new camera to replace my Canon A70 (3MP w/3x optical zoom) for some time. I was looking for a camera that was as portable, with a significantly higher megapixel rating, and a much better zoom. But I also wanted it to have as simple a button layout. I also wanted to avoid breaking the bank.

So, I've been looking at a number of mid-range cameras currently available on the market. Most of the Canons I looked at have opted for more complex button layouts. I liked my old Canon, but was not willing to trade complexity for performance. Many of the other models such as Panasonic's Lumix (or even Sony's H7 and H9) are considerably more bulky, thus not as portable (as they can't be slipped into a pocket). Many of the smaller cameras also came with a smaller optical zoom rating (opting to use digital zoom which really only degrades image quality).

The Sony H3 has thus far been my favorite camera available at this time. The button layout is simple, as are the two main menus. I love the 10x zoom (with which I've consistently been able to zoom in across a room and get a clear picture of the "writing on the wall"). The more I play with it, the more cool features and abilities I seem to find. I've been quite impressed with its anti-shake image stabilization, and its sports feature which seems to let you capture objects in motion without a lot of messy blur. I even found that I could take pictures while the camera was panning slowly and have the images come out without too noticeable of blur. In a few cases, I even still got legible print on signs, etc. I rather like the in-LCD mode wheel reminder that lets you know which option you've just switched to on the jog dial, and what that mode is good for. In all, this is a great little camera. I haven't had a chance to test it out in low light situations, but I've heard that it does relatively well (with perhaps a bit of image noise in lower light, higher sensitivity settings).

Over all, a nice, nice camera!

That all said, I'll add a few caveats:

1) This camera does not have a viewfinder, rather only an LCD. Personally, I've never had a problem with LCDs, but some may be put off by the lack of a viewfinder under certain situations (or, so I hear).

2) This is not a DSLR. It's not intended for "professionals." So, don't expect a professional level camera. This seems to be designed for the high end hobbyist / casual photographer, and does quite well for what it is, as far as I can tell, thus far.

3) This camera uses Sony's Memory Stick Duo or Pro Duo memory cards, which is slightly proprietary (though several companies manufacture cards of this type), so it seems to be slightly more expensive than competing SD cards. But, if you're willing to pay a few extra bucks for the cards, I hear they tend to be pretty good quality (especially the Pro cards, which have a faster access time).

So, as long as you don't expect "pro" features, you won't be disappointed. If you come from lower end digital cameras and are upgrading, you'll probably find this to be a nice machine for you. I'd still recommend going to your local brick and mortar store to actually handle the various cameras, try out the zoom, try out the movie feature, see how they all feel in your hand, see how the different cameras fare on moving subjects, or with hand shake, or a moving camera. I think the H3 stacks up well against the various competitors in the mid-range space.

I would not even object to someone lightly calling this camera "revolutionary" insofar as it takes the camera into the extreme zoom (10x+) market, gives it a high megapixel rating (8MP+) and manages to put it into the "portable" camera market as well (only slightly larger than my old Canon A70)... It seems like the best of several worlds. In my estimation, the best of breed at the moment, and a unit to emulate, for future Sony models and for other brands to copy.

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Addendum (10-11-07): Finally received mine yesterday, and started playing with it under "real world" conditions. It's held up pretty well. Had to figure out which were some of the better settings to use in our house at night (not the best lighting). I noticed that under lower lighting conditions, some of the modes are a bit harder to keep "steady" and avoid blur. Though, once I turned on anti-shake, and multi-point face recognition, it seemed to do better. Likewise when putting it on the low-light portrait setting. It was still necessary to keep it more steady than under bright lighting conditions.

Still testing it out, but have generally been quite pleased with performance. As expected!

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Addendum (11-20-07): Actually, now that I've found out the ^ISO (high ISO) jog dial setting (in combination with playing with some of the settings for lighting type, etc.), low light photography seems to be pretty easy (found out I'd been putting it on the wrong setting by accident). Still a good idea to keep the camera steady on general principle, of course.

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Addendum (11-29-07): Well, I'd promised to review the image quality once I'd had a chance to download some photos and view them on my machine at full resolution.

To be quite honest, I may have to slightly revise down my estimation of the camera on the basis of image quality. I've downloaded a number of photos from the camera, and while they're "large" and "high resolution," honestly, so far they've been lacking. Considerably more than I'd expected. Granted I've mostly been shooting in low light w/o flash, and I've heard that on an automatic setting it can up the ISO which leads to more noise in the image. My experience is thus far consistent with that assessment. However, I took a few shots with flash on the full auto setting for comparison. There was a higher quality level to those images, but they still didn't live up to what I would expect to come out of an 8MP digital with a 10x optical zoom, image stabilization, etc.

Specifically, my gripe is with definition. With an 8MP sensor and a high power zoom with a good lens, I'd expect some pretty darn crisp images (but maybe I just have an unreasonable expectation?). For example capturing definition and details in hairs when zoomed in on a head shot. So far, this has not been the case at all. It appears that the images either don't capture sufficient detail, or somewhere in the processing the detail is removed. I mean, I'm starting to wonder if the camera processes the raw image by applying whatever filters are set up and then by saving a highly "compressed" version of the image to get a better # of pictures out of a memory stick, while sacrificing image quality. If so, I hope there's a way to turn off the "compression" and restore original image quality...

Honestly, when I zoom in on the image, it appears to get rather blocky, some would say "noisy" and there is a lack of definition between elements in the picture (such as between fingers, or between fine locks of hair). IE, the blockiness seems to overlap the region where there should be definition.

If there is a setting for Standard, Fine, Super-Fine detail level as there is with my old 3MP Canon A70, I've not yet found it with the Sony. Perhaps I should read the manual again just to make sure I'm not overlooking something crucial. But, if the images I've seen thus far are representative of the standard quality I can expect from this model, then I may have to grudgingly start my camera shopping search over again. I hate the prospect of having to either trade the simplicity of the Sony for better image quality but more complexity and bulk to say a Canon or a Panasonic Lumix, or trade down in optical zoom rating (as the extended optical zoom was one of the key features I was looking for in a replacement camera).

I might also point out that the camera does not utilize the standard mini-usb cable connector, opting for a proprietary cable that connects both to USB and to AV out cables. The connector worries me, as it seems "loose" when connected and feel flimsy, so I worry about breaking it if I'm not ginger enough with it. Likewise the memory stick pro duos it uses rather than the cheaper more ubiquitous SD/SDHC or some similar thing.

If I find anything more out, I'll add yet another addendum...

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One more addendum (12-19-07): Okay, I've done a lot of reading over the last couple weeks. Specifically,

I was considering upgrading from the Sony H3 to the Canon PowerShot G9. So, I read a lot of camera comparisons and reviews. I even learned a few things! From what I've learned, I can tentively say that some of the issues stem from the specific settings used. Low ISO settings seem to let light in longer, but can lead to more "shake" blur issues. High ISO settings leave the lens open for less time, thus eliminating camera shake issues to some extent (in combination with anti-shake technology). However, the higher the ISO, the more noise tends to creep into the images.

That said, image quality may vary greatly with settings and/or with "user malfunction." IE, learn how to use your camera well and it will love you for it and give you great images. After taking the camera off automatic (sans flash), and setting the ISO to 400 (often a good middle ground, I've found), I was able to take relatively good quality images in non-optimal light conditions (indoors with uneven lighting). Whereas if I dropped down to 80-100 ISO, I tended to get too much blur. If I hopped it up to 800, 1600 or 3200 ISO, I usually got little or not shake, but the images were much more noisy with color aberrations.

Apparently I've a bit of a learning curve for digital cameras. All told, I haven't yet done much experimenting in "optimal" (outside, natural) lighting conditions. Most likely those shots will come out well on "auto" settings. Likewise, ISO 80-200 shots in most situations would come out best on a tripod.

I am still upgrading to the Canon G9, though no longer due to image quality issues per se. Now it's simply for the RAW support and for the 12 MP images. Plus, as I may have mentioned earlier, I previously owned a Canon A70 that I loved to death (well, not to DEATH, as I still have it and it works beautifully). It was a solid machine and always delivered top quality images, especially on its high end 3MP resolution and super-fine quality setting. I just bought the G9 last night, and generally like its layout, despite being slightly more complex. It also feel properly weighty and rugged in my hand. I think I'll enjoy the switch.

So, long story short, know thy camera! The H3 does seem to be an excellent little camera, once you know enough to properly use it. Or, so long as you use it under optimal lighting conditions (or know how best to compensate for non-optimal lighting [with either a flash or the ISO settings]). For a point-and-shoot, it's at a good price point, and has plenty of features, plus, the zoom is excellent, and the pictures come out well when taken properly.

I purchased this camera last week and am already blown away! This camera was to replace a previously purchased DSC-H2 while I loved that camera, the delay time was unacceptable not to mention design flaws causing the shutter button to need to be replaced more than once on two of the H-2's.

I was skeptical in purchasing another Sony since having the above experience w/ the H2 I tried an Olympus and a Fuji neither could hold a candle to the Sony's picture quality -so, back to the store those went and I decided to roll the dice on another Sony...I just couldn't get over the saturation of color and the crispness of the photos you get with the Sony and Carl Zeiss lens...not to mention the advanced sports mode ( I take alot of action pics ) All pics come out spectacular and clear! This camera also has many programming features I especially like the face detection and the "soft shot" mode.

For a 10x zoom this camera is TINY! I was concerned with the size, but Sony made it happen and it's quite an impressive little gadget.

I'd recommend this camera it was a good find and a good buy for me...hopefully this will end my perpetual hunt for the perfect point and shoot ( I think it will! )

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This camera is great in low light. I shot pictures in an auditorium with regular stage light in "High Sensitivity" mode and was able to get 4x6 prints of people (as long as they weren't moving too much) without a tripod and WITHOUT a flash! I did use the 2 second timer so I could hold the camera still while the shutter went off.

I also love the macro setting. You can focus on your subject less than an inch away.

I like the "Advanced Sports Shooting" mode, but I've actually gotten better action shots by putting the camera in "Manual" and setting it to the fastest shutter speed possible. The other advantage of using "Manual" is that you can use the flash.

Speaking of the flash, I absolutely love the quality of light from this flash. No blown out subject in front of a black background. There's even a setting for the flash called "keep subjects and distant background bright" that keeps the ambient light even brighter and makes the picture a lot more natural looking.

The picture quality is amazing!! I haven't done any enlargements yet, but when I zoom in on the computer screen, a lot of my shot seem to be as clear as my SLR shots!

The only problem I've had is that there are a lot of buttons on a little camera so every once in a while I accidentally hit the dial or a button and have to re-set it. But having said that, I definitely wouldn't trade this camera for one with less settings. It's well worth having to watch my fingers more closely.

All in all I'm very happy with this camera. It's by far the best point and shoot I've owned.

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I am amused by all these people who say that the flash is too bright on this camera. They haven't figured out that there is a menu setting for turning down the flash intensity. DO NOT BE AFRAID TO TAKE THIS CAMERA OUT OF AUTO MODE! In the Program AE mode, fantastic indoor pictures can be had by pegging the ISO setting on 100 and turning the flash intensity (EV) down a few tenths of a point. In automatic mode the flash will be too bright. Auto mode is great for outdoor shots but indoors requires a little bit of fidding with the settings. The only situation where this camera doesn't take brilliant pictures is in a twilight setting, but that is hardly a complaint, most cameras stuggle in areas where the lighting is not bright enough for flashless photography, but too bright for the flash to be effective.

In addition to the excellent picture quality, this camera offers one of the best macro modes I have ever used. I recently went to the local public aquarium and was amazed by some of the close up shots of fast-moving fish I was able to capture. All of this in a camera so small! I am utterly amazed by this thing. The focus speeds are nearly as fast as the DSLR's I have used in the past.

My only complaint thus far is with sony's memory sticks. The first one I bought had to be returned because it would not record pictures. This is hardly a fault of this fantastic camera though. Well worth the money! I will post some shots in the product gallery for potential buyers to browse.

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This camera take o.k. pictures but I do not recommend it esp. for the price. See reasons below

0. I bought this mainly because I wanted it for the face detection. Well the faces are invariably over exposed in the auto mode which I use 90% of the time (just like every average user) just like they are with my 4 year old dsc w7. Who has the time to set all the settings when you are trying to capture a moment when a 3 year old is doing something cute?

1. The image quality is suspect when you view the picture on the computer zoomed 1:1. There is alot of noise (or color artifacting). I did a series of comparison tests with my much older sony dsc w7 camera ( a great camera by the way, I bought the h3 thinking it must be even better!). The images taken by the older camera are better than the h3

2. This is not a DSLR so why did sony do away with the automatic lens cover? This makes it a royal pain to remove the lens cover each time by hand and put it back on

3. This camera uses the proprietary sony battery. Yes, maybe this lasts a little longer but other non slr camera use AA batteries. If you use rechargeable 2700 mah AA battries, those last for atleast 300 shots. And if you run out of juice, well you can always buy AA batteries anywhere. If you are like most people, the battery will run out of juice just when your kid gets on stage or when you are posing in front of the golden gate bridge.

4. The cable to connect to the computer is unqiue unlike the dscw7 alluded to earlier which used common usb cable. Where do I go except to Sony to buy a second cable to use to download some pictures at work? The cable looks like it can be easily damaged because it locks into place and if you forget and pick up the camera, it can damage the camera itself. The USB cable would just pop out

5. The number of clicks you need to do to delete a picture is about 5 or 6 which is a lot of clicks compared 3 in the dsc w7. Also in the dsc w7 the delete option stayed highlighted so you could delete all the picture you wanted after the first one with a click. On this it reverts to OK after each one and you need to do a couple of extra clicks. It is annoying to do this.

6. The first h3 I got had a glaring defect in the camera lens visible to naked eye. What kind of quality control is being done. If Sony did not catch this, I wonder what else is wrong inside that I can't find with naked eye?

7. And the pop flash is annoying too. In the dsc w7 you hit the power off button and that was it. In the h3, first you have to push the power off, then you have to put the lens cover back on by hand and then you have push in the flash to retracted position by hand. It is very annoying.

Geovision GV-FE110 1.3M H.264 Fisheye IP Camera 84-FE110-100

Purchased this camera about 3 weeks ago and ended up installing in a door way in my house. With placing of the camera, I am able to actually monitor activity in 3 different rooms. More or less the entirety of the 2 rooms the camera is in between and then because of the picture quality I can easily see quite a bit in third room that is catercorner to the other room. It is doing the work of six different cameras easily.

I plan on purchasing a few more for few more rooms.

Unfortunately this camera is not well suited for low light capabilities. And being what it is I really don't see how they could make it so. When all the lights are turned out, You can see very little if anything. This alone unfortunately, to me make it unsuitable for any out door areas that don't have a descent light. Which is sad, Because 4 of these could literally cover just about every square inch of the outside of my house.

Also, I love the software, it has excellent capabilities, However the software that was included with my camera does not seem to support any non Geovision IP cameras.

Overall, Those are the only 2 issues, And if it weren't for the software lack of support for IP cameras that aren't Geovision I would give it 5 out of 5. However, I have to knock it down a star because of that lack of support.

In addition to a quality product offering, BV Security USA has impressed me with their prompt, direct and friendly customer service. We purchased three FE-110 hemispheric cameras for our retail location (in addition to an FE420 and two fixed lens IP cameras). The cameras are simple to network and produce quality images; with six cameras, we are able to do the work of 16 conventional 480 line fixed lens cameras.

One of the FE110s we received had a cloudy lens, and the North American customer service representative swiftly & politely resolved our issue by replacing the camera, shipping paid both ways. This is the kind of customer service you hope for but rarely expect in modern times.

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The installation is easy and the quality is superb! Excellent for small to mid size room. Quad view for independent view angle. Microphone quality is great, almost no lag thru internet remote access/streamming. Definitely recommend.

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No moving parts yet covers a near perfect 360 degree by 180 degree area. Has easy, one-click configuration for mounting on ceiling, wall or floor. Two-way audio is a great bonus. Installs incredibly easily.

Would be 5 stars if it included IR capabilities. The lens case has IR printed along the band but there are no IR emitters in this camera and my research indicates that the lens is not built to register IR of any frequency, so I assume the "IR" on the band is for something else.

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Canon EOS 5D MARK II + Canon EF 28-135mm Lens + Canon EF 75-300mm UltraSonic Lens + Canon 50mm Lens

I would hesitate to purchase a package that includes a Canon EF-S 75-300mm Zoom Lens in a package for a camera that will not accept EF-S lenses.

If you don't want to became a joke, keep away from this package. this package is like put the chicken wings into a jet body.

Really doubting anyone will buy it. If want to buy it, that means you need a book to study first.

The full frame camera like 5D mark II/III is not ready for you yet.

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This is a complete ripoff. The EF-S lenses that are included with this package will not work with this model of camera!

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The camera box was tampered with so I wasn't comfortable with using the camera with my clients. I own a photography studio. I was under the impression after reading the details on the product that all I repeat all the lenses would work with the 5D mark II. Only two lenses would work others were either too big or would not stay locked into place on the camera. The tripod doesn't work. I do not see how Amazon will let them sell anything on their website anymore after this incident.

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Just know what you're getting when buying.

I was not aware that in this particular Canon model, that not all of the focus points will give you a sharp focus. This by far has been the most disappointing thing given how much this camera costs. You can only really rely on the center focal point. I do believe the new Mark III will correct this issue only wish I would've known before I bought it!!

Love all of the other features, but of course they're not nearly as important as being able to get sharp focus!

You do get 3 Canon lenses, so the camera + lenses and a few of the other items; camera bags, tripod etc probably make the price equal to about what you would pay individually (or at least I hope). :) I'm not sure I needed the extra non-Canon lenses, and don't think the quality is nearly as good as the Canon and they require manual focusing, but of course you won't be paying Canon prices for them...so ok for a starter kit. Not sure the flash is helpful since Canon and other reviews I've read say that using anything other than a Canon flash may not sync properly and you risk damaging the camera -hardly worth taking the risk so now I have to purchase a Canon flash...another 200-300.

On the upside, you do get great shots with the center focus and if you're not worried about super tack sharp images when using the other focal points then no worries. All of the other features of the camera are great. The customer service of the company was good, and I got the camera quickly, so no complaints about buying from them or through Amazon. Only wish I'd known about the focusing issues prior to shelling out so much money. :(

Canon EOS Rebel T3i 18.0 MP Digital SLR Camera Body & EF-S 18-55mm IS II Lens with 70-300mm IS

I had ordered a Canon XSI package from Cameta Camera 2 years ago and unfortunately the camera and accessories were stolen out of my car about a month ago. I ordered a new camera package from Cameta, the T3i with 18-55mm is Canon lens and a 70-300mm is usm Canon lens. I received the items last week in a very, very well packaged box. Everything was in excellent condition. I love the new camera, it's basically set up like the XSI but with video capability and a few improvements. The 70-300mm lens with is and usm are very nice. I am still learning how to use it all and am definately still a beginner camera enthusiast. The camera bag, although a Canon, is adequate for now and is a better quality bag than the off brand I received with the XSI package. I will however be upgrading my bag in a few months to a backpack type camera bag. I would definately recommend Cameta Camera!

Levana Lila Digital Baby Video Monitor with Night Vision and Talk to Baby Intercom 32000 (White)

This is my first exposure to baby monitors. However, I have wireless internet security cameras, so I used that as a starting basis for my evaluation. The product came in eco-packaging. There was a camera, receiver, battery for the receiver, and two wall-wart power supplies. The camera does not come with a battery and needs to be installed within a few feet of a power receptacle. The receiver unit can be plugged in or used with the battery. There is a clip on the unit to allow you to carry it with you (such as on your belt). However I found the clip to be a bit questionable. It is mounted low on the receiver and the clip is not spring-loaded. The clip is much better suited as the flip-out easel stand.

The receiver video screen is in color. The color tends to be a little on the magenta side, but the resolution is excellent for the size. The camera optical quality also seems to be quite good. I was very surprised by the high quality of the images. The camera also uses infrared leds so it illuminates a dark room when viewed with the receiver, and yet no visible light is seen from the camera itself. The brightness of the screen can be adjusted with the controls on the receiver, so it can be used in sunny rooms or even outdoors, or inside rooms with no lighting. Speaking of outdoors, the camera is not suitable for outdoor weather, but it looks like it can be used outdoors on nice days if protected from moisture and extreme temperatures.

The camera also transmits audio back to the receiver. It does this surprisingly well and it also has intercom capabilities. There is a row of green and red leds along the top that light up according to the sound that is picked up. A crying baby would cause the red leds to light, but ordinary sounds only cause 1 or 2 green leds to light up.

There is a foldable antenna on the reciever, but I could use the camera anywhere in a 3500 sq-ft single-level house without needing the antenna to be extended. It may be needed in a multilevel house.

The system did not come with a manual, and no manual is on the website as of this date. It took several minutes to figure out the functions and settings of the buttons on the receiver. It isn't that hard to figure out, but really there should be at least a one-page document to explain the controls inside the box.

I plan to actually use this device in my outer office. When the receptionist is away, I can see people come into the outer office and actually speak to them if needed using the intercom capabilities of the camera. It doesn't take the place of a security camera because it has no recording capability, but it will be nice to see who comes and goes while I'm in another room. The receiver can link to several more cameras, but I have no ability to test this feature, and I don't know if it cycles through each camera automatically or if you have to press buttons to manually cycle.

I'm really impressed with this camera system!

This is my second Levana baby monitor. I also have the more expensive model ERA 32102 which looks more like a cell phone than a baby monitor. It has the same 2.4 inch screen except in portrait mode which somehow makes it look smaller. The Lila is landscape mode which has a wider horizontal coverage. It is very sensitive that you can hear the baby breathe.

One really cool feature that I like and extremely useful is the two-way intercom. I also use it with my middle schooler who is studying in the room to come down when it's time for dinner

It's much more simple to use. You don't have to dig deep into the menus to adjust or find the feature that you need. I like the bigger buttons much more than the ERA's, the later is similar to an iPod's clikwheel which is hard to feel when you are pressing it. The plain white looks makes it looks much cleaner.

Another feature that I like with this monitor is that it doesn't have the red LEDs around camera even when it is on. You can put it on top of the shelf and nobody knows it is on. It is almost completely discreet except for tiny green LED on the side.

It uses a replaceable Lithium-ion battery at 3.7v with 1050 mA. The battery lasts much longer than the ERA 12103, even with the video on. The power adapters that came with it is rated 100-240v.

Cons:

Unless the room is well lit, most of the time it is in night mode and there is no color.

It has a stand but no clip to hang to your belt or clothes.

Buy Levana Lila Digital Baby Video Monitor with Night Vision and Talk to Baby Intercom 32000 (White) Now

I'm very impressed with the video ability of this monitor, particularly the night vision. I didn't expect to be able to see that well in a dark room but this little camera provides what looks like a light on your baby or other subject without any visible light coming from the the camera itself. This camera has 8 invisible infrared LEDs, not the red lights like some other cameras. You can see up to 12 feet away with the camera and monitor. The image on the 2.4 inch monitor screen is very clear and in color when it's light. It gets a little grainier when it's dark in the room and then the images are in black and white. But all of the images are still distinct. The camera can be adjusted 240° horizontally and 65° vertically as you swivel it in its base. It can be mounted on the wall (hardware not included) or you could just set it on a table, pointed in the direction of your baby or other person, pet or object. It's easy to adjust the brightness on the monitor unit. You can use as many as 4 cameras to view different angles and sides of the room and switch between them on one monitor. There is a stand on the monitor, but not a belt clasp but presumably with a video monitor you'd want it in front of you, rather than on your belt where you couldn't see it. You can turn the video off to save on battery power or set it in the power save mode which will turn the screen off automatically if there isn't movement for a minute or more. It turns back on when movement is detected.

The microphone is very sensitive and picks up any sounds in the room. There are little green lights on the front of the monitor increases from a single light to as many as 5, depending on the amount of sound. A loud noise will turn the lights red. Since you can mute the sound on the monitor unit, even if you had the sound off, you'd be able to see if a noise is made, such as a baby waking up and crying (or talking about his E-Trade financial adviser :) ). I was impressed by the sensitivity of the mic to pick up even very faint sounds. You can also push a button to talk to baby but the sound that comes through the camera is kind of harsh sounding. One thing you want to be careful of is walking into the same room as the camera when carrying the monitor. The feedback makes a loud screeching sound. I've found this to be the case with other monitors as well.

The camera is always plugged in and comes with a power adaptor. The monitor also comes with its own power adaptor and is plugged in to charge its rechargeable battery. With the video on, the battery lasts for about 6 hours. But since you can turn it to standby or turn it on only when you detect a sound in the room, it usually lasts more than 24 hours. My review unit came without any instructions but you can download a manual at: mylevana.com/files/30000/manual.pdf It was pretty intuitive and I only used the manual to check on a couple of features after I already had it set up.

I love the compact size of this camera and monitor and its attractive design. The night vision without emitting any light of its own is really kind of amazing. It has a good range of at least 500 feet so I was able to go anywhere in my 3700 sq. foot house without losing the signal. The color screen is very attractive. And this monitor could be used for many other purposes such as monitoring a sick person or pet, or monitoring a door or area of your home or office without spending a lot of money. The small size makes it easy to pick up and move to another area without a lot of installation worries or expense. I'm impressed that technology has come this far on such an inexpensive little unit.

Read Best Reviews of Levana Lila Digital Baby Video Monitor with Night Vision and Talk to Baby Intercom 32000 (White) Here

Note: Levana has a twenty page, illustrated manual for the "Lila 2.4-Inch Digital Video Baby Monitor with Talk to Baby Intercom 32000" available on its website. Like other Vine reviewers, my components arrived in the recyclable box without a users manual. So I got on the Levana website, and engaged the "Live Chat" function. "Charles" came on and gave me the address for a pdf version of the manual. Its a 20 pager with nice illustrations describing all the many functions available in this small but powerful unit:

"mylevana.com/files/30000/manual.pdf" (yes, 30000, not 32000).

"Charles" said that the "Lila 32000" was released just a few weeks ago, and a direct link on the website will be available soon.

The monitor has excellent fidelity in both bright and low light situations. With plenty of light, the color is OK. In low light situations the reception goes to black and white but again, fidelity is actually amazingly good. The audio reception (gathered by the camera and broadcast by the monitorr) is very good and includes a volume control. From the perspective of the "baby," the audio transmitted from the monitor and broadcast by the camera is also quite good. Although you have to wonder what the baby is thinking when she hears Mom's voice, but can't see Mom.

Other reviews detail most of the controls, but here are some specific items which aren't intuitive you actually have to read the manual to figure this out:

1. Push the on/off button on the monitor and you turn off the video, but not the audio. Hold the on/off button down for a few seconds and you turn off the video and the audio.

2. In order to speak to the person on the camera end, you must depress and hold the button on the monitor marked with the "microphone" icon. You must release to listen again.

3. There is a screen brightness setting (five different levels) that allows the user to pick a preferred tradeoff between brightness and battery life (most important if you aren't plugged into AC).

4. There is a battery saving mode that causes the monitor to enter standby/sleep mode after one minute of inactivity. When a sound is detected, the screen changes to live view.

5. The monitor can be set to pair with as many as four different cameras! Press the "pairing" button on the camera to acknowledge and lock in that specific camera to one of four numbered camera icons on the monitor.

The reachargeable battery comes separately in the box and once in place, the back of the monitor is difficult to seat easily, but eventually everything snaps together. There is a strip of green lights on the top of the monitor which give a visual measure of the amount of sound coming into the monitor.

For the price, the Levana "Lily 32000" is a very nice, high quality video and and audio monitoring device. If yours arrives without the user manual, download it using the website address above, and it won't take you long to learn all of the features.

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This is a good option for a portable baby camera solution. It has good color resolution, night vision capability, and is fully portable -with a rechargable backup battery. It also has audio, and allows you to push a button and talk back to the camera. (Unfortunately when you talk back it sounds very Darth Vadery and creepy, and definitely NOT something that would easily calm down a crying child.) It also has an antenna that can be flipped up to give you a full range of 500 feet. Finally, it allows you to turn the brightness up or down which is what you'd need to do if you wanted to use this outside.

PROS:

+++ CAMERA IS COLOR. Aren't they all, these days? But, in any case, it is color and looks nice.

+++ HAS NIGHT VISION. Once the room gets dark enough the color disappears and the picture becomes black and white, but allows you to see in the dark.

++ NO VISIBLE LIGHTS. Well, only one, a green LED, on the BACK of the camera... but nothing to keep baby up, like the red LEDS that used to be used for night vision use in older cameras.

+++ GOOD AUDIO. You can hear pretty well from the camera's microphone and there is a neat LED across the top display which lights up more LEDs the more the camera picks up noise. So, there would be a visual indicator of red LEDS if the baby was crying. (Presumably you'd hear the crying, too, but I suppose if you muted it you'd still know the baby was crying by the LED indicators.)

++ TALKBACK FUNCTION. You can press a button and talk back to the camera -it acts just like an intercom. This might be useful if you were using it in the house with young children.

++ EASY VOLUME UP OR DOWN. Right below the screen there is a very simple to use volume toggle.

+++ RECHARGEABLE BATTERY. This is pretty awesome. You can unplug the monitor station and take it with you around the house.

++ CAN HOOK UP MULTIPLE CAMERAS. I didn't use this function but I found the menu on the device. It clearly can hook up to three other cameras, and you can view them at the same time (I believe) while then selecting the main camera to watch. I did not test this function so please do your own research on this capability.

++ MONITOR FLIP OUT STAND. This means you can place the monitor almost vertical, which provides an easy viewing angle.

CONS:

-TALKBACK FUNCTION SOUNDS WEIRD. It sounded ok, but metallic, and a baby might not be soothed. I see it more working as an intercom for adults.

-NO INSTRUCTION MANUAL. I did not receive a manual in the box. I didn't really need one, but it would have been nice. (NOTE: the manual MAY have been missing because it was an Amazon Vine Product. This may not be standard for new purchases.)

SOMEWHAT HARD TO INSTALL BATTERY. I almost broke the case when I was installing the battery. It was close, so take some time to take it apart and put it back together carefully. There are little ridges of the battery holder which can snap off. Mine didn't, but when I was blindly trying to force the battery compartment closed they almost snapped.

-NO BELT CLIP. This kind of cripples the use of this as something you'd wear while working outside. But, on the other hand, presumably you'd want to SEE it, and wouldn't want to carry it around on your belt. That said, it would have been nice, at least to help in monitoring a baby sleeping.

Overall, I am happy with this product. Recommended.

Tricod 5.6-Inch Digital Photo Frame (DPF-LCD56J)

Nice frame, decent price, good screen.

However beware the following, confirmed by Tricod's tech support:

There is a 142 picture limit in the file system. That is to say the file system can only "see" 142 pictures at a time. The workaround for this is to divide the pictures up into folders of less that 142 on the memory card. However, you will still only be able to do a slide show of each folder, as the frame no matter what will not see more than 142 pictures at one time. If you can live with this limitation, go for it.

UPDATE: Tricod's tech support has been amazing and says that the new versions of the picture frame now support over 1000 pictures in a folder. They had me send my frames back and are sending me new frames. Kudos to a great support team for seeing a flaw and making it right for a customer!

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H90 16.1 MP Digital Camera with 16x Optical Zoom and 3.0-inch LCD (Red) (2012 M

I bought the bundle, which is a great deal. The case is simple but nice (and can store an extra memory card) and the 4GB card saves some money.

The camera itself has a tremendous amount of features, and takes very sharp pictures, even at extreme high zoom. The automatic setting is very clever, and makes smart decisions about lighting and flash--smarter than my 2-year-old Canon. Note: it's strange that a "force-flash" option is not allowed under full automatic mode, but hardly a deal-breaker as you can switch to partial-auto mode. The image stabilization is quite good.

The main con is the pop-up flash, which is annoying because my fingers tend to want to grip the camera there. Even 5 millimeters to the right and would have been no problem, but I suppose it was a compactness issue. The flash is quite powerful for a consumer camera.

Another silly issue is the included manual, which is horribly inadequate. Fortunately you can find a real manual online. The manual is needed because the camera has a lot of hidden complexity, especially if you want to use the top features.

Still, all and all, I'm quite happy with the value for the money, and to get 16x zoom in such a compact form.

Feb-2012

I want to tell you somethings about this model:

What I like the most

Resolution

Smart Mode very simple and useful for no tech people

Great movie resolution

Did I mention the amazing Zoom resolution?

All the characteristics are according to they said!

What I dislike

Flash position, usually I put my left finger where the flash come out. It's a little bit annoying taking pictures using the flash. The publicity didn't mention where the flash is located, neither the specs. :S

Battery: I cannot take more than 15 flash photos. The flash run out the power very fast. (Nov. 2012: it seems that it only happens during the first discharge, after that you can take more photos using the flash, I would say 50 or 60).

Storage: Its SD Card cannot be read on a PC (Windows 7) It gives a message error, something like Couldn't read file format, and if I would like to format the SD Card. I have to use the camara to read the photos, and I need to use battery power, If the battery is discharged I cannot see the pictures.

Nov-2012

So far I had no problems with the camera! it has been a great investment!!!!

Dic-2012

No more SD Card problems. I can read it using PC. Thanks to Kenneth. He explain why windows couldn't read it at first time... check his reply below...

Buy Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H90 16.1 MP Digital Camera with 16x Optical Zoom and 3.0-inch LCD (Red) (2012 M Now

I looked for awhile for a camera that provided me with a great zoom. This camera didn't zoom as much as my old one, but because of the high MP, it actually takes better pictures and when I crop pictures it's a much clearer picture. I love it and the color !

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The feature set for this camera is very good. My wife wanted to replace her 5 year old P&S camera to take pictures of our newborn baby and this camera was perfect.

However, the lowand medium-light autofocus on this camera is very, very poor. She took a dozen or so shots of our baby and I don't think a single one was properly focused. I shoot with a Sony Alpha DLSR so I like to think I have down the basics for focusing an auto-focus camera, and I had a very difficult time getting anything properly in focus. The orange AF illuminator seemingly did nothing; even with it, the camera would hunt around until it just guessed at a focus level. The couple shots I took outside in the sunlight seemed to focus just fine.

Unfortunately this camera needs to perform indoors, so I'll be returning it.

Want Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H90 16.1 MP Digital Camera with 16x Optical Zoom and 3.0-inch LCD (Red) (2012 M Discount?

I looked for awhile for a pocket camera that provided me with a great zoom with a very wide angle lens, very convenient for this one, I often find myself in situations where you need to have a camera and use a lot of flash, one of the thing I like about this DSC-H90 is that SONY improves his flash metering (how the camera magically decides how much light to fire out of the flash) it does his work with outstanding image (it brings the high quality 16.1 megapixel sensor) quality, performance, and low-light capability in a lightweight, compact, also the video capture is another notable improvement in this DSC-H90.

In summary as a professional photographer, I'm quite happy with this DSC-H90, it takes accurately realistic photos, a plus when you don't carry on your professional Nikon D-SLR with you.

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Savage 107" x 12yds Background Paper (#16 Chestnut)

This paper backdrop is very high quality and looks phenomenal in portraits. This color is the one that is requested most by people coming for in studio portraits! This brown is the perfect shade to add a color behind that does not take away from the subject you're actually shooting.

It is thick and easy to work with also. If this is your first time working with the large rolls of backdrop paper, make sure you have a clamp readily available to stop the roll when you get it to where you want it. It will continue to unroll if it isn't clamped in place. Also, do not pull it straight down to unroll it. Stand out away from the stand, where you want the end of the paper to be and let it fall into place to avoid any unwanted creases in the paper. This is easiest if you have another set of hands to stop the roll when it gets exactly where you want it.

Awesome quality! Awesome background paper! And I didn't have to spend hours steaming it like I did with my fabric backdrops.

Buy Savage 107" x 12yds Background Paper (#16 Chestnut) Now

Olympus VR-320 14 MP Digital Camera with 12.5x Optical Zoom and 3" LCD (Silver)

I currently own an Olympus DSLR (E-410), along with a Olympus SP-550UZ super-zoom camera. I decided to buy this camera because I wanted a pocket camera with a nice zoom lens that can take decent quality photos and I received an email from Olympus saying I could get $50 off at select retailers. Disclaimer: I have only had this camera for a couple days thus this review is only based off of a small amount of time of hands on time with this camera.

First -Image quality. If I compare this to my DSLR; the DSLR will beat this camera and my SP-550UZ hands down. There really is no comparison. But if I compare the image quality to other camera within the VR-320's class my opinion would be that this camera easily succeeds the other cameras in terms of image quality. The color is outstanding; oranges are ORANGE, blacks are BLACK, blues are BLUE, reds are RED, etc... Detail in the photos is also great. I don't really know how to describe detail but I will try. Ex) Took a photo of a person holding a Cheeto. The person's face, clothes, Cheeto bag, and Cheeto were all extremely crisp and well defined. The photos I took that achieved this image quality was on a moderately cloudy day with plenty of light. ISO was set at 80 and white balance was on Auto resulting in the camera using an exposure time of 1/1600th of a second and an F-stop of f/3. Jacked the ISO up and took some pictures at ISO of 400, 800. Well, I'll just say that you should never use an ISO of 800 or more on this camera unless you have a program to remove all of the noise. Even at an ISO of 400 there will be plenty of noise to be concerned about. Also, even if you have a program to remove the noise you will lose most if not all of the sharpness/crispness of the photo. (Neat Image works pretty well to remove the noise)

Second -Ease of use. Well, this is purely opinion so I won't elaborate. Since I own two other Olympus cameras I found the menus to be well thought out and easy to navigate. Much better than my 4 year old SP-550UZ and my 4 year old E-410. I really like how when given the option to change the Exposure Compensation and the White Balance it has a real time view of the current setting along with a real time view of the other settings right next to the current setting. That's just pretty sweet! Body is very nice and small. Great pocket camera.

Third -Video quality. Wow, just wow. In a bad way. 720p HD video at 30fps. Sounds pretty cool. But no, it really isn't on this camera. As a previous reviewer mentioned; yes, the colors were there. The quality was atrocious though. I'm on a college track and field team and we videotape each other usually using my SP-550UZ. Decided to try this camera due to the 'HD'. Just downloaded the videos, so much "noise" within the video itself. Not sound noise but just artifacts within the video. My blues are blue and so on but the quality of the "video picture" makes the video basically unusable. This was on a bright sunny day. Looks like it was a lower resolution video just unconverted by the camera itself to 720p. Not good. But, I bought this camera to take pictures, not video so I will only knock a single star off for this inconvenience.

Fourth -Performance. Right around 1 second from power button to ready to take a picture. Nice. Focus was much better than I expected; thus it was very fast for a point and shoot camera. Once you start zooming in focus will start to take a little longer but this is understandable. Zooming is pretty fast. Really like how you can change the Auto Focus Mode to AF Tracking. Position it on the subject, press OK, and the camera will do it's best to continually keep the object in focus. Pretty neat. Position of the flash = horrible. That is right where your finger goes so be careful. Outside in bright sunlight the screen works remarkably well. Still pretty crisp and vibrant and not too washed out. Very easy to use outside and achieve great photos, inside will be difficult due to keeping the ISO down. This is where you would use the flash, which seems to work pretty good resulting in decent pictures. Image stabilization works, not much to elaborate on here. Works pretty good taking action shots, wouldn't buy it just to take action shots but it works.

And lastly just my 2 cents. Even knowing these faults I believe that I would buy this camera again, there would be a slight hesitation but I would buy it. I was looking forward to the HD video but all's that I wanted was a point and shoot pocket camera with a nice zoom lens. Which the VR-320 fulfills very nicely. I am a very experienced photographer and always shoot in full manual. Going from being able to adjust everything to only being able to adjust the ISO, White Balance, and Exposure is not fun but this is a point and shoot camera period. Truthfully, it's kind of fun just taking this out and taking a picture that you know will be good! Hopefully this will help you make a decision as to whether or not you will purchase this camera. We all have different needs and wants and this camera fit what I needed and mostly of what I wanted.

If you have any questions just comment on this review and I will try my best to answer the question completely.

I currently have a 5 year old Canon Digital Elph and have been looking for a compact megazoom. My knowledge of camera features and operation is very basic. I don't know how to use manual controls and am not interested in learning. My needs are simple compact, easy to use, at least 12x optical zoom and no frills with decent picture quality that I can point and shoot. Set up was a breeze and I didn't need the manual. I've been playing around with it out in the yard and indoors. The pics look very good to my amateurish eyes. Price is also right. I wasn't able to find a comparable camera with similar features in this price range. All in all, I'm quite pleased.

I finally had a chance to use the video mode. Using 720P, the colors were very sharp and true in color. Using video is very simple. There is a red button on the back of the camera and just pressing it will activate video and pressing a second time will end the video. If you need to use zoom, it must be enabled prior to depressing the video button. Once video is activated, zoom is disabled. Although, not in stereo, sound is very good and not "tinny". It picked up the chirping birds, my footsteps in the grass, a neighbors dog barking, etc. I can't comment on action videos as I've not had a chance to use it for that purpose.

For the price, this camera is a real deal.

9 May edit/clarification: Optical zoom can be enabled during video recording without sound, i.e., microphone must be turned off.

Buy Olympus VR-320 14 MP Digital Camera with 12.5x Optical Zoom and 3" LCD (Silver) Now

I just bought one of the Olympus VR-320 silver cameras to try it out at my niece's Upward Football game today, and I am more than pleased with the results. It is very easy to use (which is great for a point and shoot camera I don't really want to have to take a lot of time fooling with one when I just want to take a quick shot) and the menu is laid out nicely. The time it takes to turn on and to be able to use is very fast, too, as well as when I want to take a shot of anybody in motion the camera is very responsive and takes shots quickly (another reason I wanted a camera to keep up with my niece running and moving!).

The pictures come out sharp and with great color, and the 720p video is a bonus with nice sound. I can highly recommend this camera, and I'm glad I bought it!

Read Best Reviews of Olympus VR-320 14 MP Digital Camera with 12.5x Optical Zoom and 3" LCD (Silver) Here

This camera is very basic, and does not cost a great deal. The selling point is the 24mm equivalent lens. For those of us that have been shooting pictures for 4 or 5 decades, the wide angle lens is one of the most forgotten items in new cameras, and maybe it is because, as one reviewer said, it is basic and I'm not interested in learning anything beyond that (I paraphrase). A 24mm equivalent which is about 86 degree angle of view will give the user one more option for creativity. At the price, I would buy this camera if it only had that lens and nothing else. As far as the review stating that the higher ISO rating (800, I think) is bad, it usually is for most digital cameras, and when that rating was applied to film, it didn't produce great results either. I'm rating this camera at 5 stars because I believe the rating should be tempered to the product. One cannot expect miracles at that price. When this camera is used as a camera, and used with a low ISO rating, which I do most all the time, it produces excellent results. Olympus does not put out, as one reviewer stated, pardon my language, CRAP. They also stand behind their products, and always have.

Want Olympus VR-320 14 MP Digital Camera with 12.5x Optical Zoom and 3" LCD (Silver) Discount?

I was drawn to this Camera initially by the File Size it was capable of. Also, the extreme zoom range....WOW! I am not a fan of video. I owned a Handycam once.Yawn. Too complicated. This Bad boy has HI DEF VIDEO in the camera. Push the red button to begin filming...push it again to stop. Creates awesome/tack sharp/true color .AVIs. I'm a convert! Did I mention the zoom range. I'm a retired Architectural Photographer from the 4X5-Medium Format-Generation. So, I'm WIDE ANGLE. This Bad Boy sports what feels like a 20 mm wide angle (on 35mm Camera). Then, reaches out to 400 35mm equivalent SHARP AS A TACK-NO BIFRINGING and this is HANDHELD-imagine if I had used a tripod. It's got whats called dual image stabilization I think . It works. The filters are pretty cool (I like the Fisheye at Car Shows) Like all Point and Shoots, there is no viewfinder so composing in bright light kinda sucks. I just might make myself a viewfinder shade for about One penny (a paper Coffee Cup with the bottom cut out) because this is one sweet/powerful/COMPACT super zoom with HD Video for basically Chump Change. Swoop on it!!!

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