Friday, August 2, 2013

Toshiba IK-65WDA Analog Camera, 520 TV Lines, 24V AC and 12V DC, Wide Dynamic

Toshiba IK-65WDA Analog Camera, 520 TV Lines, 24V AC and 12V DC, Wide DynamicI purchased this camera along with two of the Toshiba IK-6420A Analog Camera, 540 TV Lines, 24V AC and 12V DC cameras (non-Wide Dynamic). The 65WDA is 2x the cost, but its ability to resolve detail in poor lighting is excellent. Where the other cameras go muddy and dark, the extra sensitivity of the 65's sensors provided noise-free detail even in dark areas that may contain a bright point (spotlight in operation). For well-lit environments, you don't need this. But if excellent, non-IR, low-light performance is what you want, this is an excellent 12VDC/24VAC auto-switching SD camera.

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JVC GZHM450BUS Camcorder with 40x Optical Zoom and 2.7-Inch LCD Screen (Black)

JVC GZHM450BUS Camcorder with 40x Optical Zoom and 2.7-Inch LCD Screenbought this in June 2011, went to Europe in September 2011. My husband was trying to replay our gondola ride which he had recorded and put his thumb through the touch screen. We are attempting to have our Europe recordings recovered from the device. Had bought extra batteries and media cards for this model so to justify our investment we are buying another recorder just like the first one.

it worked great, easy to use, small and easy to carry you just need to be careful with the pressure you use when touching the touch screen---it will break.

Canon VIXIA HF11 AVCHD 32 GB Flash Memory Camcorder w/12x Optical Zoom

Canon VIXIA HF11 AVCHD 32 GB Flash Memory Camcorder w/12x Optical ZoomLong review: 10 min.| I got the HF11 video camera in urgent need for a specific occasion.

The 60th fireworks event of Suwako lake / Nagano Prefecture in Japan on 15th August 2008.

(official sale start in Japan)

As the overall package Canon with its long term experience in Imaging seemed like "The natural Choice to make".

The video camera integrates a huge amount of intelligent functions that ensure the quality of your video experience.

image stabilizer,

light sensitivity sensor,

profiles

variable zoom speeds,

remaining battery status info,

alignment markers in the screen

smart replay functions (slow motion, freezing , advancing frame by frame etc.)

On top of that the video cameras body weight with 380gr. and the size of your favourite beverage is well acceptable even for ladies or kids hands.

The HF11 does come with a few usability hitches in terms of inconsistency, bugs etc. (see my how to guide for details), but besides that, the HF11's navigation is intuitive and exactly as the digital camera products. So, that was not a showstopper for us.

Most users are able to use the product within minutes !!

For video editing features you might want to look into additional software editing and codec converter solutions like Divx, Xvid etc. to be able to share the joy with your friends on DVD etc. The package contains all possible cables but NOT the ultra compact HDMI cable connection.

The major salespoints of this video camera are

Imaging quality (resolution and smoothness of video)

Canons colours

Usability

Usability and

Usability

The Imaging quality is unlike anything I have seen before and easily justifies the product alone.

HF11, HF10 or HF100, which one should I get ?

If you cant compromise video quality for anything get the HF11 with its 24mbps recording mode and be rest assured you have the extra stretch when you need it f.e. in low light scenarios and the best model on the marcet in the personal camcorder class.

Otherwise, if you can life with good quality and the same usability and other features as the big brother than you can make a deal by getting the HF10 or the HF100.

The intelligent functions and the exceptionally good design make the HF100, the HF10 or the HF11 the natural choice for beginners, amateurs and entry professionals.

This is the quality customers are expecting from a long term Imaging company like Canon !!

Additional Notes:

Vibrations:

Note that other camcorders with moving parts f.e. HDD's might not be working in extreme situations with strong vibrations f.e in concerts due to bass vibration. The camcorder makers do specifically NOT recommend taking videos in live houses as they formulate it. So you might find yourself having to record onto the memory card while the HDD is NOT usable.

(I mention it because its not so obvious from the product descriptions of camcorders.)

Fortunately with the HF11/HF10/HF100 or any flash memory based camcorder you dont have to worry about this too ;-)

Memory usage:

8GB of memory will provide you with 1h of best quality Full HD pleasure. So even if you just use the 32GB internal memory it means that the HF11 has enough storage for 4h of best quality Full HD video.

Thats plenty f.e. for your best friends wedding ceremony, the wedding party afterwards and even your kids school ceremony the next day.

Also memory usage is the same when actually comparing, this video camera has at least 3.5 times more details on the screen than the best digital camera out there with video function.

Please see my How to guide for more details and all PRO's and CON's.

I've had this camcorder for 7 months now and have been somewhat pleased with it overall. The reason I only gave it 4 stars is for some annoying issues I have with it.

First off, you can only transfer your video clips if you have the power cord attached. This is inconvenient if you want to get one or two clips onto your computer and have a fully charged battery on the camcorder. Also, once you have your camcorder connected to your computer (via USB cable), you cannot turn the camcorder off unless you disconnect the USB cable. I'm guessing Canon felt it was necessary to protect interruptions during transfer of your video clips. But who would be dumb enough to disconnect or turn off their camcorder in the middle of a transfer?

Another issue I have is that if you don't want to use ImageMixer 3 SE software program to access your video files via your computer you'll have to follow this path from your hard drive: G:\ (or whichever drive it's assigned to) PRIVATE\AVCHD\BDMV\STREAM\00000.MTS. If you use the ImageMixer 3 SE software it basically adds another set of steps in order to view your clips on your computer. Because once you copy your video files using ImageMixer software, you must open the ImageMixer 3 SE Player if you want to view your video. Another step. The ImageMixer 3 SE Player doesn't display which video file you're viewing. That is such a simple thing to have showing that I wonder why it was left out. So you click File then Select File. Choose a file and click Open. The files are number like this example: 20090622091442 (Year, month, day, hour, minutes, seconds). That's great if you can remember which clip number among many is showing in the viewer. Note: the long number is automatically generated from using the ImageMixer software to copy the video to your computer. If you go directly to your hard drive (see above path) then you won't get the data (long file number). It will just be 00000, 00001, 00002.MTS, etc.

From here I must give this camcorder a big plus. I've dropped this camcorder twice. It was on a tripod and the tripod fell down on a ceramic floor. The camcorder still worked and with no visual scars. Then it fell off a handle bar mount on a bicycle and tumbled into the street. It's scratched up but it works fine. I think good construction and a little luck kept if from imminent death.

Buy Canon VIXIA HF11 AVCHD 32 GB Flash Memory Camcorder w/12x Optical Zoom Now

While Adobe Premier Elements 7 is a big joke for the MP4 AVC/H.264 formats...it is a superstar with the AVCHD / .mts files this Canon HF10 generates.

Before I bought my own HF10 I was asked by a buddy to edit and burn some youth football footage from his newly acquired Canon HF10 with SDHC card. I was excited. Although I had no clue what an .mts file was Adobe PE 7 not only recognized it and imported it quickly...but I proceeded to edit both video and audio (together and separately)as well as burn to a regular DVD (not BluRay). My jaw just dropped and I said WOW!

I will add that while I am not a big fan of the GUI of Pinnacle Studio Plus 12 it also handles the AVCHD / .mts from the Canon HF10 just fine...and also handles those other MP4's just fine too.

The really important part is that while I have a nice amount of ram (4GB) my computer is nothing special at all. I am running Vista Basic on a Celeron 1.60Ghz processor (Dell Inspiron 530 desktop) with the 4GB of ram.

Now that I have purchased my OWN Canon HF10 AVCHD camcorder Adobe PE7 is my go-to program for this type of footage. Again, it handles the AVCHD / .mts file format flawlessly. Check out my other reviews for some other programs I have tried like Corel VideoStudio X2 and Magix Movie Edit pro 14. If you are going to be working only with AVCHD, specifically from any of the Canon HF series camcorders that put .mts on sdhc flash cards...then I believe Adobe Premier Elements 7 is the best option.

Warning: If you are going to rely on ONE software solution for multiple formats other than AVCHD, Adobe PE7 is not the way to go! I use several little camera/camcorders other than the HF10. They all use the MP4 AVC/H.264 format...while the previous version of PE handled them fine, Adobe PE 7 HATES the MP4 format! You can't even add them to the time-line without it crashing! If you are looking for a single editing program to handle not only the AVCHD from the Canon HF10, HF11 or HF100 but other formats as well...specifically the MP4 AVC/H.264 format then I would go with Pinnacle Studio Plus 12. Like I said before, the interface and work flow is nothing like Adobe's but it works fin with the multiple formats.

Read Best Reviews of Canon VIXIA HF11 AVCHD 32 GB Flash Memory Camcorder w/12x Optical Zoom Here

I am all about my kids playing sports and being able to record the games. I was reluctant in purchasing an AVCHD camcorder with the fear that the motion would not be sharp. This camcorder is of excellent quality. I am using the camcorder with its default settings and have recorded my son's soccer games, my other son's indoor basketball games, birthday parties and am very please with the camcorder. There is a setting to record at 30P which is designed for fast action, but the default 60i is perfect. I will play with 30P soon and can only imagine that it would be even better.

I also have used the ImageMixer software that comes with the HF11. The software easily allows you to copy your recordings to the computer. The player is of high quality and is my preferred software for watching the videos on the computer. With this software, I burned a copy of one of my sons basketball games to DVD and when viewed using a DVD player on my TV, the quality of the video went down. I then used CorelVideo Studio 12 (VideoStudio Pro x2) (downloaded free trial version) and burned the basketball game in AVCHD mode onto a DVD. I then watched the AVCHD (DVD) on my PS3 and the quality was excellent. The DVD burn took about 30 minutes for a 6 minute video on a Dell Intel Core2 Duo desktop computer with 2 gigs of memory.

I also purchased the cheaper extended battery BP-819 and this gives me hours of recording time. There is a slot for a memory card, but I find the 32 gigs internal memory to be plenty.

If you want a quality camcorder, this is the one.

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I just finished my vacation where I used the Canon HF11 that I purchased about 6 weeks ago. The HF11 performed flawlessly. I am super pleased with the quality of the video images. I did some editing and created a DVD using iMovie and iDVD. The results are very good. I am pleased with the overall ease of use and quality videos that can be produced by this camcorder.

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Sony Alpha DSLRA300K 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Super SteadyShot Image Stabilization with DT 18

Sony Alpha DSLRA300K 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Super SteadyShot Image Stabilization with DT 18-70mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom LensHaving previously reviewed the Alpha 200 and 350, it seems a bit silly to review the Alpha 300. After all, the Alpha 300 is a 200 with Live View, or a 350 with 10 megapixels instead of 14mp. Right?

Well, pretty much that's the case. But there is also a corresponding price difference. Is Live View worth an extra $100? Is 14mp worth an extra $200?

For my money, yes, Live View is worth the $100 because of the way Sony has implemented this feature. Unlike most systems, you won't see a loss in autofocusing performance (or a loss of autofocus completely), nor will you alter the way the exposure and white balance are determined. Add to this the articulated screen that makes extremely low or high angle shots easier, and I say "YES"! Any drawbacks? Yes, this screen is a bit thicker, and pushes you back a bit when looking through the camera. Also, the way Sony implements Live View does mean you only see 90 percent of what you'll get on the image.

OK, is 14mp worth the extra $200? I don't know, but I don't think so. We really need more critical comparisons from people with true scientific methods of measuring the difference in image quality, but there are a few assumptions that will probably hold true, based on previous cameras. The 14mp will give a superior image in good lighting, when ISO values (the fake "film" speeds) can be set to higher quality settings. You won't see this difference on an 8x10 standard photo, but probably could in very big enlargements or severe cropping of photos. Keep in mind that the "1.4x and 2x teleconverter" option you have with Live View is nothing more than cropping, with 2x dropping your effective megapixels in half.

Past cameras would suggest, however, that the higher pixel density of the 14mp camera would be a drawback in low light conditions, in particular when we have to raise the ISO settings. Thus, they may not even be as good as the 10mp sensor for these applications (but we still need critical testing to confirm this assumption).

So, for my money, I'd say the 14mp is probably not worth the money for someone shooting an even variety of shoots, but might be for a landscape/wildlife photographer.

Compared to other brands, I think the Alpha 300 wins on features compared to the Canon Digital Rebel XTi or Nikon D60 (Live View, stabalization in body). The new 12mp Canon XSi is more in the price range of the 14mp Alpha 350. In any case, with 3 new Alphas, and the new D60 and XSi, there's no more excuses! Get a camera and start taking great photos!

Sony Alpha A200K 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera Kit with Super SteadyShot Image Stabilization with 18-70mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens

Sony Alpha DSLRA350K 14.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Super SteadyShot Image Stabilization DT 18-70mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens

Nikon D60 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX VR Nikkor Zoom Lens

Canon Digital Rebel XSi 12MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens (Black)

I had to choose between the a200, a300 and a350. Like another reviewer said, I think the a300 hits the sweetspot. The Live view is a feature that I might have to add to my list of requirements for future upgrades.

One of the things that annoyed me about shooting with a dslr were my glasses. To prevent them from being smudged, I'd flip them up when pressing my face against the eyepiece. Spend an entire day doing this and it becomes a royal PITA. I've only used the camera for about a week so far and I can already see that I'll be relying on Live view a lot.

The other major benefits of Live view are: 1) being able to shoot pics from the ground level perspective (great for kids and dogs) without multiple trial and errors or crouching/laying on the ground (my back thanks me), and 2) shooting over a crowd of heads, fence, glass partition, etc.

The image doesn't track as smooth as I'd hoped, but it's good enough for framing the shot. It shows you the autofocus points as well as providing a live histogram (i love it!).

I upgraded from a Minolta 5D and I think I'll miss the depth of field preview as well. Small price to pay for all the other great features.

In summary, get this camera if you're not heavily invested in other lens systems. I haven't checked out the competition since I'm one of the surviving members of the Minolta clan, but I'm sure others have competent implementations as well.

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My first DSLR, and I am very satisfied.

Why I bought it:

Live View excellent implementation. This was my number one purchase point for this camera. Fast switching to and from the Optical Viewfinder. You can use Live View outside of the studio and it acts just like a standard consumer digital camera screen. Screen tilts, which is handy.

10MP this is the sweet spot for price and capability. The Alpha 350 has 14MP, but I decided to save the money and buy a few accessories right away.

RAW+JPEG I wanted a camera that shot RAW+JPEG and didn't skimp on the JPEG. You can shoot high-quality JPEG and RAW at the same time.

Great photos has to do that.

Good surprises after I got the camera and started using it:

Ease of Use very easy to start using right out of the box (recharge the battery first).

Steady Shot gives me the confidence to shoot without a tripod and it has a nice readout on the LCD that tells you when you're shaking.

Battery life I've been taking quite a few photos the last week and have yet to recharge the internal battery.

Display Button easy to press and review your photos. Very easy to get back to shooting.

Minor Bad Point in-camera flash is very low and kit lens casts a shadow if you are too close to your subject. I got an HVL-F36AM external flash with the camera so I don't have to worry about this too much.

Some mention that the viewfinder is small, but I used it all day today because of the bright sunlight and was happy with it. I was sitting in our vehicle and noticed a tank in my side mirror. I decided to take the photo using auto focus but that didn't work, so I focused manually on the tank about 30 yards behind me through the driver's side window in the left side mirror and got a perfectly sharp picture using the Optical Viewfinder.

Great camera!!

Read Best Reviews of Sony Alpha DSLRA300K 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Super SteadyShot Image Stabilization with DT 18 Here

I purchased the Sony A300 5 months ago through J&R Music World. The camera came to me quickly and with no apparent problems. Since then I have used the camera several times to take photos of my grandchildren and also some landscapes. I always mount the camera on a sturdy tripod. When it is not being used, it is stored in a padded camera case. The last time I turned on my camera the LCD showed a white screen with just a couple of lines running through it. I did not bang it, drop it or otherwise abuse it. The camera comes with a 1 year warranty. Since I purchased a Sony product I did not expect to have a problem with them honoring my warranty. They gave me instructions to send it to Precision Camera Repair. After about a week I checked Precision's online repair status and I had a message saying that repairs were delayed because they were waiting for payment. When I called they told me that the camera showed some small scratches on it's base so the camera was obviously abused and therefore they would have to charge me $254 to repair it! I went ballistic. Precision's customer service person told me that maybe they could reduce the repair cost and immediately reduced the charge to $175. Now you may say that my argument should not be with Sony. It should be with Precision Camera. However when I called Sony Customer Relations they refused to intercede and told me I was out of luck. My argument is with Sony because they are using an obviously unscrupulous repair service. How do I know they are unscrupulous? Because I have since found out that what they did to me, they have also done to other people. There are many complaints about them at these websites:

Sony's Customer Relations Department turned a deaf ear to my complaint. I had no choice but to pay for a repair that should have been covered by the warranty.

I am very disappointed with the durability of this camera and the way Sony handled my problem.

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I've had the A300 for about a month now I've been using it regularly and am very pleased. I did a lot of research before choosing this D-SLR and IMHO the A300 offers the best bang for the buck in its class. My decision was based on the image quality, Sony's innovative LiveView functionality, in-body stabilization, lens availability (without any confusion as to what lens is compatible, what lens is stabilized or has a focus motor...) and price.

I use the LiveView and OVF interchangeably and both work very well for me (and I wear glasses). I find LV and the tiltling LCD particularly useful when using a tripod as it's no longer necessary to contort my body to the OVF to see what the camera sees; it's also very useful for candid shots and to get over peoples' heads (or fences at zoos for example). I've found the LV/tilt-LCD incredibly useful to be able to place the camera on a wall or post or less convenient spots when there's no tripod, and be able to compose and shoot a great night shot.

I find the camera responsive no complaints there AF is fast and accurate. Metering is flexible, accurate and consistent. Battery is great lasts a long time and with the % display, I know when I'm running low.

The built-in image stabilization has saved many a shot for me where lighting was marginal I would not want to have to do without this feature.

I'm pleased with the image quality (even when I forgot to reset the ISO from 800 after some indoor/no-flash wedding shots). The camera has lots of buttons so I don't have to go searching through menus and if I do need to do something that doesn't have its own button, the Fn button generally gets me there quickly a well thought out interface that works for me.

I have the Sony 18-70 and 75-300 kit lenses and I'm happy with both as they provide great flexibility in range, and they're sharp enough for me. All in all I'm very happy with this tool and if my shots don't come out the way I expect them to, it's more likely my problem than any lens or camera limitation.

Knowing what I know now about this setup, I'd definitely make the same decision to buy it.

Datacolor Spyder Studio S4SSR100

Datacolor Spyder Studio S4SSR100I spent the weekend setting up my new spyder4 studio bundle, and I must say I am very very happy with my purchase. I'm a visual effects student who does photography on the side, and after school ate into my budget I found myself unable to afford a calibration solution for my monitors. It got really irritating trying to explain to my teachers that it looked right on MY monitor. Anyway, I got my tax return and bought a spyder4 studio with it. Initially I was aggravated because nothing worked. Every time I tried to run the Spyder4Elite software it locked up to the point that I would have to reboot the computer. Eventually I found that the software was clashing with my amd graphics cards Catalyst Control Center software. I uninstalled all of my amd software and drivers, downloaded the newest drivers and reinstalled without the catalyst control software. So far I haven't had any problems with the lack of that software, and unless you like to overdrive your gpu for gaming I don't see any reason why you would have problems not having it. After that the spyder ran perfectly, and it's made an amazing difference. I've also been able to try out the spyderprint, which also works very well. Overall I'm stunned with how well it worked. If you want to work professionally in any kind of visual field you're taking a big risk not owning something like this.

I found that the display calibrator worked great, however the SpyderPrint generated ICC profiles that were very off in color. The ICC profiles provided with my printer (Epson Stylus Pro 4900 produce far better results. Even letting printer manage color was better.

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Recommended by a photo pro and does what I want. Have installed on three of my computers. Generates a consistent color profile on each machine.

Read Best Reviews of Datacolor Spyder Studio S4SSR100 Here

It does the job, but the printer calibration is very difficult. I am sorry I did not pay more for equipment that would be easier to use.

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C2G / Cables to Go - 09462 - 50ft Premium Shielded HD15 M/M SXGA Monitor Cable (Grey)

C2G / Cables to Go - 09462 - 50ft Premium Shielded HD15 M/M SXGA Monitor CableWORKS GREAT . HAVE THIS CABLE CONNECTED FROM MY DESKTOP COMPUTER TO A 46" SAMSUNG DLP TV. RESOLUTION IS CLEAR AND BRIGHT NO PROBLEMS SO FAR

Great quality cord. Thick coating to make it last through the years, good solid heads, all the pins are strait, and the signal is good too. Great purchase

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HP PS720 3.3MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom

HP PS720 3.3MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical ZoomThis is simply the easiest digital camera to use. The results are fantastic! With 3.3 megapixels this camera produces some amazing images. The software is easy to load and images transmit instantly to your PC via the USB cable provided. I highly recommend this great product!

So far, I have no complaints! It is a very good camera. Great for someone who is not too terribly interested in a huge load of bells & whistles. This camera is basic ... does what 99% of most cameras do, and takes great photos. It is very easy to use. I would recommend it to anyone in need of a decent camera under 300 dollars. It takes movies with sound. The only thing I heard about it that was considered negative was the weight of the camera. I really do not see how that was a factor at all. It feels like a camera SHOULD feel like. It is not as heavy as a brick, and it looks as if it is made very well. Not like some toy, like some digital cameras look and feel.

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I found that the camera was very easy to learn. The quality of the pics, movies, sound was very good. A couple of things that bring my rating down are:

1. Camera has no light, zoom features when taking movies

2. The access to the batteries is a little awkward(sp?) to figure out.

3. The access to the extended memory/usb/tv jack is a little flimsy leaving you with the worry that the cover will come off.

4. And now after 7 years of use, I now have to manually open the lens cover when I turn on the camera.

Read Best Reviews of HP PS720 3.3MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom Here

I purchased this camera ~10months ago, based upon reviews I had read. The concensus opinion is that this camera is a good balance between price and photo quality. Overall, I agree with this assessment. But hindsight being 20/20, I don't know if I would buy this camera again because of the lack of manual control or override for the exposure/whitebalance.

In use, it is a little bulky but easy to use with one hand. I find that the heft actually helps me keep the camera steady in use. Mixture of brushed aluminum and rubber for the case is aestheticlly pleasing and reassuring to the hand.

Autofocus is good and quick in normal to bright light, but slow and easily fooled in dim/low light conditions. The flash is not usefull beyond 15ft.

The automatic whitebalance and exposure settings are another matter. In situations where the light level of the centered subject is lower than the light level of the backround, the camera defaults to the backround. You can not totally override the automatic settings so you are left with an underexposed subject. The menu allows for only slight adjustment of the auto settings, but the adjustment range is not great enough. A good example of this problem would be an outdoor picture, where the subject is in the shade but the backround is not. The subject is underexposed, while the backround looks great and no amount of digital processing can reverse the result.

I have also used this camera to photograph items for Ebay auctions. For this purpose, the camera is perfect. With some attention paid to lighting, the photos are well exposed with excellent fine detail.

The included HP Photosmart software is basic, but usefull. Like the camera itself, there are not alot of custom editing options. The USB link from the camera to the software is quick and automatic. Data transfer of a full 64mb card takes ~3min. Slow to some, but OK by me.

The included 16mb of onboard memory holds ~11 full resolution pictures. I purchased a 64mb plug in card, which can hold ~52 full resolution shots. What is interesting is that the onboard memory and the plug in memory are segregated. You can fill up the onboard memory and then plug in the card and fill it up. Used this way, I can take a total of 63 high resolution photos.

Battery life is fine. I did invest in recharchable batteries and I get ~160-180 photos per charge. I would estimate that I use the LCD screen ~1/2 the time.

Like most camera LCD screens, it is usefull in all but daytime outdoor conditions.

For pictures from a distance of less than 15ft, there is a bit of parallax(sp) error between the viewfinder and what the camera records. But once you see the difference a few times, it is easy to compensate for by framing your subject to be just a bit offcenter in the viewfinder. This is not a problem to me, but may be to others.

In summary, this is a good point and shoot camera for most situations. Manual features are limited. Used withing it's limitations it is fine. If you need manual control over exposure/whitebalance, look elsewhere. If you want a simple, rugged camera for casual use, the 720 should be a candidate, expecially at current prices.

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