Digital-Camera Reviews

I find the camera takes great photographs and easy to use. I just got this camera about a couple weeks ago and I had to call support about erasing the photo's. To my surprise they say it will be a $20.00 charge for help. Now since good money was paid for this camera and a good brand name you think they would help you. Another thing I would recommend using rechargeable batteries as they last longer and cheaper too. I did find out how to erase the photo's. It is a great camera and enjoy owning it. It is not like the old days when an answer could be given freely. You can't register the camera on the web site as it is being discontinued, and information is so old it does not help you. I give the camera high marks for quality. Support 00 in my book.

While the picture quality is good (too red actually, but can be fixed with software), there are too many drawbacks to rate it above 3 stars. The battery drain is very high when in photo mode, so using high-drain regular or rechargeable batteries is essential, as regular ones die after only a couple of shots. The built-in flash isn't bright enough, so I'd only recommend it for outdoor use. Manual locking of the battery compartment where SD card is located is a hassle, as is the manual lens cover. Basically, it takes about a minute to get it ready to shoot, OK for prepared shots, but too slow if you need to catch something quickly. Does not come with a charger and rechargeable set of batteries. Also too bulky, especially since you need to carry 4 extra AA batteries, just in case. No webcam, movie mode is OK, but no sound, unlike other 4Mpixel cameras.

In this case, definitely, you get what you pay for, maybe even a bit less.

For persons unfamiliar with digital photography who do not wish to be limited to a "point-and-shoot" camera as they learn the digital process, the Toshiba PDR-4300 is an excellent choice. The camera combines Toshiba's superior digital imaging expertise with a high imaging sensor into a camera that is easy to use. After the beginner has mastered "point-and-shoot" techniques, the PDR-4300 with a 4-megapixel resolution and a full set of professional-level manual options, they can readily progress to more advanced digital photography. The camera has a built-in flash and an all-glass quality Canon lens with a 2.8x optical zoom and with digital zoom provides 6x total zoom. The camera has several other features all of which makes for brilliant resolution and excellent photos. Finally, the installation software is "user-friendly" and excellent.

The camera battery life is poor. Battery life can be improved by adhering to the camera manual's instructions to turn off the LCD screen and use the viewfinder when taking pictures. However, the buyer should purchase a battery charger and buy rechargeable batteries that have a much longer life. Also, the 16 MB SD memory card limits the camera's picture file capacity and should be replaced by a 32 or 64 MB memory card. Nevertheless, the 16 MB card is adequate during the beginner stage in digital photography.

My major criticism concerns the camera manual. The manual is readable, comprehensive and well organized. Unfortunately, the manual, in four languages, is very poorly bound. I had not finished reading the introductory sections before the pages in the English section became unbound. Either the binding should be improved or each language section should be separately bound.

The camera is a "best buy", and is lots of fun to use.

I bought this camera just a day before my trip to Alaska and it worked out great. Since there was not much time to read the thick manual, the controls were intuitive enough to operate. The video quality was great.
Pros:
- Great size. Very compact
- Great video quality with 2 Mega Pixals
- Easy to operate.

Cons:
- Still pictures come better in light. Not good if the light is less
- Red eye reduction does not seem to work well for still pictures
- In the video, the sound recording seem to pick up wind and other noises more than you actually hear.
- Some times still pictures are not in focus.

I would highly recommend this camera to anyone who is in the market for a camcorder. I purchased the optura 300 several months ago and have been utilizing it heavily ever since. The camera takes excellent movies of both indoor and outdoor events. I could not be happier with my choice. I did purchase a longer-lived battery which has worked out well. I keep the standard battery charged as a backup, but the larger battery has never died on me even during days that I shot a significant amount of footage.

I would like to point out of few issues I have had with it:
1) The instruction manual leaves much to the imagination, especially with how to download the recorded motion pictures onto a PC. There are many other gaps in the manual.

2) This camera is not for the technologically challenged. I would guess that this is not limited to this specific camera, but is an issue with the entire class of cameras. To burn DVDs and do any kind of editing, the user must have a video capture card & firewire installed on their PC. In addition, downloading movies onto a PC requires LOTS of hard drive space. I installed a 2nd hard drive for this purpose. In addition I needed to install a DVD RW drive so I could burn DVDs. I also upgraded my RAM. Although all of these are easy installs in newer PC's, it can be a daunting task just for a person to figure out what is actually needed not to mention knowing how to actually install it. Combined with shortcomings in the manual, I could see this being fatal for some users. If you are technologically challenged, I would recommend the cameras that burn directly to DVD.

3) At the extreme end of the zoom, the camera seems to have trouble focusing and is very shaky. This is not that big of an issue as long as the user keeps this in mind while framing the video.

4) I am not really happy with the quality of the still images captured by this camera. These images can be saved onto a flash card or onto the digital tape. With perfect lighting, the images are good, but I have found that when the flash is needed, the images are completely over exposed. The red-eye reduction feature does not work at all to reduce red eye.

Please do not let these negatives taint my review. I love this camera but I wanted to put all the issues that I have found with it out there.

I bought this goodie for less than $700 bucks from onecall.com, an authorized canon dealer so this qualifies me to a get a free 128MB SD card.
PROS: Really compact compared to lot of other cameras i compared with that had the same features, it really fits in my jacket pocket. Out door videos are amazingly great, had to be with 1.3MP of video quality, the other option i was looking at was sony 330 but that was way too pricey for me.
Still shots are exceptional although you cannot compare it with a stand alone digital still.
Menus are not complicated, even my wife can use it without hassels.
I had read reviews about the motor noise from the tape but i found that it had absolutely no noise when you record at the desired sound level in a quite atmosphere.
I know lot of reviews state that the microphone placement is bad as it sits right on top of the view finder but i didn't find this to be a serious problem as it picks up the subjects sound very well. The only problem with the mic placement is the sound variation when you speak vs. the subject speaking.
Zooming capability is amazing, the zoom is really smooth when compared to sony.
Image stability is excellent as long as you stay with in the optical zoom, once you hit the digital zoom(beyond 40X) you need to be really still, the manual provides you with few tips to increase the stability. Also, i rarely go to the digital zoom as 10X optical is more than enough for my use.
lots of predefined shooting modes.
This goodie provides a lot of digital effects.
The previous review said that s/he acciendtly recorded MPEGs instead of DV, but the on screen icons give you a clear indication of the media you are recording on, so no problem their as long as you see the on screen info.
LCD resolution is fantastic and i liked the fact that it is not too big, there by minimizing my battery drain.
The best feature i personally like compared with sony pc101/105/109 is that this one has all its control on the body, sony has a touch screen menu option and you could mess up your screen if you are not really careful.
Cons: The most outstanding problem i found with optura 300 is the low light recording. This provides 3 various low light recording but in the dark the super night shot mode any moving images create a drag effect and the recording resoultion is also grainy. Having said that the indoor + low light mode is adequate when shooting inside a home with no day light. The only problem is when it is pitch dark sony seems to be doing better.
Battery life is terrible, the battery provided with canon lasts 30-40 minutes, so i had to go in for an upgrade on the battery.
but i guess all camcorders have the same problem.
Overall it is a great camcorder for indoor and outdoor use.

I bought these batteries on what was writen on their packaging. It was not true to what was said. These batteries died after only 25 minutes in my digital camera. And a set of Duracell Ultras, that are not rechargeable, lasted longer. Do not always believe what you read. Make sure you have the ability to return items. And is with this case, they went back. I went with a set of energizers. And they last much longer, with the power being the smae as these 1800mah monster brand.

a 4 pack of rayovac 1800mah (probably higher capacity sold now) AAs is $8.97 at walmart. if you get them mail order add 1.44 for shipping. 1800 mah is now the low end for AA nimh batteries, there are 2000, 2100 and 2200mah ones out now. I have bought 4 lenmar 2000s for $6! (wish I had stocked up during the sale)

I have tried the Energizer Accu-Rechargeable which are rated at 1200 mAh. The Monster Cable batteries blow them away. They last MUCH longer and the Energizers have started to leak after only a few charges!
Technology is getting better, will try the Kodak batteries next. They are cheaper and have a better mHa rating. Even so, I would recommend these.

Firstly, let me just say that I LOVE this camera. It is relatively inexpensive for a brand name digital camera... plan on paying $150-$175 depending on where you get it, it has a lot of different features such as a timer so you can take pics of yourself, redeye reduction so you can take pics of your dog at night, a decent zoom even if it is only digital, etc... It is super easy to use (I had mine out of the box and took my first pic before I even opened the manual)... It is small enough to fit in a decent sized pocket but not so small that it feels like a toy when you use it... And best of all it takes great pictures. Now comes that bad part... battery use. I sincerely hope that every other camera out there takes more than mine does on a set of batteries. On the smallest resolution with a minimum of flashes, I am still getting less than half a dozen pictures per battery change. I am still planning on experimenting with turning off the LCD monitor and simply sighting to save energy but the flashy screen is half of what makes a digital camera so fun.

Great camera for someone new to digital photography like myself. Lots of features and takes beautiful pictures. For everyone complaining that it drains your batteries in a few shots, I use rechargable memory-free NiMH batteries and on a full charge I can get 25+ high quality pictures with the flash and lcd screen on.

I received the Vivitar Vivicam 3715 camera as a Christmas gift last year. Since then it has proven to be a great camera for all around use. I've taken very detailed portraits which turned out with excellent clarity at 8" x 10". It's a great camera for close up or long range depending on how it's set up.

If you have Windows ME or later, the camera sets itself up when plugged into a USB port. With Windows XP the computer is already set up, and transferring pictures can be done easily in less than a minute.

I particularly like the small size of the camera and the zoom feature which is done internally without a lens sticking out from the camera.

The case which comes with the camera attaches easily, by the attached loop, to a pants belt which makes the camera easy to carry around all day.

The 8MB internal memory is adequate for easily taking more than 50 pictures with an M setting with one star (normal detail). The addition of a memory card increases that number substantially.

The video feature works fine. The one big drawback, however, is the lack of sound.

Yes, this camera will go through batteries as with most digital cameras. I have been able to take 75 to 100 pictures and load them into my computer on one set of batteries (approx 1/4 to one half with flash, 1/2 to 3/4 without). The batteries definitely last longer with outdoor use where using a flash is unnecessary.

When the batteries (2AA) don't have enough juice left in them to power the camera, DON'T throw them away! They can still be used for many hours yet to power small AM FM walkman type radios or small cassette/CD players.

Another weak point with this camera is that in bright sunlight it is very difficult ( if not impossible) to see anything on the viewing screen.

Overall, this camera is an excellent buy for the relatively inexpensive price.

No one is a bigger gadget geek then me. I love innovated products and rather have a gadget over diamonds any day. With that said, I fell in love instantly when I saw the Casio's Pocket PC with the Camera attachment at a business meeting. From the moment I purchases my own (in 2000) I knew I would find multiple uses for my new toy.

I will be completely honest; this device does not take the greatest pictures in the world! HOWEVER, this camera has been a lifesaver on many occasions. I have met stars unexpectedly and taken pictures with them, stored pictures of my home to compare items in the store, endless job related purposes. It also came with video caption software and you can take 30 seconds of video and transfers it to your device and link up to your computer. Especially living in New York City, you just don't know what you're going to see! You can also transfer pictures from your pc to the handheld to cherish your favorite pictures on your mobile device. My only complaint is you have to have good lighting and you have to be completely still you get a decent photo. As for printing the pictures, the smaller you print the pictures the better the print. I never excess 4 x 6 prints and usually print 3 x 5.

This camera is for someone you love gadgets, loves pictures, and just loves to show off. No matter where I go people (including stars) always seem to be impressed with this device. Most important I'm impressed and I look forwarded for Casio to create one with better resolution. I purchase this about two years ago and I'm still happy with it. The price has dropped from when I obtained mine so that's even more reason to get this. Sometimes you don't have room in your bags or briefcase for a separate camera, and with device your camera is where your handheld pc is!

NOTE: Keep in mind if you need a digital camera then this is not for you the resolution is too low. Strictly for the gadget geeks.

Very cool gadget for the Cassiopeia but the picture is indeed rough especially when blown up on a PC. Photo quality is also dim without sunlight. Definitely not for pro or serious photo shoots. Okay for casual image capture. You may have to wait until they come up with higher pixels. ...

I give it 5/5 starts for the following reasons:

1) User friendly, not complicated at all.
2) One of the lightest cameras doesn't add weight to your device.
3) Excellent quality, it is Casio ;)
4) Flexible, it can be rotated in different positions with focus.
5) Price! Because I got 50% OFF ;)
6) It supports Siemens SX45, and I am using it.

Check for compatibility if you are interested you can visit casio for additional information.

Have fun...

I've had the camera for 1 year.

Pros: Quality pictures, good value for the money, USB is fast, good optical zoom.

Cons: Cheap case (my lens cover is now broken), takes a long time to extend & retract the lens, can't get USB to work on Windows 2000.

I believe a durable case is critical which is why I rated the camera low.

I am not an expert photographer but I am pretty good for a novice. I do a fair amount of close up photography (wildflowers, insects, and kittens I care for--I run an adoption agency for orphaned kitties)....so a macro function was high on my list of must-haves for a camera, which was one of the reasons I purchased the Casio QV2000UX. This camera makes it possible to get beautifully detailed, crisp images from just a few inches away.

At the same time, the zoom is a nice feature as well--3x optical (forget digital zoom--it means nothing!--just lowers the resolution, like cropping a picture--so why bother?)

The menu is user friendly, the LCD is bright and easy to see under all but the brightest outdoor conditions. I like the compact flash storage option, since I have a pocket PC which uses the same media and already have a compact flash reader on my PC.

The photos I have captured on this camera have been nothing short of outstanding--so I can't even see the point in going over 2 megapixels unless you're into printing poster-size photos.
You can also shoot up to 30 seconds of video in the AVI format, but it's really more of a neat little gimmick than anything I've had a lot of use for. It was fun getting a video of my cat chasing a laser pointer around and around in circles and posting it on my website in a continuous loop though!

The IBM microdrive is an option I know is available for this camera but I have been satisfied with using the compact flash cards....and I have heard the mini drive is a real drain on the batteries. One accessory I think is the best investment I could have ever made is a rechargable portable battery pack--great if those AA's give out on the road!

The only complaint I have is about the lens cover/shutter switch. I cannot say if it was my particular camera or an inherent flaw in the design, but it felt kind of rickety from the start and eventually fell off. At first I couldn't find anyone local who could even fix it! I persevered and luckily I was able to have it repaired for under 150 dollars. I guess this is the point where I realized I really love this camera--I didn't feel like "upgrading" and anything with the same features would have cost several hundred dollars, so I knew I had a good deal with the Casio. If subsequent models have a more sturdy lens cover design, I would recommend this camera hands-down over similarly priced competition.

I just received mine this christmas, today in fact. It's a very nice camera and takes wonderful pictures, even at the lower of the resolutions (800x600). With the low resolution, at fine quality you get 22 pictures on the 8 meg card that comes with it. The one thing that is kind of disturbing about it is that the LCD takes up most of the power in the batteries. The batteries that were supplied with it died within 2 hours of use (Taking 11 pictures with the LCD on, and then having it on the whole time trying to get USB to work with windows 2000). That brings up another small problem. Casio does not provide much information for using the camera with windows 2000 and usb. As of right now the usb does not work for me, and I am using a serial connection. it's a little slower than I would like but hey, as long as it works it is fine by me. Beside those two things though, everything about it is wonderful. it even has a nice panorama feature, and comes with wonderful software for keeping libraries of your pictures.

I really liked this printer when I first got it about 3 years ago. Sure it was loud and a little slow, but it printed pretty good. Well, after about 1 1/2 years of VERY light duty, I all of a sudden start getting error messages on my PC telling me the printer is not connected to the computer. First I changed the cord to no avail, then I tried different open USB ports on my computer, so it ends up I just have to position the USB cable perfectly to the back of the P1000 to get it to work. At least it would still work, right? Well that got me by for about six months and now it just will not connect at all. Now my HP P1000 has a nice new home in the trashcan and I'm giving Canon a try. If HP puts as much thought into printers as they do computers I definetely don't want to buy another HP product again...

I've had the P1000 for a couple of years. Worked great with WindowsME. After installing XP on my desktop I had to reinstall the printer software to get it to work. Just got a new laptop and it doesn't work at all.. in fact, the P1000 causes my Dell Inspiron to crash whenever I disconnect the USB cable. When the cable is connected the laptop never recognizes the printer.

If you are looking for a home photo-quality printer (not pro quality- but good enough form me), for a decent price. This is your printer.
I can print 8X10's that come out with amazing results. I even use my scanner to print from the negatives and the photos print out better than my local store (I am not comparing to 1-hour development, I am comparing a local specialty store with an amazing reputation).
Just make sure to use (and of course set the printer) to high quality photopaper, and you will see amazing results.
I bought this printer a few years ago and have never had a problem with it. I don't know if the newer versions are better, but I can't say a bad word about this printer.

I bought this camera after reading positive reviews on amazon and the web. Don't believe the reviews. The camera is on its way back to amazon as I type this. It is not worth the money.

The pictures come out good if you can hold the camera still long enough for the camera to take the picture. You push the shutter release and have to wait 2-3 seconds before you can move.

Also, the lens is not "true." You have to be pointing the camera perfectly at what you want to get what you think you are getting. No room for error.

This is by far the best 1.3 megapixel camera I have owned and extremely convenient too.It's small and strong enough to carry in any pocket all the time ready for quick use.The power and shoot time
is about 2 seconds with 1 second between subsequent shots.As long as you have reasonably steady hands the picture quality outdoors or under fluorescent lights is excellent.Indoors in poor lighting its a little harder to judge flash distance for good results.

I needed a pocket size digital camera that I could easily take with me anywhere. I have a 5 year old Sony Mavica that is my workhorse, and it's a great camera, but way to big and bulky for carefree snapshots. After lots of searching and procrastinating I bought this one based on the price, portability, rechargeble internal lithium ion battery, and good reviews. I am greatly pleased with my choice.

It is easy to use, takes very nice photos, is very portable (about the size of a business card and less than an inch thick) and looks and feels nice too, with its brushed stainless, slide open case. It fires up almost instantly, no waiting like with my Mavica. It is compatible with both PC and Mac, and on my Mac I didn't need to use the software that came with it. I just plugged it in (the USB cable also comes with it) and my computer asked if I would like IPhoto to download the pics. 10 seconds later I was done, and the camera was busily recharging the battery through the USB cable. The lithium ion battery does not exhibit the memory affect, i.e. you can recharge it before it is fully discharged without it affecting battery life. SLICK!

This camera does not do it all, there aren't any bells and whistles, just the important basics like a timer function, flash, and choice of 2 format sizes. It also can take up to 188 small format shots without needing a download. For me it's the perfect little portable camera for web and smaller format print photos. What it does, it does very well.

I bought this camera in early 2002. Pictures are great for the computer viewing and e-mailing. Program that comes with it is easy to use to download pictures. Picture quality when you get prints done from a photo store aren't very clear unless you always use full size and quality for every picture you plan to get on prints. Even then they have a slight "fuzz" to them. When I bought this camera it was 3 times the price, but it has just now started having problems with picture taking 2 years later. At this current price you can't beat what it can give you. Has lots of options so you can mess with the pictures you take as if you had a regular SLR type of camera. Great for the "point and shoot" type also.

I have several digital cameras but I like this one the best. It has never failed to focus reliably and the shots are quite sharp.
Controls are easy to learn and use.

I think you will hard pressed to find another or better value for the money

This has all the high-end features one needs (including video) in order to capture all the pictures you will need. 6x zoom works very well and the 3.2 ixels at this price are just a steal! Be sure to use the right rechargable batteries (not the cheap ones at Wal-mart, but get yourself eight 8 1800 mAh or higher "AA" batteries. I laso recommend the ac20 power supply if you do alot of desktop work or video through it!

I am in a YearBook Class and we use these digi cams. They are exclusively new. I like how they take pictures. At first, it was hard taking pictures, because I am new to the Digi cam world, and I have used good ol' film cameras for my entire life. Anyway, it was really hard at first, because I took several bad pictures, but finally I found out how to delete them. I would say that this inspired me to save up for a digi cam myself. The only drawback is the price, because my teacher said it cost $600, but then again, she bought it elsewhere.

I originally had an S50 until it was stolen, so after much new research I replaced it with the S60. The focusing is much improved over my original S50. Although friends who also had the same camera never seemed to have focusing problems. The navigation buttons on the back of the camera have been improved. It is definately lighter than the S50, which is a bonus for those carrying the camera hiking or climbing. And, its start up time is good if you need to capture a picture really quick. So far it has handled all sorts of lighting conditions very well, and the color definition has been excellent with very little (if any) purple tinting. This is a very feature rich camera, if you like gadgets. However, it is also easy to use when set to fully automatic. The photo software it comes with is much improved, and is an acceptable choice if you don't have the money to buy something like Photoshop. I like the rugged, solid feel of the camera overall.

What I don't like about it is the slidable lens cover. I keep bumping it when it is open because of the way I like to hold the camera. The cover extends almost to the right hand side of the camera. If you bump it during picture taking, it shuts down the camera and you don't get your picture. This has happened to me maybe a half a dozen times. I have to consciously force myself to hold the camera as to not disturb the cover when it is open. Maybe in the future canon can move it back from the edge a bit, or reduce the sensitivity of the mechanism that shuts the camera down. Last, this camera isn't design for use in the shirt pocket. If you are looking for a pocket camera this one is a bit big.

I was looking for a digital camera that has many features as SLR does, yet want it small enough that it's convinient for me to carry it anywhere to do a lot of photographs. I got S60 and so far I'm satisfied with it.

The camera produced sharp images and good color balance. And the camera gets ready fast enough to shoot after we turn it on.

Though I took many pictures with it and reviewed the images many times, I found out that the battery is long-lasting.

I also like the software that puts the picture in folders titled by the date automatically. So I can choose not to print date on the pictures.

However, sometimes it's quite hard to slide open your camera when your hand is sweaty. And also almost every single time I take the camera out of my pocket, I slide open the battery door. Yet, they are not a big deal to me.