the title says it all! haha
Though virtually every other digital camera uses a rangefinder setup, the C912 is a true single-lens reflex (SLR) camera. Light entering the lens is split by a prism: most is sent to the camera's sensor, but some goes up to the viewfinder. When you look through the viewfinder, the image you see is coming through the lens, so you can see precisely what you'll capture. You can also preview and review your shots with the 2-inch color LCD on the back of the camera. As an added feature, the LCD has a 90-degree flip-up design, allowing you to see images even if the camera is held at waist level.
The all-new, 36-bit CCD sensor from Philips is another unusual touch. At two-thirds of an inch, it's still much smaller than a 35mm negative, but it's larger than the sensors in most other manufacturers' cameras. On paper at least, this should improve image capture. We were surprised to discover that the sensor's proportions are "squarer" than those on most digital cameras--most 2-megapixel models capture 1,600 x 1,200 pixels in their images (a 4:3 ratio), but the HP captures a 1,600 x 1280 image (a 5:4 ratio). The traditional 4:3 ratio evolved because it matches the proportions of a computer monitor--with this camera, images displayed on your screen will have bars down the left and right edges, or will need to be cropped at the top or bottom to fill the screen. If you like making prints, images will also need some serious cropping to fill a 4-by-6 or 5-by-7 inch sheet, but the proportions are perfect for an 8-by-10 inch print.
While other companies are putting 3.3-megapixel sensors into their high-end models, HP has chosen to use a 2.2-megapixel CCD instead. Perhaps HP's engineers have reached the same conclusion we have--that for most users, 2 megapixels is the best balance between image quality and speed, price, and file size.
The Pentax lens zooms from 34 to 107 mm (35mm camera equivalent), and includes eight elements in seven groups, with one aspherical element. HP also adds a 2x digital zoom, which brings images closer at the expense of image quality. Instead of using a pair of buttons on the camera body, users adjust the zoom by twisting a ring on the lens--a traditional arrangement borrowed from film cameras. The lens also has an unusually powerful macro feature, focusing on items as close to the lens as 2 centimeters.
The camera looks well-made and fits nicely in your hands. The size, shape, and soft curves are all reminiscent of a classic SLR camera. A status LCD on the top panel lets you see vital camera settings, a very useful feature if you're not using the battery-draining color LCD display on the back of the camera. Images are stored on either Type I or the thicker Type II CompactFlash cards. Though it physically fits in the slot, IBM's Microdrive isn't compatible with the camera.
If you're a techno-tinkerer, you'll love the fact that the C912 uses Digita as its operating system (OS). When Digita was introduced several years ago, some predicted this OS would be adopted by virtually every digital camera manufacturer. In reality, Digita has proven to be just slightly more popular than Esperanto, finding its way into only a handful of cameras, mostly from Kodak and Minolta. Digita offers the potential to easily upgrade the camera's firmware, in addition to allowing advanced users to write software scripts to customize camera functions. As an example of the power and flexibility of the OS, one Digita-powered download available on the Internet lets you play emulated arcade video games on the camera's LCD display. For the average digital photographer, however, the biggest advantages to Digita are the colorful onscreen menus and the ease with which you'll be able to transfer revised firmware to your camera.
Virtually every camera feature can either be left on automatic operation or can be set for manual control. The ISO can be adjusted from 25 to 400, and the flash, shutter speed, aperture, and focus can also be controlled by hand. There's an integrated pop-up flash atop the camera, plus a hot-shoe mount for an external strobe unit.
HP has devised a flexible power system for this model. You can use four standard AA alkaline or rechargeable batteries, but for the ultimate in battery life, you can get a proprietary Olympus lithium-ion power pack and charger. With a suggested retail price of .00, the charging kit costs more than twice as much as a set of rechargeable AA batteries with charger, but lasts about twice as long on a charge as a set of high-capacity AA rechargeables.
If you're looking for a camera with the ultimate in resolution or the smallest dimensions, look elsewhere. But if you want a camera that looks and feels nice and has a good combination of features, the C912 is worth considering, especially if you're a fan of Pentax film cameras, love SLRs, or need a great macro lens.
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The Coolpix 775 also features a comfortable side grip for easy shooting and comfortable access to all of the camera's controls. To provide added shooting flexibility, the 775 offers a versatile zoom range which lets users get close to the action when objects are far away or zoom out wide when taking group photos or shooting in close proximity. At the heart of the camera's zoom capabilities is Nikon's exclusive all-glass 3x optical Zoom-Nikkor lens, featuring a zoom range of 38-115mm (35mm equivalent).
You can upload your photographs from the Coolpix 775 with just the click of a button. And after that, e-mailing, printing, or sharing on the Internet follow with easy-to-use software designed for the busy person who wants to enjoy hassle-free digital photography. With that in mind, the 775 also comes with a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and battery charger and an 8 MB CompactFlash card so that you are ready to shoot pictures right away.
Three controls provide access to the camera's primary adjustable features. Digital subject-program selection allows you to set aperture and shutter speed for superior results in five popular formats: portrait, sports action, sunsets, night portraits, or text. A function dial allows adjustment between four modes of pixel resolution, five modes of data compression, four modes of exposure control, five modes of drive options, seven modes of white balance, and five levels of ISO. The digital-effects controller allows image manipulation by compensating for exposure, contrast, and color saturation before the image is saved. As insurance, Minolta provides a fourth control that instantly restores the camera's automatic settings. Changing most settings is a two-handed operation: one hand selects the feature you're adjusting, while spinning a second dial actually changes the setting. The system is reasonably intuitive, but don't plan to make any adjustments with one hand.
To preview and review images, the DiMAGE 7 features a digital viewfinder that pivots for comfortable close-ups or tripod shooting. An eye-sensing switch (triggered when you put your eye up to the camera) automatically turns off the TFT LCD viewscreen to conserve battery power.
In manual-focus mode, the camera also has an electronic magnification feature. At the push of a button, the center of the image is blown up to 4x original size in the viewfinder so you can check the fine details and ensure the image is in focus before snapping the shutter. In autofocus mode, a flex-focusing option allows the focal point to be moved to any part of the image for off-center shooting.
The DiMAGE 7 is so packed with features that it would be impossible to list them all, but here are some highlights:
Despite its ultrahigh resolution and extensive set of features, the DiMAGE 7 has a few flaws. To compose shots traditionally, it uses an electronic viewfinder (EVF), which offers far less detail than a traditional optical viewfinder. The 16 MB CompactFlash card provided with the camera holds only 12 images at the default resolution (or a single uncompressed image). Like many manufacturers, Minolta supplies the camera with a set of inadequate AA alkaline batteries (use of rechargeable Ni-MH batteries is recommended, even by Minolta). Though the image sensor is at the cutting edge of technology, the rest of the circuitry can't quite keep up; saving an uncompressed image to the memory card requires a 40-second wait. In addition, we found the multitude of control buttons that must be manipulated simultaneously to be somewhat awkward and initially intimidating. Finally, zooming the lens is a manual-only operation requiring a twist of the barrel--unlike many cameras, the Minolta lacks a pushbutton zoom.
These minor gripes aside, the manual zoom is actually faster than an electronic zoom and easy to get used to; larger capacity CompactFlash cards are readily available; and the control systems are easy enough to learn even for the novice. Moreover, since the EVF is a tiny monitor, you can view camera settings while composing your shot--something you can't do with a traditional optical viewfinder. Though some controls may be awkward for beginners, the camera operates in fully automatic mode by default, allowing users the opportunity to manually adjust settings as they become comfortable with the controls.
The camera comes equipped with a lens cap, lens shade, neck strap, video cable, USB cable, accessory-shoe cap, 16 MB CompactFlash card, four AA alkaline batteries, and a CD-ROM for DiMAGE image processing software. --Brett M. Nunn and Walt Opie
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