Other Cameras

An affordable, high resolution digicam that’s waterproof and shock-resistant and includes 25 scene presets.With a slimline stainless steel and aluminium body the new 7.1-megapixel Olympus ø‚ µ 720SW has rubberised gel sealing and shockproofing around the lens, circuit board, battery/card slot and USB port. Waterproof to three metres and withstanding a 1.5 metre drop, the 720SW deserves its “Tough” tag. It’s available in silver or Polar Blue and sports a 3x optical zoom lens and 2.5-inch LCD but no viewfinder.

Kodak’s EasyShare DX 7630 has features to attract photo enthusiasts but presents them in a way that is targeted more at point-and-shoot photographers. The camera’s 6-megapixel sensor is impressive and its plastic body is well-built and thoughtfully designed. User-adjustable controls include P, A, S and M shooting modes, exposure and flash adjustments, ISO settings, 16 scene pre-sets, and a custom mode that lets you save ‘user-created’ selections.

Casio’s new 6-megapixel Exilim EX-Z110 is a surprisingly versatile little camera, with features to attract both novices and more experienced photographers. The former will find the proprietary ‘Anti Shake DSP’ processing, which works by combining a fast shutter speed with post-capture processing and reduces blurring due to camera or subject movement, handy. However, it’s only available in full-auto mode and doesn’t work for shooting movie clips.

An affordable digicam with a longer zoom lens and extended functionality.Added functionality makes Canon’s A700 PowerShot model more interesting than a simple point-and-shoot camera. With a 6x optical zoom lens that covers angles of view from 35mm to 210mm in 35mm format, it also sports a proper mode dial with P, Tv, Av and M settings as well as 10 scene modes, Colour Accent and Colour Swap settings and Stitch Assist.

Canon’s PowerShot S1 IS sports a 10x optical zoom lens plus a gyro-based image stabilisation system. The zoon is powered by an ultrasonic motor (USM) which is fast, quiet and reasonably easy to control. In video mode, where the S1 IS supports VGA capture with sound at 30 frames per second, the zoom switches to its slowest speed so no noise is recorded. Thirteen shooting modes are available through the mode dial, which is divided into the standard Canon Image and Creative zones and includes a custom mode for saving frequently used settings.

Canon’s Digital Ixus 500 has the same compact, stainless steel body and 3x zoom lens as earlier models, with a new Print/Share button that allows image files to be downloaded directly to a Canon Direct or PictBridge-enabled photo printer, or a PC. Lens aperture is controlled automatically using evaluative metering. Centre-weighted and spot metering are also provided.

[ia] Canon’s smallest and lightest zoon lens camera, the Ixus 50, can fit in a shirt pocket but offers plenty of user-adjustable settings. The 35-105mm (equivalent) lens retracts fully, giving the camera a smooth profile with few protrusions and the 5-megapixel CCD chip produces pictures with a top resolution of 2592 x 1944 pixels and a file size of just under 3 MB, which suggests restrained compression.

A compact, high-resolution camera with plenty of enthusiast features and 24 scene modes. It produces detailed pictures with accurate colours and well-controlled saturation.Most of the controls and functions keen photographers want are provided in the new Olympus SP-350, which is smaller and less than half the weight of the C-7070 Wide Zoom. There’s a high-resolution CCD imager, P, A, S and M shooting modes and a versatile AF system with 143 selectable AF points. Sensitivity starts at ISO 50 and white balance settings can be fine-tuned to produce accurate colours under different types of lighting.

[ia] Designed to appeal to photographers who want a lightweight compact digicam with a solid feel and extensive suite of user controls, the Olympus C-7070 Wide Zoom sits between the C-8080 and the C-5060 in the Olympus line-up. It has identical styling to the C-5060 Zoom, the same lens and flip-up-and twist LCD monitor and diopter-adjustable optical viewfinder. However, it sports a 7-megapixel sensor, although the CCD is the same size as the C-5060’s.

[ia] A distinctive shape, prominent lens, high-rising flash and smart black body give the Olympus C-8080 a quality appearance. It’s also distinguished by the many different ways of accessing most controls, its dual CF and xD-Picture card support, and excellent optics. The C-8080’s lens is built to the same standard as the Zuiko lenses made for E System cameras, but manual focusing is via a button control and zooming is lever-operated. The 1.8-inch ‘sunshine colour’ LCD monitor is mounted on a swing-out hinge but it can only be tilted through about 45 degrees. A neat ‘direct histogram’ uses a coloured grid to indicate areas of the displayed image that are overexposed (red) or underexposed (blue), allowing users to fine-tune exposure levels.