Digital Cameras
Click first here  if you wonder WHY a digital camera, is the absolute best alternative...
You may also click here to see exactly how we work... And please click here to email me... If you have NEWS about finer worldwide alternatives, any important information (type extra good or bad qualities) on the products I recommend and naturally, any finer pictures!
This is a wonderful time, for everyone who like photography... The price has been falling dramatically on digital cameras, since 2003 and you can now get a finer camera, at only 12% of the old price...
How to select a digital camera
Zoom  You should first ask yourself, how big zoom you need... Yes, a 3x zoom is very good to have and mean normally, that you come up to 2 times closer and that you can take fine portraits at 3x zoom... Then will a 3.6x wide angle zoom, that is like 28mm in a 35mm camera, let you get more people (or maybe a house) in the picture... But you will come up to 5 times closer with a 6x zoom and objects 20 meters away, will then look as only 4 meters away... Or just 2 meters away, with a 12x zoom...
Optical Stabilizer But it is hard to hold a camera steady and get sharp pictures, with more than 5x zoom... So if you want a long zoom and don't like to use a clumsy tripod all the time, must you select a model with an Optical Image Stabilizer... Then will a good stabilizer, also help you to take sharp pictures in normal soft indoor light, without any need for a flash (that make flat "burned out" pictures) or a clumsy tripod... WARNING! There are many "anti shake" technologies (especially electronic methods) that NOT work as effective as a real Optical Image Stabilizer and some call even extra high ISO sensitivity a "shake reduction" technique (as it might be in theory) but then must the high sensitivity give sharp low noise pictures and only a few compact cameras from FujiFilm manage that rare trick, but they has other problems... Most clumsy SLR cameras give also rather high sensitivity, but they has also other problems... The "sport" mode many cameras have (auto select fastest possible shutter) give almost the same effect and can freeze movements, if the camera also have a good lens... And you can naturally use both a "sport" mode and Optical Image Stabilizer (if the camera have that) at the same time, for maximum sharpness!
Mega pixels Then was the big question how high resolution you actually need, so I did begin every camera class by explaining what you may need... Because it's only a waste of money, to buy more pixels than you really need or use... But today has even a basic camera 6 millions effective pixels, so you get anyhow more than you normally need... Many users, never use the highest resolution and get then room for more pictures on the memory card... And if you don't need max resolution, for the size of print you want, can you instead reduce a too big picture with a photo editing program (and not select a smaller size in camera) which automatically reduce a lot of noise and still give you a very sharp picture (after little sharpening) if you have any noise to really bother about...
Then must the lens also be sharper, to handle a higher resolution and cameras with over 8 mega pixels on a tiny sensor, give only max sharpness at lower apertures and 10mp cameras get often softer at F5.6 or more... That simply mean that a fine 8mp camera, with a really sharp lens - can easy give higher sharpness and show finer details, than a 12mp camera (and even soft 12mp pictures need a lot more space on the memory card) so the MP number is only one rough indication, of the potential sharpness... Then will a fine 7.1mp camera with a big zoom, actually give you clearly sharper pictures at 6x zoom (you simply get more pixels on the motive) than a 28mp SLR with a standard 3x zoom... Finally can you easy make a fine 7.1mp picture up to 200% as wide with a good photo editing program and get a print, that look 98% as fine as a 28mp print!!
A big bright lens Then need many simple cameras 88 lux at 100 ISO - but soft indoor light are from only 22 lux and a flash, will kill any fine soft shadows... So look for cameras that not has a tiny lens and handle soft indoor light... Fine automatic functions And after the sharpness, is the most important for great picture quality, fine automatic functions (exposure, white balance, focus and contrast) and accurate colours...
Some problems to avoid... There are also some digital artifacts that you don't want, even if you only can see them in rather few pictures... The worst looking artifact (that also are impossible to fix) is pixelation (look like tiny steps) or "zigzagging" on diagonal lines... You can also get that on yellow objects and highlights... Then come burn out highlights, that also are impossible to fix... And chromatic aberrations, that I simply call for "purple edges" because it give a glowing "purple effect" on some dark to white edges... But you see it only in a few situations (somewhere in one of 20-40 pix) and you can reduce (or even eliminate) this ugly effect, by not use the widest angle or select less contrast (maybe by underexposing and then get it right, in the computer) or simply replace the purple with grey, in a good photo program... Then is a "holo" effect rather common, with white around black edges, if you (or the camera) set sharpening too high... And finally will you almost never see moire (distorted patterns) in normal photos... Very bad cameras, save also pictures with too high compression and that give "jpg" noise that look like tiny worms... But some (like Panasonic) handle this better and get no ugly side effects, even with rather high compression!
Fast actions and more... Some cameras work also very slow, so you miss the right moment and that was actually the biggest problem with digital cameras... But almost every cameras I recommend, is very fast... Then is any manual control of exposure good and more memory is nice, even if you anyhow should buy a second bigger card... Then is auto lens cover, the possibility to use AA batteries and good battery life - naturally VERY practical... And if it's hard to select between some models, check finally for the best optical or electronic viewfinder OR a bigger screen... Or if the camera can take a fine wide adapter... Remember also that an usd price, is without tax and sek (Swedish krona) is with 25% tax.
A few more vital advice Look ONLY for the OPTICAL zoom, because digital zoom give you less sharp pictures... A digital zoom, show simply the centre of the original image (with less pixels) and put sometimes fake pixels between the real one, but you can normally do that better (and whenever you want) with a fine Photo Edit program... Yes, you get normally a basic Photo Edit program with any camera... And if you want extra fine pictures, will you need a good photo editing program... You can click here to find them... The video option in most cameras, did only give you very small pictures and was almost useless, but now can many cameras film with 640x480 vga quality and 30fps, if you first buy a huge high speed memory card... Most cameras use USB connection and if your computer don't have that, must you buy a cheap card reader...
Pixels and Photo quality A very fine brilliant sharp paper photo, look like 300 true dpi (that's 300 pixels wide on 2.54 cm) and that are also the print quality, in a fine magazine... And more than 350dpi, don't look better... But a computer screen, show normally just 72-96dpi and that's why web text look ugly and why it's vital to optimize web pictures, like I do... Yes, a 17" vga crt monitor show only 50dpi and 8" xga screen 125dpi... You can also optimize a low noise picture, with a good Photo Edit program and then print (up to) twice as wide, with fine photo quality... The picture will then look as 200 to 250 dpi... Just like most of my web pictures, look as twice the screen dpi... But if the original is rather noisy, can you only make it max 150% wide, because the program can't calculate the new "between" pixels accurately and the noise will also be more visible!
You will finally need a fine cheap 600 dpi inkjet printer (with edge improvement) to get excellent quality prints, because the ink points will smudge and look as 300 true dpi, on fine glossy photo paper... But very light parts may still look slightly dotty, except with fine Canon printers... And yes, any picture need naturally a lot less dpi (to look perfect) on distance!
Take finer pictures!
You should first adjust you camera... Avoid extra noise There are 4 vital facts, about noise and digital cameras... 1) You should simply not use high ISO with any small sensor, except with some unique Fujifilm cameras, but they has other problems... Small sensors are normally made for the lowest ISO and everything else is like using 2 to 8 truck turbos, on a small car engine and that will naturally produce a lot of extra noise OR more and more unsharp pictures, if the camera try to reduce the noise... So you should select max 100 ISO sensitivity and some cameras give clearly better result with a 50 or 80 ISO setting... And if you like to take pictures in "soft indoor light" that is 22-66 lux (without flash) or at late evenings outdoors, should you (a) select a camera that let you select a low ISO sensitivity and (b) especially has a fine Optical Image Stabilizer, which give the same effect as a rise from 100 to 800 iso... Then will (c) a bright lens also help a bit and you can always (d) use a tripod... But a tripod or OIS will naturally not freeze moving objects (only a faster shutter time can do that) just as little higher ISO not will eliminate tiny vibrations...
You can otherwise select up to 2 step lower exposure, if the light not is enough and first let the picture get darker... Then can you very easy adjust the clean low ISO picture so it get perfect, with the "curve" tools (not brightness) in a good photo editing program... And the result get normally much better, if you use that method instead of boosting the sensors sensitivity... The only problem with that method, is that the "white point" will normally move down a bit, but that is also easy to adjust (except with very bad pictures) and that side effect will also make sure, that you not get burnout highlights...
Remember also three more facts... 2) A normal 92dpi notebook screen show a "full size" picture in 330% closeup, compared to a fine 300dpi print... So any noise will simply look over 3 times more (than it actually is) and be dramatically reduced (not visible) in a high quality print, that is only 30% in size compared to what you see on a computer screen... And you will get almost the same effect, even if you make the picture twice as big and optimize it for max size printing... You can view a picture at 50% size, to see some of the "print effect" on noise, but remember that the print will look dramatically sharper and cleaner... That mean that a rather "noisy" 400 ISO picture (from a small sensor) may be completely noise free in print...
3) If you check that, will you see that most digital cameras (with small sensors) give clearly less noise at 400 ISO compared with the "grain" from the finest 400 ASA films... Except that digital shadows can look worse, compared with the other clean parts of the picture and most small sensors cameras will also loose sharpness above 200 ISO because of too aggressive noise reduction...
4) And if you scale down to BIG pictures for the web, will normally any noise be totally eliminated, even if you add some sharpness... Finally give most small 6mp sensors little more noise than 5mp sensors, 7mp sensors is actually better (!) the first 8mp from Sony was absolutely worst and the last 8mp is as good as 7mp... And the 6.3mp high ISO sensor (of HR type) in some Fujifilm cameras, is a true miracle - that handle up to 400 iso and give 1900 fine lines sharpness (if your hands not move) as the best 8mp cameras, but their cameras has other problems... Then have DSLR cameras much bigger sensors, that handle up to 800 iso - but that mean also that they need a much bigger and a lot more expensive zoom lens and they also use to need more light, if they not are extremely expensive...
Don't use the flash A flash kill any lovely shadows and give a very "flat burned out" picture, that only look fine for some "party" pictures... So you should normally use the normal lights indoors and if that not is enough, a separate wide spotlight... Or at least a strong slave flash, from the side...
White balance... Adjust the white balance, so you don't get too yellow indoors, or too blue shadows outdoors... Check the manual, if you don't know how to do that!
And take then pictures... Get first in the best position It's very important that you try to get the strongest light behind you, or at least from the side... You may also have some more light, that absolutely not is visible, behind your motive... Because any light that is directed into the camera, will make your motive pale or grey... Be careful so you not get a bad, distracting or really annoying background - if possible... Then may a small change of the angle (move first side ways and then down) be very important... A few things look also better, if you move up... And if you take pictures of people, is their position also of major importance... It may be smart to study some magazines, days before and select some reference pictures, that look extra fine... A slightly open mouth and some hair over one eye, look a lot more sensual... Hands should be folded, or sometimes closed... A face should either look in the camera or at something, like a book or another person in the frame... And if you have deep shadows, should the nose be directed at the strongest light (or half the face, be in a deep shadow) to avoid strange shadows from the nose...
Frame right Let then your motive (the interesting part of the picture) almost "fill" the frame... But your motive can naturally be several things - like a girl, sitting under a huge tree in a misty park... Use minimum 3x zoom for portraits, even of you frame the whole torso - if you don't want "silly" looking faces, with a huge nose...
Focus Focus your target by first pressing down the trigger, half way and wait on the "focus lock" sign... Then can you change then direction (with most cameras) if you don't want your target in the centre... And squeeze finally off the picture, without shaking the camera and remember that a Optical Stabilizer is a GREAT help...
And take safety pictures If something was very bright in the frame (and you can't set lower contrast) so you might get burned out high lights (or the graph in a histogram, hit high up on the right side) should you adjust down the exposure and take some extra pictures, until you see most of the details... But normally does some burned out high light look natural and a lower exposure, may make shadows completely black... Avoid also leaning pictures and take another one, if you not are sure... Most people does also blink, so take several "safety" pictures, when you photograph people... Take finally more pictures, if you not are absolutely sure you got the perfect framing or angle!
Optimize your pictures
And optimize then the picture, with a fine photo edit program... Click first here and check, if you need to adjust your monitor... Make then too dark indoor pictures, lighter with the curve tool... Which not give as much more noise, as 200/400 ISO does... Adjust (maximise) then the black and white point... Add normally some contrast with curves, make slightly darker dark and slightly lighter light, until the picture not look greyish... Before you add some extra sharpness, without getting any "white halos" or pixelated edges (which you then can make softer, if you want max sharpness) and fine tune the colours... Then has many report that the Qimage program is excellent, if you want to make a 200% interpolation (twice as wide picture) and add then finally some extra sharpness... And remember that fine noise, that is visible on the computer screen in a "print ready" picture - will not be visible in a 300dpi print, that normally is three times smaller!
Safety!
Remember finally that every computer hard-disc will CRASH in time (even if some notebooks hard-discs are much safer) so you must also COPY your digital pictures to some extra media and that may be a second hard-disc... Two hard-discs crash "never" at the same week... So you should take some minutes and copy everything to a new simple DVD-R disc twice every year (because they have only a lifetime of 1 to 6 years) or every second year to a finer disc (that hold up to 50 years) or always save to two hard-discs and if you do that, will your pictures be safe forever... And you should always save your pictures on your hard-disc and NEVER only print them from the memory card, before you erase them... The colour of paper pictures, fade rather fast and you loose also 33-50% sharpness, if you don't have the digital original and have to scan them!!
 If you want 217x168mm BIG prints, of excellent quality (true 300 dpi) must you get a sharp 5 megapixels camera, which give 2560x1920 pixels... Then can you also get twice that wide prints (434x336mm and clearly bigger than two A4 papers) of fine photo quality, with optimizing in a Photo Edit program... But that are only 12% wider, than with 4mp and 25% wider than 3.2mp...
And you might wonder why I almost only recommend Panasonic cameras, here?!?
That's was simply because only Panasonic made finer compact cameras, with Optical Image Stabilizers and that IS the most valuable function in a camera, if you like sharp pictures and especially in normal soft indoor lightening... But you will lately find a few Canon too... Then give Panasonic cameras also finer sharpness, than most other brands and they cost normally less... But I would sincerely LOVE to recommend more cameras from other brands, if they begin to make finer alternatives!
The best value 5 to 6mp cameras with 3-6x zoom... Are now replaced with 7 and 8 megapixels cameras below, that cost slightly less and handle noise better...
And if you prefer a compact 5 to 6mp camera, with a 6x zoom...
 Then was Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ5 the absolute finest 6 million pixels alternative... But it was replaced with the more elegant Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ7 that offer higher resolution screen (114t pixels) and 7.2mp, at an even lower price and you find that masterpiece below...
 The other compact 5 to 6mp cameras with 3-6x zoom, doesn't have any Image Stabilizer and that is the most valuable extra function, if you really want quality pictures... So we can no longer recommend any other alternatives, even if some 5mp models is little cheaper...
Especially when Panasonic has the budget LZ7 below - with excellent 6x zoom, Optical Image Stabilizer, ultra sharp 7.2mp and 2.4 inch screen, in pocket size...
One historic "almost" alternative...
The compact elegant Fujifilm FinePix F20 with a 2.5 inch screen (153t pixels) has especially an exceptional sensor (with 6.1 millions effective pixels) that work perfect up to 400 ISO with both ultra high sharpness (1900 fine lines) and no visible noise... Fine high ISO give you a greater possibility to freeze movements, with extra fast shutter speed and (just as cameras with Image stabilizers) take pictures in lower light... And high ISO can sometimes compensate tiny hand vibrations, if the camera select an extra fast shutter speed... Just as the more expensive F30/31sd... So they could be fine alternatives, even without Optical Image Stabilizer...But all this camera has some BIG problems... They use to overexpose a bit and especially too much in bright light, so you must always set lower exposure in bright light (and then back) to avoid burned out highlights... They make also some shadows too dark, so you loose details and that get naturally worse if you set lower exposure... And they does often expose slightly different, too... A real Image Stabilizer, handle also tiny hand vibrations mush better and they give extra strong purple edges, in areas of high contrast... So many owners report that they must "fix" the pictures a lot more (than pictures from Canon or Panasonic cameras) when they can, in Photo Editors... Then is just 3x zoom (as 36-108mm) rather limited... And finally do they use the more expensive xD cards...
Observe that I also recommend cameras that I think are ugly, because everyone have different taste
and I don't even grade good looking cameras higher... But most fine cameras, look extra fine too!
 
The amazing "old" Panasonic FZ7 * Size references
You might first click here to see if you need a 5 to 6mp camera, or more...
The best 5 to 6mp camera with really BIG zoom... Is the 8mp Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 with 18x zoom, or the cheaper 7.2mp Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8 that you find below... Because they give finer pictures at the price, than any older alternatives!!
If you want 261x196mm prints, of excellent quality (true 300 dpi) must you get a sharp 7.2 megapixels camera, which give 3072x2304 pixels... Then can you also get twice that wide prints (522x392mm and almost three A4 papers) of fine photo quality, with optimizing in a Photo Edit program... But 7.2 is only 20% wider, than with 5mp and 50% wider than 3.2mp!
And if you really need even bigger 310x232mm prints, of excellent quality (true 300 dpi) must you get a very sharp 10.1 megapixels camera, that give 3648x2736 clear pixels... Then can you also get twice that wide prints (620x465mm or little bigger than four A4 papers) of fine photo quality, with optimizing in a Photo Edit program...
But a 10 mega pixels camera should also have a clearly bigger sensor, to not get problems with diffraction (that give softer pictures) at higher apertures... You may otherwise use max 5.6 aperture, to avoid that problem... But a tiny 13 mega pixel sensor, will never be really sharp - because of either diffraction at 5.6 or some flare at 2.8 aperture!
The best value camera with over 7mp and 3-6x zoom... In the category "exclusive ultra compact" was the elegant Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX30 from 2007 that offer an advanced 3.6x wide angle zoom (as 28-100mm 2.8-5.6 by LEICA that work smooth with 19 steps, has virtually no "purple edges" and auto lens cover) 7.2 millions effective pixels and the famous Optical Image Stabilizer, that give you ultra sharp handheld pictures (1900 fine lines sharpness in test) even in soft indoor light... And the razor sharp pictures are of excellent quality, with very accurate colours and exposure, exact colour balance, almost no noise at 100 iso (only visible in grey at a PC screen, not in fine print size) and just little barrel distortion at max wide... Then has it a big 2.5 inch screen (207t pixels, that is 2.94x sharper than a notebook screen and great in strong sunlight, 16x view zoom and a special high angle view) in a tiny metal body (only 109cm3 or 94.9x51.9x22mm) with auto lens cover and good ergonomics, especially compared with other tiny cameras... Then has it fine macro (minimum 58mm wide) good battery life (about 280 shots) fine widescreen movie mode (848x480 pixels) 21 scene modes, exposure adjust and bracketing, white balance fine adjust and manual setting, you can also adjust the strength of sharpness contrast and colour (all three at once) with the "pic.adj" setting and "natural" give finest result... FX30 has also AF assist lamp, can show live histogram and guiding lines, 60 to 1/2000sec shutter, fine doors (not annoying rubber flaps) metal tripod socket and take SD/SDHC/MMC cards... At only 217usd or 2490sek with 27MB built in, li-ion battery and separate charger... With "brown" bronze, black, dark blue or silver body... This camera is actually the 6th improved generation of Lumix ultra compacts, since the legendary FX7 that came 2004... And you can also click to see how fine it look, find a lot more information and view a few sample pictures, in Panasonic's official site...
But it's now replaced with FX33 below and show a little bit soft and darker corners, plus slight barrel distortion at max wide angle - even if it's better than other ultra compacts... And some bigger cameras, has wider aperture (f5.6) at tele... The very compact Panasonic LZ7 below (206cm3) is a better choice for most, because it offer a 6x zoom (and f4.5 at tele) with Optical Image Stabilizer, 7.2mp and 2.5 inch screen, at a much lower price... And the greatest alternative is the elegant Panasonic TZ5 you also find below, that is compact (224cm3) but offer a splendid 26-280mm zoom with OIS, a huge ultra high resolution 3 inch screen and 9.1MP, but cost slightly more... Otherwise give FX30 little noise in grey areas on a computer screen (which is like 330% closeup) but that is not visible in prints, even if you make the picture twice as big and you can set "pict.adj" to "natural" to avoid this... Then can it sometimes over exposure highlights (as most ultra compacts) but you can simply set lower exposure... And it has an big screen, instead of a tiny optical viewfinder and you should NOT use the 200 or higher ISO settings (as with all compact cameras) even if the "low noise" Canon SD630 give just as much noise, as example... You may click for basic info about high ISO and noise!
And FX30 above has been replaced by Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX33 that in addition offer 8.1 millions effective pixels (about 1950 fine lines sharpness in test and no noise at 100 iso) accurate face detection, a very clever "Intelligent Auto Mode" that actually can help you in many situation (according to several reviews) and exactly the same qualities as FX30 above, that give excellent pictures (with no "purple edges" at high contrast and very accurate auto functions) at only 2000sek or 270usd with 27MB built in, li-ion battery and separate charger... In soft black, brown, dark blue, white, pink or silver... And you can click to see how fine it look, find a lot more information and view a few sample pictures, in Panasonic's official site... But it give slightly (a tiny bit) more noise than Canon SD870 / ixus 860 IS below (even if you can't see any difference in print) and you should set it at 100 ISO to not loose any of the finest details, just as most compact cameras... And if you want to spend a lot less, should you look at the nice Panasonic FS3 below, that offer a 3x zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer and 2.5 inch screen, in a slightly (114cm3) bigger body... Then give this model and FX55 very natural colours, that can look a bit boring (which make them perfect to adjust in a photo program) but you can set "Colour effect" at "Vivid" and get Canon style colours.
Plus Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX55 that in addition has a huge 3 inch screen (230t pixels and 230dpi, 16x view zoom) and exactly the same qualities as FX33 above... Except a slightly bigger body (still only 123cm3 or 94.9x57.1x22.8mm and clearly smaller than Canon Digital IXUS 860 IS / PowerShot SD870 IS Digital ELPH) and even this version work fast (about 1.5sec start up) at 2875sek or 290usd with 27MB built in, li-ion battery and separate charger... In soft black, pink or silver... And you can click to see how fine it look, find a lot more information and view a few sample pictures, in Panasonic's official site...But it give slightly (a tiny bit) more noise than Canon SD870 / ixus 860 IS below (even if you can't see any difference in print) and you should set it at 100 ISO to not loose any of the finest details, just as most compact cameras... Then give this model and FX33 very natural colours, that can look a bit boring (which make them perfect to adjust in a photo program) but you can set "Colour effect" at "Vivid" and get Canon style colours.
And the best "budget ultra compact" alternative, in the over 7 million pixels category is... Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS3 with a very fine 3x zoom (as 33-100mm F2.8-5.1 by LEICA with virtually no purple edges, rather sharp corners and auto lens cover) a high resolution 2.5 inch screen (230t pixels or about 3x sharper than a notebook screen) great battery life (about 330 shots) and otherwise the same great qualities as FX33 above, including the 8.1 millions effective pixels and excellent picture quality, with 1950 fine lines sharpness... Except a slightly bigger body (only 114cm3 or 94.9x53.4x22.5mm) with a nice edge to grip at the font, at amazing 1640sek or ?usd with 50MB built in, li-ion battery and separate charger... In soft black, silver or dark blue... And you can click to see how fine it look, find a lot more information and view a few sample pictures, in Panasonic's official site...
Then is the finest "ultra compact" alternative Canon Digital IXUS 860 IS (in Europe) Canon PowerShot SD870 IS Digital ELPH (in USA) that also offer a 3.76x wide angle zoom (as 28-105mm, F2.8-5.8 and auto lens cover) and Optical Image Stabilizer (work best in continuous mode, for max 2 stop slower at tele) that also give you pictures of excellent quality - with 1900 fine lines (except in ultimate corners at wide) accurate colours and no noise at 100 iso... In an elegant curvy 141cm3 ultra compact body (92.6x58.8x25.9mm) in dark silver and black or chrome, 8 million effective pixels, magnificent 3 inch high resolution screen (230t pixels and 230dpi, fine even in strong sunlight, very wide angle view, scratch resistant and anti reflection coating, 10x view zoom and get brighter in dark) improved face detection (that still detects up to nine faces in a frame and optimize focus and exposure - but work worse than Panasonic) good battery life (of 270 shots, recharge in less than an hour) work very fast (0.7-1 sec start up, 0.2-0.5sec focus & shutter delay 1.4-2.2sec between shots and 1.3 shots/sec in burst mode) has great macro (minimum 45mm wide) panorama stitch mode, histogram at playback, digital sound recorder mode, focus assist lamp, some manual settings (exposure, ISO, white balance and colour effects) mute option (no beeps) the print button can be used for many other functions instead, it show finally a tiny battery meter, shutter speed and aperture and take SD/SDHC/MMC cards, at 2500sek or 310usd with a 32MB SD card, Li-ion battery and separate 100-240 volt charger...
But the test pictures show clear barrel distortion, darker corners, stronger red and "purple edges" (in high contrast corner areas) and very soft ultimate corners (getting sharp 10% in) at max wide angle... And slightly less fine details at 200 iso, just as most cameras... The OIS give no effect at wide and compensate for just 2 steps lower light at tele, so this camera should need more light than Panasonic's alternatives above... The clean body with a minimal free thumb rest, is slightly difficult to grip and use with one hand... The menu wheel that you can turn or click, will easy click when you want to turn and vice versa, which make it annoying and frustrating to use - according to several pro reviews... Even the zoom dial is little difficult to use, according to an otherwise happy owner... The widest aperture (f5.8) at tele is worse than most other... It does also overexpose sometimes in bright outdoor light... The metal body get easy scratches... Then has it no quick view button of last picture (every Panasonic has that basic function) and very few manual controls... It has no live histogram... Then is it clearly bigger than the excellent Panasonic FX55 above, that also have a finer lens, some practical advantages, less noise and cost almost the same... And this camera has a rubber flap over the connections, bigger screen instead of a tiny optical viewfinder, zoom in just 8 steps (and has no zoom indicator) has still no "sport" mode (to freeze fast movements - but the "kids & pets" mode might work that way) and you should use max 100 iso, as usually!
And Canon Digital IXUS 950 IS (eu) Canon PowerShot SD850 IS Digital ELPH (us) is the direct replacement of Canon Digital IXUS 800 IS (eu) Canon PowerShot SD700 IS Digital ELPH (us) who was the first ultra compact (134cm3 or 91x26x57mm and mainly metal) from Canon with effective Optical Image Stabilizer and it has also the same fine 4x zoom (as35-140mm F2.8-5.5 auto lens cover) and the differences are 8 million effective pixels - that especially give very sharp pictures (of 1900 fine lines) of very high quality, with very low noise (up to 100 iso) 2.5 inch screen (now with 230t pixels, good in strong sunlight) a time-lapse video mode (one frame every 1 or 2 second) the latest Digic III image processor and face detection... Then does it still work rather fast (start up in 1.2sec, focus 0.5-1sec and about 2.2sec between shots) has just ok battery life (230 shots) can show a histogram and has a tiny viewfinder, that only show 78% of the motive and is almost useless... At 2800sek or 250usd with a 32MB SD card, li-ion battery and a separate charger...
But it give sometimes strong dark blue "purple edges" at high contrast, does often overexpose highlights, has still no battery meter (!) no button for a quick view of last picture, don't show how much zoom (every Panasonic has these three basic functions) almost no manual controls (only exposure adjustment, white balance and long shutter selection) it give also slightly softer corners at wide angle, slightly too strong colours, some barrel distortion at the wide, strong red eyes (there is a red eye removal tool in the camera) with the weak flash, the "design" look confused and plastic at the backside, it zoom in just nine steps and need an extra special made li-ion battery, because of the limited battery life... Then is the more elegant 8mp Panasonic FX33 above, even more compact (only 109cm3) with a finer wide angle 3.6x zoom (as 28-100mm, without any purple edges) and better (280 shots) battery life... And the amazing Panasonic LZ7 cost a lot less, with a razor sharp 6z zoom (without any purple edges) and 7.2mp, in a slightly bigger black body!
And if you prefer a compact camera, with over 7mp and a great 6x zoom...
Then is Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ7 the absolute finest choice... With every amazing quality of the older LZ5 including the excellent 6x zoom lens (as 37-222mm F2.8 to 4.5 with auto lens cover, eight elements in seven groups and two aspherical lenses) that work both very quiet and smooth... And the same effective Optical Image Stabilizer (mode 2 is best) that give sharper tele and especially fine pictures (without either tripod or flash) even in soft indoor lightening (of 66 lux) but naturally not of moving objects, or in just candle lights... Yes, I have now a Panasonic LZ7 myself and it give amazing soft light quality, with just a 40 watt (classic bulb) wide spotlight!
The magnificent Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ7 with some size references... Photographed
with my Panasonic FZ2 and the "gold stripe" in the handle, is unique for my camera
Then has this more elegant version a fine sensor with 7.2 million effective pixels (for 1900 fine line sharpness and no moire) a very compact body (206cm3 or 98.5x62.3x33.6mm, plus the protuding lens ring) with a very comfortable stable grip and it give especially excellent pictures - with clearly higher sharpness, normally exact exposure, very true colours (including deep red) excellent auto white balance, virtually no purple edges and very low noise (with one unique exception, see "but" below) or even better if you set "pict.adj" to natural... And the big 2.5 inch screen offer higher resolution (114t pixels and 194dpi, which is about 2.3x sharper than a notebook screen, ok in strong sunlight, brighter in low light, 16x view zoom and have a high angle mode) it has also a new smart direct to 6x zoom button, can take 3MP pictures with 9x optical zoom, take great macros (minimum 51mm wide) work rather fast (2.8sec to first shot, 0.5-0.8sec auto focus, plus 0.09sec shutter delay and 2.6sec between shots) offer high quality Widescreen video (848x480 pixels) and VGA movie recordings (of 640x480 pixels, 30fps with mono mic) use AA batteries, has excellent battery life (about 460 shots with modern NiMH batteries) and you can get LZ7 in both smooth black or silver... So this magnificent masterpiece is the perfect "everywhere" camera, if you like a rather big zoom and want sharp pictures, without a tripod... And this model is possibly the best choice for most... At incredible 1950sek or silly low 130usd, with 27MB internal memory, but it take also SD (max2gb) SDHC (min4gb) MMC cards and you should also buy a cheap AA NiMH battery charger... There is also a slightly cheaper sister LZ6 model, with a lower resolution 2 inch screen and almost every other quality, that I can't recommend because the bigger finer screen IS worth a lot more...
Then has LZ7 a much finer lens than Canon EOS 350D / Digital Rebel XT kit DSLR that only offer 3x zoom, need more light (f3.5-5.6) and has no image stabilizer, so the 4 times more compact LZ7 should normally give you sharper stable pictures... And just imagine, if you use 6x zoom will you actually need a 28.8 megapixel camera (with normal 3x zoom) to get the same number of pixels, on the motive... Simple calculate 7.2mp x twice as wide x twice as high!
But the bigger older Canon A710 IS below was a good alternative, if you especially want a Canon (but it cost also clearly more) and slightly less noise... Then may Panasonic TZ5 you find below, be a finer alternative for you - because it's even more compact (224cm3) offer a splendid 26-280mm 10x zoom with OIS and a huge ultra high resolution 3 inch screen - but the lens need slightly more light, it use a special battery and cost a lot more... Then give LZ7 some noise in shadows of skin and hair colour (dark brown to pale) that ONLY is visible at full size on the computer screen (that anyhow is over 3 times bigger, than you should print - max 8x10 inch or 20x26cm, for 300dpi) instead of loosing details and I actually think that's very smart... And it has a bigger screen instead of a tiny optical viewfinder, no panorama mode, the "sport" mode that help to freeze movements use "intelligent iso" which may give you some extra noise (you can set it-iso to max 400 iso and the camera use to select short shutter times, even in normal auto) you should also select 100 ISO to avoid extra noise (as always, even if it give lower noise than most at 200 ISO) and then is it slightly bigger than the older LZ5... You can also click here
for more information about this masterpiece... And click for basic info about high ISO and noise!
Before that WAS the very similar Canon PowerShot A710 IS that now is replaced with A720 below - the king of the class, with 7.1 million effective pixels, an excellent Optical Image Stabilizer (for sharper tele and soft light pictures, work best in "continuous" mode) and a great 6x zoom (as 35-210mm, F2.8-4.8 with sharp corners and almost no purple edges) with fast reliable focus and auto lens cover... That give delicate smooth and rather sharp pictures (1750 fine lines) with accurate colours, normally exact exposure, almost no visible purple edges and very low 100iso noise... The effective Optical Image Stabilizer, give you especially fine pictures without flash, even in soft indoor lightening (of 66 lux) but naturally not of moving objects, or in just candle lights... Then has it a 2.5 inch screen (115t pixels, 2.3 times sharper than a notebook screen, good in sunlight, wide angle, has overexposure warning, 10x view zoom and get brighter in low light) plus a tiny optical viewfinder (show only 77% has no diopter correction) in a good looking curvy and rather compact body (267cm3 or 97.5x66.5x41.2mm) with great ergonomics, perfect steady grip (even with one hand) and a smart separate record / playback switch... Then use it only 2 AA batteries, has great battery life (360pix with NiMH) work very fast (ultra fast 1.5sec start up, plus 0.5-0.6 focus with shutter delay and less than 2sec between shots) need less than 11 lux at 100 iso with a tripod, has auto focus assist lamp, many manual settings (including aperture priority) a "Kids & Pets" scene mode (that seem to work as a sport mode, to freeze fast movements) magnificent ultra macro (minimum 22mm wide) flexizone auto focus, evaluative or average or spot exposure metering, panorama stitch mode, histogram at playback, record fine 640x480 VGA 30fps video (with sound and 4x zoom, that use the 7.1mp sensor) has NTSC or PAL setting and you can turn off the silly digital zoom option, at a low price with 16MB SD card... But the very elegant Panasonic TZ5 you find below, is a clearly finer alternative - mainly because it's more compact (224cm3) but offer a splendid 26-280mm zoom with OIS and a huge ultra high resolution 3 inch screen, but it cost also clearly more... Then has this camera either a battery meter (!) or quick view of last picture (every Panasonic has these two basic functions) and the slightly finer Panasonic LZ7 above is even more compact (206cm3) and cost also much less, so it was my choice... Some bright conditions give slightly overexposed pictures with burn out highlights (you can adjust that) and some blue "purple edges" or blooming, the extreme corners and deep red edges get soft, it show some barrel distortion at wide, the long zoom humms softly and move in just 15 steps, auto white balance is lousy in warm indoors light (otherwise very accurate and you can anyhow select perfect indoor white balance) it has just a big rubber flap over the connections, an ugly mode dial, a plastic tripod mount, the "rubber" style grip is fine but not rubber, it save max 1GB video (8min) you should buy a cheap NiMH battery charger and it show noise from 200 iso (so set it to 100 iso) as almost every compact camera... You may click for basic info about high ISO and noise!
Then was that camera replaced with Canon PowerShot A720 IS that is the same camera in ugly "plastic" silver tones, with 8 millions pixels (that give just 1825 fine lines) and improved face detection (detect up to 35 faces in a frame and optimize focus and exposure) and slightly longer battery life (about 400 shots) at only 1800sek or 200usd with 16MB SD card... But see the small problems for A710 IS above, plus some noise in the shadows at 100 ISO at full PC screen (which is 330% magnification) so you might set it on 80 ISO and the new "silver" colours make it look both very plastic and rather toy like!
The other "fine" compact 7mp or more cameras with 3-6x zoom, has bigger problems OR not a true Image Stabilizer and that is the most valuable extra function, if you really want quality pictures... So we can no longer recommend any other alternatives!
A few "almost" alternatives...
Canon PowerShot G9 offer 12.1 million effective pixels, 6x zoom (as 35-210mm in 14 very quiet steps, F2.8-4.8 and many quality problems) with Optical Image Stabilizer (the continuous mode work best) and auto lens cover... That give huge pictures (about 2150 soft lines, which is only slightly more than the earlier G7 with 10mp, because of the bad lens) of partly high quality with extremely accurate colours, normally exact exposure and and no visible 80 ISO noise... Then has it a great 3 inch high resolution screen (230t pixels and 230dpi, with extremely wide viewing angle, scratch resistant and anti reflection coating, overexposure warning and is fine in strong sun) and a lousy optical viewfinder (see why below, but it has diopter correction) in a not very compact "techno style" black body (325cm3 or 106.4x71.9x42.5mm) with real doors (not rubber flaps) it work fast (1.2 to 1.6sec start, 0.6sec focus with shutter delay and 1.5 to 2.3sec between shots) has every possible manual function and two custom modes, smart focus help that magnify the focus area, tiny live histogram, a limited RAW option (at debut no program, that can edit and save to jpg) that not give higher sharpness, digital audio recording, improved face detection (detect up to 35 faces in a frame and optimize focus and exposure) dedicated flash hot shoe, panorama help mode, sport mode that help to freeze movements and it take SD/SDHC/MMC/MMCplus cards, at too expensive 4000sek or 446usd with 32mb MMCplus card, li-ion batt and charger... But the lens is not very good, with some deep blue and "purple edges" on high contrast areas, strong barrel distortion at the 35mm wide angle, rather soft "washed out" corners and it make the sensor look soft... The lousy round optical viewfinder, give blurry edges and show generally only 80% except too much over the image area at tele... Then is the 325cm3 body extra clumsy, the grip are not good (so you need two hands for a safe grip) you get rather tight free room for your thumb, the tiny sensitive zoom ring is harder to use and even the shutter button is a bit too small... The green AF lamp is irritating... And the heavy noise reduction, begin to smooth some details even at 100 ISO and 200 ISO give noisy shadows... So it very strange that one review gave it a "Highly Recommended" rating, even if the "semi pro" styling might impress.... And the elegant Panasonic TZ5 you find below, is a dramatically finer alternative - because it is a lot more compact (224cm3) but offer a splendid 10x 26-280mm wide angle zoom with OIS, a huge ultra high resolution 3 inch screen, excellent 2050 lines sharpness, much less noise at 100 ISO and cost clearly less... And the amazing Panasonic LZ7 above offer a clearly finer 6x lens (brighter, no distortion, sharp corners and no visible purple edges) with OIS that give almost as sharp pictures (1900 fine lines, from 7.1mp) and a very compact rounded ergonomic body (206cm3) at less than half the price - so I would especially prefer LZ7 even if they cost the same... And G9 does sometimes over expose (mainly in strong sunlight) and clip then (type burn out) highlight areas... It use a special battery that only last 240 shots and it show noise from 200 ISO (so set it to 80 or 100 ISO) as almost every compact camera... You may click for basic info about high ISO and noise!
Then was I hoping that the extremely promising Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX07 and FX50 was excellent... But the newer FX30 is a clearly better alternative, because FX07 and FX50 give slightly less sharpness and more noise than average, which shows especially in shadows and a few reviews confirm the extra noise... Even if it came strangely few reviews, on this two models!
Sony DSC-T10 look smart with 7.2 effective mega pixels (give 1750 fine lines) 2.5 inch screen and Optical Image Stabilizer... But it's also very expensive, the tiny lens need more light (22 lux at 100iso, with tripod and no flash) and give rather soft sides, the high body is not as slim as it look (104cm3 or 90x55x21mm) has a rather ugly top side and has just 3x zoom (as 38-114) so you get a much better zoom and a lower prize, if you select Panasonic FX30 above... It seem like most reviewers write too nice about this camera!
Canon PowerShot A620 with 7.1 megapixels (very clean pix, of 1625 fine lines) 4x zoom, a 340cm3 body and 2 inch flip out screen.... Was an interesting budget alternative... But it's now replaced with A710 IS (you find above) that in addition has an Optical Image Stabilizer and this camera has also 2x less zoom, compared with the even less expensive Panasonic LZ7 so you will get dramatically less sharp tele pictures...
More Why Not?!?
The slim Casio EX-V8 offer both 8mp and a 7x zoom, in a very slim body and look delicious in black... But the tiny lens need a lot more light, which make it useless indoors without flash and give very soft corners, compared to the superior Panasonic TZ5 below with 10x zoom and a clearly bigger ultra high resolution screen... Or Panasonic LZ7 above, that handle soft indoor lightning excellent and cost dramatically less!
The cheap Canon PowerShot A570 IS with 7.1 million pixels, 4x zoom and Optical Image Stabiliser (that give 1900 fine lines) may look as a great alternative... But this camera is 246cm3 big (89.5x64.3x42.8mm) and cost about the same as Panasonic LZ7 that offer a finer 6x zoom, in a clearly more compact (206cm3) and very elegant body!
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2 with a widescreen 10.2 effective mega pixel sensor, 4x zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer and widescreen 2.8 inch screen, is impressive and give excellent pictures (at max 100iso) at a VERY expensive price... But it's slightly more noisy (only visible on a computer screen, which is 330% closeup) and has no auto lens cover... Then is it both clearly more clumsy (about 200cm3 or 106x56x26/46mm) because of a wide protruding lens barrel and a lot more expensive, than the more elegant 8.1mp Panasonic DMC-FX55 with 3 inch screen... You could even buy a Canon A710 IS that also cost a lot less, is just little bigger (267cm3) and offer a magnificent 6x zoom, with auto lens cover!
Nikon Coolpix L5 could be a great 7mp camera, with it's 5x zoom and 2.5 inch screen... But you can't set a low ISO level, as you should with all compact cameras except some from fujifilm, so you get simply too noisy pictures at rather low light... Then is this series of Nikon cameras, much slower than average and look also very plastic / cheap...
Samsung NV10 is a slim black camera with a metal body (116cm3 or 96.5x60x20mm)10.1 effective mega pixels, 2.5 inch high resolution screen (230t pixels) and a smart menu system, if you like symbols... But it give rather noisy shadows (even at 100 ISO and in every sample picture I seen) little too strong colours (especially clipped red and it's impossible to change) and mainly too sharp pictures (2000 lines, with white "halo" effects) that partly is very soft, type some knife sharp lines gets blurry... Then is it rather expensive, has just a 3x zoom (35-105mm) occasionally problem to focus and the "Advanced Shake Reduction" take 4 to 5 seconds and raise the noise level, so it is no alternative to a real Optical Image Stabilization... And it has a rather short battery life (180 shots) from a special battery, that only can be charged in the camera... But the deep and very careful review (where I found this faults) did anyhow end with a "Recommended" grade, so I guess he LOVE the edgy design!!
Olympus Stylus 750 Offer 7.1mp and a 5x zoom, in a rather elegant weather protected body... But the LCD is hard to see outdoors and it give too noisy pictures, with extremely soft corners (almost half way to the middle) more "purple edges" than normal and highlights, that often are burned out!
Nikon Coolpix S10 Has a 10x swivel zoom with "VR" moving sensor Image Stabilizer, in a rather compact and elegant silver body, so it could be a very smart camera... But it has often problem to focus at tele, in macro mode and in soft indoor lightning, give rather unsharp soft pictures, with some "wide purple edges" that turn black to dark purple and sometimes a "greenish" tone, overexpose sometimes and has no manual controls, not even exposure adjustment!
Nikon Coolpix P3 with WiFi and P4 are two rather interesting version of the same compact camera, with "VR" Optic Image Stabilizer, 8 million effective pixels that give soft pictures with 1850 fine lines and low noise (up to 100 iso) 3.5x zoom (as 36-126mm F2.7-5.2 with very little purple edges) and a 2.5 inch screen, that give some glare but work in strong sunlight... But it give some exposure errors (often over exposure, with burn out highlights) and white balance errors, the stabilizer is not as effective as the competition, it has not very good battery life, some problem to focus right in low light, the mode dial is little too easy to move, the menu button is where you rest your thumb and the "auto area focus" you can turn off, give often wrong focus... It work also little slower with power on 3sec, 4 sec to first shot, 0.8sec focus plus 0.2sec delay and 2.7 to 3.5 between shots... And it look ugly from behind, in my eyes... So the clearly more elegant ultra compact Panasonic FX33 with 3.6x zoom and 8.1mp, is better in many ways and the slightly bigger Panasonic LZ7 with 7.2mp and 6x zoom, cost much less!
Sony DSC-T30 with 7.2 effective megapixels, give fine pictures with very little noise, has a 3 inch screen and Optical Image Stabilizer... But it give more purple edges than average and it is also very expensive, not as thin as it look and actually bigger than Panasonic FX30, the tiny lens don't handle low light as good and has just 3x zoom - so you get better photos and a lower prize, if you select any of the Panasonic above!
Pentax Optio A10 give fine 8mp pictures... But work very slow (slow focus and long shutter lag) the "Shake Reduction" doesn't work reliable, the screen is impossible to view in bright light, it has jerky zoom control, rather bad battery life, few manual controls and it's anyhow expensive!
You may think it's great to be able to change the lens?!?
And be very interested in the "ultra cheap" Canon EOS 1000D / Digital Rebel XS camera... But it is very difficult (or expensive) to clean the sensor, every time it get dusty or dirty... Even if some models have a "dust cleaning" function, that try to "shake off" dust with intensive vibrations, but that method work only on some totally dry "non sticky" dust and remove only 0-50% of the dust (after 25 cleaning cycles) according to a test of 4 models... Meaning that even the best system (from Olympus) leave half of the dust... Then is a complete digital camera, normally a lot more compact and easy to hold steady, for long times...
And many photographers regret that they bought a DSLR just because they are so HUGE and clumsy, to always bring... The excellent Panasonic FZ18 below is only about 599cm3 with it's dramatically superior Optical Image Stabilized 18x zoom (as 28mm wide angle to 504mm, max F2.8-4.2 by Leica) cost about half and give you almost the same sharpness (2000 fine lines) compared to Canon EOS 1000D / Digital Rebel XT with 10.1mp and 2100 fine lines, a huge 764cm3 naked body - without the simple 3x zoom (f3.5-5.6) of clearly lower quality... And even the very compact 206cm3 Panasonic LZ7 below, with a fine optical stabilized 6x zoom, give exactly the same sharpness as Canon EOS 350D and twice as long stabilized zoom, at just 25% of the bulk and price... So you can save a lot of money, even if the Canon 350D and 1000D are "exceptional cheap" because fine stabilized zoom lenses are VERY expensive... The almost 11x stabilized zoom Canon EF 28-300mm IS (as 45-480mm on 1000D and just F3.5-5.6) from Canon is over 18cm long, 9cm fat, weight 1670 gram and cost 0808 over 23.000sek... And you can even get a long free holiday, if you simply sell your old lenses...
Observe that I also recommend cameras that I think are ugly, because everyone have different taste
and I don't even grade good looking cameras higher... But most fine cameras, look extra fine too!
You might first click here and see if you really need a 7 or 10mp camera...
The best value camera with over 7mp and a really BIG zoom... Is the incredible Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 that basically is a FZ8 (that you find below) with 18x zoom (from 28mm wide angle to 504mm, smooth two speed zoom with last position memory, f 2.8-4.2 razor sharp corners and virtually no "purple edges" or distortion) that give you even higher image quality (even finer deep reds, exceptional accurate colours, excellent dynamic range at 100 ISO and very low noise to 200 ISO) a fine 8.1 million effective pixels sensor (that give 2000 fine lines) and a slightly better grip, with a more leaning shutter button... Every owner, seem to be extremely happy with this camera and that is exceptional... And it works fast - start up in 1.7 to 2.5sec, very accurate focus at 0.4-0.8 wide and 0.6-1sec tele, plus shutter delay 0.18sec, take 1.1sec between JPG shots and just 2.4 to 4sec between RAW shots... The battery last now 400 shots and several photographers report that the famous Optical Image Stabilizer (that was clearly best, together with Canon) seem to work even better than before and help you get more sharp pictures with 18x zoom, than other cameras get with 12x zoom... Observe also that you can only buy a max 11x zoom with Optical Stabilizer, to a Canon DSLR camera and that famous lens need also much more light and cost over 3000usd... And then offer FZ18 face detection for up to 15 faces, a new button for exposure lock, plus every excellent quality from FZ8 below, including the other first class image quality aspects, as very accurate colours and exposure, at only 335usd or 3400sek... You may click here for one full size sample picture - from a Chinese PC magazine - that clearly show that this masterpiece can take photos (at 100 ISO) of extraordinary quality... You can also click to see how fine it look, find a lot more information and view a few sample pictures, in Panasonic's official site... But the GIANT zoom make this relatively compact camera slightly bigger (about 599cm3 or max798cm3 or 118x76x89mm) compared to the much cheaper FZ8 below, that is about 500cm3 and the viewfinder's "eye piece" is made of hard plastic, that might scratch cheap glasses...
Then did they just release the  Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ28 that simply is a clearly more expensive version, at 4275sek - with a 10.1 million pixel sensor and that is more than most photographers ever need... More pixels make also your cards smaller, take more time to handle, give more noise and produce actually less sharp pictures (because of the diffraction effect) at higher aperture numbers... The camera companies are sadly forced by the competition and customer's demands, to release cameras with more pixels - but a tiny sensor with higher density (smaller pixels) give more errors, even at 100 ISO sensitivity and you get finally softer photos at 8 aperture (with this high density) than at 2.8 aperture...
Okay, this camera handle this number of pixels, clearly better than the competition (but more WILL be a problem) and you get in addition a slightly bigger 2.7 inch LCD screen (230t pixels) and the excellent lens is exactly the same, but the slightly larger sensor change the effective focal length from 28-504mm to 27-486mm... But the extra pixels make this version slightly slower between pictures than FZ18 and we have not seen any reviews with lines yet, so we don't know if this version actually give higher sharpness...
Then is amazing Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8 still a great budget alternatice, with 7.2 million pixels (effective) sensor which offer impressive 1900 fine lines sharpness (so FZ7 give clearly softer pix, but slightly less noise in dark grey shadows) higher resolution LCD (207t pixels and 2.5inch, which is 2.94x sharper than a notebook screen, has 16 view zoom and work excellent even in strong sun) viewfinder (now 188t pixels and one of the best) and you get little more pictures (now 380) from one charge... Plus every quality and the design (except an aluminium mode dial) of the smart Panasonic FZ7 above, including the magnificent 12x zoom (as 36-432mm and F2.8-3.3 by Leica) with a fine Optical Image Stabilizer, so you really can use the powerful zoom... Mode 1 stabilize also the screen view, but mode 2 give the best result... Yes, it is otherwise very hard to hold more than 5x zoom steady and the fine stabilizer, help you also to take incredible sharp pictures without flash at soft indoor lightning (about 66 lux) but naturally not of moving objects, or in just candle lights... And the excellent ergonomic body (with the same extra joystick for quicker navigation) is still just about 500cm3 (max 641cm3 or 112.5x72.2x79mm) which make it the smallest Ultra Zoom with 7mp and you get especially excellent picture quality - with accurate colours, exact exposure and very little purple edges... It work also just as fast (2.6sec start up, focus wide 0.3sec tele 0.4-1sec, 0.1sec shutter delay and 1.3sec between JPG shots or 2.1 pix/sec in high quality continues mode) give fast accurate "high speed" focus and has the smart "sport" scene that help you freeze movements everywhere... Plus the same unique "high angle" function that let you view the huge screen from below, as before... And it handle now SDHC cards... At incredible 2600sek or max 280usd with separate charger, li-ion rechargeable battery and 27mb internal memory... So this compact ultra zoom camera, is simply the absolute best choice for the advanced photographers, who need 7-8mp sharpness... It offer also a RAW mode, that not process the picture in any way and give slightly more sharpness BUT it make the camera much slower (3sec between pix) and every picture take also 4.7 times more space (!) and you must then optimize every picture, in the advanced included SilkyPix program... You can instead set the camera for "low NR" noise reduction, low sharpness and maybe low contrast, to get similar JPG result and avoid the RAW complications... You can also click here
to see how fine it look, find a lot more information and view a few sample pictures, in Panasonic's official site...
(the almost identical FZ7 version) But the incredible FZ18 above, with 18x zoom and slightly more pixels IS clearly better... And many think that the elegant Panasonic TZ5 you find just below, is a dramatically finer alternative - because it is a lot more compact (224cm3) but offer a splendid 26-280mm zoom with OIS, a bigger ultra high resolution 3 inch screen and even higher sharpness... And FZ8 give some noise in dark grey shadows, at a computer screen (which actually is as 330% closeup, compared to prints) even with 100 ISO and it get too much at 400 ISO so you should simply set the camera to 100 ISO as usual, which give perfect noise free prints, even with "Low NR" noise reduction... If you want to freeze movements, should you use the sport mode (and not higher iso) which simply select fastest shutter speed... You may click for basic info about high ISO and noise! One test camera was soft in the bottom right corner... Some other cameras have a slightly higher resolution screen or viewfinder... Then does it sometimes burn out highlight parts (not more that average) so you might set low contrast or reduce the exposure... And standard setting give very slightly over sharpen pictures, so you might choose low sharpening...
And if you prefer a very compact Super Zoom camera, with a great 10x zoom... Is the only alternative, the elegant Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5 that is amazinly compact (max 224cm3 or 103.3x59.3x36.5mm or jacket pocket size) compared to the impressive 10x wide angle zoom (as 28-280mm, F3.3-4.9 design by Leica) with auto lens cover and a very effective Optical Image Stabilizer, plus 9.1 millions effective pixels and a "Easy Zoom" button, that let you jump to maximum zoom... Which give you an excellent picture quality with 2050 fine lines sharpness (at 100 iso and the otherwise excellent previous model TZ3 give just 1750 lines) no moire and sharp corners, very accurate colours and exposure (normally without the burn out highlights, most compact cameras show) no visible noise at 100 ISO (at 330% close up) no "purple edges" and not even any visible barrel distortion... Then has it also a magnificent ultra high resolution 3 inch screen (superior 460t pixels that give amazing 325dpi or 3.8 times higher than a notebook and work fine even in bright sunlight) with auto brightness adjustment, mainly metal body (available in cool black and silver, bronze and silver, three silver tones or dark blue and silver) with very fine ergonomics, plus a new switch between record and playback... You can also get 16.9 x real optical zoom at 3mp, if you like... Okay, you get exactly the same effect, if you cut down a 10x zoom 9.1mp picture - but it is naturally more easy to see and frame the motive, if you use the extra zoom option... The extra effective Optical Image Stabilizer, give you especially sharp pictures with the long zoom outdoors and even in rather soft indoor lightening (of 88 lux) without any flash, but naturally not of moving objects, or in just candle lights... It work also very fast (starts up 1.9sec, focus 0.2-0.45sec, shutter delay 0.11sec, 1.39sec between shots and can take 3 pictures in 1.2sec) good battery life (about 300 shots, charge in 2 hours) exposure adjustment, live histogram, manual white balance and adjustments, 23 scene modes for different situations, including a sport mode that help you freeze movements everywhere, effective face detection for up to 15 faces, fine macro (minimum 59mm wide) of high quality, you have also a secondary "quick menu" that some prefer, you can still adjust the strength of colour with the "colour mode" setting and "standard" give the must realistic result (in this version) AF assist lamp, a HD video mode (1280x720 30fps in 16:9 and 11min take 2MB) 8-1/2000sec shutter speed plus 15-60sec in the Starry Sky Mode, it has USB 2.0 for high speed transfers, the connections are behind fine doors (not annoying rubber flaps) and it use SD/SDHC/MMC memory cards... At only 290usd or 3300sek with 50MB internal memory, li-ion batt and separate charger... That is little more than most compact cameras - but remember that this masterpiece give so magnificent possibilities and excellent pictures, that many advanced owners fall in love with the camera and quit using their much more expensive DSLR equipment... But the lens is slightly less bright, compared with the best (and a lot bigger) zoom alternatives and the noise reduction smear sometimes fine details in very dark shadows... The mode dial is also rather easy to move, so you should check it before you shoot... And it has "only" the most valuable manual controls, including some smart scene modes, so it could offer even more... Then does the images look slightly soft (or extra smooth, as DSLR cameras) but they are easy to sharpen and you will hear little zoom noise, if you zoom when you are video filming... The slightly smaller "old" Panasonic LZ7 with 7mp, 2.5 inch screen and 6x zoom, cost a lot less... You get no tiny viewfinder, but the finest screen in the world and a more compact camera... And it use a special battery, so you should maybe buy one extra for times you don't want to bring the charger... Then does a few reviewers complain about noise, at auto ISO and 100% on the computer screen, which is silly... Just select 100 ISO (max 200 sometimes) and remember that "full size" on screen, actually is a 330% closeup compared to a fine 300dpi printed picture - so the little noise, will NOT show in fine print... And if you want to freeze movements, select sport mode (and not higher iso) which simply select the fastest possible shutter speed... You can click here to see how fine it look and read a deep review, that reflect most of this unique masterpiece qualities, except it's great quality in rather soft indoor light...
Then was the magnificent 10.1 mega pixels Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ50 a great alternative, that mainly is the older FZ30 with a 10.1 millions effective pixels sensor, that give 2050 fine lines in test and excellent pictures, with very little purple edges or other problems and clearly less noise, than before... Then can you also adjust the exposure directly with a wheel, it has a more advanced custom mode, a TTL flash hot shoe, better battery life (about 360 shots) support for SDHC cards (that is bigger than 2GB) and the new Venus III processor with a "Intelligent ISO Control'" mode that you avoid, because it raise the ISO when it detect fast motion within the frame... It's smarter to set the camera in sport mode instead, that give you the fastest possible shutter speed... At expensive 4550sek or 470usd... But the dramatically more compact FZ18 give the same sharpness, have both wider and longer zoom, a clearly bigger 2.5 inch screen (not flip out) with higher resolution and cost much less... Then get the FZ50 sensor noisy above 200 ISO (so avoid the auto ISO setting and select 100 ISO with low NR for sharpest result) even if both FZ30 and Canon S3 IS are worse, it has a slightly longer lens, so it became even BIGGER (ca1205cm3 max1722cm3 or 141x86x142mm) and the 2 inch screen has slightly lower resolution (from 230k to 207t pixels) which still is very sharp...
Why Not?!? Canon PowerShot S5 IS may be a great 8mp camera, with 12x zoom and a good Optical Image Stabilizer, if you not compare it closely to the best alternative... Panasonic FZ8 cost clearly less, give anyhow clearly higher picture quality (set at max 100 iso) with no purple edges and offer superior handling, so FZ8 is a better choice even if this camera also is very ergonomical... And it has a few advantages, as the bigger body include a fine fold out screen of the same size as FZ5 and a hot flash shoe, plus it use AA batteries... But S5 IS give softer pictures (about 1750 fine lines, which barely is better than the old S3 model) with some halo effects from bad sharpening, sometimes aggressive red "purple" edges (especially in corners and above red details) and more noise in the shadows, than before... Then has the viewfinder just 115t pixels, compared to FZ7 with 188t and the connections are under a flimsy rubber cover... So this model is not a good alternative, even if both Sony DSC-H9 and Olympus SP-550UZ is much worse, in many ways...
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H5 from 2006 is basically the same camera as the older 6mp H2 except it has 7.2 million effective pixels, that give slightly higher sharpness (1750 fine lines) a giant 3 inch screen (230t pixels and 230dpi, good in sunlight except some glare) a black body and less burnt out highlights... Then give H5 low noise up to 100ISO, has a smooth progressive 12x zoom (as36-432mm f2.8-3.7) with OIS (that not is as good as the competition) on to first shot in 3.2sec, with focus 0.3 (or 0.8 at tele) shutter delay 0.1sec and 1.4sec between shots, has focus assist lamp, manual focus (with a magnified area) and only 2 AA NiMH batteries last 340 shots, which is impressive... But it give even more purple edges and cost clearly more than Panasonic FZ7 that is much more compact, especially have a finer lens and don't show any purple edges... Then give H5 clearly lower corner sharpness (even compared to the 6MP competition) it has some trouble focusing exact at long tele, the continuous autofocus is sometimes too slow, it give slightly over sharpen pictures (white "halo" edges, so set lower sharpening) the faster shutter is 1/1000sec, the flash recharge sometimes very slow and some connections are behind rubber flaps... This camera was very promising, but has so many picture problems (compared with the clearly finer Panasonic FZ7 and Canon's alternative) that I am very surprised that some reviewers recommend it!!
Then is Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H9 even worse... This strange model begin very promising, with a 15x zoom, optical image stabilizer (that work clearly worse than Panasonic and Canon) a huge 3 inch screen of high resolution and a 8MP sensor... But then does it show almost as many problems as Olympus SP-550 UZ below... The "basic" Panasonic LZ7 save as example pictures with 6-8 times compression, in the worst mode and show anyhow no jpeg artifacts - but H9 save only with 9-13 times compression (it has no finer setting or RAW alternative) and that is too heavy, so you get clearly visible jpg artifact (as micro worms) on smooth surfaces... Then is the picture quality clearly worse in every important aspect, that is connected to the zoom lens (according to two big reviews) compared with Panasonic FZ8 and the camera is also clearly more clumsy, plus a lot more expensive... In other hand work this camera excellent, in some ways and you can take rather fine pictures, if you not look close and don't mind more purple edges than normal... But why select this camera, when you can get a much finer alternative at a much lower prize?!?
Then have we Olympus SP-550 UZ that was extremely promising, offering an amazing 18x zoom (as 28-504mm, in 30 smooth steps and bright f2.8-4.5 with high-refractive, aspherical and ED elements) 7.1 million effective pixels and image stabilizer (by moving sensor, that is less effective) that sometimes give very fine pictures (not excellent, mainly because they are softer than some 6MP cameras and show more purple edges, plus many other problems you can read about below) in a lovely body, that is rather compact (about 566cm3 max754cm3 118x82x78mm) almost black and has very fine ergonomic... This camera has also a 2.5 inch high resolution screen (230.000 pixels, barely ok in sunlight and get brighter in low light) a cute electronic viewfinder (with high resolution, diopter adjustment and work fine with glasses) you can select helpful yellow grid lines, work partly fast (startup 2.5-3sec, max zoom about 4sec, wide focus 0.2-0.4sec tele 1-1.5sec and 0.1sec shutter delay, but up to 3.8sec between shots even with a "H" card or max 7 shots with 1.2 frames/sec or max 15 shots at 3.2mp with 7 frames/sec) then take naturally the optional RAW mode more time and lock up the camera for about 5sec, it has a close super macro mode, every manual option (Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority and Manual) including manual focus (with magnified centre and distance) every picture adjustment (white balance, ISO, sharpness, contrast, saturation / colour strength) noise reduction on/off and 21 scene modes (with helpful explanations, plus a separate guide for common actions) very advanced set up options (you can as example select live histogram in record mode and even change the image stabilizer button to some other function) a high quality video mode (max 640x480 pixels and 30fps, with zoom and sound) both NTSC and PAL out, can sync with up to 10 slave flashes and it use also four AA batteries (530 pics with NiMH) instead of expensive special batteries... This camera can even edit your pictures (even in RAW mode) and you can view your photos in a calender... BUT this camera was actually so lousy, that they announce the replacement SP-560 Ultra Zoom (that only is slightly adjusted, with 8mp that give max 1800 fine lines) just 9 months later and every review confirm that 550 give max 1625 fine lines (even lower at wide and tele) and that is actually softer than the 6MP Panasonic FZ7 that is clearly softer than FZ8 and you can never replace the missing fine details, with a higher sharpness setting... It give also more noise in shadows, than fz18 and the Optical Image Stabilizer in Panasonic cameras, are also clearly more effective... Then get deep red very light (sometimes almost pink) in this camera, the not exact white balance does change between shots (maybe less with SP-560) auto focus is also less accurate than average (type one of 20 times is wrong, even in good light) it underexpose (according to samples I seen) give rather high barrel distortion at wide and otherwise more pincushion distortion than usual, plus more purple edges than average (possible less with SP-560) plus more chromatic aberrations (green & red contours) often more dramatic clipping of highlights, light objects on the screen "bleed" often (making it hard to view what's really happen) and the screen show not 100% of the motive, it use the expensive xD picture cards (it has also 20MB internal memory) the mode dial turn little too easy, the stable lens barrel protrude a VERY long way and get about 65mm or 2.56 inch at max tele (the excellent 12x zoom of Panasonic FZ7/8 above extend just 17mm and zoom then internally) the USB connection (behind a rubber flap) is not 2.0 High Speed and you should as usual set 100 ISO to avoid extra noise... Okay, you can take "fine pictures" even with this camera and it has lovely ergonomics, but why not take excellent pictures with Panasonic FZ18 that cost almost the same?!?
Finally are Fujifilm FinePix S8000fd mainly a ugly budget copy of Olympus SP-560 UZ above, with the same huge (but ultimately disappointing) zoom lens and worse ergonomics!
And you need normally some kind of Image Stabilizer, to use more than 5x zoom without a clumsy tripod and even 3x zoom pictures, get easy "shaky" in soft light... So we can absolutely not recommend any ultra zoom camera, that not have that basic function!
And why is a digital camera, completely superior?!?
I did actually use a fine Pentax system camera, with five exclusive lenses... But I bought a fine 2 megapixels digital camera, with 12x stabilized zoom and it was dramatically better, in every vital way... And now I use an even finer Panasonic LZ7 with 7.1 megapixels and 6x stabilized zoom, which give amazingly high picture quality...
And the rather high price of a fine digital camera, give you over 45 unique advantages (each gold arrow) including that the total cost, will be clearly less after 1-4 years... So a fine digital camera is a great investment, for everyone that like to take fine pictures and many of this advantages, will especially help you to take finer pictures than anytime before... If you try almost as hard as before and not get sloppy!
First, you simply don't have to buy any more film... So you save both money and time... And it could also be hard to find the film you prefer, on holidays!
And then is it also a lot more expensive, to get very fine paper copies (with right colour, contrast and so on) from old film... Yes, you can easy improve and optimize you digital pictures, anytime you like... First can you take care of the ordinary problems... Fix slightly strange exposing, not perfect colours, cut some stuff or change the composition and rotate the picture a bit... Details that often make photos on paper, rather lousy and even may kill a great picture... Then is even easy to fix a bad background, erase people you don't want in the photo and improve your pictures, in over ten other unique ways... And you get normally easy photo editing programs for free, both with the camera and with magazines!!
As I wrote above... It's enough with a 2mp camera, to print out excellent 136x102mm big photos of pro quality... And with careful optimizing can you also get twice as wide pictures (272x204mm, almost A4 size) of fine photo quality, almost as fine paper photos from old 35mm film and clearly BETTER than APS photos... Normal 200/400 ISO films give the same quality on paper and clearly worse, if you need to scan the photos to your computer... And you get higher quality with a fine 5mp camera, than with a fine SLR camera and film to paper photos...But if you take dia-positive pictures with a fine SLR camera and scan them with the best scanner, then will you need a fine 8mp camera to get the same quality... With both dramatic less noise and little higher sharpness... Yes, even the best 35mm dia-positive give very noisy pictures (compared to digital cameras) and max 2000 fine lines sharpness!
Then can you see the result directly, in the camera, so you can easy take another better picture... That great possibility and especially that moment, are normally lost forever, with film... So that are a GIANT advantage, both for the advanced photographer and the clumsy beginner! And you can naturally show your pix to new friends, directly on the camera screen...
Then can you always take MANY MORE alternative pictures and simply delete the really bad ones... Experiment with alternative settings, different angles, other lighting and so on... A cheap 128MB card, have room for 200 high quality 2mp pictures... You don't even have to "click" every picture, when you experiment, because you will basically see how it will look, on the screen... You can also take a lot more "real" pictures and hope that some will be great, as many "pro" photographers... Even if my theory, is that you get the absolute finest photos, if you take some extra time and really try to make each picture, to a masterpiece!
The possibility to delete most and save the best, is a special advantages on holidays... You can take over 1000 pictures, delete the worst many times and finally have 200 pics, that are from interesting to excellent... Even if you only can afford a cheap 128MB card!
And a very fine digital camera is normally VERY small, compared to a rather compact old 35mm system camera... About 110-300cm3 compared to 1500cm3 with a 38-114mm zoom... So you can always bring your camera with you, even where it's best to be discreet and never miss any more great shots... That are possible the greatest advantage, with digital cameras!
And it's light to hold, very easy to hide (from thieves) and easy to protect, from the element of destruction... Like rain, sun and sand... Compared with a system camera!
You can then show your pictures, almost directly... In your computer, on internet and send them to your friends, by email... And your originals, will naturally be a lot more easy to handle and they will never loose quality... Even copies, will actually be perfect originals... Yes, it is also very easy to save them in several ways (for extra safety) and copy them to new media, when the technology changes!
You can naturally get excellent paper copies, in several easy ways (even send an email and get copies by post) from your absolute best digital photos... Or make them at home, with a fine cheap Canon printer... And even if the cost is little higher for each copy, will the total cost be 2-50 times lower, because you never have to pay for all these rather good pix, you don't want on paper, but still want to keep... Or the lousy ones, you simply delete... You can in addition decide the size of the paper copy, directly and only pay for the pix in the right size... Then is it a lot more easy to get the pix, from a digital camera to your computer and you get higher quality (compared with scanning paper photos) within the size limits I mention above...
And most digital cameras are a lot more reliable, than a 35mm camera... Mainly because it has very few "delicate" moving parts, that can break... And compared with a heavy system camera, will the light impact be softer, if you drop it (or hit a corner) and you get not the frustrating problem, to always load the film perfect...
Yes, you will also avoid MANY other vital problems with film... That sometimes give very strange colours, often are of the wrong type for the situation, quickly become too old, can be stuck in the camera (without any warning) so you don't get any pictures, get damage from x-ray scanners and finally, may get lost by the photo shop!
The only real problems, with digital cameras... Is the short delay, when you take a picture (even if the best cameras are very fast now) and that you naturally must charge batteries, for the camera... But the price is NOT a real problem, if you like to take pictures... Only 11 films with 36 pix (or 7 APS films with 40 pix) are actually more expensive than a superiour budget digital camera, with 6mp and 3x zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer, as Panasonic LS2 with an extra battery charger and after that, will any more pictures be completely free... And you will then get finer pix than APS class, plus all the other advantages!!
Click here for links to the finest reviews, of digital cameras!
 The amazing OLED display technology This new technology offer many great advantages, over today's TV and computer displays... And the first models will very soon, begin to replace LCD and TFT screens for notebooks, digital cameras, video cameras, every PDA and advanced mobile phones... But the really great news, is that OLED work also perfect for huge flat TV screens and they are expected to cost only like a old TV set, within a few years...
Click here to read the complete article, about the bright future with OLED displays!
Wrist Watches
My gallery, with some extra interesting models... Click a picture, to see the big one!
    
My second Casio * My first Casio..* Citizen Aqualand II * Raymond Weil "Parsifal"
  
An elegant Orient * A very old hi-tech Citizen * A magnificent Breitling
   
My morning clock * World time by Citizen * A glittering Tissot * Breitling Crosswind
You could buy Japanese brand watches, at half the Swedish (and most countries) price, on the holiday resort Canaria Island and you got also a lot more models to choose from... Simply because (1) there are too many watch shops and people don't come there to buy watches (2) so the importers add very little, on the factory price (3) some shop is ready to sell, at almost the import price (4) and it was also tax free... Yes, I just heard that the tax free time is over... But watches and some other stuff may still be a lot cheaper there, than in Hong Kong or anywhere else..
Then I normally find the lowest price, by looking around in more shops, for the best "direct offer" price and almost never, trough every kind of bargain!! Remember also, that in most tourist towns, are there a few shops which sometimes sell demo items as new, faulty products, returned goods and stuff you can't use in your country... So you should always test the product, as much as possible, before you pay (or a least leave the shop) and check that you get the main accessories (type a charger, you can use at home) plus an international guarantee... These things cost very often extra, even if they should be included!
GSM Telephones
First a note... I write normally only about phones I can check personally and I have no access to the phones that only are sold in USA and Japan, so I don't use to write about them...
Smart Phones, with fine PDA functionality
GSM phones, with camera and colour screen
GSM phones, with colour screen
Advanced PDA without phone
A "SmartPhone" with fine PDA functionality, is naturally the best alternative, if you can afford one... It is the absolute best way - to plan your life and always do the most important first, handle complex projects, manage your contacts and personal info, compare and investigate things to buy, collect facts anywhere and never forget anything, anymore!
You can click here to read (in a new window) about the perfect Smart Phone, that still has to be made... And you can also click here for my detail guide (in a new window) on how to select an advanced SmartPhone...
Remember that a mid size keyboard might look great, but has some big problems... It's simply too small to let you type with both hands and you can't hold it, at the same time... And if it's wider than 12cm, is it also slightly too wide (and often without enough space between the keys, as Nokia E90) to hold and handle easy with your thumbs... Or not possible to hold stable with one hand and type fast & easy with one finger, as I use to do with my 6cm wide Palm Treo 680 because that excellent keyboard is just big enough, so you don't have to move your finger a lot... You can even hold a Treo with one hand and write accurately with that thumb... And a fine keyboard, is one key element for a fine smartphone!
The best value SmartPhone, with fine PDA functionality, is...
The Palm Centro that offer exactly the same qualities as the slightly finer Treo 680 right below - except it's 5mm shorter, 5mm less wide, slightly slimmer (107cm3 or 107.2x53.5x18.6mm) use micro SD cards and the 320x320 pixel TFT touchscreen, is also 15% smaller... Yes, the slightly smaller keyboard is reported in many reviews, to work exactly as fine as the excellent Treo 680 so the only "real" limitation is the 2.08 inch screen, if you like the cute design ... At only 280 euro (for the unlocked gsm version) which make this advanced smartphone an incredible bargain!!
 Then is Treo 680 a superior alternative (which I actually own) that offer every advantages of the famous Treo 650 below, with the same lovely qwerty keyboard (with slightly better feeling) magnificent 2.44 inch 320x320 pixel TFT touchscreen (the finest in any compact smartphone) with support for over 65000 colours and the advanced Palm Garnet OS that also is the most easy to use, with a great margin... Or Click here for a lot more OS info (in a new window) or just scroll down a bit... PLUS finally an internal antenna, 64MB available battery safe user memory (plus 64MB for system) and full size SD or MMC card (up to 2GB and some 4GB but not SDHC cards) at the side, protected by a plastic flap... It is also slightly slimmer, just 139cm3 (or 112x59x21mm) with much better grip at the sides and you get a choice of Graphite, Copper, Arctic or Crimson body colours... Treo 680 was the smallest advanced smartphone in the world (until 2007 at least) with a large touchscreen and a querty keyboard... Many owners report also that it's rock stable, with heavy advanced use... Then has it both clearly better reception and MUCH finer voice quality (according to many happy owners) with help of BCM2133 M-Stream chipset made by Broadcom... And dramatically lower radiation rating of SAR 0.66 and not 1.5 as Treo 650 possibly because the part close to your ear work as a shield... And even if it's not a giant step forward, is it simply the best GSM smartphone ever made... It has also a brand new phone application, that is more elegant and easy to use... You can now assign a shortcut to any "favorite" that may be a program, web link, phone number, email or sms... You can then activate shortcuts anywhere, by press & hold a letter and you can now have any number of favorite's... And it has now a complete built in user guide... Class 10 GPRS/EDGE Quad band GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz cover over 80% of the world) and you can easy make multi way conference calls... Docs To Go Professional v8.0 for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and PDF files... A smart "Quick Launch" window, show the 8 last applications... Multimedia: new pictures and videos applications, add music to slide show, save a picture as contact directly from album and Voice memo... Both audio and video streaming media, with WMA and WMV support... The fine music player Pocket Tunes are included, plus the famous game Bejeweled and eReader... Then has it the excellent Palm 5.4.9 operating system (and 70% of the system parts are a later version than in Treo 700p) multi volt charger, Intel® PXA270 Bulverde 312 MHz processor (same as Treo 650) make the Palm Garnet OS very fast, the SIM card is moved under the battery, slightly better VGA camera (than Treo 650) and finer picture quality than the 1.3mp 700p, Bluetooth 1.2 and infrared... At only 3700sek or max 399usd with li-ion battery and charger... So I value this masterpiece to 74% of the perfect SmartPhone (according to my design) and the absolute best alternative today, then is the "old" Treo 600 still 64% because it has the fine Palm program suite, HTC wizard 55% even with WM5 because of the bigger screen HP 6915 was probably 50-45% and Sony Ericsson P990 only 45% or even less, if you want many advanced programs... Then are the other alternatives, even worse... But the battery is also smaller (1200 vs 1800mAh) and offer 4 hours official talk time or 300 hours standby, if you not buy a twice as strong extra battery (made by Seidio) that make the phone a few millimetre thicker... And the original battery take a week of use before you get max battery capacity... Then does several owners report (maybe too quick) about dramatically shorter standby times, typically 24 to 100 hours OR just more than one work day, before they do the ROM update... You SHOULD also set change time sync "automatic set" (go Prefs > Date & Time > Set) to "nothing" and phone network to "manual" and then specify you carrier (go phone screen > menu > options > select network > manual NOT auto) and this two actions will give you a lot more battery life... Then can you naturally turn off infrared (beam receive) and Bluetooth, when you not use it... Plus reduce the rather strong screen light and maybe turn off the strong key backlight, with help of an extra program... The lousy camera drain also the battery mush faster, in Treo 680 bought before jan 18 even if you don't take any pictures and you must do a soft reset (or get this update - www.palm.com/us/support/downloads/treo/680cameraupdate.html) to get back to normal... Finally will any frequent "active polling" in email programs, naturally drain your battery very fast... That is the main problem with 680 compared to earlier models and remember that most other smartphones has worse battery life... Observe also that the battery FIRST need an extra long charge and then one full charge (from empty) before the battery meter (that otherwise turn off the phone early) work accurately and do then the same every second month (just to calibrate the battery meter) even if li-ion (just as li-polymer) batteries don't like very deep discharges and normally can be topped to full, very often... Then steal the new elegant graphic in the Phone application, some valuable space at the bottom of the screen and the category selector steal now another line at the top, just as the "more" arrows / indicator in "Contacts" steal another line, so there are just 8 lines left (for your own text) of 11 before... Yes, I guess they got stressed by the "old system" criticism, but this flashy "improvements" was actually idiotic... And the otherwise smarter "Favorite Page" has now only one table and don't use the wide screen for two tables, which is silly and you can't sort them on several pages either, so you must now move more steps - even if you can put short keys to 26 favorites and access them from anywhere... The stylus is more difficult to remove... And you simply remove the battery, to do a soft reset... And this model have not 3G and that's good, because 3G eat batteries and cost generally more - as long as you not need to download or send huge amount of data... Then does many "news hungry" journalists complain that Palm Garnet OS is outdated, even if it has got many improvements and actually IS the clearly finest smart phone OS you can get... Click here for a lot more info (in a new window) or just scroll down a bit... Which make the often abusive critic, very strange... You may also click here for my best tips and six excellent program, that make Treo even finer... And click here for Palm's official page, with pictures. You are also very welcome to visit me here in Stockholm, if you have this machine and like to compare it with my "old" Palm Treo 600 that naturally is optimized with extra programs... You will then get many valuable tips on how you can improve your machine, with extra programs... Just click here to email me!
If you think the amazing Apple iPhone might be a smarter alternative, must I disappoint you... It has a great 3.8 inch screen (320x480pixels) 4 to 16gb memory, the first version is ultra slim (under 12mm) the Safari web browser is almost excellent and the finger navigation system, is very easy to use... But it is badly designed, so the front get very greasy from your skin
and this "smartphone" is one of the dumbest, because several vital elements are missing from the PDA system...You can as example forget about any Microsoft Office functionality, except reading files... And there is anyhow no way to cut, copy or paste text... Text file management is also very limited and you can't use an iPhone as a portable hard drive... And even the ToDo part is missing - that you truly NEED for everything you not do directly, or if you like to plan ahead and not lock everything to a specific date... But you can finally get the ToDo functionality from the Apple App Store, so you can at least fix that big handicap...
Then has it almost none "multitasking functionality" except that you can listen to music, the phone will take calls and alarms work, when you use other programs - but otherwise can you not use two programs (as you often can in Palm Treo and always in Microsoft Mobile phones) so when you open a program, does it always close the last one and that include chat programs... So if you download a tv section, must you wait until its done and then can you not save it for later, either... Yes, you can only save pictures... Apple say they will offer little more multitasking, after September 2008 and mainly allow a few more programs, to work in the background...
It's also complicated to make a call, because you need more steps (no voice recognition or dialing) and there is not even a search function, in the phonebook... A clear majority of owners, vote that the earpiece of the first version is a bit too quiet (it might just be difficult to position accurate to the ear) and many note that the speaker phone is even worse... The phone sound quality of the 3G version is clearly better than before, but anyhow only "acceptable" and not excellent, according to several reviews...
There is no MMS, IM chat or GPS except almost useless GPS functionality in the new 3G version, because you can only use Google maps that have very limited route guidance and Apple does actually not allow turn by turn directions, either...
The EDGE data is very slow and not even the 3G version is possible to use as a modem, to a notebook...
Then is the talk time not that great, if you also use it to listen to music or surf the web and so on... So you normally have to charge it daily and for the 3G version, sometimes more often and you can't even change the battery...
You can't buy music (at least not from the debut) and download it directly to the phone... Music (mp3/iTunes) can't be used as ring tones...
The simple bluetooth version, works only with mono headsets...
No video (or flash) is supported in the web browser and you can't record video with the camera, that anyhow give lousy pictures, that get horrible in low light... And not even the 3G version has a front camera, so you can't do video calls either...
Then take the huge "miniature" mobile version of OS X about 700MB from your memory...
And you can't buy and use any more advanced programs, except the few fancy ones that is included and a few simple (future) widget... But that last huge limitation did at least change after February 2008 even if many programs naturally will be severely handicapped by the clumsy on screen keyboard, that also leave very little space for the information and that almost no type of multitasking is possible... And there was only 552 programs in July 2008 compared to over 27.000 programs (49 times more) for Palm... Then may naturally some of all the other negative aspects be fixed (or not) sometime in the future...
So Steve did actually lie brutally in his presentation, when he told everyone that his iPhone is both much more smarter and easy to use that Palm Treo... A Treo is actually dramatically more smarter, because it can do exactly the same things AND a lot MORE from the beginning (except wifi that really eat battery life) plus even more, if you want to expand it with more advanced programs and Treo is a |
for one full size sample picture - from a Chinese PC magazine - that clearly show that this masterpiece can take photos (at 100 ISO) of extraordinary quality...