My experience using this product is great, I am completely awestruck by it's size and general performance. Under most conditions this is a compact, fairly lightweight, and point-and-shoot simple camera that takes very good quality pictures. This would be appropriate as a family camera, as well as a basic camera for the beginner to the intermediate photographer. There are some manual overrides to the automatic preset scheme, which is helpful in low light conditions, and it doubles as a basic video camera (although video quality is not as high as picture quality).
This product was purchased as a gift for my father, but seeing as how cool I thought it looked I couldn't resist trying it out on several occasions, and under completely different conditions. It looked like an easy to use point and shoot model and after closer inspection, it has some pretty useful features (manual overrides and such), and most certainly takes very high quality pictures.
There is a trick however,to getting the sharpest clearest picture out of this camera. It is perfectly explained in the manual, and some other reviwers noted that this camera take fuzzy blurry shots. Well it does, if one doesn't know how to use a digital camera.
One must gently depress the shutter for about a second and the hold; the camera focuses on the subject. Then go directly from holding the shutter to depressing the button all the way to snap your picture and, viola! It is magically in focus. As with most digital cameras, there are going to be a few shots that don't come out perfectly, but that is why most people purchase a digital camera in the first place; is to be able to delete the shots that didn't come out in focus. This quirk just takes some getting used to for people set in their habits of using dinosaur film based cameras.
YouTube format is available for shooting in native YouTube quality video, which is rather convenient for sharing videos! I just so happened to have a 2GB SD card just siting around collecting dust, so it's nice to put that little card to work for me; that SD format was part of the reason I purchased a Casio camera. Casio isn't known for their cameras, they are a relative newcomer to the camera market. Though it's a very competitive camera and probably just as good or better than some of the other point-and-shoot cameras in this price range.
I am a fan of SD format, which the Casio Exilim utilizes. My laptop and my desktop both have SD card readers, and the competition generally uses proprietary cards (such as XD, memory stick, etc). Not every manufacturer uses SD, and in my opinion, SD is more of the industry standard and should be used in the repitoire of more manufacturers, as it seems to be becoming more universally accepted.
I love this little Casio after closer inspection; it's a relatively inexpensive camera to take good quality pictures, and the detail in these pictures is great! A good shot can most certainly be blown up or enlarged without looking grainy except under certain low light conditions. Like most cameras I have run into, this camera takes the best pictures with ample lighting. I have yet to make any large prints, but the picures look great on my Samsung HDTV 19". Certainly acceptable picture quality under bright light. Low light conditions prove challenging for this camera, but it manages to pull it off acceptably with a tripod. High Sensitivity mode boasts 1600 ISO, though very high ISO settings introduce some grainy noise in the picutres.
I don't recommend installing the software that came with the camera. The camera docks and charges right next to the TV, which is refreshingly convenient. The lithium polymer battery lasts impressively long; it's such a relief to no longer have to purchase AA batteries. I give this camera a "green thumbs up" in respect to it's rechargeable battery.
I love the fact that this Casio is somewhat easier to use than most, simply pop the SD card into the reader, go to the DCIM folder, then go to the Casio folder. Voila! One does not need to install anything off the Casio CD for file transfer, the SD drive is all that is needed, and I'm sure a lot of new computers already have this drive. Push button easy transfer of pictures with this Casio. There's plenty to love about this camera, although it does seem to have some shortcomings.
What is to hate about the Casio Exilim? Not much, although it it's maximum manual ISO setting (used for taking pictures in low light conditions without a flash) leaves something to be desired when compared to high end digital SLRs (with ISO settings as high as 3,200). The Casio's Night Scene mode works well with a tripod, but only allows for 4 seconds of exposure time. I have compared shots taken with my friends digital camera, the Nikon D40X. The D40 is certainly more capable of taking night shots(I believe this Nikon model has infinite exposure time), but the Casio is certainly competitive in this department (although I had to play around manually with the settings to get it "right"). Bottom line: Casio takes generally acceptable pictures in low light conditions.
The Casio Exilim comes with preset automatic settings called Best Shot. With Best Shot, one simply selects he sample scene mode that seems most appropriate for the scene one is trying to shoot, and the camera automatically determines the proper settings. For most shots the automatic settings are quite appropriate and the point and shoot simplicity of this model was one of it's main selling points for me. Given the compact size of this camera, the picture quality is great. The only drawback I can foresee with this camera is the lack of extreme low light level support; otherwise it could compete with cameras at twice it's price point.
Here is the complete list of supposed features:
This digital camera features Face Detection technology and Antishake DSP to ensure your pictures are clear and focused every time.
Product Features
8.1-megapixel CCD captures high-resolution images up to 3264 x 2448 pixels
3x optical/4x digital/12x total zoom
2.8" wide super bright TFT-LCD monitor
From our expanded online assortment; not available in all Best Buy stores
Antishake DSP stabilization minimizes picture blur from camera movement or moving subject matter
Movie stabilizer technology digitally processes video footage while recording to minimize the effects of hand movement
39 Best Shot modes capture perfect images under a variety of circumstances, including sport, night scene and portrait
Optimized eBay and YouTube modes allow you to capture images and shoot video at the optimum file size and quality for easy uploading
Face Detection detects up to 8 faces in a scene and focuses on them
Contrast detection autofocus with manual focus option; super macro mode focuses as close as 5.9"
White balance options include auto, 6 selectable fixed modes and manual switching
Built-in auto flash with red-eye reduction, flash-on, flash-off and soft flash modes
Continuous flash mode lets you capture 3 images in a single flash charge
Records up to 848 x 480 movie clips in MOV and MPEG-4 formats; instant record mode lets you start recording movies with a simple push of a button
10.8MB internal memory and Secure Digital High Capacity/Secure Digital/MultiMediaCard/MultiMediaCard memory slot (media not included)
>> Store more photos! Find compatible memory cards in our Memory Center!
Playback modes include movie playback, 12-picture display, slideshow and more
Included Data Transport software allows computer data to be automatically converted to JPEG format and transferred to the camera
USB 2.0 interface for fast transfer speeds
Included camera cradle dock lets you easily charge the camera and transfer images
Ultraslim design fits easily in a purse or shirt pocket
