Controls

The designers of the FinePix F600 EXR thought well about the ergonomics of this digital camera. Knowing this camera has a wide array of functions, the buttons are well placed and unsurprisingly uncrowded. The front grip is positioned well and the camera as a whole is very comfortable on your hands.

Screen

This Fujifilm release comes with a 3-inch screen giving the user a clear and crisp view that can be attributed to its 460K-dot resolution. When you switch to video mode, you get a widescreen format as the view on the screen narrows.

Speed

The F600EXR FinePix is quite decent on startup, taking about two seconds to be ready for shoot. There are no issues with the zooming and using other modes. In general it is a very responsive camera.

Battery

On Auto mode, you can expect the battery to last you for 300 clicks.

Picture and Video

The camera delivers excellent quality of picture. The images are very clear, sharp, crisp, and no visible noise. Photo enthusiasts will also love its Motion Detection function which will help you capture clear images of moving objects. The video has a dedicated button so it makes it easy to switch to this mode. The quality of video as well as the sound is very impressive.

Verdict

The FinePix F600 EXR is perfect for those who are looking compact digicam with a nice set of functions and long zoom.

The first thing that you are going to notice about the Polaroid CAA-300TC is that it is a very small camera, even for the compact market. This is great if you are looking for a camera that you are going to carry around with you. On the downside because of the small size the screen on the back is also pretty small which can make it hard to see what you are taking a picture of.

One of our criticisms of this camera is that it is not the most intuitive that we have come across, it took some effort to figure out how to use some of the features that were included. That being said once we did figure them out they were fairly easy to use. We also really weren’t thrilled that the instruction manual comes on a CD rather than as a book, this really just meant that it took us longer to find the information that we were looking for. One of the things that we did like was that the camera came with quite a few extras like video editing software.

The big question then is how are the pictures that you get with the Polaroid CAA 300TC? We would have to say that we were really quite impressed. The quality of the pictures was a lot higher than we were expecting. Clearly they are not going to match what you would get from a top of the line professional camera but they are very good for one that costs less than forty dollars. That being said is really only good for taking photos of stationary objects, the quality goes down pretty dramatically for moving objects. It is also better at taking pictures out doors, the shutter speed is too slow to be really good at taking indoor pictures.

For what it is we found the Polaroid CAA-300TC to be a very good camera. It is a simple point and shoot that is aimed mainly at people looking for an entry level camera that will give them adequate picture quality at a reasonable price. That is exactly what this camera provides. Obviously if you are a serious photographer you will probably find fault but that being said this is not a camera that is aimed at you. Compared to other cameras in its price range we really like this one and highly recommend it.

The Kodak EasyShare C190 is a nice looking camera that is quite compact so that it is easy to carry around with you. Unfortunately when that is the best thing that you can say about the camera you know that you have a problem. In the case of this camera there are few other positives that we can offer about the camera.

The first problem that we have with the camera is that it is quite slow, it takes a long time for it to focus and you need to wait a fair length of time between shots. By the standards of modern cameras this is really at an unacceptable level even if we are talking about a camera that is at the lower end of the price range.

The bigger problem with the Kodak EasyShare C190 however is the picture quality which is very poor. The majority of the pictures that we took were either or blurry or too dark. Being too dark was actually the bigger problem in this case. This was just for photos taken in regular daylight, the camera was basically useless in the dark because the pictures were of such low quality.

The biggest reason for the problem with the pictures being too dark is that the flash only works some of the time. You don’t have the option to use the flash when you feel that you need it, you can only set it to off or auto. That means that it is up to the camera to determine when the flash is necessary. Unfortunately it seems to be unable to do this properly on a regular basis as the flash didn’t come on in situations where it was clearly necessary. We also don’t like the button for changing the settings on the flash, it is the same size as the on, off button and located right next to it, hardly a well thought out design.

As you can probably tell from the above our opinion of the Kodak EasyShare C190 is quite low and we would really not recommend it to anybody. It is a camera at the lower end of the price range we will admit but even here you have to expect that the camera will take pictures that are of a reasonable quality. The truth is that you can get better pictures out of a cheaper camera so we really wouldn’t recommend that you even consider this one.

The Zeikos ZE-DC26 is really at the bottom of the price range for cameras and quite frankly you do get what you pay for. The best thing that we can say about it is that it is fairly compact. It is convenient to have to carry around with you. The other nice feature that we like about this camera is that it comes with video editing software. This is probably not the big of a deal to most people who likely already have similar software on their computer and that software is likely better than you would get with this camera. Nevertheless it is useful for some people so it is nice to see it included. Unfortunately that is about all that we can say about it that is positive.

The first problem that we have is that the camera has no LCD screen, that means that you can’t see your pictures when you take them. You will have to wait until you get home and plug the camera in so that you can see your pictures. The camera is also very slow to focus so it takes a very long time to be able to take a picture with this camera.

The biggest problem that we have however is the picture quality which is quite frankly poor, even for a twenty five dollar camera. Even pictures that are taken standing still are of a very low quality, trying to take a picture of something that is moving is going to be nearly impossible. The less said about the movie camera the better other than to say that it is of a very low quality.

Clearly the saying that you get what you pay for applies to this camera, overall it is of a very low quality and it provides very little value. It is difficult to use and the end results are not good. We realize that this camera is aimed at people who are just looking for a cheap way to take pictures at family events or when they are out with friends. We also realize that you need to be realistic in your expectations of a camera at this price range. However we would say that even here there are much better cameras available for a similar price so we would not recommend this camera to anybody. It is a waste of money even if it does only cost you twenty five dollars.

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH20 is one of the nicest looking cameras that we have come across in a long time. It has nice metallic look to it that we really like. It is also one of the smallest cameras that we have seen so it is really great for carrying around with you. Of course that small size means that that the LCD screen is on the small side but that is just the price that you are going to have to pay.

One thing that you need to be aware of when it comes to this camera is that it is a basic point and shoot camera. Given that it is near the top of the price range for a compact camera a lot of people expect that there will be a lot of extra features. That is not the case here. It is a camera that is designed to be easy to use and offer a flexible lens so that it can be used in most situations. In this respect the camera is very good.

We were really impressed with how easy this camera was to use, it really is a point and shoot. It is also very fast, taking only a short time to focus and allowing you to fire off shots in very rapid succession. Of course the biggest thing with a camera is the quality of the pictures and in this case they were excellent. The pictures that we took were certainly able to rival those of a much more expensive camera. That being said the Hi-speed burst mode that the camera offers is a little bit disappointing and the quality that you will get there is fairly mediocre.

If you haven’t guessed already we really like the Panasonic Lumix we think that it is probably the best point and shoot camera on the market right now. The picture quality is excellent and it can be used in almost any situation, indoors or outdoors, moving target or not. It really doesn’t matter this camera can handle it because of the very flexible lens that it has. We realize that this camera is near the top of the price range when it comes to compact point and shoot cameras but we still feel that it offers one of the best values for the money in its class, even though it doesn’t include some of the advanced features that many people expect.

The first thing that we will say about the Canon Powershot A495 is that it is not the most attractive camera out there. In a category where its competitors are mainly sleek, thin little cameras this one is a little bit bulky. In particular it is quite a bit thicker than others, this can be a bit of a problem when it comes to carrying the camera around. We are also not huge fans of the LCD screen which although fairly large for a camera of this size is has a fairly low resolution.

This camera is a little bit different from most of the cameras that you will see on the market in that it runs on two AA batteries. This is convenient for a lot of people since you can find the batteries almost anywhere. The downside is that they don’t last very long. If you are going to be taking a lot of pictures you will need to carry spare batteries around with you.

The biggest downside about the Canon Powershot A495 is that it is slow, it really does lag behind the other cameras in its class in terms of shot to shot times. It also takes a fairly long time to focus as well. This is not a huge problem since all modern cameras are fairly quick in this regard but compared to it competitors it is a on the slow side.

The above issues not withstanding the thing that really matters about a camera is the quality of the pictures. In this regard the Canon Powershot A495 really shines. The pictures of a very high quality for a camera in this price range. This is extremely impressive given that it is actually one of the cheapest cameras in the category.

Our overall opinion of the Canon Powershot A495 is that it is one of the best cameras that we have come across at its price. Certainly there are some issues, it likely won’t appeal to people who want a good looking camera for example. However in the area that is most important, picture quality, this camera really shines. If you are looking for an affordable camera that will provide yo with really good pictures this is definitely one to consider. You would have to spend substantially more money to get a camera that will provide you with better pictures than you would get from the Canon Powershot.

The first thing that you are going to notice about the Nikon Coolpix S210 is that it really is a nice looking camera. It has a really slick look to and we have to say that it is one of the nicest looking cameras on the market. It is also really nice and thin which certainly makes it easy to carry, not a small consideration for a camera in this class. The LCD screen is of a good size for a camera in this class which is also quite nice.

One of the other real positives about the Nikon Coolpix S210 is that it offers some really nice features that you don’t usually see on cameras at this price range. There are quite a few different modes that you can use on this camera which really makes it very flexible on what you can use it for. You will also find that the menu that allows you to switch between the modes is quite easy to use.

There are unfortunately some downsides with this camera, the first is that it is not really the fastest camera to focus and shoot. It isn’t bad by any means but a lot of other cameras have reached the point where they can do it faster. This is especially problematic with single shot, it is less of an issue with sequential shooting but it still trails behind other cameras in the same price range.

The big problem however with the Nikon Coolpix S210 is the picture quality which is quite a bit below what you would expect to get from a camera at this price and a fair ways off what you would get from its competitors. The big problem is that the camera lacks optical image stabilization. The result is a picture that is generally considered to be unacceptable by most people.

Overall we would have to say that the Nikon Coolpix S210 is a below average camera that is not worth the money. It is a nice looking camera and it is certainly convenient for carrying around. It also includes some nice features that you don’t expect to find on a camera in this price range. However ultimately any judgement on a camera is going to come down to how well it takes pictures, in this respect the Coolpix is not good. It lags far behind its competitors and as a result is not really worth the money given that you could get the same picture quality with a much cheaper camera.

The SVP Cybersnap-LS is a bit bigger than most of the cameras in its class so if you are looking for something that is really sleek you should probably look someplace else. It also really doesn’t have all that attractive of an appearance. However a big part of the reason for that is the very large LCD screen that it has. This is far bigger than you will find on similar cameras and we really like it.

One of the thing that we had been warned about with this camera was that it was difficult to use and that it would take some time to figure it out. We really didn’t find this to be the case, we were taking pictures right out of the box without having to read the instruction manual. In order to use a few the more advanced features you will likely find a quick look through the manual useful but we really had no problem.

We did have a bit of an issue with this camera in that it if fairly slow to focus. This really slows down your ability to take pictures. It isn’t bad in this regard particularly it is just that there are cameras in its price range that are faster. One other issue that we had was that when we used the flash it really drained the batteries very quickly.

The big question with any camera of course is how good are the pictures, in this respect we would call the SVP Cybersnap-LS adequate. You will be able to find other cameras in its price range that are better and you will be able to find some that are worse. The camera does well when photographing people who are standing still but it doesn’t do nearly as well with moving objects.

Overall we would say that we like this camera, it provides reasonable performance for a reasonable price. It is about in the middle of the road in terms of price when it comes to compact cameras and that is about how it performs. We would recommend it for people who are not serious photographers that are mainly looking for a way to take pictures of family and friends but want something a little bit better than the cheap bottom of the line cameras. For these types of photographers it is probably the ideal choice.