|
|
|
|
FIRST IMPRESSION
I have been long looking for a portable digital camera that is handy enough for quick snap and still provide acceptable image quality, now the Sony Ericsson S700i just fits my requirement. The S700i built-in a 1.3 mega pixel digital camera supports picture size up to 1280 x 960 pixels.
It also provides video recorder function that allows capturing video size up to 176 x 144 resolution. With the comprehensive set of functions like MP3, Radio Tuner, sound recorder, MPEG4, Internet browsing and e-mail, the S700i is a perfect mobile device that makes my digital life a lot much more easier, and viewing image on a 2.3" LCD display in 262 K colors at a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels is just another kind of please experience!
The designer intended to make S700i a portable digital camera, the navigator and shutter buttons are set just nicely at the positions for a conventional camera. The lens is protected by a lens cover, when the cover is open, it automatically turns on the camera function. You would say it is a compact digital camera if you were not told that it is actually a mobile phone! The overall design just makes it looks like a robust compact digital camera, we better treat it as a digital camera in addition to a mobile phone.
THE BEST
I was surprised to learn that the S700i supports some custom features for better feasibility that I hadn't imagined that would be included in a mobile digital camera! Now this little camera supports white balance, burst mode that captures 4 frames at different exposures, it also allows 4 different preset imaging effects. The most useful features, however, are the exposure compensation (scaled from -2.0 to +2.0) and a spot metering mode, just bonus!
There is nothing about the lens specifications. As a keen photographer, I start to review the lens specifications marked on the sliver lens ring. OK, it is a fix lens with focal length at 4.35mm and aperture at f/4.0. There is no optical zoom, but 8 x digital zoom, just fine! With some further study, I figure out the lens is about equivalent to a 40 mm lens under the standard 35 mm format. This is a focal length nice enough for general photography.
What is the fastest, slowest shutter speed and ISO sensitivity range? You can't find this from the user manual. It is the nature behaviour of a photographer to discover all these. With some extreme testing shots, the S700i reports some interesting information - shutter speed ranged from 1/ 2 second to 1/ 797 second and ISO ranged from ISO 160 to ISO 4000!
THE WORST
The user manual is just not good enough from a photographer's point of view, there is no sufficient information about the Night Mode (enhance picture quality with longer exposure time) and Photo Light (to help when taking pictures in a dimly lit environment), it puts them into mystery. With some further tests, it seems the Night mode will limit the sensitivity up to ISO 1250, this prevents additional noise introduced by higher ISO sensitivity. The Photo Light may be a bit help when shooting close object under dim light condition.
There is a "mirror" right down the lens, the manual asks you to check the reflection for framing your self-portrait. Notice that some mobile phones allow a rotation up to 360 degree that sets the lens and LCD display faced to the same direction for framing self-portrait. No! The S700i mirror is a joke or just something better than nothing, it is probably limited by the design.
The S700i provides a 10-second digital timer for controlling the shutter release, this is a useful feature when it requires long exposure or self framing, but I could not locate a screw mark on the S700i for mounting itself on a tripod, that seems a mistake in design or there is something I had missed?
IMAGE QUALITY
I was impressed by the image quality, thanks to its fixed lens design, distortion is minimized, lines just look straight. The S700i is performing to my satisfaction with quick response to operations. However, it is not surprised that the edges and corners are getting soft, the DOF is very limited because of the fixed aperture. I intended to share image samples that demonstrate what the S700i can be achieved, all images are originally taken at the highest resolution 1280 x 960 pixels, resized to 600 pixels with contrast and unsharp mask applied in Photoshop. Nice enough?
MY DIGITAL LIFE
The S700i enables me snapping almost anywhere, the bundled 32 MB memory stick can hold over a hundred shots at 1280 x 960 pixels. What's more? The MP3 and radio are also with me on my way home!
[Post Comment]
[Inspiring Articles in Digital Photography]
|
