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Minolta Dimage F300

A compact, stylish camera with a full five-megapixel sensor and clever autofocus system.

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Page 11:Video, Power, Software

Review First Posted: 05/22/2003

Digital Cameras - Minolta DiMAGE F300 Digital Camera Review, Information, Specifications

Video Out

The F300 comes with an AV cable for connecting to a television set. Through the Setup menu, the F300 offers both NTSC and PAL timing options. All images that would normally appear on the LCD are routed to the external video display so that the television screen becomes an enlarged version of the LCD monitor, and can be used both for image playback and composition.

 

Power

The F300 uses two AA batteries for power, either alkaline or NiMH types, or accommodates one CRV3 lithium battery pack. I strongly suggest picking up a couple of sets of rechargeable NiMH batteries, and keeping a spare set freshly charged at all times. A battery indicator in the status display panel reports the current charge level of the batteries. When battery power gets too low, a red battery icon flashes in the LCD monitor and the camera eventually shuts itself off. The F300 offers an Auto Power Save option through the Setup menu, which lets you specify how long the camera must be inactive before it shuts itself off. Additionally, the status display panel on top of the camera (which reports several important settings) means that you can easily operate the camera with the LCD monitor switched off. Working with the LCD monitor off drastically increases the amount of operating time for a set of batteries. An AC adapter is available as a separate accessory, recommended if you plan to spend much time reviewing images via the LCD monitor or downloading to a computer. (Really although, in terms of bang for the buck, just get a few extra sets of high-power NiMH rechargeable batteries, and a good charger. Read my review of NiMH batteries for current information on which cells have the most capacity, and my review of the Maha C-204 charger for a look at my favorite charger.) The projected run times in the table below are based on a set of AA NiMH batteries with a true (vs advertised) capacity of 1600 mAh. Cells are now available with true capacities as high as 2000 mAh, but I've continued to use the 1600 mAh cells as a reference, to provide continuity and a basis of comparison with older camera models first tested when 1600 mAh represented the highest capacity you could find in NiMH cells.

 

Operating Mode
Power Drain
(@ 3 v)
Estimated Minutes
(1600mAh, 2.4v
2 NiMH Cells)
Capture Mode, w/LCD
1,060 mA
72
Capture Mode, no LCD
15 mA
83 hours!
Half-pressed shutter w/LCD
1,043 mA
74
Half-pressed w/o LCD
819 mA
94
Memory Write (transient)
1,141 mA
N/A
Flash Recharge (transient)
1,464 mA
N/A
Image Playback
576 mA
133

 

The Dimage F300 is a bit of a mixed bag when it comes to power consumption. With the LCD on, battery life is rather short, even when using high-capacity NiMH rechargeable batteries. (Although a good set of true 2000 mAh cells should give a worst-case run time of just over an hour and a half.) On the other hand, with the LCD off, the F300's power consumption is among the lowest of any camera I've tested. The conclusion? High-capacity rechargeable NiMH AA cells are cheap enough these days that you should buy several sets, and always pack along a couple of sets of spares. Doing that, you'll get reasonable amounts of run time on outings, albeit with the hassle of having to deal with a few sets of spare batteries, and swapping them in and out of the camera. If you can manage to avoid using the LCD except when absolutely necessary though, you'll find that a set of good-quality batteries will easily last you for a full day's shooting.

 

Included Software

Packaged with the F300 is a software CD containing the latest version of Minolta's DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility for both Windows and Macintosh platforms. The DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility allows you to download images from the camera, view them, and organize them. With the latest version comes a more effective image browser utility, an extended meta data display, better printing utilities, and a movie viewer with correction tools. Also included are the necessary USB drivers for connecting the camera. Overall, this is a pretty capable software package, with a lot of image adjustment power built in.

 

In the Box

Included with the Dimage F300 digital camera are the following items:

  • Camera.
  • Hand Strap.
  • AV Cable.
  • USB Cable.
  • 32MB SD Memory Card.
  • CRV3 battery (buy a charger & a couple of sets of good batteries!).
  • DiMAGE software CD-ROM (Mac/Windows compatible).
  • Instruction manuals and registration information.

 

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