What's New - January 2006

January 26
First Look overview posted for Olympus EVOLT E-330
As the only current removable-lens digital SLR with a live LCD preview, the Olympus EVOLT E-330 is sure to draw some attention. Many users moving up from all-in-one digital cameras to digital SLRs miss the ability to frame their shots on an LCD viewfinder. The new Olympus E330 solves that problem with some tricky optics and a second, dedicated viewfinder CCD. We've had hands-on with a prototype, and Editor Shawn Barnett and Publisher Dave Etchells recorded a video walkthrough of the camera to explain some of its operation. Shawn also wrote a User Report, after spending a couple of days shooting with the new camera, describing some of its strengths and foibles. The sample we saw was only a prototype, so we can't share any images from it with you, but we think you'll find this an intriguing new wrinkle in the d-SLR field. Read our Olympus E330 First Look for all the details! (Stay tuned, we'll have our usual detailed test results as soon as we can get ahold of a production sample.)

 

 

 

January 19
Nikon D200 First Look: User Report and "corduroy banding"
After a long delay, we've finally gotten our hands on a full production sample (two of them, actually) of the new Nikon D200 SLR, and are putting it through its paces. For the impatient among you, the short summary is "Wow!" While the D2x still holds an edge in several areas, there's no question that the Nikon D200 delivers the most performance for the money of any camera Nikon has created to date. This is a camera that just feels right in your hands, with well laid-out controls making for very fluid, intuitive operation, and it makes absolutely beautiful images. Editor Shawn Barnett spent a fair bit of time with it, and was greatly impressed. Given that Shawn's been almost exclusively a Canon shooter for years, it's noteworthy how quickly he felt at home with the camera, and how much he enjoyed using it. Dave took a deeper look at the "banding" issue reported by some D200 owners on web forums recently. He managed to reproduce the behavior, albeit under a rather limited set of circumstances. Is this a mountain or a molehill? We lean toward the latter, but read our report for the full details, and decide for yourself. (Full JPEGs and NEFs provided for your scrutiny.) We'll have our usual full review of the D200 in another few weeks, but from what we've seen so far it's clear that the Nikon D200 is a truly exceptional digital SLR, the fourth "home run" in a row for Nikon, and arguably one of the best cameras they've ever built. Read our Nikon D200 User Report for all the details!

 

 

 

January 18
Review posted for Panasonic Lumix FZ30!
With a sharp, image-stabilized 12x Leica zoom lens, 8-megapixel CCD, and solid performance, the Panasonic FZ30 is a commanding presence at the high end of the all-in-one digital camera market. It may not quite match SLRs for shooting speed or high-ISO performance, its optical excellence would cost literally thousands of dollars to match with an SLR body and separate lenses. Image quality overall is very good, with excellent resolution and sharpness and bright, saturated but hue-accurate color. With a full range of exposure control modes, including a full manual setting and no less than 14 preset "Scene" modes, the DMC-FZ30 is an approachable camera for both novices and more experienced users alike. Bottom line, the Panasonic Lumix FZ30 is a very strong player at the upper end of the all-in-one digital camera field, and represents an excellent bargain for anyone interested in a long zoom range, optical stabilization, high resolution, and responsive performance. We'd like to see less image noise at higher ISOs, but the FZ30 was a virtual shoo-in for a Dave's Pick. Read our full Panasonic FZ30 review for all the details!

 

 

 

January 10
Accessories Review: Maha C-801D Battery Charger
Maha Energy, the makers of my long-time favorite NiMH AA cell charger (the Maha C-204W) has come out with a new model, capable of charging or conditioning up to 8 cells at a time, with a separate charging circuit dedicated to each cell. The new charger works for both AA and AAA cells, and either NiMH or NiCd battery types, and sports both rapid- and soft-charging modes. If you have a lot of AA batteries to manage, the Maha C801D could be just the ticket! Read all about it in my Maha C801D review.

 

Review posted for Nikon Coolpix 7600
Nikon's Coolpix line of consumer digicams has always been well-received, appreciated for their image quality and ease of use. The Nikon 7600 continues that trend, with a 7.1-megapixel CCD and nice range of preset scene modes. The Nikon Coolpix 7600 would be a good choice for anyone who wants an easy to use camera that delivers good-looking pictures with pleasing color and plenty of resolution. For those willing to delve just slightly deeper than "just pushing the button," its extensive scene modes and unique framing-assist options greatly extend the camera's capabilities, making it easy to bring back good-looking shots of what might otherwise be difficult subjects. All in all, a good choice for the point & shoot user looking for an easy to use, compact digicam with a surprising range of capabilities. I would liked to have seen better low-light exposure capability, less-noisy flash shots at distances greater than 9 feet, and less color left in images shot under incandescent lighting, but the bottom line is that I think a lot of consumers will be very pleased by the Coolpix 7600's photos, and it clearly goes the extra mile with its scene modes and framing assist options to help novice users bring home good-looking photos. Considering its workmanlike performance, strong feature set and relatively few weaknesses, I came close to awarding the Coolpix 7600 Dave's Picks status. Too many of its characteristics were just "average" though: While it's a perfectly functional camera, I just didn't think that it rose to the level of a Dave's Pick. Read our Nikon Coolpix 7600 review for all the details.

 

 

 

January 4
First Look review posted for Kodak EasyShare V570!
At first blush the V570 is just another small, stylish digital camera with a 5.0 megapixel imager. It's when you power the camera up and that lens cover slides out of the way that you're surprised to see not one lens but two, each with its own 5.0 megapixel sensor. The bottom lens is wide angle, fixed at 23mm, and the top lens is a 39-117mm zoom. This answers a need that has gone un-met in the point-and-shoot camera world since before the advent of digital: true wide-angle photography in a small space. An impressive in-camera panorama stitching mode enhances its wide capture ability, making it an ideal choice for realtors. The V570 does a surprisingly good job of stitching, removing the need to fiddle with images on a computer. The V570's images are a little softer than we hoped, from both the wide and zoom optics; for its part, the wide-angle lens is hyperfocal, meaning it does not actually focus. Integrating both digital and optical zoom, the V570's stated 5x zoom range also doesn't always deliver the camera's best optical performance. Still, we like the concept of the V570 and think it will serve a certain group of enthusiast photographers well. See our preview to delve a little deeper into Kodak's ambitious EasyShare V570.

 

 

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