same deal as this http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/89430 in DEC 2012. Now back in stocks again at DICK SMITH. Online Only apparently.
http://dicksmith.com.au/product/XG1519/sony-h100-digital-cam…
Ps. HTC Velocity 4G is also back online for delivery again.
http://dicksmith.com.au/product/EM5165/htc-velocity-4g-unloc…
aa batteries …
Now I just need an "ozbargain" charger.
AA batteries are great; nearly always far cheaper than manufacturer-specific batteries for each camera and cheap to buy multiple spares for a long camera trip.
It's refreshing to see a cam that takes them again, when there used to be far more in the past doing so.
With eneloop (and similar) rechargeable batteries, fast self-discharge and cold temperatures are no longer an issue either, so many of the disadvantages of older rechargeables have vanished.
A charger and batteries are dirt-cheap to buy these days and pay for themselves in short order. I have so many things that run on AA or AAA.
while a spare Li-ion battery from Sony may cost some stupid amount an aftermarket one is around the same price as a set of 4 AA nimh (if not cheaper)
I would much rather take say 3 small li-ion batteries than 3 sets of AA. AA wastes in both the camera and where ever you want to carry the spares.
AA also makes the camera much heavier.
The only real + to AA is you can grab a set at the corner store. Even when i had AA cameras i never resorted to that so it isnt that much of a plus.
disclaimer: I have a good AA smart charger and LSD AA's. I have also had several AA based cameras and Li-ion ones.
Some other advantages of AA
if your camera gets damaged or you go for an upgrade, any spare battery is useless to you (unless you are lucky enough to have another device that uses the same battery). In general, it's very limited though. With AA you can use it in any number of other devices you have around the home or potentially will buy. It's a good lowest-common denominator that gets a fair bit of use.
you may already have rechargeable spares to use, so no extra cost needed
I don't really find buying disposable batteries at the shops or whatever an advantage of AAs; that sort of reminds me of the dinosaurs still using disposables from a bygone era.
You have a point with weight and size. They're not for every application (mobile phones for instance) but there were so many compact cameras using 2xAA from Canon especially, and that was only a few years back. They were light and small and I miss them.
A superzoom like this requires a bit more oomph and traditionally the Li-Ion batteries they used didn't really make the handgrip smaller or much lighter, in my opinion.
So AAs really do bring lots of value, especially if you have the camera die on you or simply want to use them in other devices when the camera is not being used.
They aren't a one-camera pony :)
That said, I'm not really interested in this camera, but it's good to see AAs again, that's all.
:)
This (and all 4xAA superzooms) are much much bigger than their Li-ion counterparts. AA's are dinosaurs in digital cameras. It is used for this not as a feature but as a cost cutting exercise.
It is a bit like buying a car now with a tape deck.
Li-ion killed off AA in compact cameras 10 years ago. (in all must the cheap and nasty)
EG: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/casioexz3/2
We will have to agree to disagree.
Size argument
The camera here is a superzoom.
I have a Panasonic FZ-35 superzoon taking a lithium-ion battery. It isn't smaller than this Sony superzoom by using a lithium-ion battery.
Comparing this Sony superzoom to a compact camera will see obvious size differences. Comparisons to cameras in the same class are what's needed. It's a superzoom cam.
Plenty of compacts in the past used AAs. The really tiny compacts can benefit from a lithium-ion battery but most cameras selling today are thick enough to acccommodate AAs, just like they did in the past. Some do.
Battery extortion
Incidentally, I have never bought a spare battery for the FZ-35 due to extortionate rates for Panasonic batteries. $41.95 from bhphotovideo (a reputable dealer). $19.95 for the third-party battery in the same store. Contrast that with $10.55 for a spare set of eneloop 4xAA batteries from the same store. Or you can buy 4xAA batteries and a charger for less than $20 in the USA.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/758664-REG/Sanyo_SEC_M…
Works here with a simple plug adaptor.
Conclusion: The are major differences in price between quality AA rechargeables and proprietary-sized Li-Ion batteries. Australia is a similar picture, only more expensive.
Plus the fact that Panasonic are limiting third-party battery use (warranty) with firmware checks these days, last I checked. I don't really like battery extortion with camera-specific batteries. It limits their usefulness when out-and-about and raises costs for everyone who wants more power or a battery replacement when the battery eventually wears down after a few hundred charges and/or heat abuse. Long-term availability of the battery is another issue that you might come across, assuming you want to keep your cam for longer than the disposable society dictates.
Anyway, that aside…this Sony sure doesn't look bigger than my superzoom for taking AAs; certainly not in the handgrip or anywhere else.
A recent camera with AAs
Canon's PowerShot SX150 IS (12x zoom) also uses AAs. Keep in mind it's a 12x zoom camera. Great to see. That was released last year. Clearly there's a market demand for it.
There are probably some others; I haven't looked too much. To me, this is a definite advantage over Lithium-Ion, particularly with today's eneloop batteries and firmware extortions.
Cassette analogies
I don't see the comparison with a stereo coming with a tape-deck, sorry. It's simply a cheaper power source. A more apt comparison would be a gas-guzzler versus a more fuel-efficient car. One clearly costs less to keep 'topped up' when out-and-about when the tank runs down.
I don't see any other areas of the camera suffering in most models, except when they want to make really small cameras. Today's rechargeables perform really well with low self-discharge so they can be left unused for ages without all the charge going out of them.
AAs are simply a lower-cost power source with few drawbacks except in really compact designs. Most cameras I see can accommodate their dimensions just fine, like nearly all compacts did in the past.
Size- there are plenty of far smaller li-ion superzooms.
Battery- As i already said, they can be found much cheaper than the prices you mentioned. I can easily get 2 li-ion batteries for my mirror-less for $15 delivered. To compare the most expensive LI-ion price you were given to the cheapest enloop Nimh shows a massive bias. As for pana, They tried that back in 2009 and had a massive backlash. They do not do this now.
SX150- Also a budget camera. Their better cams are all li-ion.
Cassette analogy:
Cheaper, older tech to put in your low end product. Just like AA's in cheap cameras. (is is only cheaper as they dont have to include a charger and batteries).
Feel free to like AA cameras but in general most people don't (hence there are not many being made). I wouldn't touch one these days. As i mentioned i have had them in the past myself.
Li-ion is far better tech. Your arguments could be just as easily applied to mobiles. They wouldn't be that much bigger…. Would you want a AA based mobile these days? not a chance…. I had a AAA based one back in the day, not long before i was using AA digital cameras coincidentally.
Size- there are plenty of far smaller li-ion superzooms.
Care to list any examples?
Battery- As i already said, they can be found much cheaper than the prices you mentioned. I can easily get 2 li-ion batteries for my mirror-less for $15 delivered.
Which camera do you have? I would love to see those batteries you bought. Lots of batteries that you can buy cheaply are fake and/or low quality. Which is why my examples were all from a reputable store to give some idea of the massive price discrepancy between AAs and Li-Ion (and it simply is a big difference, I think even you'd agree there).
And I was being really fair, because lots of compact cameras simply take 2xAAs, not 4 of them, meaning that AAs are even cheaper when just buying two.
To compare the most expensive LI-ion price you were given to the cheapest enloop Nimh shows a massive bias.
Massive bias? I simply searched for "FZ-35 battery" on a reputable website. You can see exactly what I did here:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=fz-35+battery&N=0&I…
2 choices came up. One is the original Panasonic battery. The other is a third-party one. There you have it. To imply that I went out of my way to find the "most expensive" and pit it against the "cheapest" is preposterous. That is the simply reality of the Li-Ion extortion racket going now and I'd argue it's a typical sceneario of price-gouging when shopping for batteries for 99% of cameras out there.
If I wanted to find the most expensive Panasonic battery for the FZ-35, I could easily pay more for it in Australia (and you know this too). To say that I deliberately searched for the most expensive Li-Ion to the "cheapest eneloop" is rubbish.
Now to expand on the "cheapest eneloop" argument. If I wanted cheaper 4xAA eneloops, I could have easily suggested Amazon, which sells them for less as I write this. Or simply mentioned 2xAA, which lots of cameras take. Or any one of the cheaper brands of regular Ni-MH batteries. Or the many fake eneloops on ebay. I happen to buy my camera gear at B&H so I searched B&H. One reputable store. One search. Quite simple.
In your case, you don't even mention what camera you own or where you bought your battery. My example is in-your-face so you can see exactly where I got my prices. Yet you accuse me of shenanigans. That's rich.
As for pana, They tried that back in 2009 and had a massive backlash. They do not do this now.
OK, didn't know this. I guess that's no comfort for those who bought cameras with firmware restrictions though.
SX150- Also a budget camera. Their better cams are all li-ion.
Actually I did a search for cameras that take AAs. Take a look at some of the price ranges they cover. Including SLRs. Obviously it's still important for some to put a 'cassette player' in their stereo.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?sts=ma&ci=9811&N=429164…
AAs = useful. Cheaper than extortionate Li-Ion.
Great to see.
Back to this Canon SX150 cam. It's 119 US dollars and it takes a mere 2xAA batteries (by the way, the Li-Ion in my Panasonic FZ-35 is actually bigger than 2xAA batteries, more like 3-and-a-bit AAs in volume).
Anyway, with this Canon at $119; many cheaper cams than this come with Li-Ion too. So I don't know what you regard as budget but that's a fairly regular price for a 12x compact these days, I'd argue. You're trying to make it sound as if the AA is a second-class choice somehow. Anyway, it's good to have budgets rather than be ripped off on Li-Ion. There is really no technical issue you're debating with AAs, just that you find them old-fashioned and 'big', right? Or maybe you had troubles with some in the past that self-discharged? Or maybe you simply hate disposables and you paint rechargeables with the same brush? Or maybe you have no eneloops and charger? I can only guess.
Li-ion is far better tech. Your arguments could be just as easily applied to mobiles. They wouldn't be that much bigger…. Would you want a AA based mobile these days?
How is it 'far better tech', specifically? eneloops can sustain charge for long periods in storage and they can work in cold environments too. Is something about the chemistry of modern rechargeable batteries lacking for you?
Do you like chasing up camera-specific batteries and paying more for them? (I think it would be hard to argue against the fact that they simply are more expensive in 99% of cases, barring miraculous $15-for-two deals).
My example of course was comparing a quality AA (eneloop) with a quality original battery from the camera manufacturer specifically for the camera and then comparing that with the price of a quality third-party battery. Quite fair to compare prices this way, I think you'll find.
But hey, if you think miraculous deals like your battery prices are the norm and that batteries don't differ in quality (so you can say that Li-Ion can be cheap), knock yourself out. I don't regard that as in any way typical of what the average user encounters when shopping for a spare battery for their cam.
To answer your question, I wouldn't want an AA mobile because it would be too thick & have a bulge to accommodate AAs, sorry. Nearly all mobiles are actually thinner than the width of an AA.
If you actually read some of what I wrote, you'd know I said that AAs are not for all devices and I specifically mentioned mobiles and smaller cameras do make use of smaller Li-Ion batteries (but others can accommodate them).
So I don't know why you mentioned mobiles again to re-inforce your argument. I thought we covered that.
There is a reason almost all cameras, laptops, mp3 players, phones and just about everything other piece of technology has moved from Nimh to Li-ion
"How is it 'far better tech', specifically? "
LI-ion is smaller, lighter, has higher energy density, lower self discharge and works better in low temps. It is also easier to give a % of battery remaining and has no memory effect.
Yes LSD addresses the discharge rate but that further lowers the storage capacity.
As i said earlier, i have Nimh LSDs and a La Crosse charger. I have done the whole 4xaa Digi cam before. I use AA for things like kids toys and keyboard/mice ect. Labeling sets of batteries so you dont get them mixed up when you are out and about ect. It is a crap system.
It took me literally 10 seconds to find a reasonably priced replacement for my mirrorless: http://www.amazon.com/Capacity-PS-BLS1-Replacement-Lithium-I… (There are heaps of other places also)
Here is 2 of the battery you mentioned delivered for $10 http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/TWO-CGR-S006-BATTERY-PANASONIC-Lu…
For whats its worth, buy original brand nimh is also stupidly expensive: http://www.ryda.com.au/Canon-NB4-300-4xAA-NiMH-Batteries-p/n…
Cant find smaller superzooms? They are nothing new. How about this: 20x zoom.
http://cdn.ecoustics.com/db0/wblob/17BA35E873D594/365/221B2/… The AA camera in this deal weighs almost 3 times as much! There are plenty more. I am not going to bother making a list for you.
"To answer your question, I wouldn't want an AA mobile because it would be too thick & have a bulge to accommodate AAs, sorry."
Exactly the reason most people wouldn't want a AA camera.
There is a reason almost all cameras, laptops, mp3 players, phones and just about everything other piece of technology has moved from Nimh to Li-ion
And a lot of the reason for this is simple price extortion and more profit.
Along with the more valid reasons of smaller size which, granted, is needed sometimes, however you'll find a lot of price extortion for spares.
So I already mentioned smaller sizes for some items. I'll repeat myself again:
MP3 players, phones: size, thickness. I already mentioned AA are not suitable for all form-factors. Manufacturers have this wonderful trend of not letting us replace them easily. I wonder why? There must be some 'superior' reason for this, but I suspect simple profit, because I sure can replace the Li-Ion battery easily on my phone, so if I want to bring a spare I can. Or if I want to replace it easily I can (and I have done so already, after 2 years of use and the old battery only holding charge for a short time).
laptops: yep, they are used here. But before this it was (older) Ni-MH technology. Having 30 AAs or so might be a tad impractical and weighty, granted. And thick considering the many thin laptops out now.
Better Ni-MH
In the past, we never had low-self-discharge Ni-MH technology. We never had them working well at cold temperatures either.
And in the past is when they switched from Ni-MH to Lithium-Ion.
Capacities have increased too.
You can buy Ni-MH batteries with 2700mAH of charge per cell too (let's ignore the 2900mah models out there).
So double that when using 2 batteries, triple it when using 3 batteries (for a total of 3.6V and a more direct Apples-to-Apples comparison with 3.6V lithium cells regarding capacity).
I'm sure you can see how capacities are pretty darn good for the volume (space) taken.
Sure, lithium-ion batteries can be custom-made into the shapes they want. So can Ni-MH if they want. Unfortunately that ship has sailed; Li-Ion it is.
Custom sizes are great but not always necessary or desirable to the user, which is my point.
Sure, sometimes it is desired, and that's great too, but it's a shame that the users are ripped off (more often than not) when this occurs.
Ever tried to replace a battery on an mp3 player? Ever tried to swap a battery when travelling and it's gone flat? Some things go backwards, you know. Not everything goes forwards. For many devices we don't even get a chance to replace them while on-the-go or when they eventually lose their charge capacity and need to be replaced.
In this disposable society they'd rather you buy a new unit than replace the battery as it ages and/or gets exposed to high heat (and prematurely holds far less charge). Is that progress?
Assuming you are a DIY-type, have fun finding many devices where the battery is even worth replacing versus buying a new mp3 player, for example. Hideous waste. Or have fun replacing the iPad's battery while you risk borking your device:
http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPad+Wi-Fi+Teardown/2183/1
My point? My point is things go backwards as much as they go forwards and companies don't always make the right choices based on longevity and sometimes, sometimes they make choices based on simple profit, not necessarily the best or most desirable tech choice.
Anyway, back to eneloop capacities.
If you want all the benefits of low-self-discharge batteries at slightly reduced capacity over what is available in batteries that aren't LSD, you can get eneloop-type batteries with an increased capacity of 2500maH per cell (but less rated recharges). This will cost a few bucks more but is still really reasonable:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/766725-REG/Sanyo_XX_Po…
So here you have all the benefits of eneloop with a battery rated at basically the same charge cycles as a regular Li-Ion battery.
Regular eneloops are 2000maH per cell (compared to the 2500 offered here) but they offer far more recharge capabilities than Li-Ion batteries, if Sanyo are to be believed (new ones are 1800x).
So the great cycle life is another advantage (again if Sanyo are to be believed). Let's assume one third of the currently available 1500 cycle cells is the real figure reached in everyday use before 50% of the charge capacity is diminished over a fresh cell's capacity. So one third of those cycles are reached (500) and at this point we are getting half the battery capacity a fresh cell would give us. That's still damn good and better than Li-Ion in the same department.
LI-ion is smaller, lighter, has higher energy density, lower self discharge and works better in low temps.
Smaller sometimes. Lighter sometimes. Higher energy density sometimes. Works better in low temps? Very debatable with low-self-discharge batteries.
It is also easier to give a % of battery remaining and has no memory effect.
Ni-MH has no memory effect; I thought you'd know this. Easier to give % battery remaining? Nope. That would be the circuitry added to the battery and it has nothing to do with battery chemistry characteristics. I have countless Li-Ion gadgets and haven't noticed super-accurate battery readings in any of them. They are decent but don't strike me as any better than using Ni-MH. What Li-Ion do require is (relatively) complex circuitry to make sure they don't blow up; that's what they require.
And you can look up all the big names who have had to recall Li-Ion batteries for just this, including Sony, Panasonic, Sanyo. If you have a hard time finding articles on this, I can link to countless articles upon your request. You don't see this with Ni-MH.
Yes LSD addresses the discharge rate but that further lowers the storage capacity.
See link above for 2500mAH batteries with all the characteristics of low-self-discharge batteries (because they are) but with reduced cycle life (which brings it roughly on par with Li-Ion since the regular eneloops have superb claimed cycle life).
Sure, these don't go as high as the highest Ni-MH batteries (2700maH, 2900maH), but they are very close and you can still buy them. Useful if you prefer to freshly charge and use batteries soon after you charge them and get the most capacity you can.
Not much of an advantage over 2500mAH cells though; things are very close here already and many that claim 2900mah aren't. Sanyo make good cells (incidentally owned by Panasonic these days).
As i said earlier, i have Nimh LSDs and a La Crosse charger. I have done the whole 4xaa Digi cam before.
OK, but you can do the 2xAA digicam dance too.
I use AA for things like kids toys and keyboard/mice ect. Labeling sets of batteries so you dont get them mixed up when you are out and about ect. It is a crap system.
Nope; it's a great system. You don't have to label batteries any more than with Li-Ion spares. You simply put the flat batteries in designated pockets of your bag and/or simple plastic cases (many of which you can get that are coloured to show which are flat and which are full). You can also stack them upside-wown to show you which are flat. Simple.
http://www.tinydeal.com/4-slot-aa-aaa-battery-protective-cas…
2x 4AA battery cases hold 8 batteries for $1.15 delivered. Simple.
I fail to see how Li-Ion batteries are any different if you are carrying spares; you still need some basic 'system' telling you which is flat and charged. Say you want to use dedicated flash units with your SLR/mirorless/whatever. Guess what? They use AA batteries. And they're great because of it. I love bounce flash. AA goodness. Nothing 'amateur' about it. It's sense. Go look up the Canon and Nikon and Panasonic/Olympus, Pentax and Sony flash units. Pretty groovy AA 'cassette player' in my car stereo ;) Why don't they use Lithium-Ion here?
It took me literally 10 seconds to find a reasonably priced replacement for my mirrorless: http://www.amazon.com/Capacity-PS-BLS1-Replacement-Lithium-I… (There are heaps of other places also)
Yes that was quick, but the issue isn't how quick it was to find, the issue was I didn't know which camera you had. So I was left in the dark.
The other issue is how are the QUALITY of these batteries? I have bought some very crap Li-Ion batteries and I wouldn't want to ever do it again (some bulge, others are simply crap on the recharges and battery life, etc). With Li-Ion it's important to have decent circuitry controlling the cell built into the battery: many cut corners here, putting both your value ($) at risk as well as your safety.
Anyway, the original battery is always extortionate. Let's compare your battery.
Original Olympus battery: $38.87
replacements: $7.99, $9.99, etc. Of unknown quality and probably a few years from now will just get worse and harder to get (unlike standard AA batteries). If you still have the camera then.
2xAA is still cheaper than these (and 4xAA is a tad more expensive from a QUALITY brand like eneloop, cheaper with others). So we have a 'known quantity' with an unknown.
Negligible chance of fire or explosion with Ni-MH; Li-Ion is far more risky particularly with cheap cells.
Again, go see how many "big brand" Li-Ion batteries were recalled in the past few years. All the top-shelf names are involved; danger is a characteristic of the technology especially if heated or punctured or overcharged or…
…hence the need for decent (and relatively expensive) circuitry to properly control each Li-Ion cell. Some of the no-name brands cut corners here and can be more of a risk. Not saying your battery sucks, necessarily. But the technology is by its nature more expensive when you have to include circuitry to control each cell to enhance safety and keep longevity reasonable.
No need for that with Ni-MH; there is far less risk and that generally makes it far better value.
For whats its worth, buy original brand nimh is also stupidly expensive
Ah, sneaky. For your comparison, you choose an AUSTRALIAN SITE, despite using USA sites for all your other comparisons. Sneaky indeed.
Picking an Aussie retailer and "Camera Brand" batteries is like stacking high-margin on top of high-margin in a high-margin sandwich to make a point. Let's stick with US-sites for now. Here:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/425697-REG/Canon_1171B…
Still a rip-off but a more fair comparison, no? So now you're doing the exact thing you (wrongfully) accused me of doing.
Cant find smaller superzooms? They are nothing new. How about this: 20x zoom. http://cdn.ecoustics.com/db0/wblob/17BA35E873D594/365/221B2/… The AA camera in this deal weighs almost 3 times as much!
You chose a camera with somewhat close zoom but radically different features between them and radically different prices. To re-iterate my point: for most cameras selling today (excluding phones of course) AA can be used with no size or battery life penalty. These cameras are too dissimilar in so many areas. If you want me to expand on this, I will.
"To answer your question, I wouldn't want an AA mobile because it would be too thick & have a bulge to accommodate AAs, sorry."
Exactly the reason most people wouldn't want a AA camera.
It's a manufacturer-driven choice for most models; there is a profit motive. For some models Li-Ion is the only logical choice, granted. For others, it can go either way.
Get a bounce flash unit for your camera one of these days. It's like a honeymoon with AAs :) Nothing unprofessional or amateur or toy-like about it. Go look at how many of these units take AAs. Why? Because they love cassettes in their car stereos!
"To answer your question, I wouldn't want an AA mobile because it would be too thick & have a bulge to accommodate AAs, sorry."
Exactly the reason most people wouldn't want a AA camera.
Nonsense; many cameras can accommodate AA fine and still do in the models that are selling now.
I'd argue that in those cameras that are thick enough to accommodate AAs, much of the reason for it is for profit on batteries, particularly since Ni-MH perform like champs these days, but the public has negative connotations with disposable batteries and older Ni-MH batteries that wouldn't hold charge well when not used.
It's a wonder that the public are still buying disposables to this day. Some still associate AA with disposables and continue to buy them, not knowing what's available or always assuming it's expensive to go rechargeable. They have never caught on to the fact that they are stupendously better value than proprietary Li-Ion (and crusty old disposables) if they want a spare or replacement.
There is this 'burden' of having to buy AAs in the minds of many, because they always considered buying them expensive (and locally it is, even though you can still make savings in short order over disposables).
Most also don't buy spares unless travelling, so the 'included Li-Ion battery' in most devices selling now is a joy. Except when it needs replacement from over-use or abuse and except when you want a spare.
But that's OK since most people dispose of their devices long before then, blissfully unaware that their battery actually has a limited life and should be able to be replaced (or a spare sourced) easily. If the device even lets you pop in a spare without busting out tools.
In 99% of cases, this replacement or spare is a rip-off or is impractical to perform the necessary surgery on devices that don't let you pop your own battery in. So at this point they'd be far better off with AAs - in devices that aren't overburdened by their size, that is. Then there's always AAA; the smaller battery with less capacity than AA but useful for some devices too.
AA batteries are great
i disagree. li-ion batteries are much better. minimum requirements for a camera
AA batteries are great… carry some disposable ones with you when you're out on a month long safari and away from a powerpoint.
Great for travellers.
+1
But no need to pollute the earth with disposables these days; chargers and rechargeables are so cheap, particularly when sourced from the USA.
Consider getting eneloop batteries or other low-self-discharge (LSD) batteries to keep on hand; they should serve you well when left unused for longer periods as your standby spares. Older Ni-MH batteries would self-discharge quickly, but those days are over.
Keep them cool though.
Anyone care to comment on this model/ apparently a parralel import from India/ Will after sales service be ok and has any one had any issues?
It is just that it was originally sold in India.
It has a proper Sony Australia Warranty.
http://tech2.in.com/reviews/point-and-shoot/sony-cybershot-d…
Small review here and probably others online.
Auto-focus at higher zoom levels is nigh on useless and slow when it does decide to work, which more or less defeats the whole purpose of this camera.
Auto-focus in video mode is less than wonderful too. Low light image quality is quite poor for a camera with these specs. Images don't auto-rotate. No video out cable supplied and Sony want a motza for a branded one.
In a nutshell, you can do better from Nikon, Canon or Olympus for around the same money.
I bought one of these, when the last OB deal popped up. I just took it to Bali and the pics have come up nice! There's a great panoramic feature on it and other 'scene' options. I took a few 'sunset' shots and they weren't too great, once it started getting darker, but 'sunrise' ones are fantastic. On overcast days, the pics look a little 'washed out'. If your looking for a cheap, not too high tech happy, snapping camera, I'd recommend it. The batteries are still going, (ordinary AA) after 10 days away, too and survived the bumping around of the carry on luggage:)
I purchased one on the last deal. The image quality is poor, very very poor. This really is a $99 camera.
Hello there, I can't find the htc velocity 4g on dick smith online store
Havent even shipped even after 20 days. Shitty thing. I am cancelling the order.
Good idea - get rid of the DSE shops altogether - DSE head office policy seems a little confused at the mo - homer where are you - you're needed there urgently?