29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars absolutely fantastic, November 12, 2002
This review is from: Casio Exilim EX S2 2MP Digital Camera (Electronics)
I bought this camera when it first came out in Japan, (where curiously enough it's considerably cheaper) despite heavy competition from a bunch of other ultra sleek hi tech japan only models, and I have to say that I've never looked back.
The good points:
form factor you can't believe how small and portable this camera is. bring it out and instantly draw a crowd! It is the best for taking those "spontaneous" shots I bring it with me wherever i go, and it won't cramp your style either (ever try and go to a party hauling a big clunky camera around..?)
battery life uses a proprietary (lithium ion?) battery the charge seems to last forever. I've taken dozens and dozens of pictures with this camera (using flash + LCD on) and still never had the battery run out of juice.
menu/features the menu system is fantastic, yet intuitive, and gives you a wide range of control over things like white balance, etc. the camera recharges *amazingly* quickly after using the flash, and is capable of taking shots in quick succession with almost no lag time. The screen is amazing (plus you can zoom in on the picture you're displaying!), and doesn't chew up batteries either. Plus you can take excellent quality video clips (up to 30 seconds).
The not quite as good:
resolution: this camera is listed on amazon as being 2MP, but my model clearly says 1.82 MP. This is evident if you look at the pictures as well (even on the highest quality setting). Furthermore the 1600x1200 mode *is* interpolated, contrary to what the reviewer below said. I generally take picures in 1280x1024 and then reduce them in photoshop to 800x600, which produces quite nice results. but the end, the pictures it produces can't compare to higher resolution digital cams.
digital zoom: like all digital zooms, it bites. well, you can't have it all at this size, and i generally don't find myself missing an optical zoom anyway.
software: not the best (nor so bad as to be unuseable) but (under win XP), you can do away with the software completely and just manipulate the camera and files direcly like any other attach USB drive.
One final thing a lot of the specs listed on amazon are completely incorrect the camera uses SD cards (not type II CF) and certainly doesn't use 4 AAA batteries!!
All in all, this is an absolutely fantastic camera which will inspire instant lust in all who gaze upon it. I can't recommend it enough, as long as you're not looking to take ultra high resolution professional images. Buy this at once!
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