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Minolta Dimage X 2MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom

Minolta Dimage X 2MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom

List Price: $399.99
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Almost perfect
Review: Why only "almost" perfect? Because the auto-exposure system
always selects the fastest possible shutter speed. So,
pictures I just took on a brilliantly sunny day used a
shutter speed of 1/685 and an f-stop of only 3.5 -- so almost
no depth of field. This was very noticable in close-ups.
The camera needs a "creative control" mode that lets the
user select max-shutter-speed, max-depth-of-field, or a normal
balance. But I still love the camera - and if a new model
comes out with such a feature I'll be first in line again.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Amazingly small and function, only negative is red eye
Review: It's a lot smaller and ligher than I imagined. Pictures looks great, the short film mode is an added bones, and the battery seems to last long enough. The only negative I've seen so far is that many pictures seem to have a "red eye" effect. ...[It] is a bargain for such a collection of absolute forefront technology.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Convenient, Poor Customer Support
Review: The Minolta Dimage X is a neat little camera almost amazing for it's size. The camera is easy to operate. When it came to downloading the photos to my computer, Windows 98 second edition, that's when I had a problem. I could not load the USB driver and after almost an hour with Minolta technical support they couldn't load the USB driver either. The solution they gave me was send the camera back to the supplier or to them or buy a card reader. I am purchsing a card reader so hopefully that will work. A friend who has Windows XP and another Dimage X camera had no problems with that operating system.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Better than the reviews
Review: Well I was looking for a camera I could really travel with. I just found using a Nikon 990 too awkard except at home. I thought I was going to get an Elph when I saw the new "X". I read the reviews, with the judgment seeming to say that it was ok but poor on picture quality.

First, I have found that I mostly use pictures on the web now. I travel and post to MSN communities to share with my family. After using a Nikon 3.3 MB camera I found that to be overkill. I just don't make prints that much anymore, and I seldom go higher than 4 by 6. Frankly, 1600 by 1200 is just fine for what I do, and give me the flexibility to print when I need too.

So I get the camera. It really makes it easy to travel. Small battery, small memory card, easy to hook up to the computer via USB and transfer pictures. Picture quality is very good for what I do. Camera is very fast in taking and moving the pictures to memory. Not much different than a film camera except with the ease of digital.

This is a great travel camera. You will actually use it and it works perfectly with the new digital world. Don't know about printing, but, you know, I just don't print pictures anymore.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: What I had in mind when digital cameras came out
Review: I don't like carrying cameras around. They're bulky, so I'm disinclined to take them with me to events, or just to the corner diner. Therefore, whether film or digital, the great Kodak moments pass by without a record of them. In my view, the things that kept cameras bulky were the film roll and the zoom lens. Digital photography was supposed to take care of the bulk of film, but cameras were still an inch or two thick, essentially, small bricks. This camera is the first device that meets all my needs. It's small, decent quality, and has a zoom lens -- and it fits in my shirt pocket and my front jeans pocket -- that means that in the last two weeks, I have taken more pictures than I have in the past year owning an Olympus C-2020 Zoom digital camera. Trust me, if you can find it, you will be amazed at how much you enjoy owning this camera!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Perfect package, less than perfect image quality...
Review: Having had many other small cameras in the past -- from tiny Minoxes to the latest Kyocera S3 -- I was really looking forward to having a small digital camera I could keep with me at all times.

The Dimage X is a stunning little package; anyone who sees it wants to pick it up, hold it, and play with it. The design and finish are first-rate. The size, though -- that's what this camera is all about. It's the first digicam to use an internal zoom mechanism, which allows the X to be ridiculously slim. Other cameras might have a slightly smaller "footprint" but the X wins where it counts -- it is so slim you forget it's in your pocket. As a result it is very easy to keep with you at all times.

The Dimage X works very well in daily use. The most important convenience is its' speed. Many other cameras simply take too long to turn on, or have very long wait times as they record an image. The little Minolta is among the swiftest of cameras in these regards. It also allows you to fire off several frames in rapid succession; it appears to allow around five pictures, then pauses to record them to memory. This is very handy when your trying to capture something elusive -- children, for example.

The X's lithium-ion batteries give what I consider very long run-times before expiring. In comparison to another small digicam, the Kyocera S3, the Dimage X offers approximately double the battery life. It gives ridiculously long run times with the LCD display switched off; the camera's internal electronics seem very well designed and appear to operate very efficiently. The camera never feels hot to the touch (or even warm, for that matter); I noticed this was a problem with the Kyocera, which may account for it's short run-times.

The only thing I dislike about the Dimage X is its' image quality. To keep the zoom mechanism inside the camera required the use of a prism. This limits the camera from being as sharp, ultimately, as a conventional camera, and also leads to slightly less contrast and color saturation in the images.

To qualify this review I should admit to being a perfectionist who is reluctant to EVER compromise on image quality. In this case the size and packaging of this camera have won me over. With further refinement the Minolta Dimage X could approach perfection; as it stands it's one great little camera that will accompany you everywhere.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Get it. Now.
Review: I have been looking for a digital camera for a month or so now. When I saw the first comments on the DIMAGE X I really wanted this camera badly. Then I found a couple of extensive reviews that rate the camera only average. A special concern with these reviewers was the "poor picture quality", especially the "softness". I became quite skeptical and started to lean more towards buying the Canon S 110. Then I learned that the Canon (although receiving recommended and highly recommended ratings) produces pictures that suffer from very noticeable "chromatic aberrations". I looked at sample images and decided that this was a much worse flaw than the allegedly "soft" images of the X. So when the X became available I bought it from a store with a generous return policy and decided to test it on my own and, if unsatisfactorily, return it. Well, it is a keeper. Here are my reasons:

First and foremost: Design. Oh my God, especially in Manhattan it is not easy to make people turn their heads, but when you elegantly pull the X out of your pocket, they will. Guaranteed. The aluminum and steel case is very sturdy. Only the little lens protector that moves up so boldly to protect the lens when you turn the camera off is a little flimsy. Also you have to get used to holding the camera a little differently with your left hand than you would naturally, or you will get in contact with the lens and block the picture.

Secondly, operation. Everything about this little thing is well thought out. Read the manual and you are in control in an hour or so. I only have some minor concerns about the ease of use. The position of the important enter button requires you to take your fingers of the scroll buttons or use both hands, which is rather awkward and makes navigating the menus a bit more cumbersome than necessary.

Thirdly, picture quality. Sorry professional reviewer guys. You really got this one wrong. Again, dear fellow non professional picture takers, read the manual and experiment a little bit. After maybe an hour of trying or so I was able to make perfectly sharp, nice pictures. If you use the zoom to reduce or enhance perspective and play a little with the exposure times, you can even get some dramatic photographic effects. So for me it is not only a little snap-shooter, but a camera that truly satisfies not only my photographic needs, but also the most hefty cravings for attention...at least for the next few months, until everybody will have one of those little sweet X fellows. Get it. It's good. ...

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Really small size, but images are not as good.
Review: If you're looking for the smallest digital camera that
you can always bring around with you, this is it!
It's even more compact than the Canon S110 and fits well
in your shirt pocket. 3x optical zoom is excellent,
but images are a bit soft, and seem like they are only
of 1.5MP quality. Internal zoom lens structure allows
for fast start-up time and battery life is comparable to
that of the Canon S110 (about 150-180 pictures).
It's not so easy to hold this camera steady as the
shape does not allow for a natural grip of the hand,
and the buttons are a bit small. But if size is your
most important criterion then this digital camera
beats them all!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A small fun camera- - great features
Review: Initially I really liked the camera. It was small, the pictures seemed to come out ok, easy to carry around, etc... Unfortunately after having the camera roughly six months I began having problems with it. The lens cover would no longer go up and down and the zoom quit working. I took it back to where I purchased it, ... and they sent it off for repair. It was still under its one year warranty. I later received a call saying the repair would cost $240 and the camera had impact damage (meaning I had damaged it). This was absolutely not true. I did take the camera with me several times in a brief case but nothing happened to the camera outside of what you would consider normal use. The camera was not dropped or banged around. I discussed this with [the seller] and they admitted the camera was delicate and had to be handled with care. Obviously I did not pay the $240 to repair the camera. As you can see from this site I can get a new one for roughly that price. I intend to review literture on other cameras before purchasing another digital camera. Bottomline is my camera could not handle normal use....

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great Camera
Review: I have a big Olympus digital camera, but found it was too cumbersome for vacation travel and impromptu snapshots and it devoured AA batteries. This little marvel from Minolta packs almost everything my Olympus does into something about the size of a pack of cigarettes and the miniscule rechargable battery lasts about 2 days of occasional tourist snapshots. I took it to Venice in March and it worked great. Picture quality is good for computer and e-mail, although I admit I don't have a great photo printer to truly assess photo quality. The Minolta image management software is easy to use and does everything the typical user would need to do, such as rotating photos, adjusting brightness, and adjusting color. After almost 3 months with this camera, I highly recommend it to anyone who wants a simple, compact, high-quality digital camera.


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