Casio Exilim EX-S770

Opinion: I love the S770. I also have Casio EX-Z750, and both cameras are great. The S770 is super slim, has huge screen and most important of all can put almost 2.5 hours of video on a 2GB card at Standard quality. ( It has no video limitations issues like someone in the forum said.) The photos and the video are great when there is enough light. If it is a little dark, there is noise like in any ultra thin camera. My EX-Z750 has a huge CCD so it has less noise than the S770.
This is a great camera.

Opinion: If you're considering buying a Casio, you need to know why I'll never buy another Casio product again. I bought a Casio digital point and shoot about 6 months ago. I make my living as a photographer, I'm a gadget guy and I've owned dozens of point and shoots. I did a lot research and decided on the Casio. The features and design are great. Image quality is only average, but I can live with that.

I got it and was really happy with it for about 4 days. Then it wouldn't turn ON. I'd push the power button and it wouldn't turn ON for 10 - 30 seconds. So I sent it to Casio and they fixed it. ok.

I used it for a few months and was happy with it. Loved the features and design. Not thrilled about the image quality, but I could live with it.

A little more than a month ago I pushed the power button to turn the camera off and the thing freaked out. It made a weird beep or two. The lens tried to retract back into the body but failed. The screen went blank and never came back on. I DIDN'T TOUCH THE LENS BARREL.

So I wasn't happy but at least the thing was still under warranty, right? And I'd be happy after they fixed it again because it's a great camera when it works, right?

So I sent it to Casio and waited to get it back. 3 weeks later I got a repair estimate for $130. ??? They want to charge me to fix their defective product that's still under warranty? So I called their 1-800 number.

This is where it gets interesting. I called and spoke to a friendly person in the repair department. She told me they would have it reevaluated and she would call me back within 2 days. I waited 3 days and never received a call back. So I called again. Talked to another friendly person. She told me the same thing- they'd have it reevaluated and she'd call me back within 2 days. I waited 3 days and never received a call back. Called again. I was told the same thing. The friendly person on the other line apologized for not returning my calls like they said they would. She said she would call me back within 3 days. I waited 4 days with no call. Shame on me, huh?! So I called this past Friday to talk to somebody in charge... and ended up getting thrown into his voicemail... which was full.

That's why I'll never buy a Casio product again. I think I'm going to get a Fuji F30 tomorrow.

Opinion: I have the s770 and the z850. The s770 has a focus/sharpness problem when new, and stopped working properly too. Came back from warranty repair, and it's fine. I really like this camera. Good: slim, sharp looking, mpeg-4 video, fast pix with good quality, super easy to use, good iso 800 mode. Not so good: no shutter priority mode, not quite as sharp pix as the z850.

If the cam is set to anti-shake, with flash off, it will often go to iso 800 with a pretty good shutter speed, so you can take nice low light pix handheld. To me, this is an unexpected feature that I really like. The grain is there, as with any small camera at iso800, but it is nicely processed grain--like the grain you see on high iso color film. These pix are pretty good up to 8x10 enlargement, and even better if post processed with a noise reduction program. Lower iso pix are very good, though, as mentioned, not quite as sharp as the z850.

The wide screen allows for a panel mode of choosing settings, instead of the thumb wheel on the z. This mode is extremely easy and user friendly, and I think is a major advance in user interface tech. I've just started to use the data/document mode, and it seems quite nice.

If this cam had longer shutter speeds, and shutter priority, I'd give it a 10/10 for what its class. As it is, 9/10.

Opinion: The EX-S770 is a great pocket camera for a number of reasons. It's got a sturdy feel to it. It's lightning fast. Starts in a blink of an eye, and goes from shot-to-shot just as fast. It's simple to operate and the menus are easy to navigate. The screen is bright and big. The video function is decent. I would love this camera, if it wasn't for the awful image quality. The noise in low light is pretty significant, the barrel distortion is miserably bad, and the corners of the image are very blurred. I realize it's a ultra-compact camera, so the lens is too tiny to be used for serious photography, but the blur is so bad it's distracting. I have a Canon Powershot S50 that has a lens that isn't a lot bigger than the EX-S770's lens, and it doesn't have a fraction of the blurring.

If you are not fussy about image quality, then this camera will rock your socks off. It's fast, fun, easy to carry, easy to use, and looks good too. But if you think the 7mp will allow you to get some really nice large-format shots, forget it.

Opinion: I got mine at www.techtoysforless.com for 314.99 when it first came out.

I tried a 4gb SD card in mine it worked fine - not sure what the previous reviewer was referring to. I would try to format the card while inside the camera though.

The color of the camera is absolutely amazing. Takes great pictures, has a good macro mode. I really like the DATA feature on it as well ...I use it mostly to view maps on the road etc. Great little camera! I give it a 9/10

Opinion: Just planning on buying the camera for my wife and another one to our friends. Our official Casio dealer in Moscow warn us against buying 4Gb SD card due to compatibility issues. They say, the camera won;t recognize the card and even will not start after you push the ON buttin - nothing happens.
This is very disheatrening news as I wanted to buy a decent 4 Gb SD flash card.
Dear owners, pls. comment on that - I have to know what the real status is.
If bad news is confirmed, I will have to look at other models and other makers.

Thanks in advance for those willing to help.

Serge
Russia

Opinion: The S770 looks quite a bit like its predecessor (s600), though I think the S770 is a better looking camera (but who buys a camera for its looks?). It's a very compact camera (the smallest I ever seen with a 2.8inch screen..)
-The wide screen video with mpeg4 compression Rocks.
-The capability of taking pictures while recording is awesome.
-The screen is the best one I've seen on a digital camera. very bright even in the sun (is not a 3inch. is 2.8)
-Picture quality is better than my one year old sony 5mpx.
- I got my self an extra battery since at parties the flash kills it very fast.

Opinion: I just got the S770 which is pretty much the same as Z770. Like the MPEG4 and one botton video feature. It also take the pretty sharp picture out door.

Opinion: I have had countess ultra compact cameras over the years. Currently I have the Canon SD450 and Sony T7 as well as my DSLR, the Canon XT.

This is my first Casio. "Pockeable" was what I was looking for. This is slightly heavier than the T7 and thicker. When I say slightly I mean slightly.

I like the thumb groove, this makes holding it with one hand simple. Once holding it, your other fingers don't get in the way of anything such as the lens or flash. This was not the case with the Sony.

I like the one touch video record button "on the fly" very much. You can actually be taking a video and then snap a photo without changing any settings. The video pauses and picks back up during playback, almost seamless.

I found it necessary to bump up the sharpness, contrast and saturation. Without this adjustment the photo's were a little flat.

The battery life is above average.

My wife can now have her pick bewteen the 450 and T7 because this little Casio is now with me all the time!