HP Photosmart C500

Opinion: Same problem with batteries! They don't last very long!

Opinion: my only complaint is the quality of construction in just one area. you all know how often you have to change batteries and the main battery door is held in place by two little plastic legs. my two little legs broke off after 1.5 years of light use. hp will not sell you the part and they will not sell it to one of their authorized service centers. the only option they give you for repair is to send the camera to their centralized repair center along with $500 dollars! as i made my way through customer no service (speaking with about 5 different individuals all the way up the food chain) i made no progress in finding a solution. finally i called their corporate office and found someone who had a brain to think with who could help me. they sent me a refurbished unit (that looks like brand new) at no cost. i did not even have to pay for shipping. i thought for weeks that i would have to throw my camera in the trash.

Opinion: The HP Photosmart c500 has some weight to it which I find comfortable. I use it for landscape photography as well as photographing componants for computer manipulation art and have found it to be a very good allrounder.

However I wouldn't use it for sports-action photos as I have found the delay between shutter button press and the photo being taken to be a bit too long.

Opinion: easy to use, good quality pictures, nice software included.

Opinion: Good camera for the money, Solved the battery problem with a Maha belt battery pack. Works well with a stepdown cable.

Opinion: I have had so many problems with this camera! It would freeze up all the time and would only work if you removed both the AA and CR2025 battery and re-install them to "reset" the camera. This camera eats batteries for lunch and the ergonomics of the camera are terible. The camera is extremely bulky and does not take low level light pictures well.

Opinion: The pics comeout to be Really very sharp, and the macro pics are even bettah....Only problem I face is that the shutter speed is really slow 1 So even a slight movement of the person can blur the pic big time!

Opinion: Seem to have solved the battery problem - got a set of Nickel - Metal Hydrides made by SAFT. They last for literally 100's of pictures! Can't say enough good about them.

Same low light problem as everyone else. Great outdoor pics though.

My biggest complaint is the temperature requirements. I live in Alaska and a minimum temperature tolerance of 32F is just ridiculous. I have a chest strap on my pack that I thread the camera case through to keep the camera next to my body for heat. Seems to work pretty well but I can't keep it out for too long. If it does get cold, ALL functions stop. It won't even retract the lens.

Opinion: Good, as long as you have money for batteries. the Nihm batteries that were included lasted about 10 pictures, another set lasted only 8. Alkaline gave me 2. that was with no zooming or LCD.
It was easy to operate though, even without a "manual", and the pictures were great.
I did, however trade it for a HP 618 after about a month, and this seems to be a better buy.