aphex
Well-known member
In the market for a small PNS digicam for my fiancee's mom to upgrade to... In the process of looking at reviews and such of camera in her price range (preferably
Canon SD630 (for its large LCD and reliability) and the Panny DMC-FX01 (image stablization and low price at ~ $281 compared to $333 for the Canon).
So taking this information, i set out to the old CC that i used to work at, and the bestbuy down the street. The canon (just like the SD400 i used to own) was very nice in person, though the LCD could have used a bit higher res. However, i was disappointed that the two panasonic display models (i want to say FX09 or 08 and another) were both broken (on one the mode dial had lost its ability to snap in place and spun like crazy and the other would turn on for a second then right back off, both on AC power).
Anyway, so i drive down the street to bestbuy, who thankfully had a display model of the FX01 (store associate mentioned they opened it up for display 2-3 weeks ago). Unfortunately with this one, when i took a picture, the resulting image was something i cant even describe (almost inverted neon). Checked all the settings, reset everything to factory, took another pic, same problem. I then turned off the flash and took a natural light picture in all automatic settings, this time it was horribly overexposed (to the point i couldnt make anything out on screen). I assume it was an issue with the sensor possibly, not really sure.
Now, i know not to typically take store display models into consideration of reliability due to the abuse they suffer, BUT, it kind of worries me after the experience i had today. All the canons (even the models that were well over a year old), still worked great, while i couldnt get a single panny to work properly. I really want to get her the panny (the specs and price are definately a better deal), but im worried about reliability. Anyone care to comment?
--
http://www.aphexii.com
Canon SD630 (for its large LCD and reliability) and the Panny DMC-FX01 (image stablization and low price at ~ $281 compared to $333 for the Canon).
So taking this information, i set out to the old CC that i used to work at, and the bestbuy down the street. The canon (just like the SD400 i used to own) was very nice in person, though the LCD could have used a bit higher res. However, i was disappointed that the two panasonic display models (i want to say FX09 or 08 and another) were both broken (on one the mode dial had lost its ability to snap in place and spun like crazy and the other would turn on for a second then right back off, both on AC power).
Anyway, so i drive down the street to bestbuy, who thankfully had a display model of the FX01 (store associate mentioned they opened it up for display 2-3 weeks ago). Unfortunately with this one, when i took a picture, the resulting image was something i cant even describe (almost inverted neon). Checked all the settings, reset everything to factory, took another pic, same problem. I then turned off the flash and took a natural light picture in all automatic settings, this time it was horribly overexposed (to the point i couldnt make anything out on screen). I assume it was an issue with the sensor possibly, not really sure.
Now, i know not to typically take store display models into consideration of reliability due to the abuse they suffer, BUT, it kind of worries me after the experience i had today. All the canons (even the models that were well over a year old), still worked great, while i couldnt get a single panny to work properly. I really want to get her the panny (the specs and price are definately a better deal), but im worried about reliability. Anyone care to comment?
--
http://www.aphexii.com
