Dirt Cheap Cameras Reviews

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX9 Review

Nikon COOLPIX P7000 Review

The Nikon Coolpix P7000 is a the new flagship model in Nikon’s extensive range of Coolpix compact digital cameras. The Coolpix P7000 is the successor to the one-year-old P6000, but it offers a new design and extra features that make it a completely different proposition. The P7000’s most obvious competitor is the equally new Canon PowerShot G2, with both cameras looking eerily similar at first glance

The familiar Menu button accesses the usual Nikon menu system, which is clear and easy to navigate. Press this when in Auto capture mode and there’s just two menus, Playback and Settings.

The Picture Control option allows you to tweak the look and feel of your images, with 4 presets and a Custom option on offer. The contrast, saturation and sharpening level of each preset can be individually adjusted too, so you should be able to find a setting that suits you. Distortion control automatically corrects barrel distortion, useful for all those 28mm shots of close-up architecture with converging verticals, but it does have to be turned on before you take a picture.

In playback mode, pressing the same menu button affords access to rudimentary image editing, including Nikon’s exposure adjusting D-Lighting function, Skin Softening and Miniature Effect, image slide shows, plus the ability process a RAW file in-camera if required. you can move up and down the nine levels and as you do so, the current tone range is displayed as a flashing area in the main image, allowing for more precise verifcation of the exposure. A button to the right features the familiar trashcan icon for deleting images on the fly and completes the rear of the P7000.

Canon Powershot G12 Review

Canon announces the PowerShot G12 today, an update to the advanced G series, alongside the PowerShot SX30 IS packing a wallop with a 35x optical zoom lens. These cameras offer enthusiast-focused features like RAW shooting and manual exposure modes.

The HS System: Premium Canon image quality, even in low light
The PowerShot G12 is the first G-series model to feature Canon’s HS System – a powerful combination of a high-sensitivity 10.0 Megapixel CCD sensor and high-performance DIGIC 4 processor designed to provide outstanding image quality in all lighting conditions, including low light.

The inclusion of the HS System allows shooting at higher ISOs with excellent image quality – enabling users to capture exceptional images in all conditions. This extended ISO range allows users to shoot darker scenes without engaging the flash or using a tripod – capturing correctly-exposed images using only the available light. In situations when use of the flash is necessary, a higher ISO will enable users to extend its effective range and illuminate the subject more effectively. Higher ISOs also enable users to utilise faster shutter speeds – freezing motion to capture moving subjects with a reduced risk of blur.

Allowing users precise control over the ISO level, the dedicated ISO dial now allows adjustments in 1/3 stop increments.  In addition to this, a new Auto ISO level adjustment feature allows users to pre-configure the maximum ISO setting they wish to use during shooting and specify how the camera selects the ISO to obtain the best balance between image quality and shutter speed.

In very dark situations, Low Light mode can be used to extend the ISO range up to ISO 12800, with the ability for users to control ISO and white balance to accurately capture the ambience of a dimly-lit environment. Users can also capture fast-moving action with the ability to shoot at up to 4.2 shots per second.

Genuine Canon Lens with Hybrid IS
The PowerShot G12 features a premium 28mm wide-angle 5x optical zoom lens, allowing users to capture sweeping landscapes and get closer to distant subjects during shooting. Benefiting from Canon’s extensive heritage in lens design, the lens has been developed using the same processes and quality standards employed to manufacture Canon’s range of EF lenses, ensuring the capture of sharp, detailed shots while still having a compact size so the lens can retract completely into the camera body when not in use.

Counteracting camera shake and enabling photographers to capture shots in darker conditions, the PowerShot G12’s optical Image Stabilizer allows shooting at shutter speeds approximately 4-stops slower than would be otherwise necessary to achieve a sharp shot. Also included in the PowerShot G12 is Canon’s Hybrid IS technology to increase the effectiveness of the optical Image Stabilizer when shooting macro subjects. The PowerShot G12 can focus as close as 1cm to a subject, and the slightest lateral movement of the photographer can negatively affect image quality, making it difficult to capture blur-free shots without the assistance of a tripod. Hybrid IS counteracts unintentional shift and angular movement – two kinds of camera shake that become particularly pronounced as image magnification increases.

Flexible shooting
Flexible shooting and playback is provided by the PowerShot G12’s 7.0cm (2.8”) high-resolution Vari-Angle PureColor II VA LCD screen. The rotating Vari-Angle design offers easy framing from a range of angles, such as when shooting at ground level or overhead. To accommodate a range of shooting styles, the PowerShot G12 also features an optical viewfinder (OVF) with diopter adjustment, allowing users to match the OVF to their vision. After image capture, photographers can also utilise the newly integrated RGB histogram during playback, allowing them to instantly check the exposure of a shot in detail.

Take complete control
As well as offering Full Manual control and a range of semi-automatic modes, the addition of a new Front Dial provides swift and convenient access to settings during shooting. Users can either prioritise the Front Dial or the rear Multi-Control Dial as the main way of controlling the camera, or use a combination of both. For example, the Front Dial can be set to control aperture in AV mode while the Multi-Control Dial controls white balance or shooting aspect ratio, or it can be used independently, with the rear Multi-Control Dial disabled to prevent accidental changes to settings.

For advanced amateurs and professionals, the PowerShot G12 also shoots uncompressed RAW images and includes Canon’s Digital Photo Professional (DPP) software, providing the ability to edit images after capture. Sharing the same post-editing environment as the EOS system, the PowerShot G12 fits seamlessly into a photographer’s existing workflow.

Canon Powershot G12

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5 Review

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Pentax Optio W90 review

Any digital camera that is dropped onto a concrete floor will break and you’ll never use it ever again. The W90 is shockproof up to 4 feet, which means it can survive a drop of up to 4 feet. I know that might not seem like a far distance, but if you were to drop your camera it would probably be within that range.

The camera is also waterproof down to 20 feet. I really like this feature because I do a lot of snorkeling and I don’t even need the full 20 feet. But you have to consider what you could do with it. Lastly, the camera is capable of handling sub-freezing temperatures, which means you can use in some of the coldest climates.

For me, this means that this camera can be used in just about any place on this planet. It is something that works for just about any person that is looking for an adventure.

There aren’t too many negatives with this camera that I have noticed, but I did find that the LCD screen scratches very easily. I know this is something to expect over time, I suggested getting a screen protector for this camera.

Pentax Optio W90 Sepcs

12.1 Megapixel CCD

F3.5-5.5, 5X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 28 – 140 mm

Rugged body is waterproof to 20 feet, shockproof from 4 feet, freezeproof to 14F, and dustproof

2.7″ widescreen LCD display with 230,000 pixels

Point-and-shoot operation, with auto scene selection mode

“Advanced Pixel Track Shake Reduction” (read: digital image stabilization)

Built-in LED ring light for close-up shots; digital microscope mode lets you be 1 cm away from your subject

Face/smile/blink and now pet detection

Records movies at 1280 x 720 (30 fps) with sound using M-JPEG codec

26.7MB onboard memory + SD/SDHC slot

Uses D-LI88 lithium-ion battery, 205 shots per charge

Optional waterproof remote control (which works with all remote-compatible Pentax cameras)

Available in all-black and black/green; includes a carabiner strap

Pentax Optio W90