groove1's Full Review: General Electric A1050 Digital Camera
UPDATE: I just wanted to post an update here since I have used the camera quite often now. We took a trip up to the NC Arboretum near Asheville, NC on a beautiful sunny Sunday. The photos from outdoors came out absolutely beautiful and crystal clear. We also had them on the correct setting for most of the subjects which made a huge difference. We also took a trolley tour of the city and with the 5x zoom I was able to get great pictures.
I also took it to a minor league hockey game. It took a little bit to get the correct setting but once I did the photos were excellent. I was able to get a photo of one of my co-workers almost halfway around the arena.
The battery life in the camera is awesome. I use Ray-o-Vac rechargeable AA's and they took about 150 pictures. Of course the battery drains quicker depending on things like flash and setting but it still lasts a while. I LOVE THIS CAMERA! (Update complete: original review below).
After breaking my Nikon Coolpix camera several months ago, I finally saw a good deal on a few different digital cameras. After reading some reviews, I finally decided on the GE A1050 model. The reviews were scarce on it, though I was able to find four 4 star reviews on another website and also four 4 star reviews on an older version of this camera on Epinions (the GE A730). Eight four star reviews for a 10.2 megapixel camera with 5x optical zoom for $80 was good enough for me. Off to the local store (Kmart) to get it.
The associate let us play around with the demo camera in the store. I was immediately impressed with size of the camera as well as its light weight (about five ounces and ultra-compact at 3.6x2.4x1.0 inches). The camera took some very good pictures in the store. The 5x zoom even worked very well. The photos taken with this camera did not lose too much resolution as some cameras do when you use the zoom feature. With this being a new camera though, there were a lot of features that I would not try out until I purchased it (which I did) and brought it home. I got a very small case for this one to protect it. That was nice because the camera fits perfectly in the case and it was the cheapest one. Having bad luck with digital cameras, I also bought the supplemental 1 year warranty.
I brought it home and opened the small box which included the camera, 2 AA Panasonic batteries, AV cables, a USB cable, owners manual, owners manual CD, and 2 quick start guides (one for setting up the camera and one for using it). Getting the camera started up was easy enough - just pop in the batteries and hit the power button. The camera does make a brief loud musical noise when powered on but it's not too bad.
The screen is 2.5 inches which is perfect. There are several different modes to choose from which are selected by the round dial on the top. There is an auto scene detection mode which is used to take most normal photos. The camera does the thinking with this and uses the best settings automatically. There is an image stabilization mode for events such as concerts where there may be a lot of vibrations. There is also a scene mode. When this option is selected, you can set it for several different picture taking settings. You can set it for action, indoor photos, snow scenes, fireworks, museums (when flash is not permitted), nigh scenes, landscapes, and plants. In addition to all of the modes you can select, the wheel dial is also where the playback mode is selected. There is a "play" button which you select and then review your images. The final mode you can select is for video. I have not recorded any video with it so I cannot comment about that.
There are also more options which can be selected on the back of the camera. There is the smile detection option which automatically detects a smile and then focuses on the face so you can take the picture while the subject is smiling. On a similar note, the camera also has automatic face detection technology to focus on faces in pictures. The other features here are blink detection and red eye reduction - right in the camera. You can use the modes of picture taking in combination with these options.
The operation of the camera is about average for an inexpensive digital camera. The shutter speed is about a half a second to 1 second delay. It takes about a half second for the camera to focus before you can shoot the photo. You have to hold the button down pretty hard too.
The 5x zoom is the operating feature I like most in this camera. Even with the zoom all the way at 5x the images are still very clear. There is also a digital zoom to 5.7x but this is when the images begin to get grainy. The zoom is also quick - it takes less than a second for the full 5x zoom to be in effect.
The pictures this camera shoots are great. Every picture I have taken with the correct settings has come out vivid. You can also zoom in on the pictures on the LCD screen. The camera also seems to be very durable. Even though it's ultra-compact, it does not seem cheaply made. I have taken several photos with the included batteries and the battery life is still showing as fill. All in all, for the size of this camera, the 10 plus megapixels, the 5x zoom, the numerous modes and options, the ease of use, durability, and the price of this camera I am very satisfied.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 80 This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Easy Enough for Anyone to Use
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