The camera you won't mind lugging around
Written: Apr 23 '03 (Updated May 14 '03)
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Pros: very compact; easy to use; good 3MP images; excellent battery life; 3x zoom
Cons: pricey; uses expensive SD cards; images somewhat "soft"
The Bottom Line: The S3L is a technological marvel and a delight to own. It's not without quirks but its features far outweigh these.
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| davlee's Full Review: Kyocera Finecam S3 Digital Camera |
Who the camera's for
The Kyocera S3L is aimed at people who like cool, small gadgets, and want a camera they can easily slip into the pocket of a pair of shorts. I fall in this category, as my last digital camera took beautiful pictures but was far too bulky to carry around when I wanted to. For me, a small but expensive camera is better than a larger though cheaper one that stays on the shelf.
The pertinent specs
3.2 mega pixel CCD
glass lens
3x optical / 2x digital zooms
auto-focus (also has plenty of manual focus and exposure modes)
1.6 inch colour LCD screen
optical viewfinder
flash
SD/MMC Card flash memory
USB port
no onboard memory
microphone for capturing audio to accompany movies, and to add audio notes to images
tiny speaker on the camera's back for re-playing audio
NSTC/PAL video and audio out
tripod mount
The S3L is one of the smallest 3-megapixel cameras on the market. It can hide behind a credit card. The light, all-steel body helps calm the understandable worry that the camera might get squashed when carried around.
The S3L an update of the two-year-old Kyocera S3, which shared the same dimensions but was plagued by a smaller zoom and a much weaker battery. The S3 also lacked a USB port and the ability to record audio - two other shortcomings rectified in the new model. Along with the S3L, Kyocera has released the S5, which is identical to the S3L, but with a 5 mega-pixel imager.
A major selling point of the Kyocera when I was shopping around was the internationally warranty. Only a handful of camera manufacturers have warranties that are valid outside the country of purchase. Sony and Panasonic, to their credit, are among these. Kyocera is as well, and since I was buying the camera in Southeast Asia while on vacation, Kyocera's international warranty coaxed me away from buying a similar Pentax, Nikon, or Canon unit.
Though Kyocera is a Japanese company ("Kyoto Ceramics"), the camera is assembled in China with Japanese components. Kyocera also OEMs the camera for Toshiba and other manufacturers. You can find several different models in stores that are in fact relabelled S3Ls.
Inside the box
- Camera
- USB cable
- Video/Audio cable for connecting the camera to a TV
- Lithium battery pack
- Wrist strap
- Manual & warranty card
- Software CD
- 1000mAh lithium rechargeable battery
- 16MB Toshiba SD card
The Controls
The power button is right next to the shutter release - maybe a little too close. On power-up, the lens cover opens and the lens snout (noisily) extends the full distance. The camera takes about 6 seconds from power-up to ready.
The S3L has quite a few manual settings, if you want them. But the camera defaults to a capable automatic mode, which does a good job of white balance, exposure and focus. The camera excels in low-light settings, should you choose to turn off the flash. Pictures are clear and lacking in noise. The challenge is holding the camera still enough while the lens is open, as the low-light images are made possible by slow shutter speeds.
Here's a photo of a statue near my home, taken at night without a flash and only lit by a distant street orange-tinted streetlight. I didn't use a tripod, so you can see a slight blurring of the image caused by hand movement.
http://220.69.12.84/statue-small.jpg
Among the manual settings, you can choose 100/200/400ISA speed settings, exposure compensation, macro/landscape focus adjustments (or any focus power in between), and manual white-balance settings. You are also able to perform basic shrinking and cropping editing functions within the camera, though these are better performed inside the camera.
The camera's 1.6" LCD screen is effective in outdoor daylight, though like with most digicams, intensely bright sunshine makes it difficult to view. The optical viewfinder is good for those situations.
The Zoom
The 3x optical zoom is smooth, though rather noisy. I'd be concerned about using the zoom during a wedding, given the motor's whine. The optical viewfinder zooms along with the lens movement, and is reasonably accurate (though I use the LCD screen more often). The S3L also has a 2x digital ("fake") zoom, which given the camera's high resolution actually has some framing value if used conservatively.
Image Settings
The S3L features four image sizes/resolutions: 2048x1536 (3mp), 1600x1200 (2mp),1280x960 (1.3mp) and 640x480 (VGA). In addition, the camera also has two JPG compression settings, "normal" and "fine". "Fine" quality results in a much larger file size - roughly double (1.5MB at the highest setting) - but I'm not convinced the image quality is really much better. After much experimentation, I've determined that I can't tell the difference, even by closely examining expanded images in Photoshop. Larger files also take longer to write to the SD card, causing momentary waits (+5 seconds) before the camera is ready to take the next picture. I keep the camera on 2048x1536 and "normal", which provides a happy medium between quality, speed and memory size.
The 16MB card included with the camera is inadequate for the large files the camera is capable of generating. At the highest resolution and quality settings, this card can only store 6 to 9 images (though that much "quality" may well be overkill - the card will hold over 20 images at more reasonable settings). It's much better to purchase a larger card - say 64 or 128mb, and keep the 16mb one as a backup. SD cards are about the size of a thumbnail and easily slip into a wallet, so it's not a problem to bring a spare along for when your larger card fills up.
Video Recording
The camera also features a "video" mode, which captures small Quicktime-formatted AVIs. You're limited to 30-second videos because of the slow write times of the SD card. The flash is disabled in video mode, as is the noisy zoom, unless you choose to turn the audio recording off. I doubt I'd use the video mode unless my child was taking his first steps and I didn't have a real video camera handy. If video is important to you, consider purchasing a real camcorder.
Battery
The 1000mAh rechargeable battery, once conditioned, is good for 160-200 images, according to Kyocera. As I recharge it after every use, I've never run out of power, and have never come close to the 160 limit. I think the most I've taken in a day is 80 images, and the camera still was showing full power. This is a significant improvement over the original S3.
Connecting to the PC
If you use XP or Windows ME, you shouldn't need to install USB drivers. Just plug in the USB cable and the computer will recognize the camera as a removable drive. If you're using Windows 98, you'll need to install the drivers that are included on the CD.
The "Pixela" image editing software is easy to use, but it's no match for Microsoft Photo Editor (included with MS Office), Photoshop, or Paint Shop Pro.
You can also use an optional external card reader if you want to avoid putting strain on the small USB cable connector. The readers are cheap - less than $25US.
What I like
Colours in the S3L's images are vivid and well balanced. Here are some shots I've taken in Malaysia and Korea, shrunk from their full sizes but otherwise untouched (about 200k each):
http://220.69.12.84/s3images/KLIA.jpg
http://220.69.12.84/s3images/melaka.jpg
http://220.69.12.84/s3images/sanbon.jpg
The camera also looks good, but more importantly is very easy to carry around. I didn't think I'd care about either, but after 6 months with the excellent but tank-like Kodak DX3600, I've grown to appreciate the S3L's aesthetics and dimensions.
Learning to use the camera is relatively easy, considering the number of sophisticated manual settings included. A couple of days with the excellent manual reaps rewards.
What I don't like
If you look through the viewfinder with your left eye - as I usually do - your oily nose rubs up against the bottom of the LCD screen. Skin oil is NOT good for LCD panels, so I'm frequently wiping the display with an optical cloth. I'd still rather than that than try to switch to my right eye for viewing. It's a left-handed thing, I think.
When viewed at full-size, the raw images show some "softness" - a lack of sharpness - that can be improved though not cured with the onboard "sharpness" setting. However, even at 8x10, prints are still as sharp as they'd be from a good 35mm camera. Depending on what you intend to do with the camera (large prints vs. 4x6 prints, e-mail or web shots) this may not be an issue for you.
At the zoom's widest angle, some slight "barrel distortion" can be seen - vertical edges that run near the sides of the photo show a slight curve to them. The photo above, of the downtown scene, shows a bit of this. This distortion is more severe in the S3L than in my previous digital cameras, but it's not bad enough to bother me.
In the camera's default setting, the S3L lets out an annoying BEEP with every button-press. It also plays an audio recording of a film shutter when you take a picture. Thankfully, both of these sounds can be disabled.
The camera's compact size is partially owed to its use of tiny SD cards. They're neat, but they're a bit slow and also more expensive than Compact Flash cards. I would have preferred a slightly larger-sized camera and CF cards, to the SD format.
Conclusion
In the shop I was seduced by the S3L's features and appearance, and have grown to love and respect the camera as I've gotten to know it more. I'm a proud owner and am quite willing to overlook its minor shortcomings.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 350
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts
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Epinions.com ID:
davlee
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Location: East Asia
Reviews written: 7
Trusted by: 2 members
About Me:
Some of the worst experiences in life make the best stories!
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