An okay little portable digital still and video camera
Written: Oct 23 '05 (Updated Jun 30 '06)
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Pros: Lightweight, 270degree swivel LCD, standard AA batteries, 64MB internal memory
memory, Windows Media video
Cons: Grainy pictures, annoying numbering system, no macro, no zoom for stills
The Bottom Line: A multipurpose occasional use digital video and stills camera whose pictures come out acceptably after reprocessing.
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| imation1000's Full Review: Gateway Pocket DV-S20 Digital Camera |
As of this review, the Gateway DV-S20 Digital camera/ camcorder has been discontinued by Gateway. It is still available brand new at certain online stores and/or online auctions.
The camera controls are easily learned even without reading the manual. The LCD display however smallish is of good quality exhibiting good contrast and resolution. It can be swiveled 270 degrees and automatically inverts the display to allow taking a picture of oneself.
Its small size and lightweight makes it handy to carry around in your pocket, however it makes holding the camera steady a difficult task. Still picture & video quality suffer as a result. An exceptionally steady hand or tripod is recommended.
Note that the DV-S20 uses a CMOS versus CCD imager. The resulting digital stills are of lower quality compared to CCD-based 2megapixel cameras. It is recommended to use the highest quality setting. Also noticeable on digital shots taken is a pinkish hue. This can be avoided by selecting and exposure control manually versus the auto select. The camera reverts back to auto-select when the camera is turned off. Or you can fix the picture with the included digital picture editor software or Picassa which is available for free from Google.
Low-light shots even with a flash tend to be grainy and include many artifacts. In many cases the pictures are simply unuseable. This is true even in video capture mode.
The cameras imager simply cannot handle low light levels.
Under well-lit or sunny conditions, the digital stills and video are much improved. Use the medium and highest video quality setting to best results. Again be sure to adjust the exposure control as the video captured tends to have a pinkish hue as well if left up to the auto-exposure.
The built in memory of 64MB is sufficient for most picture taking tasks as well as short films. The built in SD card slot can handle up to 512MB additional (not in conjunction with the internal memory).
The only viewfinder provided is the LCD screen which can swivel 270 degrees so you can take a picture of oneself. However the limitation is that the camera minimum focus range is 3 feet so shots closer than that tend to be out of focus or when using the flash washed out.
Battery life on the DV-S20 is adequate to say the least. It is recommended to use rechargeable NiMH batteries, particularly high current 1800mah types. Under normal use (half flash, half no flash), expect approximate an hour and a half of life.
Video clips lengths are only limited by memory capacity. And they are saved as windows media video files. One annoying feature of how the files are labeled (both video and stills) is that when files are transferred off the camera and deleted, it reuses the same lablels again. Meaning, if you are not paying attention you can overwrite a file with the same filename on your computer. I suggest renaming files upon transferring them.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 85.00
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Easy Enough for Anyone to Use
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Epinions.com ID:
imation1000
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Reviews written: 7
Trusted by: 0 members
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