A Digital Camera Even I Can Figure Out
Written: Sep 18 '03 (Updated Sep 23 '03)
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Pros: The camera is great for novices and is easy to use, lots of cool features
Cons: Can't interact with older computers, you MUST buy more memory
The Bottom Line: A great camera to find the joys of the digital age but you will need lots of extras to really enjoy it including a memory card and fancy computer.
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| modernmarvel's Full Review: Hewlett Packard Photosmart 735 Digital Camera |
I finally decided to leap into the 21st century with both feet and get a digital camera. Since I already had a brand new HP Pavilion Home Computer, I decided to look for a camera that would interact well with it. I figured if I stayed within the HP brand, I would have better luck and, after investigating HP digital cameras, I bought the Photosmart 735.
WHAT YOU GET
Well, you get the actual camera. The camera is gray and about the size of my open hand. It is heavier than it looks like is should be.
You also get: a wrist strap, 2 AA batteries, USB cable for camera to PC, USB cable for camera to printer, user's manual, dock insert for use with optional docking station, CD with HP photo software.
WHAT YOU DO NOT GET
You do not get enough memory with this camera. The memory in the camera accepts only about 12 pictures. That amount of pictures won't be enough for anyone so you must buy an additional memory card.
HOW IT WORKS
Taking pictures is very easy. You press the button down halfway so the camera will focus. Then you push down all the way. You can use a traditional viewfinder to frame your shots. However, there is a neat little screen in the back that looks like a video screen so you don't have to look through the viewfinder. It is much more fun and easier on the eyes to use the screen to line up your shots.
SHUTTER LAG
Once you push the button to take a picture, there is about a second lag before the picture actually shoots. This means that you might miss your shot and get a bad photo. The good news is that you can delete bad photos. The bad news is that you missed the shot.
THE VIDEO FEATURE IS NOT THAT IMPRESSIVE
Taking videos is easy. You just keep the button pressed and it will record. Lift your finger off and it stops. You can use the small screen in the back of the camera to tell what you are taping. What they don't tell you when you buy this camera is that there is not enough memory in the camera to take much of a video. You will need a memory card to get any practial use out of this feature. Also, the flash does not work with the video feature so you can only make videos in places with bright light.
VIEWING PICTURES IN MEMORY
Immediately after taking a picture, you get a few seconds to preview the picture and the opportunity to delete it. I find I can never make the decision to delete or keep a picture in the approximately 3 seconds allotted. Instead, I turn on a browse feature that lets me look through all my shots and decide which to keep and which to delete.
OTHER FEATURES
Zoom: This feature is easy to use. There is a small lever that can be pushed to zoom in or out.
Quality: You can choose 1, 2 or 3 stars. The higher the star rating, the better the quality of the picture, but the more memory each picture requires. To use 3 star ratings, you will need a memory card. At 2 stars, you can take 12 pictures with the camera.
Macro: You can take extreme close-ups.
Burst: The camera takes several shots in rapid succession.
Self-timer: The camera will take a picture with a 10 second delay.
There is also an advanced menu that lets you adjust the saturation, sharpness, EV compensation, balance, ISO speed and AE metering of the camera. These advanced features are only briefly explained in the manual so you will have to study up on your own if you want to use them.
HOW DO I GET MY PRINTS?
You can download the prints to your computer. First you have to load the software (this only needs to be done once). After that, you plug the USB cable into the computer and the camera. The software launches automatically and the pictures download. Once the pictures are captured in your computer, you can play around with them and change the size, add backgrounds and move things around. The software is intuitive, although there is also help if you need it. Once your photos are the way you want them, you can print them on a printer attached to your computer. The photos look just okay on regular paper. To get a professional look, you need to buy more expensive photo paper.
You can also order prints via the internet. The software program walks you through this easy process. Warning - unless you have a high speed internet connection, you are going to wait a long time to upload pictures to a internet site to order prints. I have a high speed connection and it takes about 15-30 seconds per picture.
The software gives you several choices of companies to make your prints. Shutterfly.com charges $0.39 to make one 4x6 print and $3.99 (ouch) to make an 8x10 print. The nice part is that you can put a small message on the back of your prints.
WHAT ELSE CAN I DO WITH THE PRINTS?
Well, you can email them to friends and family. The camera has an instant share feature that requires some programming. If you spend the time, you can program the camera to email an image the next time it connects to a computer. I found this feature difficult and time-consuming to program. It is much easier just to take the picture and upload them to the computer. Once they are on the computer, they can be emailed and you can include an email message.
The software gives you lots of opportunities to play with the images and backgrounds to get them the way you want. After that, you can upload the images to companies on the internet and order anything including keychains, pillowcases, t-shirts, mugs or almost anything else you can think of. If you wanted to, you could plaster your own image on almost every surface of your house.
WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS CAMERA
I can take a picture and get a print immediately from my printer. I can also email pictures easily to family and friends. Plus, I can weed out the awful pictures without wasting money on printing.
This camera uses standard AA batteries which are relatively cheap to replace. My old camera took a $30 battery so I am pretty happy about this feature.
WHAT I DON'T LIKE ABOUT THE CAMERA
I took two sets of 12 pictures and uploaded them to my computer. I only used the camera to take pictures and didn't really spend a lot of time with it turned on. Still, after two sets of pictures, I started getting a "battery low" message.
I tried to take a picture and got a "battery charging" message. The battery charged in a few seconds but I lost the shot. This has only happened once.
When the flash goes off - it has a strobe effect with several bright flashes. I assume the purpose of this is to reduce red eye - but I get plenty of red eyes in my shots and my subjects don't like the strobe-like flash.
When you want to browse through pictures to see which to keep and which to throw away, you must turn the camera on. When the camera is on, the lens cap is open, even if it is not your intent to take a picture at that time. It would be better if some of the features could function with the lens cap closed.
MEMORY CARD
I bought a 128mb memory card that allows me to take an additional 83 pictures at the 3 star rating and 125 pictures at the two star rating. I paid about $50 for the card at Buy.com.
COMPUTER COMPATIBILITY
This camera is compatible with Microsoft Windows XP. The minimum system requirements for it to be compatible with your computer are:
USB - compatible PC with Microsoft Windows 98, Me, XP or 2000; pentium II, celeron or compatible CPU, Internet Explorer or USB - compatible Macintosh
CD-ROM drive
64 MB RAM
175 MB of disk space
SVGA monitor
USB port
My brand new computer met all the requirements, but be careful if you have an older computer. My almost 4 year old computer met almost none of the requirements.
PRODUCT MUMBO - JUMBO
Here is the stuff from the packaging:
3.2 MP total resolution
15x total zoom (-3x optical zoom)
16MB internal memory
1.5 inch color LCD
status monitor
USB connectivity
auto focus, auto exposure, auto flash, red-eye reduction
video clip capture
hp instant share
docking capability
PRICE
I paid $249.99 plus tax at Staples
FINAL RECOMMENDATION
This is a great camera. To be honest, I am a little bitter that HP was not more forthcoming about the need for a memory card or that the batteries would run out once a week. However, I am enjoying my camera so much it is hard to complain about the drawbacks. I would recommend this camera to anyone with a relatively new computer and high speed internet connection so they can take advantage of all of the features. I am giving this camera 4 stars because it is so easy and enjoyable to use. I deducted one star because the HP was not forthcoming that I needed to spend more money on a memory card and because it burns through batteries.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 249.99
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Easy Enough for Anyone to Use
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