1. 4-megapixel sensor captures 2,272 x 1,704 images for prints at 11 x 14 inches and beyond
2. 4x optical/2.2x digital (8.8x total) zoom lens with autofocus
3. Included 16 MB CompactFlash card stores 12 images at default resolution
4. Automatically connects with Macs and PCs via USB port
5. Uses 4 AA batteries (alkalines included)

Editorial Review :

How do you make a good camera even better? With more pixels and more power. Think of Minolta's DiMAGE S404 as a "souped up" S304--there's a new 4-megapixel sensor, plus a faster processor for improved performance, but otherwise, it's virtually the same as their nicely designed 3-megapixel point-and-shoot.

An all-glass 7.15-28mm lens (35-140mm in 35mm equivalents) with 4x optical zoom offers more power than the 3x lenses found in most digital cameras. An anomalous dispersion element and twin double-sided aspheric elements work together to minimize chromatic aberrations and reduce curvilinear distortion, giving you crisp, accurate, edge-to-edge imaging. In addition to the optical zoom, the camera includes an additional 2.2x digital zoom. This feature merely crops the edges off your picture and blows up the remaining image, enlarging your picture at the expense of image quality. Most photo-editing software will let you do the same thing to your picture once you've transferred it to your home computer, so it's a camera feature that's not often used. To compose images, watch the 1.8-inch, 122,000-pixel color LCD monitor, or use the optical viewfinder for traditional image composition.

For professional results with the point-and-shoot operation of the S404, you can choose from five preset modes: macro, portrait, landscape, night portrait, and text. For more creative shooting, use a wide variety of adjustable features, including manual focus, selectable ISO, custom white-balance controls, exposure compensation and bracketing, and a digital-effects control that allows adjustment of color saturation, contrast, and sharpening. There's also a histogram function, a feature still found primarily on high-end digital cameras. A histogram is a graph displayed on the screen indicating the relative proportions of different levels of brightness in a shot you've taken, instantly letting you know if you've captured your shot with the correct exposure. A movable focus point allows for off-center compositions. Multisegment metering technology helps to provide accurate exposures. Four resolution modes cover the range from film-quality photographs to images for e-mail. Movie mode allows 60 seconds of live action and a voice-memo feature helps identify your work.

Four AA batteries power the camera (an optional AC adapter is also available if you're planning to do lots of studio photography). The benefit to using standard AA batteries instead of a custom proprietary battery is that AA batteries are widely available, so missing a once-in-a-lifetime shot due to dead batteries won't be an issue. The downside is that a digital camera will kill a set of alkaline batteries extremely quickly, especially if you're using the camera's LCD display. If you're an occasional photographer, you can get by with high-power disposables, but if you plan to take more than a handful of photos a month, a set of rechargeable batteries (scroll up to the Accessories section) is a virtual necessity.

For improved performance, the S404 has a 32 MB internal buffer for temporary storage of images. This improves shot-to-shot speeds and performance in continuous shooting mode.

The DiMAGE S404 comes complete with 16 MB CompactFlash card, A/V cable, USB cable, Minolta Image Viewer Utility CD-ROM, four AA alkaline batteries, lens cap, and neck strap.

Pros:

• 4-megapixel sensor captures filmlike detail in your photos
• Advanced features like shutter- and aperture-priority, plus histograms for more advanced photographers

Cons:

• No connection for external flash
• Included alkaline batteries are only a short-term solution

Customer Review :

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1. 5.3 megapixel sensor creates high-resolution images for prints up to poster size
2. 3x optical plus 4x digital (12x total) zoom autofocus lens
3. Complete controls over exposure, color, contrast, saturation, and white balance
4. Includes 32 MB Secure Digital card; connects with Macs and PCs via USB port
5. Package includes four rechargeable NiMH batteries, charger, and case

Editorial Review :

The Minolta Dimage F300 5.3-megapixel digital camera produces high-quality images and incorporates advanced automatic functions. It features a sleek, contoured design similar to Minolta's F100, but offers increased resolution and zoom range, a new noise-reduction option, and Minolta's award-winning subject-tracking autofocus (AF) and Minolta's area AF.

Optics and Resolution
The Dimage F300 features a 5.3-megapixel primary-color CCD with 5.0 million effective pixels for high-resolution images. It incorporates a built-in 3x optical zoom Minolta GT lens for color accuracy, and its 4x digital zoom capability combines with a compact lens design for a wide image-capture range. Three aspheric lens elements ensure sharp images at all focal lengths. With a focal range of 7.8-23.4mm, the lens is equivalent to a 38-114mm 35mm zoom lens.

The image formed on the camera’s CCD sensor is enhanced by Minolta’s exclusive CxProcess image-processing technology to optimize sharpness, color reproduction, tonal gradation, and noise to create clear and natural-looking images. The Dimage F300’s wide dynamic range is provided by 12-bit A/D (analog to digital) conversion to ensure natural color and accurate tonal reproduction.

Storage and Transfer
Images are stored on Secure Digital memory cards, and a 32 MB card is included. Images can be downloaded to either a Mac or PC via USB connectivity, which means it can be connected to any USB-based Windows 98 Rev2Me/2000/XP and Mac OS 8.6 or later computer without installing any software.

More Features
A versatile camera, the Dimage F300 allows complete control over exposure, color, contrast, saturation, white balance, camera sensitivity, and focus. It can also record movies and audio.

Like the Dimage F100, the F300 also comes equipped with subject-tracking AF and Minolta’s area AF. These technologies work together to locate and follow the subject through three-dimensional space within the camera’s extra-wide focusing area, making the autofocus system ready to take a picture whenever you're ready to shoot.

The Dimage F300 combats noise (which can give a grainy look to digital images) by employing a large signal-to-noise ratio to minimize its effect even with higher CCD gain--as well as allowing photographers to select noise reduction to control image quality.

This stylish camera features a slim aluminum body exterior and stainless-steel accents around the lens barrel with an easy-to-hold elegant grip and ergonomic control layout.

Power, Size, and Contents
The camera is powered by one CR-V3 lithium battery and four rechargeable NiMH batteries. It measures 4.3 by 2.1 by 1.3 inches and weighs 6.5 ounces. This package includes the Dimage F300 digital camera, batteries and NiMH battery charger, 32 MB Secure Digital memory card, USB and AV cables, hand strap, sports case, and a CD-ROM with Dimage Viewer and ArcSoft Funhouse software, and USB drivers for Windows and Mac.

Customer Review :

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1. 4.0 megapixel sensor captures enough detail to create photo-quality prints up to 11 x 14 and beyond
2. 3x optical zoom and 4x digital zoom (for 12x total)
3. Capture up to 3 minutes of 320 x 240 video with audio; voice recording capability
4. Includes 16 MB Secure Digital card; also compatible with MMC cards
5. Powered by 2 rechargeable NiMH batteries (included with charger); connects to PCs and Macs via USB 1.1

Editorial Review :

The Dimage F200 is a stylish 4.0 megapixel camera that can go anywhere you do. While the sophisticated automatic functions make photography simple, The Dimage F200 is also packed with functions that allow total control over image making. Features include a 4-megapixel resolution, 3x optical zoom, and digital video that's limited only by your memory card.

Optics and Resolution
Employing the technology from the top-of-the-line Dimage 7Hi, the F200's high-precision electro-optical system is designed to maximize image quality. The system is built around a 4.1 megapixel interline primary-color CCD with 4.0 million effective pixels for fine high-resolution images and print enlargements up to 11 x 14 inches.

The sophisticated eight-element, seven-group 3x optical zoom lens design is only 24mm long--less than an inch when retracted. With a focal range of 7.8-23.4mm, it is equivalent to a 38mm-114mm on a 35mm camera. It can range from wide angle for landscapes and interiors to telephoto for intimate portraits and details of distant landmarks. The zoom lens also employs three aspheric elements to ensure sharp, contrasty images at all focal lengths.

The Dimage F200's digital zoom seamlessly takes over from the maximum focal length of the optical zoom without interrupting the monitor image. The digital zoom can extend the optical zoom's performance by four times in 0.1x increments giving the F200 an equivalent a 456mm lens on a 35mm camera. The combined optical and digital zooms give this compact camera an amazing 12x zoom range.

Storage and Transfer
Images can be stored on either Secure Digital (SD) or MultiMedia (MMC) memory cards; a 16 MB SD card is included. Download image files to either a Mac or PC via USB connectivity, including any USB-based Windows Me/2000/XP and Mac OS 8.6 or later computer without installing any software.

Movie and Audio Modes
The Dimage F200 is not limited to recording still images. Video with audio can be captured at either 160 x 120 or 320 x 240 pixel resolution. The length of movie clips is only limited by the memory card capacity. The new Direct Video function allows the camera to be connected directly to a VHS or DVD recording deck.

The audio recording mode records up to 180 minutes of audio. Voice memo allows up to 15 seconds of audio to be attached to an image when it is captured. The audio-caption function can attach an audio track to any recorded still-image. The audio tracks can be played back in the camera.

More Features
Two copy functions allow image files to be duplicated in camera. An improved e-mail copy function allows a still image to be copied and resized to 640 x 480 or 160 x 120 pixels so that it may be attached to an e-mail message or posted on the Internet. The standard copy function makes a direct copy of a file onto the same or another memory card.

White balance controls how the camera interprets the color of the ambient lighting. Auto white balance compensates for changes in lighting automatically. Four preset white-balance settings, daylight, cloudy, tungsten, and fluorescent, can be selected for specific light sources. And for critical control over color, the custom setting allows the camera to be calibrated to the lighting conditions at the scene. All the camera's white balance controls are available for movie recording.

• 1.5-inch LCD monitor.
• Built-in flash with auto, red-eye reduction, and fill flash modes.
• Three metering modes: multi-segment, center-weighted, and spot.
• Four exposure modes are available: program, aperture priority, shutter priority, and manual.
• Camera sensitivity can be set to auto or to one of four ISO equivalent levels: 100, 200, 400, or 800.

Customer Review :

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1. 2.3 megapixel sensor captures enough detail to create photo-quality 8 x 10 prints
2. 2x digital zoom lens with autofocus
3. Included 8 MB CompactFlash card holds 18 images at default resolution
4. Connects to Macs and PCs via USB port
5. 4 AA batteries included

Editorial Review :

The 2.3-megapixel CCD of the Minolta Dimage 2300 captures images at a maximum resolution of 1,792 x 1,200, letting you create photo-quality prints at sizes up to 8 by 10 inches. For e-mail and Internet use, it can also capture at a resolution of 800 x 600. If you're considering making the switch from film to digital photography, The Dimage 2300's similarity to film-based point-and-shoot cameras will help ease the transition.

The camera lacks an optical zoom, but does include a digital zoom, which brings subjects closer at the expense of image quality. Other features include a multimode flash, a self-timer, a video- out feature, and a USB connection for quick file transfers. Included with the Dimage 2300 are batteries, a camera bag, 8 MB CompactFlash card, video and USB cables, and software.

Customer Review :

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1. Compact digital camera with 5-megapixel CCD produces photo-quality 13 x 17 prints
2. 3x optical zoom; folded optics technology provides full-flat, non-protruding zoom lens
3. 2.5-inch anti-reflective LCD display; quick 0.5-second startup time; 15 MB internal memory
4. Powered by rechargeable lithium-ion battery; measures 3.3 x 2.2 x 0.9 inches (W x H x D)
5. Remanufactured to like-new condition; 90-day end-user warranty through Benji Electronics

Editorial Review :

Remanufactured Konica Minolta Dimage X60 5-Megapixel Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom Product Features and Technical DetailsProduct Features * Compact digital camera with 5-megapixel CCD produces photo-quality 13 x 17 prints * 3x optical zoom; fol

Customer Review :

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