My Review: CASIO EXILIM EX-Z80 Digital Camera

I’ve been wanting digital cameras(point and shoot) lately and I decided to buy a new one since I’ve been using my old digital camera for 2 years now and it’s features are incomplete to satisfy my current standard.

When I was looking for a camera, I have listed some criteria/guidelines in buying my next camera, these are:

• Should be cheaper or reasonably priced – since I don’t have much budget, it must be from the economy category.
• Should not be lame or pathetic when it comes to features – I was looking for at least 5 MP and above. Features such as face detection, anti-shake, video recording, optical zoom, good quality images,  fast loading and other similar features.
• Should have an appealing design – something compact and has metal casing so that it won’t look cheap.

Those guides led me to casio’s exilim EX-z80 camera.

The casio exilim EX-Z80 camera:

I bought it last month and spent some time capturing photos with it. The Z80 proved me it’s worth.

The camera can produce a maximum of 8.1 megapixel resolution images, and can be adjusted to a lower resolution, it has face detection that adjusts the focus on the face to make it more visible and also can recognize recorded faces so you can prioritize one person from a group.

The camera is really small

The camera is smaller than common point and shoots and can easily fit in your shirt pocket but has a large 2.6 inches LCD screen for better viewing of images. It has a brushed metal front casing and less buttons at the back for less complicated navigation. It can also record good quality videos, the good part is that this camera sells under 200$.

Image settings such as brightness, contrast and ISO can be manually adjusted but there is also a feature called “BS-Best Shot mode” that has a pre-adjusted settings for different situation like for example the night scene that is suitable for taking pictures at night.

What I like about this camera is that it can capture good quality images faster thanks to it’s powerful exilim engine 2.0 image processor(unlike my old camera that takes about 3-5 seconds to capture one image), It’s video capturing is also great and a feature that you will probably use more often. It can be connected to a computer for file transfer and can also be connected to a television for viewing with friends.

The menu is simple and easy to look around so you won’t get lost. Another plus for this camera is that it uses MMC or SD-MMC for storage which can be easily bought and a lot cheaper than sony’s memory stick for cybershot cameras.

(SD card not included in the package)

The sales package includes the camera, hand strap, USB cables, 1 rechargeable lithium ion battery and charger.

During my vacation, I took some photos with my Z80. You can check out one of the sample image I took, I used scenery, one of the best shot mode available and I adjusted the resolution to 6MP(2816×2112) .

SAMPLE IMAGE:

(click for a larger image)

Conclusion:

The casio exilim EX-Z80 packs some features commonly found on more expensive cameras which is a good thing about it and is a great buy in it’s price range.

The camera is very easy to operate and can be used without too much complicated settings, definitely a point and shoot camera.

It produces good enough photos. But there is no unique/standout feature in this camera so don’t expect too much. I highly recommend this camera for those who are on a tight budget but don’t want to sacrifice performance in a point and shoot camera.

Back In The City

finally I’m back home after a relaxing out of town vacation. It was a fun adventure and it’s a healthy lifestyle I had there why? because I don’t have a computer there(no computer games and internet). I wake up early then explore the place, I walk there a lot plus the air is much cleaner.

I realized that staying away from my computer makes me feel healthy but of course I can’t stay away from my computer for a longer period of time.

Hey 2008 is almost over so I guess we should just enjoy it’s remaining days! Enjoy everyone!

Merry Christmas!

I just would like to greet all you guys Merry Christmas! right now I’m packing up my things because I’ll be leaving to celebrate Christmas in the province so I’ll be gone for a while again(as usual). I’ll be back before new year and hopefully, I can post here again something interesting.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

The Wanderer.

The Dream Match: Pacquiao-Dela Hoya

The most awaited and most controversial boxing match this year was finally concluded yesterday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, the Pacquiao-Dela Hoya dream match.

Since the official announcement of the match(months ago), many were shocked because they never thought of Manny Pacquiao going up against boxing legend Oscar Dela Hoya. Even I couldn’t believe about Manny’s approval of the fight.

Some boxing analyst believed that Pacquiao will have a hard time fighting Dela Hoya because of the obvious reach and height difference and therefore can only win by decision. Oscar was expected to deliver powerful and lethal punches while Manny is expected to be fast. Some people even call it a “mismatch”(believing Oscar has a huge advantage over Manny).

December 6, 2008(US time, December 7 in the Philippines), the moment of truth has begun for all the spectators/fans around the world . Both fighters entered the ring with confidence, a short time was given to perform the national anthems of the 3 countries(Philippines, Mexico and USA) then the two fighters were introduced and rules were briefly clarified and discussed to the two before finally starting the match.

During the first round, many were once again shocked, it seems like the predicted flow of the match did not turn out the way most people are expecting it to be. Oscar’s punches were only hitting the air due to Manny’s effective dodging that then transforms into a swift and powerful counter punches landing successfully. As the rounds go by, Oscar is throwing fewer punches while Manny became more and more aggressive turning Oscar into a punching bag. After 8 rounds, Oscar obtained serious damages and when round 9 was about to start, they already canceled it due to Oscar’s inability to continue the fight resulting into a technical knockout win for Manny Pacquiao.

Oscar Dela Hoya’s performance really went bad during that match probably because he lowered his weight and also of his age. Definitely an unbelievable match for me to remember.

Feeling Figure Collection ONE PIECE: Roronoa Zoro

Yesterday I got another new addition to my small collection of figures. It’s the Roronoa zoro figure from One Piece.

The series is composed of 6 figures namely: Luffy, Sanji, Nami, Robin, Usopp & Chopper and finally Zoro. I picked the Zoro figure because he is my favorite character(and also, I don’t have enough money to buy them all LOL!) plus he’s got the coolest pose among the rest although they are all of good quality and are worth collecting.

The Roronoa Zoro figure is holding two swords from the left and the right hand:

The detail is very excellent and is also well painted so I bought it without thinking twice. The figure comes with 3 removable swords(1 unsheathed, 2 sheathed) and a display stand.

The 3 swords:

Here are other views of the figure:

It’s been a while.

Once again I’m back(and probably leaving again), so far this is the longest delay before I posted again in this simple blogsite. The reason? well, I should blame it on my time demanding work(crap! I’m always chasing deadlines) and partially my laziness to post again. My work project is already in the finishing touches so once again, my schedule began to loosen up a bit so I’ll try to make up for my absence.

Hey It’s already December(hooray!). Christmas is fast approaching and many fun ideas are already filling up my mind but before that, maybe I should greet all you guys an advanced Happy Holidays!