Good value for money

Author's Rating:

Pros: Zoom range, logical controls, picture quality.

Cons: Lens cover, "slr-style" finder

The Bottom Line: 
I think that, within its limits, this camera is excellent value for money in the long zoom segment of digital P&S.

Author's Review
I bought this camera as a replacement for an older lower (1.3 Mp) resolution camera since I from time to time have to deliver 3Mp + files. My choice was based on the long zoom range plus the fairly short shutter lag that this model sports. Also I did not want to spend a whole lot of money since I still mainly shoot film for any serious assignments.

What I really love about this camera is the lens. It can create very clear and sharp pictures across the entire range. As with any digital P&S you should not expect any actual wide angle but 38mm equivalent is fine with me.

The menu system and all the controls is also very well designed. My wife, who hates basically every gadget with more than a few buttons and knobs learned to master it within minutes and actually likes to take pictures with the Z1.

As for handling this camera should be used with some care. Do not rush it when changing batteries and memory cards. Open both compartments carefully or you might break something. With reasonable care however this camera will last a long time. It is not built like a tank though.

The lens cover is a bad design. It falls off very easily and if your camera is not in a proper camera case the front element of the lens could risk being scratched. Buy a case for a few dollars to protect the camera.

Especially when shooting macro the auto focus has a hard time to hone in on the subject. If you are using the top "slr-style" finder it can then be quite difficult to determine if the focus is sharp or not.

In a number of situations I find that I have to pre-focus on something other than the subject to make the AF lock properly.

In macro mode (which is actually very good) i have found it more convenient to use manual focus set at 4cm (closest range) and then move the camera until I find the sharpest image on the LCD.