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19 of 20 found the following review helpful:
 A journalist's best friend. Photos + videocam + voice recorder replacement. Love it.Sep 05, 2005
By FERNANDO CASSIA
"-Writer and Computer Geek-"
I purchased this camera over a month ago. I'm like a kid with a new toy. But first things first, the advantages:
1) It's a small as a cellular phone
2) The LCD is bright, even when used outside in a sunny day
3) A carrying pouch with velcro top -attached securely to your belt with no chance of it being removed/stolen since it's pass-through- makes it pass as just a cell phone. Nobody will look at you if you're carrying this camera around in your daily life.
4) It's LIGHT and SMALL.
5) Image quality is very good, at 2594x1944.
6) VIDEO RECORDING is an acceptable 640x480 (480 vertical lines is about the same resolution as ntsc video = S-VHS quality!) is NOT LIMITED by anything, just by the size of the SD memory inserted. In other words, with a 512MB SD memory (around 37 bucks here in Amazon.com, look for the Kingston brand), you can record over 30 minutes of video at 30 frames per second. With a 1GB SD (around 66 bucks, Kingston brand), over an hour of video!.
I challenge anyone to transfer back any MPEG4 videos @ 30 fps, 640x480 created with this camera to VHS video and make someone discover what kind of camera it was recorded on. The majority will think it was recorded with a camcorder or handycam!. It's that good. Google for "The Inquirer UK" and "Samsung mpeg4" to get the URL of my full review, which includes some sample videos and full-resolution images.
The icing on the cake is the ability of this camera to function, at the flick of a switch (the lens retract and close as in the off position) as a DIGITAL VOICE RECORDER. So you can record classes at school, meetings, speeches, conferences.... records over 12 hours on a 512MB SD memory (8-bit, mono, wav format).
If your printer supports it, it can even print photos directly from the camera to the USB printer just by plugging a USB cable between the two!.
Did I mention that besides WinXP SP2 I also succesfully tested it on Linux (Java Desktop System R2 from Sun), and the manual claims full compatibility with Mac OS-X as well?.
It uses the open-source "XVID" mpeg4 video compression algorithm, so cross-platform compatibility of the videos recorded with it is assured (unlike what happens with Quicktime, Windows Media, and other closed technologies).
What else could I ask for?. Well, one thing, I can't wait to buy the keychain-style infrared remote for self-shots and group photos. It's an optional accesory like a TV set-top "docking cradle".
13 of 13 found the following review helpful:
Packed full of goodiesNov 13, 2005
By Trooper John
"Trooper John"
I've been a Nikon snob for years. I owned my own photo studio for 10 years. I'm now a State Trooper who shoots lots of auto crash scenes. I own a small Nikon digital camera that is great but pricy. A friend has a lower end Samsung digital camera. We were out in the mountains shooting wild flowers this fall and after going home we downloaded the images to my computer. I found not only her Samsung photos were beautiful but my Nikon images were no better. Had to have one immediately!
My Samsung Digimax U-CA5 lives up to everything they say it is. When I looked at the initial ratings on the page it didn't sound good but when reading the reviews, there didn't seem to be a problem with the camera. Trust me, this camera is great, from general snapshots to closeup and adding audio clips to the photos. The video clips look as good as some higher end video camera's on the TV and the sound, although mono is clear and precise. It's a $200.00+- camera that acts like a high end unit. I really like the in-camera video editing. The software that comes with it works flawlessly.
Now my Nikon is only a backup camera........
Enjoy, Trooper John
9 of 10 found the following review helpful:
Lightweight and portableSep 15, 2005
By Carlos 'Catel'
"an IT veteran"
Finally I don't have to carry a bag with the camera, I just carry it in my waist. The resolution is ok, and the mpeg4 video recorded looks like my 8mm camera's.
I didn't want my camera to be too noticed, so I selected to go with the blue one instead of this red version. There's a grey one as well.
I also purchased a Sandisk 1GB SD which gives this camera the ability to store 382 photos in full resolution, one hour and 8 minutes of video (68:00), or 25 hours 30 minutes of audio. (!)
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
Fun CameraNov 21, 2005
By J. Burke
I bought this camera for my 15 year old daughter and she loves it. She has the red model and it fits nicely in her purse (or even pocket). I think it's great that the batteries are rechargeable - you just plug it in like your cell phone. The screen is bright and she has used some of the options- video and sound - but has not used most of other features. The SD card is great too, since we have other equipment (flash, cameras) that use the same card. We use our SD reader to copy pictures to the desktop and our printer software to organize/edit since we have other cameras also. So far it has held up well, and she is pretty hard on her euqipment. We ordered from Adorama Camera - it also comes with a nice protective case. All in all takes nice pictures and easy to use.
11 of 16 found the following review helpful:
 just averageJul 24, 2005
By bittymnm
the design and colors of this camera caught my eye; i contemplated buying it so i did some digging and found a full review on the camera. this site is extremely helpful:
http://www.steves-digicams.com/2005_reviews/digimax_uca5.html
after reading it, i decided not to buy the U-CA b/c i want a camera with a faster start up and capture time. however, if you aren't willing to spend over $200, this camera is a really good deal.
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