 E2 - a worthy update to E1 |
| Review Date: September 13, 2008 |
| Reviewer: D. Brodsky, |
Before purchasing E2 I was torn between E1 and E2 but decided to go with a new model. There were no reviews on E2 other than a single one for Euro/Japanese/Canadian version of E2 called CA8 and that review blasted the camera's new sensor. Nevertheless, with Amazon's liberal return policy, I decided to take my chance and to get E2 instead of E1. After all, it is a second generation of this waterproof camera, and I thought the second generation is typically better.
If you are trying to decide between E1 and E2, here are the major differences:
The most obvious is a change of sensor.
E1 uses 6MP CCD 1/2.5 sensor
E2 uses 8MP CMOS 1/2.5 sensor.
E2 adds a 60 frames per second movie option (E1 was limited to 30 frames per second)
E2 adds face recognition mode. E1 has no such face detection mode
E2 adds a dedicated 'underwater' mode among several others. E1 did not have a specific 'underwater' mode.
First, I tried both the new 60 frames per second mode and the old 30 frames per second mode and I decided that I will be using 30 frames per second, I actually like the quality of 30fps mode better.
I then tried the photography mode. I took most photographs inside in tricky low-light incandescent and florescent light conditions, because I know these give ANY camera, including DSLRs such as my Canon 40D $1300 camera, the most problems. I upped the ISO to 200 and then to 400. You can see samples I posted here. BTW the macro mode on this baby goes to 1 cm!!!! I don't know if E1 had such super-macro to 1 cm. I found the photo quality acceptable and similar to that of other point-and-shoots using the same 1/2.5 and similar sensors. I felt that ISO400 was acceptable. I have not tried ISO 800 and 1600 yet.
E2 has following ISO range: in photo mode 50-1600
in video mode: 100-3200 in high sensitivity mode (3200 I don't believe you can select, but it does it).
The image stabilization feature is tricky, it is EIS, Electronic Image Stabilization, not Optical Image Stabilization, so when you use it, it crops a little bit on sides of your video and photographs, depending on which mode of EIS you use.
The sound is stereo and the quality is acceptable. The camera is tiny btw, I fit mine in case logic case I had from my Canon A75 camera.
I tried this camera underwater in my pool, both video and photographs. All worked fine, even shoots photographs with flash underwater, which makes for very freaky results.
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Finally, some people complained that Sanyo has their own unique USB cable which is a pain if you lose it or don't have it with you, and cannot read it in ordinary card reader. WRONG. I did not even bother taking the proprietary Sanyo USB cable from camera packaging. The card works easily in my HP (windows vista) desktop's card reader. I downloaded PICASA 3 which I recommend. Picasa 3 will find, download, and play all photos and every video you shoot with this camera easily and quickly, just take the SD card, put it in your card reader and Picasa will do the rest. Very easy, so don't need to bother with this cable that comes with it.
Problems: Battery life is not impressive. Battery is tiny. I am used to Fuji F30's 500 shots per charge. This battery sucks. I charged the battery fully. I then took 80 photographs (some with flash), 4 or 5 2-minute videos and my battery showed 70% gone. You need a second battery, and hopefully there are some with more juice in it that the Sanyo one that comes with the camera.
I also wish the lens would start at 28mm and not 38mm as it would make easier to take pictures/videos of oneself without need to stretch your body away from the camera. Also my belief is that the flash only operates in photo mode and not in video mode. However, it is much better than its only competitor, Panasonic SW20, which does not have any flash at all
I will add more photos later. |
Pretty good overall
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| Review Date: November 26, 2008 |
| Reviewer: William A. Nolan, Willcox, AZ USA |
Before I start, let me mention that I am a professional photographer and I teach photography for our local college. When I look at a new camera, that background plays a role. You may be looking for something completely different in a camera than I am.
My first impression of the Sanyo Xacti VCP E2 was all about its size. It slips right into my shirt pocket. Once I got over the size (and got the battery charged up) I was ready to go. Oh, and install a memory card. The E2 takes the popular SD cards, and it does not come with one. That's probably not a bad thing. Most people who have had a camera or two have a few of these cards lying around. If you don't, get one with the camera. I installed an 8gig card.
I was first trying to hold the camera in one hand. That didn't work very well for me. Your hands may vary. The best hold for me turned out to be with the camera in my right hand, and my left thumb and index finger on the top and bottom of the LCD, which steadies things nicely. The controls, located on the top rear of the camera, are designed to be thumb operated.
The two buttons at the very top take still photos and movies, respectively. They are easy to operate, and the still photo button does the usual "press halfway to lock everything in" function. Below these is the usual four way rocker with the button in the middle. When you are making pictures, this area is used mainly to zoom.
There is also a menu button on the back, and many functions, like turning the flash on and off, can only be accessed through the menus. If you have used digital camera menus before, these will be easy to follow.
So, how well does it work? Pretty well, actually. The macro ability of the lens is outstanding in a camera of this type. It focuses at 1 cm. That's less than a half inch, if you are metric challenged. In addition, it has a full range focus mode that will go from 1 cm to infinity without putting it into a special macro mode. I like to get in close, so that's important to me.
The camera has all the usual settings for ISO, light balance, etc., and will go as high as 3200 ISO. If you get higher than 400, buy a good noise filter plug-in for Photoshop. Once I apply that, even photos shot at 1600 look pretty good. The 8 megapixel stills are 3264 by 2448, and print nice 8x10s. You can grab stills while shooting a movie. If you do that, the stills will be 1600x1200. With 2 megapixels, you could still print an 8x10, but a 5x7 will be better. The 5X zoom works fine. There is also a 12 megapixel setting, but the sensor is 8 MP, so I assume it is simulated. I didn't use it.
Videos are either 640x480, which is plenty for display on a TV, or 320x240, which is perfect for UTube or similar services. You can record at either 30 or 60 frames a second, and I didn't see much difference. At the lower resolution, you can also record at 15 FPS, which makes a small file that's easy to email or upload.
The waterproof feature is interesting. It is supposed to be safe to 5 feet, and it seems to be. I tried it by holding it under water in my backyard pond and bothering my goldfish. Water's a little chilly this time of year!!! Anyway, it worked fine. For many people, the main advantage of this would be that you don't have to worry if you are getting rained on, and you can use it by the pool with no issues.
This camera won't replace your DSLR, but it might replace both your point and shoot still camera and your camcorder.
Pros: Size, easy to use, great macro ability, and very acceptable photo and video quality, with the waterproof feature a plus.
Cons: Not many - Uses a non standard USB cable (included) and battery life is around 100 or so stills if you are using the flash - more if the flash is off. Figure an hour of video.
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A perfect sports Digital Camcorder
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| Review Date: January 6, 2009 |
| Reviewer: K. Xu, CA |
I've been looking for an inexpensive compact digital camcorder for a long time, for my snow and water sports, until I found Xacti E2.
The compact size make it easy to fit in the jacket pockets whiling riding. The authentic Water-proof and shaking control are critical for shooting while moving on the snow or under water. Video and sound quality is not a big concern for me, but I know it's at least as good as other regular camcorders at this price range. To my surprise, the night video quality is also very good, clear and no much noise point. Battery life is also good at low temperature (my cell phone battery usually stops working very soon after I get onto slope)
So far, I'm very satisfied with it. There are only a few minor UI issues I don't like. e.g. the buttons of camera and video taping are small and so close, that I cannot operate while wearing snow gloves. Also, no button to switch flash, so I have to change setting by menu each time.
So overall, I would strong recommend it for sport purpose. |
Excellent Little Video Camera - Depending on Your Needs
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| Review Date: March 21, 2009 |
| Reviewer: I. Henzel, Chicago, IL United States |
I just purchased the Sanyo Xacti VPC-E2 and I have to say, I'm very impressed. I bought it as an Amazon open box warehouse deal which made it even better.
First, let me talk about my experience with video cameras.
I have owned a couple, starting with the 8mm format back in the late 1980's and then moving to digital-8 later on.
I liked taking video, but hated schlepping around a camera, so therefore, I didn't use them. Also, editing together video was a pain, having to go through a tape sequentially to import the video.
A friend of mine found the Sanyo Xacti VPC-E2 and I was intrigued. It was small, portable and waterproof. It looked to be a fun little camera.
I've been taking some experimental videos testing the camera and here are my conclusions.
MY NEEDS/REQUIREMENTS:
- Lightweight and easy to carry around - Something small enough to fit in a pocket and not be a complete drag to carry around, to the point that I would dread it
- Mac compatible (this was a deal breaker)
- Easy to use
- Good quality video. I have HD TVs and Blu-Ray, but realized that my videos would not be Hollywood epics. I wanted quality that was good enough for "video snapshots," small fun videos
PROS:
- This camera is lightweight - not a pain to carry around
- Mac compatible!!!!! Not one problem in using it with iMove and iPhoto!
- MP4's much easier to grab and use! So much better than tape!
- Very nice quality when shot at the maximum quality setting. Probably not as great as some expensive cameras but I'm quite frankly, for the fun videos I shoot, the quality is really quite excellent, as an MP4.
- Good sound
- Easy to use
SOME SIDE COMMENTS
- I have put MP4 clips on my Mac, and then copied them over to our PlayStation 3 (using Nullriver media server on the Mac) and we watch clips on our TV. Talk about ease of use! This has been FANTASTIC!
- While I was not shopping for a waterproof camera, I have to admit that I'm looking forward to trying this little guy out in the water. Plus the benefit of being able to be in the rain with it, and not having to worry about water!
NOT PRO AND NOT CON
- The still photos taken with the Xacti are OK. Not as good as our still cameras (we have quite good still cameras). We might also be really picky about our still photos. I know someone else who has the Xacti and likes the quality of the still photos. This is where taste comes into it.
- The Xacti is so small that I could easily fit it into my bag with my other camera, so not a big deal
- Having said all that, depending on the situation, and how important the still photos would be to me, I could easily see myself just using the Xacti, in those cases, though I would still prefer the quality of my regular digital camera.
CONS:
- Low light effects the quality. The videos can be grainy in low light. This is not that big an issue for me, because I'm just taking fun little videos, so I'm fine with it. I think it's acceptable.
SUMMARY
This little camera is a keeper! I would not hesitate to recommend it. My only advice is to think about what your needs and requirements are, and make your decision based on that. |
Xacti E2 Rox!
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| Review Date: December 6, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Lori Bravo, San Antonio, TX United States |
I purchased this camcorder / point and shoot camera on a black Friday deal for $199. What a great deal it was. In other words, I may be in love!
For starters, let me tell you what I was looking for:
- Small camcorder - something that would fit easily in my pocket, ready for the quick opportunity
- Easy to use - I'm not a video engineer
- Records to TV resolution, as well as an easy upload to youtube
- Still camera incorporated, good enough to compare to a dedicated point and shoot so I don't have to carry too much stuff.
One of my hobbies is photography, and I have a Canon D20 that I use frequently. But that's bringing out the "big guns" for shooting something that just appeals to me on a whim. I realized that a camcorder / point-n-shoot might not satisfy the photographer in me, so I also got a good deal on a Nikon Coolpix on black Friday. The Coolpix is still in it's box, and will likely be returned.
OK, now about the Sanyo E2.
This appears to be a relatively new camcorder, as there aren't a whole lot of reviews - or even a group on flickr. So when I purchased the thing, it was an impulse buy... I did a little research, found nothing substantial; but still, $199 for a MSRP $399 camcorder sounded too good to pass up. The boxes showed up on Monday: a Nikon Coolpix and the Sanyo. I was most curious about the Xacti, so I opened it first. I charged the battery, went through the set up, and stuck it in my pocket.
After getting used to the idea of a camcorder a bit, and taking numerous pictures of my pets and my husband (my dog runs when I get it out of it's crappy case - more on that later), I am so pleased with my results that I don't feel the need to even open the Coolpix and play with it.
The E2 has a nice feel to it, looks good in the blue color I got, and generally, is a pleasing piece of geekery. On top of that, it takes serviceable pictures, decent video, and is fun to use. The interface is really workable, with a simplified menu and a more complex one when you need it. It doesn't seem to like my 8GB Transcend SD card, but the 4GB SanDisk hasn't failed me yet.
The battery life is not great on this thing. I was warned by other reviewers to purchase a secondary battery (I did), and I would recommend this to anyone.
Although this Xacti is waterproof, be aware that it's not a scuba camera. That doesn't bother me because I can't swim; but to those who think they can go further than 5 feet, be aware that this camcorder won't do better than that. It's more like "waterproof." So if you want, take it in the shower (heh), or by the pool, or in the rain without worries.
PROS
Satisfies all my requirements for a pocket carry camcorder / camera
Better picture quality than I expected
Easy to use interface for deleting, changing presets, etc.
Waterproof - can take it with me in rain with no worries
Fast start up
CONS
No lens cap
Crappy wrap around "case"
Doesn't like my 8GB Transcend SD card
Battery life is not good
This thing has lived in my pocket for a week, and more often than not, it's been my own reluctance to pull out a camera than my confidence in the camera to do its job that prevented me from taking more pictures or videos. I like the idea that I can photo or video anything that suits my fancy at a moments notice.
Way good bang for your buck!
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