There is a lot to like about the Samsung i5 and a few things not to like. The camera performed satisfactory under most lighting conditions, but performance was only average. Start-up time
was fairly quick at 2 seconds, but shot-to-shot times were very slow. Even in continuous shooting mode the best I could achieve was 1.5 seconds between shots and in this mode the screen goes
completely dark while the camera captures frame after frame. Since you can't see exactly what the camera is capturing after you press the shutter release, the continuous shooting mode is
more pot-luck than anything else. In single-shot mode, it took the camera about 2.5 seconds before it was ready to capture another image. Shutter lag was almost a full second, a pretty slow
time when compared to other newer cameras in this class. Shutter lag times can be decreased by pressing the shutter-release halfway in order to pre-focus the camera. Pressing the shutter from
this half-way position reduced shutter lag to about 0.5 second.
I was also surprised by the lack of a sports mode. While the camera does offer a top shutter speed of 1/2000th of a second, it gives the user no way to force it to use a higher shutter speed or at
least one fast enough for a faster action shot. The lack of a sports mode makes this camera impractical for action photography. Since most family photography involves little league, football,
field hockey, soccer, gymnastics, etc. it would seem to be a major oversight not to include this ability.
Now for the good news. The stainless steal body, sleek compact design, internal
3x optical zoom lens, layout and overall feel, docking station, rechargeable
battery, 50MB of internal memory, integrated lens/flash cover, large
2.5" TFT color LCD display, easy-to-navigate menu system, and 30 fps
MPEG-4 video mode with audio and zoom are reasons to consider the Samsung
i5. The camera also features a superb super macro mode which should
be considered if you often take pictures of small objects (think ebay
auctions). Long exposures (night mode) seem to be one of the high points
of the Samsung i5. A 12-second exposure taken in a dimly lit room yielded
bright, sharp, clean results. This was very unexpected especially considering
the camera lacks a tripod mount - a necessity when shooting with long
exposures. To get around the lack of a tripod mount, use a bean bag
or table along with the self-timer to keep the camera steady when shooting.
The camera's large 2.5" TFT display was bright indoors and out, although
the LCD was not as visible when trying to frame scenes at night. The
camera slides into the docking base with the LCD facing the front, making
it a convenient way to do an informal slide show or connect the docking
station to a large screen TV for slideshows that have impact.
If you're looking for a pocket-thin camera that balances features and image quality, has very good slow-shutter (night) performance, and is fun to use, then the Samsung i5 is a camera to consider.
Features I liked
- Ultra thin and compact design
- High quality pouch is included with belt loop
- 50MB internal memory plus SD expansion slot
- Fairly quick start-up time thanks to the non-extending zoom lens
- Large 2.5" TFT LCD display is bright and clear, except in lower lighting situations
- Long exposures had surprisingly little noise
- Easy to navigate on-screen menu system
- Decent battery life - I achieved approx. 95 shots with a lot of image playback on a single charge
- Good flash performance with regard to proper exposure. Red-eye still a problem
- Reduced buttons on exterior of camera makes it comfortable for almost anyone to pick it up and shoot
- 11 Scene modes make it easy to get proper exposure
- Audio recording feature was easy to access and worked well
- Superb Macro capability. Focus as close as .38" from the lens
- 640x480 Video mode at 30fps with sound provided excellent recorded quality*
* audio is muted during zooming, so try to preset zoom prior to the start of recording
Features I didn't like
- No tripod mount
- Shutter-lag was too slow compared to competition
- Continuous shooting mode turns the screen black turning sequence capture
- Image quality was just average; exhibiting JPEG artifacts even in Super Fine mode
- Noise at ISO 200 and 400 was very high
- Safety Flash (SF) is not really a better alternative to using the flash since
blur from camera-shake is very prevalent
- Lack of Sports mode or manual high-speed shutter selection
- Finger(s) on left hand have no where to go except in front of lens
- Audio is muted while using optical zoom in Video mode
- Auto focus performed poorly when trying to achieve sharp focus on subjects
at a zoom ratio of 50% or greater. This mostly occurred with subjects
that lacked sharp contrast.
Joby Gorillapod Original
