Impressive compact camera with a fatal flaw

My previous point-and-shoot digital camera was my beloved and well used Sony DSC-W1 (reviewed here by me 2-1/2 years ago) to take pictures of my baby daughter. Said daughter, now a toddler, has helped destroy that same camera. Ah well. Shopping for a new camera is FUN!

I already did buy a new camera for myself during the holidays, a Nikon D80 DSLR, which I absolutely love. However, I still need a point-and-shoot for my wife since she doesn't share my enthusiasm for the "big" camera.

A slew of new camera were announced at PMA 2007 recently. One of the most interesting to me was the new Casio Exilim EX-V7.

Key features

* 7x zoom (equivalent to 38-266mm)
* 7.1MP (3072x2304)
* Completely internal zoom mechanism
* Image stabilization (CCD shift)
* Strong movie support (stereo, file size limited only by memory card capacity)
* Live RGB histogram
* Stylish sliding cover (doubles as on/off switch)

These features are all pretty important to me (except the sliding cover). As I researched the specs, I got more and more excited. Although it turns out there is a fatal flaw (for me) concerning the handling.

Construction and Styling
Body is almost all metal with the exception of the plastic battery/media door and maybe the tripod mount (not sure yet if it's metal or chromed plastic). Most of the body is a brushed aluminum and there's shinier strip around the sides. BTW, most of the pictures I've seen are silver, but I also saw and played with a black one (EX-V7BK) at my local Best Buy. It looks awesome!

The sliding door is smooth and conveniently turns the camera off and on like the Sony DSC-T series. However, while it may protect the lens from smudges and scratches, it does not appear that it will do much to protect against dust and lint, especially in my pants pocket or diaper bag where it will most likely live.

The zoom lens
A 7x is class leading (I think) for the ultra-compact class where most are 3x, especially for an entirely internal zoom mechanism. Since the lens doesn't protrude from the body, the internal mechanism may improve the reliability of the camera (it's what finally died on the old Sony).

While the zoom range is generous, I really do wish that at the wide end it would go a little bit wider. Most 3x zooms start at 35mm equivalent (with the Canon SD800 IS starting at a really nice 28mm equivalent). The V7 starts at 38mm. I'm guess this is one of the compromises for having such a broad zoom range in an ultra-compact internally folded design.

Finally, the zoom, controlled by means of a up/down slider switch, seems continuous. Most other point-and-shoots zoom in a limited number of fixed, discrete steps. The V7 at *feels* like it can continuously zoom (although in all likelihood it is also probably limited to discrete steps, but so many that it effectively is continuous).

Image stabilization
There are three types of image stabilization methods: optical element shift, CCD sensor shift, and (fake) high ISO. I parenthetically called the last fake because it doesn't employ any mechanism that directly counteracts camera or hand shake. Rather, it boosts the ISO (or light sensitivity) so that faster shutter speeds are used making the shake less noticeable (at the expense of more noise or "graininess"). The first two methods use mechanical means that directly counter-balance minute vibrations.

This feature is really important to me. I prefer using natural light whenever possible and stabilization lets me do it in much dimmer lighting conditions than ever before. It won't stop fast moving subjects from blurring (for that you have to have higher shutter speeds) but for relatively static subjects it really works.

The V7 uses both CCD shift and high ISO. Don't care about the latter, but really like the former.

Image resolution
As I mentioned in my DSC-W1 review from long ago, lossless JPEG rotation only works if both the width and height of images is a multiple of 8 or 16 (which depends on what is known as the baseline sampling). The simplest thing to do is just pick a resolution that is a multiple of 16 and you're fine no matter what. Well, all of the V7's supported resolutions are multiples of 16, so there should be no problem with doing lossless rotation no matter which mode you choose.

Other than the lossless rotation capability, I don't care too much about the number of megapixels. In fact, many would argue that 6 or 7 MP is already plenty and boosting resolution further using the small sensor sizes common in this class of camera just increases the amount of noise far more than the resolution you gain.

Movie mode
Who cares about movie mode in a digital camera review?!?

Well, I've discovered that this is a really important feature to me. I typically only carry the camera around with me at all times. I only pull out the digital camcorder for "special occasions". Of course, that kills spontaneity so the end result is that I have far more video shot on my old Sony DSC-W1 than I've ever taken on my camcorder. Too bad I didn't figure that out before I spent all that money.

The most important aspect for me is maximum file size. The Canons that I was comparing the Casio against are limited to 4GB file size (and using a less efficient compression to boot). Luckily the Casio is limited only by the capacity of the memory card. In addition, the Casio takes movies with stereo sound.

Movie mode of course takes advantage of the image stabilization to help stead the video. This is common with the other image stabilized competitors. Where the V7 does stand out is that it lets you zoom while the video is recording. Doesn't necessarily lead to good video (too much zooming makes me feel a little disoriented when I watch it on the TV or the computer), but its really nice to have. And would put another nail in my camcorder's coffin.

LCD display
Nice bright 2.5" LCD, but not quite as bright as the Canon SD800 IS. Viewing angle is also does not as good, but still reasonable.

What I really like is that the display can give you a live RGB histogram. My wife doesn't care about this, but I've been spoiled by my DSLR and I love having a RGB histogram to help nail exposure. In fact, the Casio is even better because it's live data (my DSLR only shows it on playback). The histogram consists of a luminance histogram in white, with red, green and blue lines superimposed over it representing the individual color channel histograms.

Another advantage of the Casio (and I suppose many other cameras) over the Canon SD800IS is that there is a sliding bar that represents current zoom, both optical and digital. The Canon only shows a zoom indicator when it goes into digital (not optical) zoom.

Controls
My wife would only use Full Auto or perhaps a scene mode. However, I do appreciate the availability of Program, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, and Manual modes.

The compact size limits the number of dedicated buttons, but I didn't have much trouble adjusting white balance, exposure compensation, and flash mode (my most common twiddles). Didn't even need to consult the manual.

I was a bit thrown by the symbols used on the mode dial. Most manufacturers (Sony, Canon, Nikon at least) seem to use pretty compatible symbols for the different exposure modes. I found the Casio a little cryptic, but not really that much of a problem.

The Fatal Flaw
The killer for me was the placement of the lens. Viewed from the front, the lens and flash are in the extreme upper right corner. When holding the camera for normal shooting, I was almost always getting a stray finger into the shot. You could always shoot one-handed, but I couldn't find a comfortable, secure grip that worked for me. The best I could do is to hold my left hand so that all my fingers and thumb form a letter "C" (four finger in the upper half, thumb in the lower half) and hold the camera that way.

I think I could get into the habit of holding my camera that way, but my wife hates it. Absolutely hates it. So ended up not staying with the Casio. I loved it based on the features and the specs, but in real world shooting the handling due to the lens placement killed it for us. Other folks may not find it to be a big problem at all.

Final decision
If it was just for me, I think I would get the Casio EX-V7 (actually the BK version because it looks so cool in black). I so love the rest of it that I think I could get used to an awkward hold (which then by definition wouldn't be so awkward). However, this camera is mainly for my wife (I'm mostly using the D80 DSLR) and she's less forgiving of the handling issue. It only takes one blown shot of our daughter and *poof*.

Therefore we ended up with the Canon SD800 IS.

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Addendum
Just found out that the black version is exclusive to Best Buy. The silver one is quite handsome as well, but I just have a preference for traditional black camera bodies if given the option.

Addendum 2: Quick Comparison to Sony DSC-T10
My sister-in-law has had two Sony T-series cameras: the original DSC-T1 and a newer DSC-T10 (the T1 was accidentally dropped into the ocean while visiting Australia, so she bought a replacement T10 overseas last year). I spent several hours playing with her T10 over the weekend and I thought I'd add a brief comparison to the Casio EX-V7. The Sony is similar to the Casio in that it has the sliding cover super-compact form factor, image stabilization (optical versus the Casio's CCD shift), and an internal zoom. The Sony lacks the 7x zoom range, but has a more compact body that is smaller in every dimension.

My big issue with the Casio is it's placement of the lens, which I find makes it difficult to keep fingers out of the frame. Now, I'm certainly going to move my finger out of the way if it's clearly visible on the LCD display as I'm composing the picture. However, often my finger is so out of focus that it's just a slight vignette or smudge on the edge or in a corner. Those I don't notice until I'm reviewing the photos after downloading to the computer. I found it even harder to keep my fingers out of the picture with the Sony than with the Casio. I think that this is because the Sony places the lens very close to the top of the camera whereas the Casio places the lens under the slim flash. I think the slightly thicker Casio body may also help, giving my fingers more room to rest on top of the camera out of the way.

I did find it easier to hold the Sony one-handed than the Casio, in which case there is zero problem with stray fingers. However, in low-light situations without flash, a secure two-handed hold is critical even with the help of image stabilization.

I also like the color from the Casio better than the Sony. I have a lot of photos from my sister-in-law from both her T-series cameras. The photos tend to be too red. Not just "warm", which I like, but really strong red that tends to result in very harsh, flushed looking skin tones particularly indoors. However, her shots outdoors in sunlight tend to look pretty good. Overall, I find the Casio EX-V7 to have more natural looking colors than the Sony DSC-T10.

If you love this sliding cover, ultra compact form factor, then you may love the Casio EX-V7. It is less awkward than the Sony DSC-T10, a longer zoom range, and better color. On the other hand, the Sony is much more compact than the Casio and if you like this form factor, maybe that's more important to you than the rest.