Digital Cameras

Casio Exilim EX-Z50

By Miguel Blanco ⋅ April 29, 2008 ⋅  Print This Post ⋅ Post a comment

Digital camera technology has taken huge leaps in just the last few years. The megapixels continue increasing, almost exponentially, as the packages containing them continue to shrink in size. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Casio’s Exilim series of digital cameras. The series consists of three groupings: the Pro models which offer more advanced features for discerning amateur photographers, the Zoom models which offer high quality in a small package for everyday use, and the Card models which contain the world’s smallest optical zoom digital camera. Casio was kind enough to send us the Exilim EX-Z50, a member of their Zoom model series for review and I must say, this is my new favorite toy. The amount of features that they have packed into this tiny aluminum frame is simply astonishing. Among other things, the Exilim EX-Z50 can record movies and audio, automatically adjust to macro mode for close up photos & compensate for brightness levels in dark areas when using flash photography.

The Casio Exilim EX-Z50 offers s high resolution 5-megapixel CCD, a 3X optical zoom lens and a 2-inch LCD screen with optical viewfinder. It is compact and fits easily in your pocket. The battery life on the Exilim series has been radically improved. The Exilim EX-Z50 can take about 390 pictures on a single charge making it convenient for long family vacations or business trips without the need to bring a charger.

One of my favorite features has to be the Business Shot function which allows you to take pictures of a document or white board at any angle and let the camera automatically adjust the photo to straighten out the text and make it easy to read. The engineers at Casio must be James Bond fans. This technology works so incredibly well that it makes archiving documents incredibly fast & easy. The Exilim EX-Z50 is a scanner killer.

Other really neat features include the ability to take a picture of a scene while something interesting is happening and then place yourself or someone else in the scene after the fact. Here is how it works: You take a picture with the Coupling Shot or Pre-shot feature. The viewfinder shows you a transparent image of the picture you just took along with the live image of whatever is in front of the camera. You stand in front of the camera, and have someone else aim the camera until both images line up and take a secondary shot. The Casio Exilim EX-Z50 automatically combines the two images and makes it look like you were standing in the shot when the original picture was taken. This feature makes it possible to take pictures of you and a friend even when there no one else around. It is especially useful unless you actually enjoy carrying a tripod around.

What is great about this camera is that unlike similar cameras with extra features thrown in as gimmicks, all of the features on the Exilim EX-Z50 are functional and actually work well. Even the extras, such as the ability to create HTML albums right out of the camera are useful for those who are technically challenged. There are so many extras crammed into the Exilim EX-Z50 that they can’t all be mentioned here, but it is certainly nice to know you have more than you need. With an MSRP of only $299.99 you are getting more bang than you may ever need for your buck.

Product Features 5.0-Megapixel effective CCD imager
High-quality, light-weight aluminum body
Still Image: 2560×1920, 2560×1712(3:2), 2048×1536, 1600×1200, 1280×960, 640×480
Audio recording, attached to images or audio-only
Record movies at 320×240 (15fps), length limited only by available memory
Pentax 3x optical zoom (35-105mm equiv)
Approximate two second startup time
Fast shot to shot time even when using the flash
7-point autofocus system with selectable AF modes: Multi or Spot AF
Focus modes: Auto, Pan, Macro, Infinity, Manual focus, Focus lock
New “Auto Macro” function which automatically switches to Macro mode
Automatic 4 to 1/2000 sec. shutter speeds
Built-in flash with Red Eye Reduction and Flash-assist function
2.0-inch TFT color LCD with 84,960 pixels (354×240) of resolution
4X playback zoom magnification
USB 1.1 data transfer to PC or Mac computers
Li-ion rechargeable battery and charging cradle included
10% longer battery life than previous Exilim models
9.3 Megabytes of internal memory
Secure Digital/MMC card slot for memory expansion
DPOF, ExifPrint (Exif 2.2), USB Direct-Print, and PictBridge compatible

Conclusion

With a ridiculous amount of features, plenty of megapixels and zoom lens, all packed in a high quality and very stylish little package, the Casio Exilim EX-Z50 is a great all purpose camera. Best of all, you won’t have to take alot of money out in order to fit the Casio Exilim EX-Z50 in your pocket.

Pros:

Lightweight and compact
Rich in features
5 MegaPixels
Easy to download pictures and recharge battery with camera cradle
Optical zoom lense
Extended battery life

Cons:

Not for rugged outdoor use
Quality: 9.8 out of 10
Features: 10 out of 10
Price: 8.5 out of 10

Overall: 9.4 out of 10