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Casio Exilim EX-V8 8MP Digital Camera with 7x Anti-Shake Optical Zoom
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| Price: | $399.95 |
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Ships from and sold by Wall Street Photo
7 new or used available from $150.00
Average customer review:
Product Description
Slim Styled, 8 mega pixel digital camera with 7x optical zoom, 2.5" Super Bright LCD, face detection technology, anti-shake, MPEG 4 H.264 video and You Tube Video capture mode.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #10708 in Camera & Photo
- Color: Silver
- Brand: Casio
- Model: EX-V8SR
- Dimensions: 1.00" h x 3.76" w x 2.25" l, .50 pounds
- Memory: 11.8MB
- Display size: 2.5
Features
- 8 mega pixel, 7x optical
- 2.5" Super Bright LCD
- Face Detection Technology
- You Tube Video Capture Mode
- MPEG 4 H.264 Video
Editorial Reviews
Manufacturer Description
An impressive 8.1-megapixel, 7X optical zoom digital camera has never been so convenient. This latest edition to the Exilim line of digital cameras is sure to deliver what every consumer is looking for in a compact, pocket size camera.
Exilim EX-V8 Highlights
8.1-megapixel CCD Over 8 million pixels enables consumers to capture high-resolution images that reproduce crystal-clear even when printing very large sizes.7x optical zoom Zoom in on a subject and capture crisp, clear images from a distance. A non-deterioration HD Zoom feature expands zoom capabilities up to a maximum of 33.2x at VGA quality. The EX-V8 offers 10x-equivalent zoom without loss of picture quality (in 4.0 megapixel mode). Operation of the 7x optical zoom lens is so quiet that zooming can be performed during movie recording without unwanted noise in the sound track.
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MPEG-4 H.264 high-quality video with sound The EX-V8 features the next-generation video compression technology, H.264. This new generation of MPEG-4 allows users to record up to 3 hours of video on a 2GB SD card. This means crisp, clear videos in much smaller file sizes saving bandwidth and storage costs. The EX-V8 also supports 16:9 wide-aspect movie recording making it compatible with most wide-screen TVs.
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4x image stabilization system The EX-V8 introduces four innovative technologies to reduce the risk of camera shake when taking still or video images. The camera’s CCD Shift Stabilization technology helps create crisp clear images by mechanically suspending the CCD reducing the impact of camera shake. Casio’s enhanced Anti Shake DSP combines camera shake technology and motion analysis technology.
With this technology the EX-V8 utilizes the most appropriate ISO sensitivity and shutter speed to capture a moving photo subject. When recording video the EX-V8 utilizes video stabilization technology which is different than the CCD shift or Anti Shake DSP technology.
Movie Stabilizer Movie Stabilizer technology digitally processes video footage while recording to minimize the effects of hand movement. Stabilizer processing is also performed during playback, to ensure that movies always look great.
Anti-Shake DSP Anti-Shake DSP (Digital Signal Processor) minimizes image blur caused by shaking hands or moving subject matter.
Face Detection Technology with Auto Focus Tracking Face Detection will detect up to 8 faces in a scene and automatically track and focus to capture the moment, with AF Auto Tracking function.
Exilim Engine 2.0 image processor The Exilim Engine 2.0 -- a high-performance, image-processing module that boosts performance by enabling instantaneous color correction or angle adjustment. In addition it incorporates a tonal control that lets users keep bright areas of the scene bright by limiting the occurrence of dark pixels. With Casio’s newly designed Exilim Engine "Auto Tracking AF" function follows moving subjects, keeping them continuously in focus until the photo is taken. It also offers the ability to selectively eliminate noise in designated color regions, such as the sky. This all means faster, high-resolution, power-saving and ultra-compact configuration.
Triple Continuous Flash By dividing the amount of light that the flash would normally use during a single shot, Continuous Flash allows users to shoot up to three photos on a single flash charge so moments will never be missed due to flash failure.
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Customer Reviews
So Much Functionality in Such a Small Package
I bought this to replace my old EX-Z750. I first tried the Lumix DMC-TZ3 but was really disappointed with it so decided to try the V8.
The feature set on the V8 blows my mind, but what's _really_ impressive is the quality. Don't expect it to perform like a digital SLR or an HD video recorder, expect instead to be amazed at how well it can take photos and record video while still fitting comfortably in your pocket.
Some highlights:
* The sound recording is amazing--it records stereo and captures a remarkable dynamic and tonal range.
* Optical zoom works while recording video
* 7X optical zoom with little noticeable distortion
* Long exposures no longer have the severe red-shift of old Exilims
* Video is recorded in Mac-compatible format (no special converters requied)
A few drawbacks:
* Low-light video has lots of compression artifacts
* As with all compacts, flash is harsh.
If what you need is a camera that you can use to capture the moment, this it because it fits in your pocket, performs well under an incredible range of conditions, and provides remarkable fidelity for the package. It's unlikely you'll win any awards, but you'll find you capture more.
Fantastic Compromise
This will not be the best camera. Nor will it be the best video cam. If you had a Casio Z750 or 850, the pictures are not as good. They are more grainy. It also seems that the video was a bit smoother on the V7 than on the V8, but both are better than the video on the Z750 or 850s.
That being said, this is the best overall camera that money can buy right now. By that I mean, if you want one pocket camera, that's small and will fit in your jeans, and can take decent photos and good video, this is it. DSLRs are generally useless. The reason is you won't bother bringing them. You will carry this camera around.
It's the only camera this small that lets you take a great deal of good quality video (on a 4GB card, about 1.2 hrs in wide screen 840x480ish (DVDish quality), and 3.25hrs in 640x480 normal mode) while zooming optically (at 7X no less) with stereo sound). You will likely end up videoing as much or more than you photograph with this tiny guy.
The only real let down is the battery life. It's good for about 2hrs of DVDish video recording, where the z850 was good for about 3.25hrs of VGA video recording. However, the 850 did not autofocus while videoing (it had a fixed pan position), and the 850 didn't let you actually zoom (just digital zoom), so it makes sense that the V8 doesn't have as much juice; it does more. That being said, I would take the 750/850 on a week long trip, and be good with a single charge. The V8, while better with battery life than the V7, requires that I bring the charger.
Build quality is still up in the air. The 750/850 was a tank. I dropped them on cobble stones several times, and even had their lenses mushed out of whack (and just smacked them back in place); they just kept on working. This seems to be tank-like too, but who knows until you have the inevitable drop. All in all, this is the first cam that has come out in a while that has actually replaced my Casio 850; it's now my goto camera.
I have set the camera settings to +2 saturation, +2 contrast, +2 Portrait (noise reduction), and +2 Dynamic (limits over/under exposure) and that seems to help with the photos. Even still, this camera produces way more noise than the 750, and more than the 850 as well. The colors indoors/darker places are not as rich as other larger cameras.
On the other hand, the 7X zoom works great. Now it's not DSLR great. But it is great for a tiny freak'n camera that fits in your pocket, and greater still for a tiny vid cam.
Image stabilization. It sucks compared to a big camera. But for a camera this small and this crammed with features it's not bad. Anyone that had a 750 (with no stabilization) will enjoy it and find it adds benefit. Anyone coming from a huge DSLR will find it crappy.
So overall, it's an issue of compromises. Is this camera perfect? Heck no! Does this camera have any one feature that other cameras can't top? Nope. That being said, I think Casio made great choices in what to include and compromise on (with the exception of the stupid dock; for crying out loud, everyone hates it in every version of the Exilim and they should just use a small USB connector). Yea, it would be great if it did everything well, but we live in the real world, and engineering realities only allow so much today.
And so, if you had to have just one cam, and you want it to take both photos and videos, and you want a cam that you would actually take with you and use, as of today, this is the "it" camera...at least for me.
great point and shoot camera
I had read reviews on the EX-V7 saying the antishake was not perfected. I had hoped the V8 would have the fixes. From my experience, it has!
Very easy to use and, for my non-professional eye, does a great job with both stills and videos.
My only minor complaint is that I get more red eye with this camera than I did with my previous EX-Z4. But with software fix available, it is not a concern for me.
