Digital Trends

Casio Exilim EX-Z1050

August 8th, 2007 | by David Elrich

Testing and Use

Just as the Exilim looks like almost every other camera, it starts up as quickly. In less than two seconds you’re good to go. Casio uses a newer Exilim Engine 2.0 to speed up the processing and it handles 10MP files fairly well. In Continuous (burst) mode with the flash off at top resolution, the camera clicks away at about 1 fps and just keeps going. This was impressive. Unfortunately the camera does not have optical image stabilization. When you move into the “anti-blur” mode, the camera raises the ISO (800 max). Naturally digital noise appears especially at the highest levels. It’s for that reason you should always shoot at 400 or below with almost every point-and-shoot digicam.

I started off shooting at 10MP Fine. This camera--unlike the Sony Cybershot DSC-W200 and Kodak EasyShare V1003 --lets you choose between three (Fine, Normal and Economy). As usual I began in Auto, then moved to Best Shot modes. This camera has only a few manual options such as focus but not aperture or shutter speed. You can adjust white balance, metering, ISO, exposure compensation and many other options which are probably more than what most buyers of this camera would even consider. Point and shoot, baby! Point and shoot! as hoops announcer Dick Vitale might say.

As I began framing various subjects and taking photos, I thought my eyesight was failing by the minute. Even knowing the AF Assist was doing its thing (can’t miss the orange glow) nothing seemed to be in focus. Usually when you take photos and press the shutter half way, the auto focus locks in and you see this on screen. Not with the Exilim EX-Z1050. Instead the camera beeps, letting you know you’ve got a proper focus. Huh? To make sure I had the correct focus, I checked them in Playback mode, zooming in on the LCD to see if I had sharp subjects. They were still fuzzy loaded with lots of pixel dots. Perplexed, I took the card out and checked them on my computer and discovered the camera had taken in-focus shots. Perplexed even more, I went into manual focus mode and, using the controller, focused on subjects that included flowers and other still objects. They seemed sharper but not “tack sharp.” Sony uses 115K pixel LCD screens and they are far superior to the Casio.

This issue aside (and it’s not a small one), I transferred the images to my Dell and then proceeded to make my trusty 8.5x11 full-bleed prints. The results were pretty good—even though I wasn’t sure the shots were in focus until I blew them up on my monitor. Colors were very natural with true greens and yellows. It even handled red well. I was very happy with the results.

Conclusion

Sad to say, I can’t recommend this camera. It has a lot of things going for it. Solid image quality, excellent battery life, good response and many hidden features that go way beyond what you’ll find in a point-and-shoot camera. Unfortunately, you have to dig into the Owner’s Manual on the CD-ROM to find them. But the Achilles’ Heel is the poor LCD screen, making this the deal breaker. Casio needs to go back to the factory that supplied these screens and ask for their money back. Your money is better spent on another camera.

Pros:

• Good not great image quality
• Excellent menu system
• Superior battery life

Cons:

• Difficulty determining proper focus
• Poor quality LCD screen