Fujifilm Instax Mini 8 Instant Film Camera (Yellow)

CUSTOMER REVIEW



I looked for a reliable, classy-looking Polaroid camera as a wedding reception guest book. After thorough research, I determined Instax was cheaper and just as reliable, if not more, than the new Polaroid instant cameras. Both cameras function similarly and use the same film; yet Instax has better reviews and is cheaper. The 8S has a few extra bells and whistles: a clip-on lens for close-up pictures, light/dark and indoor/outdoor settings, the mirror on the front of the camera, and two shutter buttons for either landscape or portrait photographs. Also, the lithium batteries are not hard to find for sale online; I haven't had to replace ours yet, but we know that availability and price would afford on inconvenience.

I have loved it; it was perfect for the party and I still use it frequently. The film is fairly inexpensive, so we continue to use it. The pictures are the size of a credit card with white borders, and the camera comfortably fits in a small purse. On our honeymoon, the good quality allowed us to take pictures of us in front of landmarks and beautiful areas. Also, a little mirror resides on the front of the camera to facilitate quick self-portraits, which can be taped later into journals as keepsakes. Learning which lighting settings work best in certain conditions took some trial and error, but every picture turned out vintage-y and fun, so no film was wasted.

One last word on durability: I didn't have the wrist strap around my arm and accidentally dropped the camera on a ceramic-tiled floor. The film flew out of the back of the camera, but nothing broke off or dented. The camera still looks great and functions optimally, and I only lost the top film, the rest of the cartridge still printed great pictures. That was a while ago, and I haven't had any problems at all!



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Celestron 21061 AstroMaster 70AZ Refractor Telescope

CUSTOMER REVIEW



I have been a backyard stargazer for several years. My very nice 8" Dobsonian Reflector became too much to haul to darker skies away from light pollution, so I have been indoors on starry nights for a couple of years now. When a local camera shop was going out of business, they had a fabulous blow-out price on a Celestron AZ70 Refractor. I know two things about refractors 1) beware of flimsey tripods and 2) beware of extravagant claims of HIGH POWER. I first noticed intelligent power claims on the box (60X per aperture inch TOPS). The Celestron AZ70 suits all my needs. It's compact and light enough to transport easily, it has GREAT optics and a VERY macho tripod and Starfinder with a bright reticle which nailed Venus in 1 easy try right out of the box. Absolutely the best 50 bucks I ever spent and I would GLADLY recommend it to anyone for 4 times that price.



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Joby JM3-01WW GripTight GorillaPod Stand (Black)

CUSTOMER REVIEW



First of all I'd like to say that I think the actual attachment to this is overpriced. I got this so that I could run timelapses on my phone and even though I already had a gorilla pod and just wanted the attachment, I got the full kit because it was only $5 more to get the whole new gorilla pod base. Now I know why. If you don't already have a gorilla pod, this is a good buy, however, the stand that comes with this is not the same as the original gorilla pod. Its a much cheaper version. It still works but it's lighter, thinner, and doesn't seem as durable. The top part is perfect for holding my phone. Even with a fairly large case, it still holds it perfectly. It folds down to a very slim profile. I would recommend this product, just not at the $25 price.



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Sony W800/B 20 MP Digital Camera (Black)

CUSTOMER REVIEW



I am an amateur photographer and own three DSLR cameras with a selection of lenses. However that collection does not eliminate the need for a handy item for just daily needs. I keep this one especially in my car's glove box as a reserve for occasions which require something better than my cell phone camera. For that purpose it meets my expectations and even exceeds it. Yet, this is still a snap shot device with a relatively low price tag and therefore a DSLR level quality (like background blurring, high shutter speed, high level of low light performance etc.)should not be expected.



Pros:



-Lightweight slim and stylish design: It can fit in small spaces and look and feel like a high quality item.



-USB charging ability: That is one of the selling points for me. I keep it in my car and I don't want to run out of power any time or go through the hassle of removing the battery and charging it separately ,which requires carrying the charging adapter all the time and also the ability to plug in that adapter. Instead. all I do is to connect it to my 12V car USB charger and it pretty quickly accumulates good amount of charge level... It comes with a wall adapter (5V 0.5A) which connects to a detachable USB cable (so you can use the cable and attach it to any USB charger). But be careful about the USB cable. The standard USB-micro B cable that charges most mobile devices do not work for this type. If you need a replacement or an extra you need to buy a USB-UC E6 cable.



-Easy menu mode: Practicality should be the main focus in a snapshot device and even my grandfather could get through this menu. One of the most user-friendly interfaces I have seen so far.



-Panoramic shoot ability: That was a surprise for me. I had not read the product description in detail before buying and that was such a handy function. I used to take panoramic photos by taking tens of photos with my DSLR and stiching them with a software which was both difficult and time consuming. This function does it instantly and produces comparable quality photos.



-5X optical zoom: When it comes to zooming, in photographic terms, the less is often more. The best lenses even come with no zoom at all. However for a practical item like this, zoom is essential and 5X is a good range for the optical zoom (it is also critical that you compare the optical zoom capacities of devices and not the digital zoom before making a judgement.)



-Image quality: As I said above, it does not match the quality of a DSLR and I don't care about the high pixel size either. For cameras with small sensor sizes like snapshots, it is actually better to get a low MP device for sharper images, but this one not bad at all especially in daylight..



-Price: the $78 price tag as of august 2014 makes it one of the most affordable snapshot cameras in the market. You can get better deals from time to time but this is quite appealing too.



Cons:



-Low light performance: Again, I want to stress that I am not expecting professional quality from this device, but I found the low light performance moderate at best. The noise was somewhat irritating even with flash.



-Slow shutter speed: It has a continuous shooting mode which is supposed to take multiple frames in a short time as long as the shutter button is depressed. However this device has a long long refractory period between shoots that it is not even worth bothering with that mode. You need to decrease the image quality 3 steps to be able to notice some multiple shooting effect and that is not worth it. So if you wish to take a photo of a flying bird or a running person or a passing by car, you don't have much choice to take multiple photos and decide later.



-Zoom buttons: I like the zoom to be a ring style beneath the shutter button but this is like a plus and minus at the back which is not very convenient.



-No optical viewfinder: This is not a problem for this model only. Most recent cameras sacrifice from an optical viewfinder and all you get is a digital image on the screen to help you adjust your photo before taking it. First of all it does not give the sense of taking a photo but more importantly digital screen viewfinder drains battery and also performs bad in bright light.



Overall you like it or not depends on your expectations. For me it is a handy and adequately performing device with quite useful features. I am happy with this purchase



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