Casio Exilim EX-S10RD 10.1MP 3x Zoom 2.7-Inch LCD Screen Digital Camera (Red)

Our friend had one and we fell in love with it. Fits in a shirt pocket and is light.

So far, this has been a great camera. It takes high-quality pictures, even when operated by children or while in motion. Although it has many different settings, and multiple ways to set your own for the tech-savvy out there, the automatic mode works great for point-and-shooters. A very easy camera to use, and definately worth the price!

I'm a die-hard fan of the Casio Exilim S line since the very first model came out. I haved owned at least 5 different models and usually buy the newest one as soon as it's out. Casio has a track record of making each one better than the last, but I think they slipped a little bit on the EX-S10.

The EX-S880 is the previous 8MP model, and I'm going to recommend that you buy that instead of the 10MP version. Why? Image quality. I really feel that the image quality and light sensitivity is significantly worse in the EX-S10 than the previous product. I have been regularly frustrated with images that turn out with bad white balance and slow shutters resulting in blurry pictures. And don't even think about taking a serious shot with anti-shake... it's a digital processing correction, not optical stabilization like on larger cameras, and so as a result it adds a *lot* of noise and grainy distortion to images. Unless I'm desperate to get a shot, I always leave anti-shake off (but this was true in previous generations as well).

Compared to the last model, Canon also changed to a different battery, which is a little larger capacity I think. The old battery was pretty great, and I like that it had been the same for several models. Over time I'd built up a good collection of spares, but now I have to start over for the new battery size.

So...IMHO, buy the older model, you'll be happier. I mean, really this is for snapshots, right? There's no *real* reason you need 10MP to print postcards or even 8x10, it just gives you a bit more flexibility to crop or zoom, but 8MP is *juuust fine*. Personally, I'm switching back to my EX-S880 I think.

In general, what I like about Casio's cameras is:

* Great scene modes. The "Best Shot" feature has a huge variety of really cool scene modes, including "white board" mode. I have used many of these, such as portrait, backlit, landscape, landscape with portrait, night scene, white board, ...it goes on. Really useful.

* Well-organized UI for features, although maybe it's just easy for me because I've used these cameras for so long.

* Fantastic video capability. This camera takes great movies, and I use that feature all the time. I wish you could zoom in and out while capturing though.

* Beautiful big LCDs. However, I feel that on the EX-S10, the camera really can't make the best use of the LCD. Almost every picture I take on the S10 *looks* blurry and soft in review on the LCD, but when I put it on the laptop, it is usually great. I can only conclude that the scaling algorithm they're using to shrink a 10MP image down to that tiny number of pixels in an LCD (uh, .077MP) doesn't work so well for maintaining some sort of sharp image. This sounds like a nit-pick, but in reality it really freaks me out and makes me not feel very confident about the images I'm capturing.

* Beautiful, sturdy build. I can't tell you how many times I've dropped my Casios over time. Maybe that sounds bad, but the point is that I've never broken one. Okay, I did crack the screen on my EX-S770, but I think something heavy was placed on it, not a drop. Usually I put some of that plastic scratch film on the screen and forego a case, because with a case it would be too bulky to put in my pocket and too awkward to whip out quickly for some snaps... which would defeat the purpose. Sure, my cameras get a bit scratched, but not much. The case is a beautiful paint color and it's metal, so it takes the abuse really well.

Here's what I don't like...

Stupid proprietary USB connector. I've always hated the fact that the only way to get data off the camera without pulling the card is to use Casio's proprietary dock... there's not even a cable you can plug into the connector. I really wish they would switch to the now-available "micro-usb" which is smaller than the more common mini-B, but standard. When I buy these cameras, I never bother to take the docks or the software out of the box, I really don't like installing custom buggy photo software that puts stuff all over your computer. So, I always pull the card to download my images.

Disappointing low-light performance. As I mentioned already, the low light performance on this particular model is not as good as it should be. The camera is always slowing down the shutter to very long delays and complaining that there's not enough light.

Anti-shake is very grainy. Sure, you get the shot when you might not otherwise, but the image will likely be grainy and have lots of digital noise (pixels that are off-color from what they should be, like green, red, and blue specks floating around).

I had this camera for less than a year before it broke. I took great care of it and always kept it in its case. Around one month after I purchased it, the zoom broke. About 5 months later I was using it and it would turn on for 1 second, make two clicking noises, and then turn off. I took it to the camera repair shop and they said it would cost over $200 to fix it, which was even more than I originally paid for the camera. When I tried to contact Casio, they were extremely unhelpful and just had automated computer response e-mails which were sent back to me. Overall, this camera was not great and I would never purchase a Casio again.

I have loved Casio cameras since we special ordered our first 2 MP red camera from Japan. This 10.1 MP camera is a replacement for a 7 MP Casio that broke (when a friend dropped it on the pavement). We also have an 8 MP Casio. I like that this 10.1 MP camera goes back to the original Casio roots. In other words, it is small, a great size for pockets, and about the same size as the old 7 MP version. I realize that most people go for the other brands, but Casio cameras are great, and this tiny one is perfect for travel. It makes really good videos as well as still photos.