Minolta Dimage Xt Review

Overall Rating

This camera is small and good looking, as well as being reasonably discrete. Also at 3MP it delivers quality prints upto A4 size, and I have never needed more than this.

It has good battery life, noise reduction, fast startup and shooting time.

Most of all the menu system is incredibly well thought out and intuitive. It's also surprsingly flexible, and I have taken some very nice nighttime shots (ISO50, no flash, self timer and a steady surface).

The lens being recessed is easy to obscure/touch unless you are aware of it. It's fast, but not super-super fast. Sometimes the startup and AF can seem a little slow, however on holiday recently I took some concert fireworks pics. I got my pics done long before somebody fiddling about with a Canon D60, who missed basically everything.

Images can be a little soft and barrelling is apparent, this is probably due to lense design, but not really visible in the large majority of shooting situations. Watch out for flare when shooting on sunny days.

This camera is the 3rd incarnation of the Minolta Dimage X series. The reason you would want to buy this camera is because it's small, convenient to carry and easy to use. It is ideal for parties and things like snapshots.

I do not use this camera for 'serious' photography, as I have a film camera, although it's taken very nice photos (comparable to more expensively priced DSLRs at A4 size). Remember that compared to 35mm film quality there are only 2 (v expensive) DSLRs that can boast comparable resolutions. Dynamic range is something digital cameras still can't match traditional film for. For serious photography get a film camera - manual 35mm are also much cheaper than half decent digital cameras.

Improvements over the older models include the introduction of noise reduction, CxProcess for better colour rendition, and the ability to capture film clips for as long as the memory card will allow. It's also smaller and better looking.

I have found this camera a delight to use, as it is v intuitive and easy to understand. I only looked at the manual briefly, and I've been able to use everything easily. Being pocketable is a huge boon you do not fully appreciate until you get it.

Image quality is superb, in terms of definition and colour rendition. Any lens shortcomings are negligible, because barrelling only really becomes apparent when photographing straight lines (eg architecture). The lens also contains aspherical elements, which is nice.

The camera exposes well and images can be quickly reviewed at the touch of a button. Also important to me was a decent ISO range (Auto, 50 - 400), which some camera don't have (the Fuji F410 starts at ISO200). Also 2 'nav/hotkeys' can be customised to alter either ISO, exposure compensation etc.

2 features that I find useful are the e-mail copy function, which allows me to create smaller copies of a set of pictures easily. The other feature is the slide show, which is useful for reviewing pictures without having to push forward all the time.

I also like the fact that for windows 2000 and XP, drivers are automatically included that allows me to use the camera as a mini hard drive.

For what it is, and what I want it for, I am extremely happy with this camera. Also consider the brand new Optio S4, or for more resolution the Konica KD510/Minolta G500 (same camera).