The Samsung Digimax S760 is an entry level digital camera. It has a very low price tag and one of its main strengths is ease of use. The Digimax S760 has 7 megapixels and a 3x optical zoom lens. The camera also has a limited manual mode. This allows you to set shutter speeds and switch the aperture. This feature is rare on such an inexpensive camera and helps to give you some extra control over the way the final picture will appear.
Image Quality Samsung Digimax S760 test shots
Outdoor 1 (Medium Zoom)
The Digimax S760 digital camera is off to a very good start. Taking into account the price of this camera, focusing is much better than many of its natural competitors manage to produce. The sharpness of the shot really stands out. All key areas such as the brickwork on the building in the centre of the shot and the name on the boat away from the centre are pleasingly sharp.
Sun glare is handled well too. It does cause a loss of detail where the sun strikes one of the boats, but that is to be expected. The colours are lively and the photo is bright.
Outdoor 2 (No Zoom)
This is another area where the sharpness of the photo has taken me by surprise. When the zoom is not being used at all lenses can find focusing harder. The Digimax S760 digital camera makes a good fist of focusing though and again wins above average marks.
Outdoor 3 (Maximum Zoom)
Once again the sharpness of the photo is good. Despite the zoom lens being zoomed in to its maximum the colours remain strong.
Outdoor 4 (Building)
Comparing this picture with others taken by the Olympus FE-310 and the Sony DSC S760 the Digimax S760 wins hands down. This digital camera manages to produce a photo that is much sharper across the entire shot. There is very little drop off in focusing as you reach the edges.
Outdoor Portrait
With white balance set to cloudy there is plenty of strength in the colours, in fact they may be a touch overdone. There is plenty of pink in the skin tones.
Indoor Portrait with Flash
Moving indoors where the light is not as bright, the Samsung Digimax S760 digital camera still manages to produce a decent photo. The photo could be a shade brighter and this suggests the flash may not be that strong. The sharpness of the photo is good once again.
Indoor Portrait without Flash
Turning the flash off adds some noise to the photo, but definition levels are still good compared with other similar digital cameras. The light used is typical indoor late winter, daylight with the lights turned on. For lighting that is lower than this you are likely to require flash.
Colours
The colours produced in all the test photos are stronger than standard. This is something that I have seen from all the Samsung digital cameras I have reviewed. How strong you like colours to be is a matter of personal choice.
Macro
For a digital camera in this price bracket the macro shot is bright. It does lack a degree or two of sharpness though. One of the drawbacks of this camera is that it can only focus from 10cm away. This is more distant that many models and I have cropped the photo here. All in all I would say this is not a camera to buy if you are really interested in taking close ups.
ISO 400
If you are unable to use flash or the subject is out of range for the flash unit then one way to boost the amount of light coming into the camera is to use a higher ISO setting. The downside of this is that noise tends to creep into the shot. This is true for the Digimax S760 digital camera. At ISO 400 noise levels just about remain acceptable. Colours start to break up in places.
ISO 1000
Pushing ISO up to its maximum setting picture quality breaks down further. Purple fringing also begins to appear in the shot.
Overall
My main impression of the test shots is that they are surprisingly good for such a low priced digital camera. Focusing is some way above average when compared to other similar cameras. Colours are strong as well.
Shutter Lag
I was able to take a single photo in 0.25 seconds and five in 13.85 seconds. The time for a single photo is very impressive for this type of camera and it is significantly faster than the time produced by many of its direct competitors. With the flash on times increased to 0.49 seconds for a single shot and 19.82 seconds for five photos. Again these are good times.
You can compare this camera to other models by taking a look at the Shutter Lag Comparison Table.
Style: A simple digital camera with a simple design. A shade too large to fit into a pocket it is a compact model nonetheless. It is available in a number of colours including black, silver and pink.
Dimensions: 93 x 62 x 26.5 mm
Weight: 123g
Batteries: Two AA batteries are required.
Memory cards: 11mb of memory has been built into this Samsung digital camera. This is enough for around 6 photos. The Digimax S760 is compatible with SD and SDHC memory cards.
Click here to save money on SD cards.
Ease of use rating: Good. This is quite a straightforward digital camera. You can control most functions via the control dial on top and a few buttons on the back of the camera. This further helps to simplify the camera. I did find the menu to be quite crammed and may test anyone with less than perfect eyesight.
Points I like:
Shutter lag times for entry level model - manual exposure control - overall picture quality
Where it could improve:
Macro mode could improve
Alternatives
An alternative entry level model worth a look is the Sony DSC S730.
Verdict:
If you are looking for a no fuss digital camera at the lower end of the price spectrum then the Samsung Digimax S760 digital camera is a good call. Picture quality is some way above average. The camera is also easy to use and shutter delay times are also better than expected.
Front View
Back View
Top View
Sample Menus
| Samsung Digimax S760 Summary |
| Description: | 7 megapixels and a 3x zoom lens |
| Ease of Use: | 9 |
| Features: | 7 |
| Colour: | 8 |
| Macro: | 7 |
| Indoors: | 7 |
| Value for Money: | 9 |
| Style: | 8 |
| Movie Mode: | 8 |
| Image Quality: | 8 |
| Build Quality: | 8 |
| Total: | 79 |
| Verdict: | This is one of the best entry level digital cameras on the market. I was very impressed with my test shots. The Digimax S760 produced a series of shots that are some way above average. The camera is also easy to use and has a low price tag. |
| Review Date: | March 2008 |
| Click for: | Specification Sample Images Features |
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