602Z -> S7000Z, or A1 or A2, worth it?

[fengwei]

Dear All,

The First post here

I've been using my lovely 602z for over 2 years and still love it. Thinking of upgrading but don't know if 7000z is a good choice. Do you guys think it's worth it? Or just keep my 602z?

Anyone has used both before, care to comment?

Or maybe a KM A1 or A2? Any comment?

Cheers!

[GENO]

go get the A1, more $ to spend than A2. can also try Z3.....

[ileaf]

Originally Posted by fengwei Dear All, The First post here I've been using my lovely 602z for over 2 years and still love it. Thinking of upgrading but don't know if 7000z is a good choice. Do you guys think it's worth it? Or just keep my 602z? Anyone has used both before, care to comment? Or maybe a KM A1 or A2? Any comment? Cheers!

hi fengwei,

it was also 602z that brought me into photography. it's definitely a good cam, but i find it still lacks some flexibility, that's why i eventually bought a film slr.

well, i think be it 7000z or A1 or A2, basically it's still the same as 602z -- they give u controls, and there'll be some limitation.
my advice, save the money, and venture into SLR photography, be it digital or film, be it canon, nikon, km, pentax, olypums or fuji -- they are more expensive (esp those digital), but they're worth every cents that u spend.

just my 2cents

[GENO]

Trying In Film Is Best....all The Way For Films Shooters , It Will Not Die Loh (in My Heart) I STARTED WITH A DYNAX 5 COOL MAN...

[mpenza]

what sort of upgrade are you looking for? for me, the only real upgrade is DSLR.

[GENO]

you asking me? mpenza, i am waiting for D7D and gona get it..

[mpenza]

asking fengwei... I got my dslr last year.... cheapest and lightest back then.

[rainman]

If u have budget constraint...keep ur s602..It is a really good prosumer camera.
If u planning for a real upgrade, browse the buy/sell forum, u can get a really good deal of dslr there

[pit]

I upgraded from the 602 to the A2. So, I know exactly what you mean.

I'll list out why I got the A2 and hope the information helps.

1) TTL Flash
602 basically does not support TTL Flash (External) at all. I lost many shots bcos of that.

2) Wireless Flash - Built-In
This is very useful and versatile. You can use different angles for the shots and also don't have to swivel the flash when switching from Portrait to Landscape & vice versa.

3) Tiltable LCD
Very useful for composing certain shots - underhand, overhead. Very useful. Sometimes you can use it for discreet street shooting.

4) Wider angle.
28mm is very useful compared to 35mm.

5) Mechanical Zoom
Uses less battery and very easy to fine tune the zooming and much faster too. You can use the zoom during video capture too.

6) 5 Memory settings
Very useful and quick for changing settings on the fly. e.g. At a wedding, I needed to take some "normal" photos and some panning slow sync shots. Turn the dial and the setting is done - extremely fast and versatile.

7) Battery life
Although the 602 uses the AA batteries effectively, the A2 still lasts longer - abt 30mins to 1 hour longer.

8) Battery grip
Can be very useful when you have to switch often between portrait and landscape. Studio shooting also eases the wrists - less strain. More stability when hand holding too.

9) Anti-shake
Image stabalization - simply wonderful. I realise I'm loosing some shots with the 602 due to handshake - 1/60 and below shutter speeds. Now I can handhold up to 1/10 sometmes. Lean on a wall, 1/2 sec also can.

10) ISO 800 - Full resolution
Yes the noise is terrible. But sometimes boh bian - at least better than 1M pic. Although you do loose the ISO 1600.

11) Lower noise at ISO 64
I personally feel that the pictures are cleaner by comparison at this ISO.

12) 8 Megapixel detail
From 3 to 8 is quite a big jump and I'm not a megapixel chaser. But it really does add quite a bit of detail. But your old storage card is gonna suffer.

13) RAW file
Processing the RAW file directly can bring out quite a bit of advantages. Exposure, White Balance, etc.

14) Dual control wheel
Very useful in changing settings. e.g. In Manual mode, one for shutter, one for aperture. Also other settings like flash compensation.

15) Finer LCD
The LCD is quite a lot clearer than the 602. I can really manual focus with this.

16) Better Low light Focussing
Yes, it still sucks and sorely lacks a Focus Assist Lamp. But it's still better than the 602. The auto switch to black and white helps abit.

17) Filter thread without adapter
I can attach filters and lens converters directly on the lens. No need for the bulkiness of the adapter. But do note the weight on the zooming gears.

18) Live Histogram
Useful for checking your exposure settings.

Reason why I didn't get a DSLR instead

1) Weight
I bought this cam as a travel camera. I don't wanna lug around something that heavy for travelling.

2) Lens switching
I don't the idea of switching lens often during travelling. So, the zoom range is extremely versatile and useful. The F2.8 is also very bright for low light photography. You don't find that bright a lens with this zoom range on an SLR.

3) No video capabilities
I like taking short videos for that fun moment. Doubles as a lousy video cam but it gets the job done.

I'm still gonna get a DSLR but for a different purpose. e.g. studio, assignments, etc. Waiting for the Dynax 7D

Well I've babbled enough. I hope this information helps you.

Good Luck!

[fengwei]

Hey guys, I didn't expect so many replies in just one night

Thanks to all, especially to Pit for all the detailed info. You make A2 even attractive.

I'm really not so into DSLR. Used SLR cameras before but not for me I guess. Still prefer point&shoot type. But thanks for the suggestion.

Based on what I've read so far, I guess S7000z is not a big jump from an S602z (I read some guys even switched back to S602z after tried S7000z). So it'll be a pass.

As to A1/A2, it's hard to decide. I really don't need an 8m pixel cam, mostly I'd take 3m pics even I had the A1/A2. 'Cause I view pics mostly on the monitor, and the prints won't be bigger than A4. 3m pix would be good enough (maybe I'm wrong).

What I care most is the easy of use and the pic quality right after taken (not after Photoshopped). And of course some features like zoom range, speed, video, batteries and etc.

I read most likely the pics taken by A1/A2 have to be post-processed, is that true? If so, it's too troublesome lah. I do use photoshop, but not for this kind of post-process, but to cut/resize/special-effect/knockout and stuff like that. It's not I have to but I want to. I guess you know what I mean.

And another thing is about the batteries. I prefer AA batteries but A1/A2 don't use them. I'll have to buy and take a spare battery if I get an A1/A2. But it's not a big issue anyway.

Now comes to A1 or A2. Some guys say A2 has better battery life but dpreview says A1 has better battery life than A2:
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/koni...aa2/page11.asp

Don't know which one is true. And also, how bad is the EVF on the A1? Is it usable? I now the A2's EVF is quite good, my S602z's EVF is quite good too, although it only covers about 90% of the pic taken.

The anti-shake feature of A1/A2 is quite attractive too, although my hands are quite steady and I take 2-3 pics everytime in low light condition. So it's not a big deal I guess. But good to have. I use manual focus if the light is too low for auto focusing.

The most attractive features on A1/A2 are the wider angle lens (28-) and mechanical zoom ring.

As far as price is concerned, it's not really that important. I'm into gadget stuff, and I'd spend money on a good DC if it's really worth it.

So all comes to the following:

1. Do you guys have to do post-processing for the pics taken by an A1/A2? Especially for the daily pics like kids playing, family gathering, landscape and etc. Just point&shoot, not go through all the complicated manual settings.
2. How bad is the EVF of A1 and which one (A1/A2) has better battery life? (thinking of getting A1 instead of A2 if it has batter battery life, and if its EVF is usable)
3. Will an A1/A2 take better pics (compare to S602z) with the normal setting (not manual setting) ? I mean just power it up and point&shoot.

I'm not in to mega pixels so 5m or 8m doesn't really matter. I'd mostly use 3m anyway.

Thanks again and Cheers!

[mpenza]

A point on TTL Flash... it's not necessary for effective external flash usage. It was never a limitation for me when I was using the S602Z with Nikon SB80DX external flash. The other points are good

fengwei, if there's no hurry, wait a while. There would be new cameras being announced at Photokina in a month's time and could add to the choices

[fengwei]

Originally Posted by mpenza A point on TTL Flash... it's not necessary for effective external flash usage. It was never a limitation for me when I was using the S602Z with Nikon SB80DX external flash. The other points are good fengwei, if there's no hurry, wait a while. There would be new cameras being announced at Photokina in a month's time and could add to the choices

Thanks. I don't know about the new cameras coming out, and normally they'd be quite expensive (sometimes over priced when come out). Will wait for even longer if upgrading to the latest model. Anyway, I probably will keep the S602z for a while unless a guy can talk me into an A1 or A2.

cheers!

[deslim27]

Originally Posted by fengwei Thanks. I don't know about the new cameras coming out, and normally they'd be quite expensive (sometimes over priced when come out). Will wait for even longer if upgrading to the latest model. Anyway, I probably will keep the S602z for a while unless a guy can talk me into an A1 or A2. cheers!

Just wonder, have you tried a A1/A2 before?

[fengwei]

Originally Posted by deslim27 Just wonder, have you tried a A1/A2 before?

Yes, but only in stores. Love its features, but cannot check the pic taken on a PC, that's why I've been asking around to see how the pic quality is. As to the things (mostly the battery I guess) I don't like, I can live with it.

Thanks.

[deslim27]

Originally Posted by fengwei Yes, but only in stores. Love its features, but cannot check the pic taken on a PC, that's why I've been asking around to see how the pic quality is. As to the things (mostly the battery I guess) I don't like, I can live with it. Thanks.

Next time, bring along you own CF card and load into the test camera. Then you can bring home the samples for analysis..

You can try the this question in dpreview MTF, you might even able to find someone who upgrade from 602 to Ax series there.. Their comment might be more help to you..

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1024

Cheers!
Des

[fengwei]

Originally Posted by deslim27 Next time, bring along you own CF card and load into the test camera. Then you can bring home the samples for analysis.. You can try the this question in dpreview MTF, you might even able to find someone who upgrade from 602 to Ax series there.. Their comment might be more help to you.. http://www.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1024 Cheers! Des

Well, actually been there for a while already and almost read through all the related topics. Maybe that's why I got the confused feeling about upgrading. So many different opinions on this one already.

The other thing is that I cannot get too much if I sell my S602z (probably SG$500 only if get luck ) .

Thanks anyway for the info.

[ileaf]

Originally Posted by fengwei Well, actually been there for a while already and almost read through all the related topics. Maybe that's why I got the confused feeling about upgrading. So many different opinions on this one already. The other thing is that I cannot get too much if I sell my S602z (probably SG$500 only if get luck ) . Thanks anyway for the info.

my poor little 602z is sitting in the dry cabinet, together with my dynax5, after i purchased a dynax7.
probably 602z doesn't fetch much money right now, but the feelings of letting a good cam sitting in the dry cabinet can be quite "painful" (if u know what i mean...)

so, if u find anyone looking for a 602z, let me know also.

[GENO]

me too . my dynax 5 is a poor thing , hardiy use it...
i have some pics below taken w A1. the B&W n sunset one at sentosa.

[fengwei]

Originally Posted by GENO me too . my dynax 5 is a poor thing , hardiy use it... i have some pics below taken w A1. the B&W n sunset one at sentosa.

Hey, you got some nice shots there. If only I didn't have the S602z, I'd get an A1/A2 in no time. But now... ...

[GENO]

s602z is a good camera , dont sell it .. save up first than buy another later... better ones always comes out slow.... by the way , if ur intersted, we hv a outing.. GOING TO SENTOSA.. SEE FORUM TO JOIN... U CAN TRY MY A1 IF YR COMING...