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"Customer Pays for HP's Hasty Market Entry" on by avdb
Pros: Nice while it worked
Cons: (1) No repairs Policy (2) Sluggish execution & lens blacks out during action shots
Summary: Despite its many great features, I think HP released a camera that had a number of design and manufacturing flaws known to them which, if manifested after the 12 months guarantee, become the owner's liability. HP's NO REPAIRS policy, only exchange for a refurbished unit (with a 3 month guarantee) at about 50% of the retail price, is an insult to the customer's expectation of service.
The microphone was faulty from new. It always popped and crackled during recording but as I didn't often use the camera for sound, I lived with the defect.
In month 14, the lens cap cord jammed in the zoom mechanism one time too often and that was the end of my Photosmart 945. If you do decide to buy one of these cameras, its a lot cheaper to use the lens cap without the cord attached and just take the risk of losing the cap. -
"take it over my dead body" on by airnos
Pros: ease of use; options; resolution; picture quality
Cons: slow reaction speed; doesn't play well with adverse weather
Summary: I purchased this camera in March and have had one set of pictures (out of fifty-plus) get dumped. This set was taken on a beach in high wind, and although I tried to protect the camera from blowing sand I was not completely successful.
For those who would like a camera that is close to a digital SLR without the price, the 945 is an excellent option. It offers several automatic modes (including macro and burst settings) as well as manual options for flash, aperture, shutter speed and focus. In addition it has adjustable exposure, black-and-white and sepia options. The camera will also take low-resolution video clips.
Settings are primarily handled through a twist wheel on the top of the camera and three buttons on the back. Some are menu-driven but all of those that are normally adjusted quickly can be done without going to the on-screen menu. The camera is of sufficient size to not be too light in the hand, but is small enough to be extremely portable.
I primarily use the viewfinder and eye-start rather than the screen because I find this greatly increases battery life -- usually I can take 70-80 5MP shots on a single set of batteries. The eye-start display in the viewfinder has its own focus -- useful for making sure you're really seeing what the camera is seeing -- and smaller versions of everything available through the screen. Important indicators such as battery life, zoom level and flash/photo mode are easily viewable but are not so large as to take away from the picture area.
The zoom operates quite smoothly except for a deliberately designed hesitation when switching from optical to digital. Controls are conveniently placed and the camera refocuses approximately one half second after the zoom is complete.
Finally, the fact that this camera runs on AA batteries is extremely convenient. If ever I do need an emergency power source, it's only as far away as the nearest drug or convenience store. These may or may not carry specialized camera batteries but AA batteries can be found everywhere.
The only problems I have with this camera involve the long processing speeds and its sensitivity to ambient conditions. Unless the camera is in burst mode, it is impossible to get good action shots because a minimum setup time of up to 10 seconds may be necessary for each shot. For still photos, however, it cannot be beat. I have also found that the camera tends to function very sluggishly in extremely humid or extremely windy conditions. I usually have to take it off autofocus altogether and manually focus it. However, the camera does work and picture quality is not compromised.
This camera is far easier to use than my 35mm SLR and takes pictures that are of comparable or better quality. It's the second HP camera I've had (the first was a Photosmart 730 with which I was very satisfied) and it probably won't be the last. -
"Not worth the cost!" on by beasgrandma
Pros: Liked it while it lasted. Had good zoom which is a must for me. The photos came out good.
Cons: The first one I purchased had a bad microphone and had to return it for another one. The second one only lasted for 18 months. Which makes for a very expensive throw away camera
Summary:
Updated
The first camera I had was a HP912 and it did not last very long and HP could not fix the switch because they said they could not repair the camera because it was outdated. They offered to gave me a "discount" of 15% to upgrade to the HP945 saying it was brand new on the market could be serviced. I went ahead and purchased the new camera. I have spent $925.00 to date between the two cameras and now am offered another "discount" to upgrade because they can't repair this new camera. I figure I have given HP enough money and will purchase my next camera elsewhere. -
"Wonderful camera , not a single bad pic for over 5 months ." on
Pros: Great zoom , accurate focus , good low light pics in manual exposure mode at ISO 100. Amazing detail in closeup pics ( macro mode ) . Good menu .
Cons: Slow save . No hot shoe . Bad Red eye compensation. Best pic quality only at ISO 100 , f4.0 and best compression mode. auto mode can be improved further since camera is capable of producing much better results using manual modes.
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"VERY slow with poor build quality!" on
Pros: Nice zoom-5.5 mp
Cons: Sooooo slowwww! The buffer gets filled up really quickly and can "lock out" for upto a minute on burst mode, then when you want to look at the pictures it has to re process them! Really annoying. Sold it after 4 months use -DO NOT BUT THIS CAMERA!
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