Samsung SL420 Review

One of many Samsung "SL" series models announced at CES 2009,  the SL420 features a resolution of 10.2 megapixels, offers Face Detection technology and is powered by a rechargeable Li-ion battery. The SL420 also employs a large 2.7-inch LCD display, powerful 5x optical zoom that allows you to get in close to your, and Dual Image Stabilization, which combines the strengths of both Optical and Digital Image Stabilization to help reduce blur.

Designed for novice users, the SL420 includes several fully automatic exposure modes that will help you capture great photos, without having to learn a new trade. Not only do you have access to Auto, Program, and 14 "Scene modes", the SL420 also features a Smart Auto mode as well as a helpful Photo Help Guide. Combined, these exposure options allow this camera to be used by just about anyone, regardless of their photo taking experience. 

SL420 Main Features:

• 10.2-megapixel CCD image sensor for images sizes up to 4000×3000 pixels
• Samsung 5x optical zoom lens
• Smart Auto exposure mode chooses from 12 scene modes for best possible results
• Program AE mode offers access to more advaced setttings (ISO, WB, etc.)
• Dual Image Stabilization
• Face Detection system with Blink Detection, Smile Shot, and Beauty Shot options
• Capture video at 640×480 or 320×240 (30/15fps) w/audio
• Powerful Effects such as Face Retouch,Red Eye Reduction, Photo Style Selector and Image Adjustment (Sharpness, Saturation, Contrast)
• 2.7-inch color TFT LCD screen with 230K pixels
• Macro focus as close as 4 inches (10cm) from the lens
• Adjustable sensitivity from ISO 80 – 3200
• Adjustable ISO, white balance, and metering
• 40MB of internal memory and removable SD/SDHC/MMC card storage
• Voice recording mode enables use as a digital sound recorder
• In-camera edit menu for making adjustments to still images
• Li-ion rechargeable battery, charged via USB (AC Adapter included)
• USB 2.0 Mass Storage and PictBridge compliant

The SL420 camera kit includes: Rechargeable battery pack, AC adapter/USB cable, AV cable, Camera Strap, Software CD-ROM, Maual and Product Warranty.

The Samsung SL420 is available now for estimated selling prices of US$179.99.

This 10.2-megapixel model, with a 5x optical zoom, features a well-constructed metal body that measures 3.7 x 2.32 x 0.9 inches (94mm x 59mm x 23.7mm), making it a pants-pocket-friendly device.

Front
Above and to the left of the telescoping zoom lens is the auto focus assist / self-timer indicator LED, to its right is the rectangular flash.

The design is generic point-and-shoot

Back
The zoom control at the top right of the control block is unusual, since you press it up and down rather than left and right. Below this is a mode dial with eight positions: Auto, Smart Auto, Movie, Scene, Beauty Shot, Photo Help Guide, Dual Image Stabilization and Program. The Menu button is positioned between the mode dial and the four-way controller, which is used to navigate through the menu system and also to select four direct-access functions: Display, Self-Timer, Macro Mode and Flash. Below the four-way controller is a button to start up playback mode, and a Fn button that serves as a shortcut to frequently used controls when in shooting mode, and controls image deletion during photo playback.

Camera conrols are large enough, and spaced far enough apart.

Sides

The left side has no functional significance beyond looking shiny.

Keep moving… nothing to see here.

The right side is home to the I/O port on the top, a loop for connecting a wrist strap in the middle, and a small mono microphone near the bottom.

The wrist strap connects through the loop
in the middle of the right side.

Top
The expanse of shiny metal on top of the camera is interrupted by a power button, a teeny speaker and the shutter.

Not much chance you’ll accidentally hit the
wrong one of these widely-spaced buttons.

Bottom
On the bottom of the SL420 is a slide-out door covering the battery / memory card compartment and a plastic tripod socket centered on the camera body.

Production models are expected to ship without
the Korean-language paper labeling.

LCD Screen
Without a formal spec sheet we can’t tell the resolution of the 2.7-inch LCD display, but it was impressively bright and sharp both for composing photos and working through the on-screen menu system. Screen brightness can be set to one of three levels, or left on Automatic and controlled by the camera.

The two-tier menu system appears attractive
and very legible on the bright SL420 display.

Flash
The rectangular flash is a bit larger than some we’ve seen on similar sized compact cameras, and positioned far enough to the right of the lens that we don’t antiicpate significant red-eye problems when shooting in darkened rooms.

The flash resides to the right of the lens.

Lens
The telescoping 5x optical zoom lens has a 6.3mm-31.5mm range. This enhanced zoom range, in a camera no larger than your typical 3x-zoom-model, is a key point in favor of the SL420, along with the optical image stabilization system that makes handheld shooting at maximum zoom setting more practical, even in low light..

The telescoping lens means you’re not going to stuff
the camera in your pocket with the power left on.

Connections
All IO functions are handled through a single port at the top of the camera’s right side.

The IO port is securely covered by a
sliding cover that snaps in place.

Battery
The LS420 runs on a slim rechargeable lithium ion battery.

The battery and SD memory card share a bottom compartment.

Memory
The camera takes readily available SD and SDHC memory cards.

Other Features
Voice Recording – You can choose to record voice annotation or background sound bits while taking a photo, or add voice annotation during playback. This is oparticularly handy if you want to remember where you took a photo without stopping to jot down notes.
Beauty Mode - Since the first time we encountered the digital cosmetics concept in a Casio digital camera in 2008, the notion has apparently gained significant traction in the industry. By setting the camera to Beauty mode, complexions are smoothed, wrinkles spackled over and acne removed via electronic Clearasil.

Model Design / Appearance
Nobody invested heavily in creating a distinctive design for this model, though the rounded edges and brushed metal body are pleasing to the eye.

Size and Handling
At 3.7 x 2.32 x 0.9 inches (94mm x 59mm x 23.7mm), the SL420 feels substantial in your hand, with enough depth to comfortably hold top and bottom between thumb and forefinger of each hand. It is simple enough to grasp the cmaera securely without obscuring any of the controls or the flash, so the basics are covered.

We found the SL420 simple enough to hold steadily.

Menu

The menu system looks great on-screen, very easy to read and navigate. A row of categories appears on the lefthand side, and after choosing the appropriate section by moving vertically, a horizontal press o n the four-way controller moves the user into that set of options.
Pressing the FN button brings up a separate sub-menu with the most frequently used controls within a particular camera mode. FN brings displays just two choices in Auto mode, and six in Program mode.
Another interesting menu choice is the Photo Help Guide. Ths is not a functional tool so much as a well-organized in-camera user manual. Common problems encountered by beginners are listed in a text menu – reducing camera shake, for example, or adjusting the brightness of a photo – and suggested tools and techniques are shown on-screen when a category is chosen.

Nobody reads manuals, but they just might read the camera itself.

Ease of Use
There are a few features that require a bit of thinking to grasp the concept and then use effectively, such as the Photo Style Selector (see below), but overall we found the menus straightforward, the controls well labeled and positioned, and the automation systems up to the task.

Auto Mode
Auto mode locks out any user input beyond turning face detection and or off and selecting a photo style if desired, while program mode adds exposure compensation, white balance setting selection metering mode choice and burst mode.There is also a Smart Auto mode, an increasingly popular feature among point-and-shoot manufacturers, which allows the camera to analyze the scene at hand and assign it automatically to one of the built-in custom scene modes.

Movie Mode
The SL420 can shoot at 640×480 or 320×240 resolution, at 30 or 15 frames per second, storing the resulting video in compact MPEG4 format. While shooting video, control over metering mode, photo style, optical image stabilization, audio on/off and exposure compensation are all available.

Drive / Burst Mode
Burst mode shooting will be available, but it was not yet enabled in the pre-production model we tested.

Playback Mode
During playback mode stored photos can be magnified up to 11.4x, a slightly higher enlargement than typically found in compact cameras. There is a photo cropping option built into this enlarged view capability: if your image is displayed on screen just the way you like it, hit the Trim control and a cropped version of the photo will be saved.

Custom Image Presets
There are 12 custom scene modes, including frame guide, night, portrait, children, landscape, close-up text, sunset, dawn, backlight, fireworks and beach & snow. As with many camera functions, the effect of each choice is explained through an on-screen text description, though we expect there may be some editing between our pre-production sample and the final product. For example, the Children scene mode description read, "This mode is appropriate for shooting actively moving children."

Manual Control Options
There isnt much in the way of manual control here, no aperture-priority, shutter-priority or full manual exposure settings or manual focus, but you can use exposure compensation to override the automatic system readings,.and take a manual white balance reading by shooting a neutral card under available lighting. There is also a feature Samsung calls ACB meant to provide brightness compensation in difficult lighting situation.
Focus
Auto Focus
In addition to standard auto focus, the SL420 offers a variety of face detection options, including self-portrait, smile shot and blink detection to let you know immediately if your subject blinked as the photo was taken, encouraging you to quickly grab aother shot.
ISO
ISO settings range from 80-1600 at full resolution, with ISO 3200 available at a reduced 3-megapixel resolution..
White Balance
In addition to automatic white balance, there are five manual white balance presets: daylight, cloudy, fluorescent daylight, fluorescent white and tungsten. It is also possible to take a manual white balance reading, a valuable feature often omitted from compact point-and-shoots. .

Metering
As you’d expect, the SL420 supports multi-point metering for a balanced overall exposure, center-weighted metering and spot metering for precise exposure of the subject at the middle of the screen (which can be locked and kept unchanging if you hold down the shutter button halfway after the exposure is set).

Shutter Speed
With no manual shutter speed control, we won’t know the actual range of settings available to the auto exposure system until we receive a spec sheet from Samsung.

Aperture
The lens has a maximum aperture range of f/3.5 at its widest setting and f/5.5 at maximum zoom. The f/3.5 setting is disappointingly slow.

Image Stabilization
The SL420 features both optical and digital image stabilization systems to support shake-free handheld shooting..
Picture Quality / Size Options
Six image size settings are provided – 10MP, 9MP, 7MP, 3MP and 1MP – with three JPEG compression levels (normal, fine and superfine) available for each.

Picture Effects Mode
Samsung provides an interesting creative opportunity in the Photo Style Selector feature. Users can choose from eight preset color palettes while shooting: normal, soft, vivid, forest, retro (sepia), cool, calm, classic (black and white) and negative. If none of these suits your creative impulses there is also custom, which provides do-it-yourself slider settings for levels of red, green and blue.

Conclusion
Without knowing the price or assessing image quality through our meticulous lab testing, it’s far too early to make any recommendations regarding the SL420. From our hands-on experience with a pre-production unit, though, we can say that it’s a simple but comfortable design, with a decent zoom range, nice image control flexibility in movie mode and a Photo Style Selector function that can add fun color effects to an otherwise straightforward shooting situation.

Likes

- 5x optical zoom
- Dual image stabilization
- Audio annotation
- Photo Style Selector
- Robust metal body

Dislikes

- Ordinary camera design
- Lack of manual controls

Related Posts

• Samsung DualView TL225 Digital Camera Reviews
• Photos of national monuments and icons
• Taking great fireworks photos
• Taking a good picture…
• Taking artistic photographs
• Say goodbye to red eye
• Top 10 Photography tips
• Using the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1
• Pentax Optio W80 Review
• Olympus E-450 Reviews