Vivitar ViviCam 6320

Review Date
December 26, 2007

Overall Rating
 1 of 5

Value Rating
 1 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
2.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by
Carol Gabriel , Casual

Price Paid
$125.00 at Long's Drugs, Santa

Photography Experience
6-10 years , Other

Summary
Light, compact camera with fairly easy instructions. For the price (About$125.) I felt confident that it could fill my basic needs.
Did not do a test run on the camera before leaving for three month trip. Big mistake! ! ! !
Arrived in Ecuador with my 81 year old mom, her first time out of the US. Thought we could document our travels thru pictures.
At best, one out of ten photos was worth keeping. No matter how we adjusted or auto adjusted the settings, the picture quality was either fuzzy, dark or the shutter action was so delayed, 5-10 seconds, that the subject was lost prior to the actual flash.
WHAT IS THE POINT OF A CAMERA LIKE THIS? THE DISPOSIBLE REPLACEMENT TOOK MAGNIFICIENT PICTURES BY COMPARISON.
I would like to return this camera immediately. Can anyone help. It was purchased in California right before my trip (2 months ago), receipt is still in CA. I've got another month of travels and I would like to have some descent photos by the time I get home. How can I exchange this for a properly working camera

Strengths
Small, sharp looking, relatively inexpensive

Weaknesses
dark, fuzzy pictures of objects 5-10 seconds after the fact

Review Date
September 9, 2007

Overall Rating
 2 of 5

Value Rating
 2 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
2.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by
S Canty , Expert

Price Paid
$69.00 at jessops

Photography Experience
21+ years , People

Summary
Just bought today, going back tomorrow. battery life short.Main concern is the delay when taking a pic 4 or 5 seconds, by then your subject has moved away.Hopless for photographing kids and animals. I have the vivicam 4345 and it has the same problems.Take two photos at the same time one will be in focus the next will be blurry.also not good in low light.

Strengths
Large screen.
Cheap price.

Weaknesses
Poor battery life
poor focusing
slow startup
Not good at low light level.

Similar Products Used
Vivicam 4345
Casio exilim ex-z1050

Review Date
September 8, 2007

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
3.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by
taylerr , Intermediate

Price Paid
$220.00 at camera shop

Photography Experience
2-5 years , People

Summary
the vivitar is a great camera for adults and teenagers
i would recommnend this camera to ANYONE

Strengths
this camera is very durable and takes awesome pictures
im 15 years old and take this camera to school almost everyday
i have accidentally slammed this camera against my locker and dropped it on hard tile floor and there are barely and scratches and NONE on the screen
outside, nighttime, indoors, anywhere pictures are crystal clear and bright
i use rechargeable batteries and i can take up to 75 pictures WITH the flash and not have to recharge the batteries
the camera also works as a webcam (with correct installation)
also, there are so many different setting on this camera that it will work perfect for whatever you need
also you can set the camera to take black and white pictures a feature i found out isnt common on alot of 6mp camera
the camera is also very easy to use and understand
my fifty-something dad who has very little experience with electronics (he cant figure out how to use his cellphone.) can easily work this camera

Weaknesses
i have found that the flash doesnt work very well during darkness ONLY when youre trying to get a picture from faraway
also when the batteries start to get low the flash takes alot longer to arm then when the batteries are full
actually the flash takes no time to arm when the batteries are at an average charge
if you take a picture there is no preview on the photo you have just taken
which i have found a big annoyance over time

Similar Products Used
argus dc 5195- claims to have 5 mp but pictures are nowhere near as clear as with the vivitar