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One of the most annoying things about digital cameras is their rather limited storage capacity. See how quickly that 8Mb or 16Mb card fills up if you use your model's optimum image setting. This can be a real nightmare if you don't have access to your PC. One solution is to invest in more storage cards, but they are hideously expensive and so small that they are very easy to lose.
So Sanyo should be congratulated for what is a spirited attempt to bring high storage capacity to the digital camera market. Its innovation is called ID Photo Disc, a magneto-optical (MO) disc that looks like a distant cousin of a MiniDisc.
The disc can store a massive (for digital cameras) 730Mb of data. At its lowest resolution (640 x 480 VGA) that's an incredible 12,000 still images. Even at its highest resolution (1360 x 1024) it can still store 2000 images, or 255 in the uncompressed tiff format.
The discs are rewriteable and have a reasonably fast transfer speed of 20Mbps. Writing an uncompressed tiff file takes around 10 seconds.
But the clincher is that the price per disc is around £20. A similar amount of storage in Memory Sticks would cost the best part of a grand.
It's not the only digital camera to offer large amounts of storage: Sony's £1000 CD-RW Mavica MVC-CD300 has a capacity of 156Mb, and forthcoming low-cost high-storage systems such as Dataplay, a low-cost, digital storage disc the size of a £2 coin with s 500Mb capacity, may reduce the gap, but for the moment the Sanyo is out on its own.
There is, however, a trade-off for all this capacity, and this is the camera's awkward styling. It feels both large and tackily finished, worlds away from the ultra-slick Canon and Fuji digital snappers. The ID Photo Disc system and lithium-ion battery also add to its bulk.
The camera is reasonably simple. The on-screen menu is straightforward, with few of the quirks that you'll find on some of its rivals. Keeping tabs on your shots isn't too tricky, even if it is a tad time consuming.
It also comes with a good selection of software including QuickTime 4.1, MGI Photo Suite and Adobe Premiere 5.1 LE in addition to Sanyo's basic editing fare.
Given its consumer electronics background it's no surprise that Sanyo has stacked this model with features. There's MPEG video recording and, once again, you can store a lot of footage on one disc.
At its premium level it will store around eight minutes of footage at 30 frames per second (fps). It'll also shoot at what Sanyo bills as 'web quality' for 60 minutes at 30fps.
One of the cool things the camera lets you do is to turn any frame shot in video into a still, a feature that Sanyo claims is unique to this model.
Alternatively, you can set the camera to capture a sequence of shots at 7.5fps. Other features include a 3x optical and 4x digital zoom, a macro mode and a host of manual settings to appease the serious photographers. The standard USB interface is here but, unusually, there's also a FireWire port.
If you are starting to feel tempted by this device, its time to deliver the bad news: the camera has three fundamental weaknesses which prove to be its undoing.
First, the CCD has a mere 1.5megapixels. Bearing in mind it's up against models like the Sony 4.1megapixel DSC-S85, its image quality is certainly second rate. Images are reasonably clear, though, and show a good level of colour. But in terms of detail they fall behind those shot by many of this camera's lower-priced rivals.
Its second weakness is its 1.8in LCD monitor screen. Surely Sanyo could have fitted a bigger one - it would have been very useful especially for monitoring video clips.
Finally there's the price which, at £1200, is way above what you'd expect to pay for a 1.5megapixel camera.
So a valiant attempt from Sanyo and, if storage rather than image quality is your main concern, then this model is worth considering. Maybe next year the MO disc camera will return sporting a 3 or 4megapixel CCD and a price tag of under £1000. If Sanyo delivers that it will get our warmest recommendation.
CONTACT: Sanyo
01923 246 363
www.idshot.com/en
See also:
The DX3600 Zoom simplifies digital photography and is ideal for the first-time buyer. 27 Feb 2002
A digital camera that produces reasonable pictures at a snip of the usual price. 05 Apr 2000
Kodak has a formidable reputation for producing excellent digital cameras. Unfortunately, the DVC325 isn't one of them, thanks to its lack of a microphone and poor drivers. 01 Mar 2000We get to grips with Kodak's stylish DVC325 Digital Video Camera. 27 Jan 2000All Digital Cameras
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