Amazon.com Product Description

The Toshiba PDR-T20 offers optimal digital photography with 2-million pixel capability, 2x optical zoom, and touch-screen controls. With its sleek, compact design, this camera fits in a cell-phone pouch or can be carried with the convenient neck strap. The sliding front cover provides maximum protection for the lens and the pop-up flash has several settings to suit your environment.

With its 2-megapixel CCD sensor, you can snap images up to 1,600 x 1,200 pixels and produce prints up to 8 by 10 inches. The PDR-T20 features a 2x optical zoom as well as a 2x digital zoom for a 4x total. Save images on the included 8 MB Secure Digital memory card.

The LCD on the rear of the PDR-T20 includes touch-screen controls, allowing you to manipulate the camera settings simply by touching the appropriate icon. You can also paint, draw, edit, erase, and annotate right on the LCD while your images are fresh in the camera. Then save the original untouched image and the version with your notes, drawings, or creative highlights.

This package includes the PDR-T20 digital camera, rechargeable lithium-ion battery, AC power adapter, 8 MB memory card, stylus pen, shoulder strap, camera pouch, USB cable, and CD-ROM with image processing and electronic photo album management software. ... Read more

Features

• 2.0 megapixel sensor creates 1,600 x 1,200 images for prints at sizes up to 8 x 10 inches
• 2x optical plus 2xdigital zoom lens (for 4x total) with autofocus
• Stores photos on included 8 MB Secure Digital memory card
• Connects to Macs and PCs via USB port
• Powered by rechargeable lithium-ion battery (included)

Reviews (2)

Good Starter Camera
This is a good Camera if you just want point and click. No having to worry about file formats (only does jpg) and focusing .If you need to do things manualy buy another camera. The LCD is easy to use and the internal battery is nice touch since you don't have to buy batteries. The main drawback is if you forget to charge it you can't just buy batteries. The software is easy to use both on the camera and supplied for the pc. It also supports a sd card which is really nice as well. Like I said before this camera is for those of us who just want to take quick pictures when were out without much hassle.Overall I am happy because that is all I want out of a camera. Much better then buying disposables or a cheap 35mm camera.

Very good deal
I Got this camera last week, ...
what makes this camera distinctive is it's touch and very sharp LCD , brilliant body design and slim size, it comes with rechargeable battery which saves batteries drain. it's very easy to operate even from first time, resolution of this camera is minimum requirement for you needs. Only movie mode is not available in it which is the only the drawback I found. ... Read more

Features

• 2.0 megapixel sensor creates 1792 x 1200 images for prints at sizes up to 8 x 10 inches
• 3x optical zoom and 2x digital zoom for 6x total
• Included 8 MB SmartMedia card holds 14 images at default settings
• Connects with PCs and Macs via USB port
• Uses 4 AA-type batteries (alkaline batteries included)

Reviews (22)

A technical powerhouse for its price range.........
Having never used a digital camera previously, I have to say using this camera has been nothing but easy and fun. The photos can be effortlessly transferred to your PC via usb port to JPEG format. The enclosed IMAGE EXPERT software is also very user friendly. While the camera's auto-focus does have some difficulty getting the shot in low (artificial) light settings, the overall results are quite good. For example the outdoor daylight shots without the use of flash are amazing. Also the 3x optical zoom lets you get up to three inches away from your subject for crisp, clear controlled exposures. (This is ideal for internet auctions). The flash gives you the option for red-eye reduction as well. Another really fun feature is having the ability to view your pics via sideshow on your TV set. (This can be used to video tape the pictures onto a VHS tape to mail to friends/ family members who do not have a computer). I strongly suggest picking up the Toshiba PDR-ACM1A AC Adapter (sold separately through Toshiba). This way you needn't worry about drained batteries when transferring images to PC, or while taking photos when at home.) Otherwise, you could just keep a stockpile of alkalines on hand, or pick up a rechargable set of batteries. A great first-time (Macintosh compatible) digital camera!

A TECHNICAL POWERHOUSE FOR ITS PRICE RANGE
Having never used a digital camera previously, I have to say using this camera has been nothing but easy and fun. The photos can be effortlessly transferred to your PC via usb port to JPEG format. The enclosed IMAGE EXPERT software is also very user friendly. While the camera's auto-focus does have some difficulty getting the shot in low (artificial) light settings, the overall results are quite good. For example the outdoor daylight shots without the use of flash are amazing. Also the 3x optical zoom lets you get up to three inches away from your subject for crisp, clear controlled exposures. (This is ideal for internet auctions). The flash gives you the option for red-eye reduction as well. Another really fun feature is having the ability to view your pics via sideshow on your TV set. (This can be used to video tape the pictures onto a VHS tape to mail to friends/ family members who do not have a computer). I strongly suggest picking up the Toshiba PDR-ACM1A AC Adapter (sold separately through Toshiba). This way you needn't worry about drained batteries when transferring images to PC, or while taking photos when at home.) Otherwise, you could just keep a stockpile of alkalines on hand, or pick up a rechargable set of batteries. A great first-time (Macintosh compatible) digital camera!

Waste of money
This was my first digital camera and I spent my hard earned money on it. Picture quality indoors was very poor, outside was ok. Downloads were easy and fast. Battery life was a joke,it would never be consistant on how long they would last a day or two weeks..I used rechargable ones from the start and had two kinds it never made a difference.
Now after 6 mo the camera will not recognize the charged battery at all.I have tried every thing new batteries 3 kinds and still nothing . So basically I have a useless camera,tech support at Toshiba is worthless and no one will work on the camera around here..they tell me to throw it away and buy something other than Toshiba.Great! Well that finished me with ever buying a Toshiba product again and you can be sure I will tell EVERYONE I know, that they need to look elsewhere for a better company and product.

Toshiba PDR 3300 digital camara
Even if it was for free It's not worth your time or money
Battery life is horendous that you will never have a pleasant day taking pictures with this camara. Plus it has some flaky problem that it does not always turn on even if it has battery life left.

Worst camera and company on the planet
My camera was DOA upon arrival. It never worked from the minute that I opened the factory sealed box.

Toshiba offered to fix it if I mailed it to their service center and waited 4-6 weeks for them to repair it. Yeah, right.

My other option was to buy an identical camera from them and if I mail in this piece of junk they will give me a "discount" on my next purchase. I shouldn't have to PAY MONEY to get a camera replaced that never worked and is supposedly under warranty.

The bottom line is that the product is a piece of junk that never worked. The fact that the repair department has a 4-6 week backlog proves that these cameras are junk.

I will never buy any Toshiba product again in my life. I am very dissapointed with this camera and the way Toshiba treats their customers after the sale is downright insulting. ... Read more

Features

• 3.2 megapixel sensor creates 2,048 x 1,536 images for prints at 8 x 10 and beyond
• 2.8x optical zoom and 2.2x digital zoom for 6x total
• Included 8 MB Secure Digital card holds 8 images at default settings
• Connects with PCs and Macs via USB port
• Uses 4 AA-type batteries (alkaline batteries included)

Reviews (9)

Decent price, decent pictures
I bought this camera in early 2002. Pictures are great for the computer viewing and e-mailing. Program that comes with it is easy to use to download pictures. Picture quality when you get prints done from a photo store aren't very clear unless you always use full size and quality for every picture you plan to get on prints. Even then they have a slight "fuzz" to them. When I bought this camera it was 3 times the price, but it has just now started having problems with picture taking 2 years later. At this current price you can't beat what it can give you. Has lots of options so you can mess with the pictures you take as if you had a regular SLR type of camera. Great for the "point and shoot" type also.

Best bang for the buck !!
This has all the high-end features one needs (including video) in order to capture all the pictures you will need. 6x zoom works very well and the 3.2 ixels at this price are just a steal! Be sure to use the right rechargable batteries (not the cheap ones at Wal-mart, but get yourself eight 8 1800 mAh or higher "AA" batteries. I laso recommend the ac20 power supply if you do alot of desktop work or video through it!

Good Value
I have several digital cameras but I like this one the best. It has never failed to focus reliably and the shots are quite sharp.
Controls are easy to learn and use.

I think you will hard pressed to find another or better value for the money

Great sharp outdoor pics, full manual except for focus
I'll start with some of the negative aspects of this camera. It has no AF illuminator lamp which is a little light that is used to help focusing in dark situations. Now its focusing performance is reasonable but will not be as dependable as say the Sony or Canon cameras that have this feature standard. The bundle it comes with is very average . . this includes a dinky 8MB SD card and is only saved by the inclusion of a carrying pouch and remote control. You also have to purchase a rechargeable battery kit as only 4AA alkalines are included. This camera is made in China so the plastic feels a little coarse and the words are painted on. It does feel solid though. The LCD is bright and very useable outdoors but the pixel count is a little low, meaning you will not be able to determine if things are in focus and some detail is lost, but you should be able to roughly figure out if the exposure is right.
Now for the good. This camera takes very nice, very sharp outdoor pictures. To get great shots I had to change two of the default settings out of the box. I changed the color to VIVID and the ISO to 100 (default is 200). When the color is set to NORMAL things look slightly under saturated. The good thing is that these settings will be saved even if you turn off the camera. This is great cause I have some settings saved in automatic mode (for general point & shoot) and I have other settings saved in manual mode for indoor shots or shadowy situations which are typically under exposed by most cameras automatic mode. I believe outdoor shots on this look sharper and overall slightly more pleasing than on the Sony DSCP72 or the Canon A70. However in darker situations the Toshiba reveals a bit more noise. The Canon and Sony give smoother shadows with less noise in the dark (probably because of their noise reduction system and/or processing). The pictures on the Sony and Canon appear little softer however. A major part of the reason this Toshiba takes such nice pictures is bacause it uses a Canon made lens. Now if you like to play with settings or would like to learn more about photography then you have the option of a wide range of manual controls (full aperature and shutter speed control) along with settings for sharpness, color and contrast. Manual focus is however only limited to a few presets. Ease of use is where things get exceptional. Very easy to use and you can very quickly change settings with the mode dial and 'hat switch'. No need to press menu buttons during photography as the hat switch controls all major functions. This means your thumb is the only thing you need to quickly cycle through settings like focusing, shutter speed, aperature etc. I was very pleased with the Canon A70 and it was my primary target but I managed to get this camera at a much lower price. Of course everything is relative to the price you pay and for the price I paid this is a very good value. Happy hunting.

*** Exciting update: There are hidden manual focus and manual white balance functions. For manual focus just press and hold the 'down' button in the menu with focus options until 'MF' appears and then select it. To manually focus press and hold the 'disp' button and use the zoom controls to focus. For manual white balance do the same in the WB menu until 'Pre Set' appears and then select it. Point the camera at your reference white color (paper etc.) press the shutter button and then select 'ok'. You can also disable the power off timer by holding down 'Disp' while turning on the camera.

Good but could have been better
Despite my list of complaints, I'm not disappointed with this camera.

Things I liked.
1. Zoom. It's good. Opticial zoom is great. Digital zoom starts pixelating but far less than other cameras I've played with. You can't see the pixelation if you don't zoom in further on your computer.
2. Manual controls. I appreciate the aperature priority, shutter priority, full manual, burst, etc. options.
3. Batteries: I'm glad it takes normal batteries, I can buy more if I out of power.
4. Has both viewfinder and LCD (which you can turn off if you want)

There are a few complaints/things I don't like about this camera:
1. Lack of AF (Autofocus) helper light. I've played with lots of friends' camera and they all have this little built in light (little flashlight) that helps the camera autofocus in dim or dark conditions. This camera doesn't. I've experimented and, sure enough, if I point a little flashlight at the center of the image, even in the dark the camera can focus. But the by itself the camera has a hard time focusing even if it's not that dark.
2. Manually focusing is only limited to the follwing options: macro, 1m, 3m, infinity.
3. It seems to cause redeye easily. It has a redeye reduction flash option and it does reduce the redeye but it's still there.
4. You have to buy a larger memory card. You have to buy rechargeable battery kit (it uses 4 AA). It says in the manual the included batteries are for testing only.
5. I didn't really like the pc software. Windows xp will automatically recognize the camera and you can use any software you want with for playing with pictures. No stiching/panorama software.
6. Movie mode is not really special. No microphone.
7. A little bigger than I thought it would be (Room probably needed for the 4 AA batteries).
8. LCD: If you're out of focus or over/underexposed, the LCD will not show this to you.

One day in the future I'll probably get a fancier camera but this is great for everyday stuff. ... Read more

Features

• 3.2 Megapixel Digital Photography
• 3X Optical Zoom
• Resolution Setting Up To 2048 x 1536
• SmartMedia Memory Cards
• Pristine photographs at resolutions up to 2048 x 1538

Reviews (5)

Easy to use, dependable, affordable.
I've owned this camera for more than a year, and use it several times a week. It's easy to use, very dependable (I run it with rechargable AA batteries) and the price, even when I initially bought it, was right. It's even more affordable now. I recommend the Toshiba PDR 3320 as an excellent entry-level camera.

Plus and Minus
Good:
- Out of the box, this camera is dead easy to start using. From opening the box to taking my first shot it took all of ten minutes.

- Responsive zoom feature.

- Easy to use software (similar to Photoshop, etc.)

- Easy to interface camera and TV for slideshows. All the appropriate plugs are included.

Bad:

- Like many digital cameras, this model eats batteries. However, I think this one goes through them much faster than others I've experienced.

- Short battery life means that its useless to set the date because as soon as you change the batteries you have to re-set the date/time, which isn't easy because:

- The cross pad is not responsive. Its small size makes selecting menus options difficult.

- The manual is obviously written by non-English speakers. The poor syntax makes reading some of the instructions difficult.

- Long lag time between clicking the button and taking the picture.

Good quality, reasonable price
While a little on the chunky side, this camera does a really good job. Changing the image size and quality on the fly is very easy, so those shots that you will not need print resolution, you can switch to save space on your smartmedia card. The highest resolution will print out at 6x4 inches, with about 300dpi resolution -- just fine for snapshots. And with each image at the size weighing in at about 1MB, a 32MB card would hold about 32 images. My only beef so far with the camera is that the delay between pushing the shutter button and when the camera takes a picture is rather long, so it often misses some great moments.

Best digital Camera For the money!
I've tried my fair share of digital cameras in my day and i have to say,... this camera brings you 3.2 megapixels and great features.
This camera has 3x optical zoom and 2x digital zoom which will be more than enough for anyone short of a profesional photographer.
The only drawback to this camera is the memory card (8mb on a 3.2 megapixel camera won't get you too many pictures) and the LCD display: I've noticed its always easier to use the viewfinder to take pictures and use the LCD display to review them.

First time user of a digital/still camera
this is the first time I have used a digital camera.I found this one very easy to use.and for my first time the photos came out good.the software was all so easy to setup and use.and it made even my photos not bad.the crop feature is fun. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Toshiba's flagship PDR-M81 digital camera combines 4-megapixel clarity with a Canon optical zoom lens and a full complement of features. If you're looking for a high-performance camera at an affordable price, the M81 is a great choice.

In its default mode, the camera is as easy to use as any point-and-shoot, but for photographers who want more creative control, the camera offers numerous advanced settings, including aperture- and shutter-priority modes, shutter speeds as slow as 15 seconds, a multimode flash, adjustable white balance, exposure compensation, and macro (for objects as little as four inches from the lens). Shots can be captured in black and white, sepia, vivid color, or standard color.

For power, the camera uses four AA batteries or an optional AC adapter. The big benefit to using standard AA batteries instead of a custom proprietary battery is that AA batteries are available virtually everywhere in the world, so missing a once-in-a-lifetime shot due to dead batteries won't be an issue. The downside is that a digital camera will kill a set of alkaline batteries extremely quickly, especially if you're using the camera's LCD display. If you're an occasional photographer, you can get by with high-power disposables, but if you plan to take more than a handful of photos a month, a set of rechargeable batteries (scroll up to our Accessories section) is a virtual necessity.

To compose your image, either look through the traditional viewfinder or use the 1.5-inch color LCD display on the back of the camera. Pictures are stored on SmartMedia cards in the industry-standard JPEG format. Images can be stored at three resolutions (2,400 x 1,600; 1,200 x 800; 720 x 480) and at three levels of compression. The PDR-M81 does not offer uncompressed TIFF or RAW recording, a feature found on some other 4-megapixel cameras. The included 8 MB card holds seven images at the camera's default setting or five images in the highest-quality (least compressed) setting. The card is reusable, but if you're hoping to take more photos before returning to your computer to transfer the images, you'll want a larger SmartMedia card.

Canon provides Toshiba with the 2.8x optical zoom lens. In 35mm camera terms, the lens zooms from 35mm to 98mm, and the aperture varies from f2.9 to f8.0. In addition to the 2.8x optical zoom, the camera includes an additional 2.2x digital zoom. This feature merely crops the edges off your picture and blows up the remaining image, enlarging your picture at the expense of image quality. Most photo-editing software will let you do the same thing to your picture once you've transferred it to your home computer, so it's a camera feature that's not often used.

Movie mode captures movie clips at resolutions of 320 x 240 or 160 x 120 pixels. This feature won't replace your camcorder, but it's perfect for when you just want to capture a quick movie and e-mail it to a friend or relative.

A video-out feature makes it easy to show your pictures in big-screen glory. Just connect your camera to your TV with the included cable to give a virtual slide show to friends or family. If you think your photos look impressive on a 17-inch computer monitor, just wait until you see them on a 27-inch TV screen.

Shutter lag--the delay between the time you press the button and the moment the camera actually captures the photo--is a problem with most digital cameras, and the M81 is no exception. The camera can take up to a second to snap your picture after pressing the button, which can be an unacceptably long time, especially if you're trying to take a picture of a quick-moving subject. Most of this delay can be eliminated by prefocusing--composing your shot, then pressing the shutter button halfway down to allow the camera to adjust the focus and metering. When you press the button the rest of the way down, the shutter will snap almost instantly.

The PDR-M81 comes with Image Expert software, an 8 MB SmartMedia card, video and USB cables, shoulder strap, camera case, lens cap, and four AA alkaline batteries. The camera is covered by a one-year warranty.

Pros:

• 4-megapixel sensor captures filmlike detail in your photos
• Advanced features like shutter- and aperture-priority for more advanced photographers

Cons:

• No connection for external flash
• No uncompressed (TIFF) mode
• Included alkaline batteries are only a short-term solution

Reviews (11)

I love it!
This is my first digital camera. It's very easy to use. The pictures turn out great. The usb connector makes it very easy to download to my computer. I bought the rechargable batteries and unit, which saves on money. I am still learning how to use the other features. The only negative is how to adjust picture quality, such as if something is too dark. I guess I need to read my manual again.

Good camera, but better ones are available
Overall, this is a nifty lil' 3 megapixel camera.

Pros:
Solid contruction.
Ample features
Excellent image quality
Ease of use
Good value for money

Cons:
Toshiba is not really a camera mfr. Amazon sells better cameras made by camera-only mfrs.
Lacks more advanced features, such as appropriate ISO step boosts.
Internal flash can cause red-eye too often

Although this camera has a lot going for it, don't get it. Amazon features many more cameras in the 3+ megapixel range that are superior. In particular, for a similar price as this one, look at the Nikon Coolpix line of excellent digital cameras.

Great Camera for the value!!!
Excellent features, easy to use, the best quality photos ever seen. Strongly recommended!!!

Camera good, company bad, do not buy
Toshiba does not honor their warrantys, and will refuse to sell you parts! The tripod mount is made of cheap plastic, and will strip out in no time. When I asked Toshiba for a new one, which I even offered to pay for, they refused! This is a dishonest, predatory company that has no honor. Buy their produts at your peril...buy a Cannon instead, very good cameras, honest company. I will never buy another product from them.

toshiba doesn't honor warranty
Don't have a problem with a Toshiba product or you will be on your own and have a useless camera! Toshiba said too bad, good luck, goodbye $$$$$ when our Toshiba stopped working. No more Toshiba products for us. ... Read more

Features

• 4 Megapixels, 2400 x 1600 Resolution
• 6X Zoom ( 2.8Xoptical / 2.2X digital )
• AVI Video
• Secure Digital (SD) Memory Cards
• Remote Control

Reviews (9)

Toshiba PDR4300 4MP Digital Camera
I find the camera takes great photographs and easy to use. I just got this camera about a couple weeks ago and I had to call support about erasing the photo's. To my surprise they say it will be a $20.00 charge for help. Now since good money was paid for this camera and a good brand name you think they would help you. Another thing I would recommend using rechargeable batteries as they last longer and cheaper too. I did find out how to erase the photo's. It is a great camera and enjoy owning it. It is not like the old days when an answer could be given freely. You can't register the camera on the web site as it is being discontinued, and information is so old it does not help you. I give the camera high marks for quality. Support 00 in my book.

too cumbersome
While the picture quality is good (too red actually, but can be fixed with software), there are too many drawbacks to rate it above 3 stars. The battery drain is very high when in photo mode, so using high-drain regular or rechargeable batteries is essential, as regular ones die after only a couple of shots. The built-in flash isn't bright enough, so I'd only recommend it for outdoor use. Manual locking of the battery compartment where SD card is located is a hassle, as is the manual lens cover. Basically, it takes about a minute to get it ready to shoot, OK for prepared shots, but too slow if you need to catch something quickly. Does not come with a charger and rechargeable set of batteries. Also too bulky, especially since you need to carry 4 extra AA batteries, just in case. No webcam, movie mode is OK, but no sound, unlike other 4Mpixel cameras.

In this case, definitely, you get what you pay for, maybe even a bit less.

A BEST BUY
For persons unfamiliar with digital photography who do not wish to be limited to a "point-and-shoot" camera as they learn the digital process, the Toshiba PDR-4300 is an excellent choice. The camera combines Toshiba's superior digital imaging expertise with a high imaging sensor into a camera that is easy to use. After the beginner has mastered "point-and-shoot" techniques, the PDR-4300 with a 4-megapixel resolution and a full set of professional-level manual options, they can readily progress to more advanced digital photography. The camera has a built-in flash and an all-glass quality Canon lens with a 2.8x optical zoom and with digital zoom provides 6x total zoom. The camera has several other features all of which makes for brilliant resolution and excellent photos. Finally, the installation software is "user-friendly" and excellent.

The camera battery life is poor. Battery life can be improved by adhering to the camera manual's instructions to turn off the LCD screen and use the viewfinder when taking pictures. However, the buyer should purchase a battery charger and buy rechargeable batteries that have a much longer life. Also, the 16 MB SD memory card limits the camera's picture file capacity and should be replaced by a 32 or 64 MB memory card. Nevertheless, the 16 MB card is adequate during the beginner stage in digital photography.

My major criticism concerns the camera manual. The manual is readable, comprehensive and well organized. Unfortunately, the manual, in four languages, is very poorly bound. I had not finished reading the introductory sections before the pages in the English section became unbound. Either the binding should be improved or each language section should be separately bound.

The camera is a "best buy", and is lots of fun to use.

good so far...
i just bought the camera, and for the price you won't find a better deal. the resolution is awesome, the flash is bright enough to make low-lit rooms look like there's daylight, and it's easy to use. the manual appears dense, but that's only because it's written in four different languages. the only downside (if you consider it one) is the size. but it appears sturdy, and so far it works very well. i looked at dozens of comparable digital cameras and found this one to be the better deal (cheaper with more features).

Great camera, Bad battery...
The TOSHIBA camera I have bought is really great. It has most of the features you would need, including movie making. The battery runs out quickly if you use flash [even a little]. I suggest for users to buy it ONLY if they aren't advanced. ... Read more

Features

• 3-megapixel sensor captures enough detail to create 2,048 x 1,536 images for medium-quality prints up to 11 x 14
• 10x optical zoom and 4x digital zoom for 40 x total
• Continuous shooting mode at 4 frames per second; 2.5-inch LCD; full array of manual controls
• Compatible with SD and MMC memory cards
• Includes 4 AA alkaline batteries (rechargeables recommended); connects with PCs and Macs compatible with USB 1.1

Reviews (12)

A Good Camera
PROS: Canon 10x optical lens, big 2.5" LCD, remote shutter release, and 52mm adapter ring for filters. Overall, the Toshiba PDR M700 takes good photos with accurate color. It produces even better results when shooting subjects up close.

CONS: No image stablization, but a tripod is an easy solution to this problem. No hot-shoe for an external flash. No AF Illuminator. Images tend to get somewhat noisy in low light situations.

Conclusion: The Toshiba PDR M700 is a good camera whose pros outweigh it's cons. I'd give it an overall review of 3.5 stars. Not bad, not great, but good.

Don't buy if you have a Mac
We bought this camera about six months ago, attracted by the 10x zoom and the impressive range of features.

Sadly, we have been rather disappointed by it. Although the zoom is impressive, the focus problems mentioned by other reviewers are apparent in ours as well- the camera just seems to focus on whatever it wants -usually the background rather than the middle of the picture.

Also, despite following the manufacturer's information about setting it up to work with Mac computers, we have so far been unable to make the camera and the computer talk to each other.

We were fobbed off with a series of poor customer service responses and were on the verge of returning it to the store when something terrrible happened to it. The verdict from the Toshiba, after they had had it in their possession for over a month, was that it had sustained a severe trauma. We are not disputing that: since we have three children, we think it possible that one of them may have accidentally knocked it to the ground and not told us. What we are annoyed about is the poor response from Toshiba to our earlier problems, which might have had us take the camera back to the store long before it was so badly damaged. As it is, we are faced with a 246$CAN bill to make usable a camera that has so far proved itself incompatible with our computer- ie not much use.

I would not advise anyone to buy this camera unless they have a direct line to Toshiba. There is a far better Canon out, for very little more money.

Fair outdoor camera
Pros -- Nice lens easy setup

Cons -- Low light focus

This camera takes pretty good pictures in good light. It won't focus in low light. By low light I mean normal night-time in your house lighting. With outdoor lighting, I haven't had a problem. There is a work-around for focusing indoors, that works pretty good. You can fix the focus for 1 or 3 meters, or there is a manual focus setting. The manual focus setting is cumbersome, in that you have to set the zoom then switch to manual focusing. So it is pretty slow.

I wouldn't buy this camera again knowing what I know, but I can get some pretty good pictures with it working around its quirks.

Versatile super zoom
Most striking feature of this camera is of course its lens - a Canon 10x zoom. Even at 10x, its aperture is f/3.1, faster than most such lenses. It has a couple of other nifty features: a remote control which takes the place of a cable release for long telephoto shots, and an auto-bracketing shutter which can be set to take a few shots over and under the nominal settings, to make sure you get exactly the best exposure. Apart from the lens, it is a versatile general purpose, high-end digital camera.

Weak points are the measly 16mb SD card supplied, and its tendency to gobble alkaline batteries. You will probably want to buy a larger memory card and rechargeable batteries and charger if you plan on taking many pictures.

Not a bad camera, but there are better ones
This a good camera. I had it for a while until it stopped working and I had to take it back.

I upgraded to the Minolta DiMage Z1 but I still very muched like this camera.

Cons: ... Read more

Reviews (6)

camera's fine, but interface terrible
I like this camera. the pictures are great. Just make sure that you use the USB, and don't use Flashpath to get the pictures to your computer. I did the latter for a while, and it's really bad. And the USB only works sporadically. What use are great pictures if you can't get them off your camera? And by all means use rechargeable batteries. The thing is a total battery hog. That said, the pictures are great.

Not if you have fast moving kids
When I first bought this camera I thought the picture quality was excellent for well-lit shots. This still holds true; however, the remaining deficiencies with this camera made me despise it in the end. They are:

- Indoor shots over 5 feet away are too dark most of the time (with flash; without flash, they are too blurry).
- The pre-shot focus takes 2-3 seconds, then you actually take the shot (another second). Very frustrating when your kids have learned to walk or crawl fast; they're already gone when you want to take the pic.
- Sometimes if the batteries die while writing the image to the smartmedia card, THE WHOLE CARD REQUIRES REFORMATTING. Any pictures you took on the card but did not download are now gone forever. (The battery meter is useless too, everyone I know just uses a camera until the batteries are dead).
- When trying to take alot of pictures at one time, almost every other time I pressed the shutter to snap the picture, the camera would auto-focus (taking an eternal 3 seconds) but then give error beeps when I tried to snap the shot. This led to up to 10 seconds between pictures, again, an eternity with fast-moving kids.

Conclusion:
- If I were only taking occasional outdoor pictures in bright sunlight with stationary subjects, this camera produces great images. But for fast-moving kids indoors, this camera induces a high level of frustration; many times I have had to resist the urge to throw it across the room.

Good features, with a few drawbacks
I've been using this camera for about 3 weeks, but have been using digital cameras for 4 years. This camera has all the right features for a point-and-shoot: several flash modes, good zoom, several ISO settings, even a black-and-white option. The menus are easy to navigate and intuitive. The LCD screen is easy to see under most lighting conditions. I love the size of the Smart Media cards! Who wants to go back to 35mm film?

Drawbacks: the focus is slow. The proper way to take a picture is to compose it in the viewfinder, press the trigger half way down and wait for the auto-focus to do its thing. This takes 1-2 seconds. Then a small light in the viewfinder lets you know you can go ahead and shoot your picture. In normal 35mm cameras, this takes a fraction of a second. I don't understand why it has to be so slow on this camera. You do get used to this, but it's still an annoyance to have to explain it to someone who is going to take your picture in front of the Eiffel Tower, and who only speaks French. Better bring a tripod!

The zoom is jerky, not continuous. This was a little irritating at first, but I got used to it in no time. The camera only comes with an 8 MB memory card, which is way too small to be useful. The battery door is somewhat difficult to open and close. The included software is below average.

These inconveniences are relatively small, compared with the resulting images: the clarity is beautiful, the colors saturated, and objects are in sharp focus, at all levels of resolution. There are some manual modes to play with, which yield good results, like the Bulb setting and the Multi Shot.

Recommendation: buy rechargeable NiMH or Lithium Ion batteries, or you'll go through a couple of sets of alkalines before you fill up your memory card.

Overall, this is a fun camera, which offers a lot of features and quality for the money.

Average deal for the price
After doing some research and with the recommendation of PCWorld.com (Best Buy Rating), I proceeded to purchase this camera along with a 64 Meg SmartMedia card and rechargeable batteries. PCworld.com's recommendation was based on excellent battery life and above average picture quality. While the article mentioned a fews "cons" with the camera, it did neglect to mention that the zoom operation was sluggish and jumpy (not smooth), and actually locked up after 3 weeks of usage. I had to turn the camera off and back on to enable the zoom operation again. The picture quality was very good (for a novice photographer like me), except when I wasn't absolutely still while pressing the shutter button (pictures turned out blurry). I'm not sure if this is normal with all digital cameras. However, this is the main reason why I wanted a digital camera in the first place--so that I can easily discard unwanted pictures without the hassle of developing them. It is however still irritating to find that the pictures you have just taken are completely unusable.

A few other cons that PCWorld.com mentioned were that the zoom lens partially obstructed the viewfinder and difficulty in opening and closing battery compartment. Although minor annoyances, they were hardly reasons for disliking the camera.

As to battery life, the set of rechargeable NiMh lasts for about 200-300 shots. That is far better than most digital cameras on the market.

In summary, I feel that the camera is probably just an average deal for the price. I don't think that PCWorld.com did as thorough a review on the Toshiba PDRM61 as they did on the other ones in the article. It seemed that the reviews on the other cameras provided more information that I could have used. Anyhow, I will be exchanging the camera to the store for either a CANON A20 or Nikon E775. I believe that either one is a better product than the Toshiba.

What a Great Camera
This is my first digital camera. I bought it because it got excellent reviews in both Consumer Reports and PC World. It takes wonderful pictures, and it is so easy to use!!! The day I bought it, I was able to take photos, load them on my computer, edit them and email them within a couple of hours.... and I am NOT a computer techie. The batteries last and last, the emailing lets me illustrate my letters, and I have had not one problem since I got it. All my friends with digital cameras told me horror stories about inability to get the pix from camera to computer, software malfunctions, battery failures, etc. Not with this camera! I really love my Toshiba and I am having so much fun with it. I highly recommend it. ... Read more

Features

• 3.2-megapixel sensor captures 2,048 x 1,536 images for prints at sizes up to 11 x 14 inches
• 3x optical/2x digital (6x total) autofocus zoom lens
• Included 8 MB Smartmedia card holds 7 images at default resolution
• Automatically connects with Macs and PCs via USB port
• Uses 4 AA batteries (alkalines included)

Reviews (5)

Great for the price I paid
I bought this camera this weekend at a retail store... it is my first experience with a digital camera, and for not having a manual handy, I was taking pictures within 15 mins. Even my mom who is so computer illerate that she has trouble surfing the web was able to use this camera. I took pictures not even on the highest resolution setting and they came out very clear. I bought a 128MB memory card today and contrary to the product description it works fine without downloading anything from Toshiba. My mom is now looking for one at the great price I paid.

Almost great
Well first off this is a great buy for the price (I got a refurbished one.) But with a low price comes some drawbacks. First of all the manual. Like the other reviewers said, you have to print it out. No thanks. It is easy to learn though so that's not that big of a deal.

If you have Win 98 you will more than likely have problems connecting it to your USB. It can be done, but it's a bigger process than the manual states. There are drivers not on the CD-Rom that you need for installation. Their in you computer, but finding them is tricky.

The pictures are great though. Even at the lowest resolution they are incredible. The highest? WOW!! what detail. The included software is great for beginners. If you have Photoshop or the like however, use those instead.

The autofocus is a bit slow. I would've liked a manual option but oh well.

All in all, for a 3.3 Megapixel [at this price]. This is a good deal. I recommend it to any newbies to digital photograpy.

First digital camera
I bought this camera 2 weeks ago. I quickly found out I did not like the placement of the viewfinder. It looks like your thumb is in the way every time. At first, the images did not look that great but I found out it was the software. The software that comes with the camera is OK but not great. I have Photoshop 6.0 and PhotoImpact 6 Web Sudio Pro. What a huge difference the software makes! The same pictures that I thought were terrible looked very good with the PhotoImpact.I read reviews on this camera and some negatives were that you did not have a lot of choices for adjustments (aperture, etc.). Those things were not important to me and i bought it for [price]. I thought that was a pretty good price for a 3.3 Megapixel camera. I also like the fact that I don't have to mess with a lens cap. I have not printed the manual from the CD. I just played around with the controls on my own and the little booklet they give you. It was pretty easy to work with and I've taken about 150 pictures in all types of lighting situations and they range from excellent to pretty good.

Toshiba Digital Still M 65
Although the camara is easy to use, the software is difficult. Additionally, battery time is < 2 hours of consistent use (alkaline). The USB software for downloading is difficult to use.You can only save to A drive, or a CD. I would like to save it to my ZIP disc (D-drive) so I can use less discs and port it to my other computers which have Zips. The accessories are expensive... I also don't like the fact that you have to print out the manual (105 pages) or read it on CD. For practice use and to learn how to use the camara, you must print it out. My PC won't recognize the USB port for this camara (and there is nothing wrong with the USB port) so I can only use it with my desk top. The "on-line" help is helpless. The Toshiba company places you in a "loop" for Q and A (ie: "here are the most asked questions and answers")!

Get down Digital!!!!!
I bought this camera, it is a beatiful camera the pictures are better than any film cam can do! If your thinking about this please do it you'll see it was worlth it!!! I got this for my birthday. I took pictures of my familly, Mom,dad,cousin's!
with over 3.0 megagix's your pictures will be as clear as if you were still there. It hook's up to your comp nicely. But it u perfer to take this camera places and not hooked up to the comp u can do that to with the Memery it has.
i say BUY IT!!! ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Compared to other cameras in its price range, the PDR-M21 pairs a relatively high-resolution 2-megapixel sensor with a simple focus-free lens, making it a good choice for people who don't want many bells and whistles, but still expect crisp, highly detailed images.

The camera's operation is designed to be as simple as possible--just turn it on, aim, and shoot. Focus, flash, and exposure are all set automatically. If you're hoping for more creative control, several settings can be adjusted manually, including the flash mode (red-eye reduction, off, on, auto), white balance, black-and-white mode, and exposure compensation. In addition, you'll find several features very uncommon in an entry-level camera: shutter- and aperture-priority and uncompressed TIFF image recording.

For power, the camera uses four AA batteries or an optional AC adapter. The big benefit to using standard AA batteries instead of a custom proprietary battery is that AA batteries are available virtually everywhere in the world, so missing a once-in-a-lifetime shot due to dead batteries won't be an issue. The downside is that a digital camera will kill a set of alkaline batteries extremely quickly, especially if you're using the camera's LCD display. If you're an occasional photographer, you can get by with high-power disposables, but if you plan to take more than a handful of photos a month, a set of rechargeable batteries (scroll up to our Accessories section) is a virtual necessity.

To compose your image, either look through the traditional viewfinder or use the 1.8-inch color LCD display on the back of the camera. Pictures are stored on SmartMedia cards. The included 8 MB card holds 12 images at the camera's default setting or 1 image in the highest-quality uncompressed TIFF setting. The card is reusable, but if you're hoping to take more photos before returning to your computer to transfer the images, you'll want a larger SmartMedia card.

The camera also includes a 2x digital zoom. This feature merely crops the edges off your picture and blows up the remaining image, enlarging your picture at the expense of image quality. Most photo-editing software will let you do the same thing to your picture once you've transferred it to your home computer, so it's a camera feature that's not often used. If you're looking for a similar camera with a true optical zoom lens, consider the 2-megapixel Toshiba PDR-M25.

The PDR-M21 comes with Image Expert software, an 8 MB SmartMedia card, hand strap, USB cable, and four AA alkaline batteries. The camera is covered by a one-year warranty.

Pros:

• Autofocus lens is superior to fixed-focus lens on many similarly priced cameras
• Advanced features like shutter- and aperture-priority for more advanced photographers
• Uncompressed TIFF mode for the highest-quality photos

Cons:

• No optical zoom
• Included alkaline batteries are only a short-term solution

Features

• 2.1-megapixel sensor captures 1,600 x 1,200 images for sharp prints at sizes up to 8 x 10 inches
• Autofocus lens with 2x digital zoom (no optical zoom)
• Included 8 MB Smartmedia card holds 12 images at default resolution
• Uses 4 AA batteries (alkalines included)

Reviews (23)

PDR-M21 is an Excellent Buy!
This easy to use camera takes wonderfully sharp photos, and pictures download easily through a USB connection. Software included is also excellent; many easy-to-use utilities. The screen saver of my digital photos is terrific!

Great Price, Great Pictures.
My number one criteria for a digital camera was clear pictures. My number two was price. I bought the Polaroid PDC 640 Plus from another online store and returned it after a day. The pictures looked horrible. I decided I was going to have to spend more money to get better quality. I decided to look at the electronic stores locally first and you couldn't buy anything decent for at least [money] and those only came with 8mb of memory max. With Amazon's free 32MB of memory offer, this was an awesome deal. This camera takes excellent quality pictures. I recommend you set it at half-tiff which will give you 22 pics on a 32MB memory card. I might upgrade to a 64MB card eventually, but once I hit 10pics or so I download them to the computer and format the card. On vacation, 22 might not be enough.

Pro's:

1. Quality of pics
2. Price
3. Automatic shut-off timer (saves batteries).
4. Easy to use

Con's:

1. Didn't come with a holder.
2. Pictures take awhile to process.
3. Not all that cool looking.

I won't be returning this one. If you are cheap like me and always looking for a good deal, then go with this camera.

a lot of camera for the money!
I bought this camera and I love it! It takes great pictures! Its perfect for any one who wants a good camera at a reasonable price. The only drawback is I have windows xp and no matter what I did could not get the camera to download to the pc direct even with the windows xp driver I downloaded, so ended up getting a card reader which is plug and play and easy to use.I highly recomend this camera. It does seem to use regular alkaline batteries fast but found that the energizer e2 titanium last a long time. so they are well worth the extra money.It takes just as good pictures as the cameras that cost twice the price. Also toshiba customer service are really good about trying to help you if you have problems, as i did with the drivers.great buy for the money!!!!

Good Value
I bought this camera 3 months ago. It takes wonderful photos with very little bother. I use a card reader ... to download 128M of photos very fast. I have had no problem with Windows XP after downloading from the Toshiba website the updated drivers. The image qualities are excellent and the camera is easy to use. A great, practical camera at an affordable price.

Pretty good for the money
I'm no image expert, but this seems to have pretty good image quality for the price. The batteries last pretty well when it comes to taking photos outside. The use of the flash will really diminish the battery life. My big gripe is that to transfer 128 Mb worth of pictures over USB without the AC adapter is impossible. The batteries will die on you, even new ones. So get the AC adapter!!! ... Read more

Features

• 2-megapixel sensor creates 1,600 x 1,200 images for prints at sizes up to 8 x 10 inches
• 3x optical zoom and 2x digital zoom for 6x total
• 8 MB internal memory and compatible with Secure Digital cards
• 1.6-inch LCD; AVI movie mode and video out
• Powered by 4 AA batteries (rechargeables recommended); connects with PCs and Macs via USB

Reviews (8)

LOOK FOR ANOTHER BRAND BATTERY EATER
HAD IT FOR 1 YEAR AND DROPPED IT ON THE FLOOR, NEVER WORKED AGAIN.
In addition the battery life is about 30 pictures and indoor pictures are not good at all

No warranty coverage
We had this camera for just 90 days and it totally ceased workng. Toshiba said too bad, good luck, goodbye $$$. No more Toshiba products for us.

Great Camera
For {the money}, this camera is definitly worth it. I find it very easy to use and the pictures look great. I have taken pictures indoors, outdoors, in dim lights, etc and they have all turned out great looking. This camera does eat up batteries quickly, rechargable batteries are a must for this camera. I have nothing bad to say about this camera. I searched for a long time, asked alot of questions, and read alot of reviews on the net about this camera and I'm glad that I purchased it. If you are looking for a good digital camera and you budget is just under two hundred dollars I don't think you will be disappointed with this camera.

Grainy
This camera on paper looks great; a solid build, optical zoom and a 2.0 megapixel resolution all at a cheap price. It sounds great. Unfortunately my tests at using it indoors produced poor results. The pictures (on any detail setting) suggested that they were taken using a 256 colour mode or worse. Images were grainy and transition between similar colours gave an unnacceptable pixelated effect. This camera was supposed to be an upgrade for a Creative Labs PC-600 1.3 megapixel camera. Comparing the pictures showed that I should have stuck with what I already had.

Excellent Entry Level Camera
I purchased this camera about 3 months ago from Circuit City on a store special for [money]. It was my first digital camera (though I have used friends digicams before and I own a camcorder) and I am very happy with it. I initially did not purchase the memory card and just shot pics with it and uploaded them to the computer before the batteries died (held about 30 800x600 high res pics) but I bought a 64MB memory stick after about a month and it was well worth the [money]. I use the 800x600 mode (high res, the camera supports both 1600x1200 and 800x600 in three resolutions; high, medium and low) and now get about 300 photos per memory card, far more than I need. The 3x optical zoom is an excellent feature as is the manual override for lighting, flash and white level. I have not used the video mode since I already own a camcorder, but for still images, this camera is great. It presents the internal photos to the computer as a removable disk drive (under Windows) which is also awesome ! I strongly recommend this camera for first timers or those who want a cheap digicam they can tote around to the beach, etc. Battery life is usually about 100 pictures (if you turn off the LCD) which is quite good. You can also view internal photos on the LCD and zoom then 2x and 4x which is quite handy. Picture quality is very good. ... Read more

Features

• 2-megapixel sensor captures 1,600 x 1,200 images for prints at sizes up to 8 x 10 inches
• Autofocus lens with 4x digital zoom
• Included 8 MB Secure Digital card holds 12 images at default settings
• Connects with PCs and Macs via USB port
• Uses 1 CR-V3 (included) or 2 AA Lithium or NiMH rechargeable batteries

Reviews (11)

Nice carry-it-with-you
Don't have a whole bunch to add to what's been said. Great size so you can carry it everywhere and decent shots, except in low light or very quick movement (but you could say that about almost any digital camera).

It does eat batteries. What I recommend is getting an SD drive and using it instead of the cable that comes with the camera. Not only can you get the pictures off more quickly (especially if you've upgraded to a higher Meg SD card, but also you don't use the camera's batteries at all for picture transfer.

In addition, invest in some rechargable batteries and you can use it all you want!

bottom line: until the 2MP cameraphones that are just now hitting Japan come to the USA, I'll be carrying this with me everywhere. It's just that convenient!

Great Little Camera
Okay the person who wrote the 1st review does not know what he is talking about. This camera DOES take the Nimh rechargable batteries... and they last MUCH longer then the lithium ones. You CAN purchase a A/C adapter for it also. I guess he didn't even do any reading of the manual or research before leaving the review. The One and Only thing I have had trouble getting use to is the delay between the time you press the button and the time it takes the actual photo... but the quality of the pictures is worth it. The touch screen is very nice and the interchangable face plates is the final push that got my husband to purchase this for my birthday... he knows how much being able to personalize my stuff makes me happy! I am sure there are better cameras out there - but this one is just right for me and it could be for you...

Highly Recommended!!!
I bought this camera a few months ago, and wanted to wait before I wrote a review.
This camera is great!!! First of all - the look. It is tiny and very lightweight, and doesn't have any buttons besides the one on top, which makes it very different from the other cameras. If you're a guy you can slip it into your pocket, if you're a girl, you can easily carry it in even your tiniest purse. The touch-screen feature really makes this camera stand out from the rest. When people see you using it, they will come up and ask what you're doing. They're in absolute awe when I show them the touch-screen...different is cool!
I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because it does eat up batteries pretty fast. But that can be solved with rechargeable batteries. It drains faster than other cameras because it doesn't have a window for view find, you have to actually see the picture on the screen. It's a small price to pay for the sleekness of the camera and the use of the touchscreen.
The quality of pictures is great, I took it to a club and the flash made the pictures bright.
I highly recommend this camera, if you're looking for something fun and stylish at the same time, this is the camera for you. If you are aspiring to be a professional photographer, then you may want to look for something with a zoom.

Good camera for me
I've had the camera for about 2 months now. And I use it all the time. Granted, I'm a 20yr old college student who only uses the camera to take pictures of his friends being idiots. But, for this purpose, the camera is great. I read tons of reviews before buying the camera, and after owning it I can definatly say that some of those people must have written their reviews after using the camera for a week end, and with out reading the manual. Learn how to use it and you will have hours of fun looking at pictures of you and your jackass friends. I do find that Adobe Photoshop is a MUST! It's amazing what can be done for darkness, redeye, whatever else.

Lakc of Research and Development
I bought the camera for it's size and web quality pictures. So, at first, it seemed be what I wanted, until the enclosed battery went dead. I was only getting 10 pictures for each set of batteries. The time delay in turning the camera on and the delay of picture taking just added to the lack of development this camera had. I missed too many shots. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Toshiba's PDR-M11 pairs a 1.3-megapixel sensor with a simple non-zoom lens, making it a great choice for budget-minded photographers seeking a basic point-and-shoot that will let them share photos by e-mail and create sharp prints at up to 5 by 7 inches.

The camera's operation is designed to be as simple as possible--just turn it on, aim, and shoot. Focus, flash, and exposure are all set automatically. If you're hoping for more creative control, several settings can be adjusted manually, including the flash mode (red-eye reduction, off, on, auto), white balance, black-and-white mode, and exposure compensation. In addition, you'll find a trio of advanced features uncommon in an entry-level camera: shutter priority, aperture priority, and uncompressed TIFF image recording.

For power, the camera uses four AA batteries or an optional AC adapter. The big benefit to using standard AA batteries instead of a custom proprietary battery is that AA batteries are available virtually everywhere in the world, so missing a once-in-a-lifetime shot due to dead batteries won't be an issue. The downside is that a digital camera will kill a set of alkaline batteries extremely quickly, especially if you're using the camera's LCD display. If you're an occasional photographer, you can get by with high-power disposables, but if you plan to take more than a handful of photos a month, a set of rechargeable batteries is a virtual necessity.

To compose your image, either look through the traditional viewfinder or use the 1.8-inch color LCD display on the back of the camera. Pictures are stored on SmartMedia cards. The included 4 MB card holds 10 images at the camera's default setting or 1 image in the highest-quality uncompressed TIFF setting. The card is reusable, but if you're hoping to take more photos before returning to your computer to transfer the images, you'll want a larger SmartMedia card.

The camera also includes a 2x digital zoom. This feature merely crops the edges off your picture and blows up the remaining image, enlarging your picture at the expense of image quality. Most photo-editing software will let you do the same thing to your picture once you've transferred it to your home computer, so it's a camera feature that's not often used. If you're looking for a similar camera with a true optical zoom lens, consider the 2-megapixel Toshiba PDR-M25.

The PDR-M11 comes with Image Expert software, a 4 MB Smartmedia card, hand strap, USB cable, and fjour AA alkaline batteries. The camera is covered by a one-year warranty.

Pros:

• Autofocus lens is superior to fixed-focus lens on many similarly priced cameras
• Advanced features like shutter- and aperture-priority for more advanced photographers
• Uncompressed TIFF mode for the highest-quality photos

Cons:

• No optical zoom
• Included alkaline batteries are only a short-term solution

Features

• 1.3-megapixel sensor produces 1,280 x 960 images for prints at sizes up to 5 x 7 inches
• Autofocus lens with 2x digital zoom (no optical zoom)
• Included 4 MB Smartmedia card holds 10 images at default resolution
• Automatically connects with Macs and PCs via USB port
• Uses 4 AA batteries (alkalines included)

Amazon.com Product Description

The PDR-T30 brings together the convenience of PDA-style touchscreen technology with the high-resolution photography. By taking full advantage of a wide spectrum of imaging innovations, such as an advanced 3.2 million pixel CCD, an all-glass lens system with optical and digital zoom, and Secure Digital media storage, the T30 delivers brilliant, eye-catching pictures. Plus it's incredibly easy to use thanks to its automatic point-and-shoot design, scene select modes, and ACDSee image editing and management software.

The T30 can shoot images up to a 2048 x 1536 pixel resolution for prints up to 11 x 14 inches. The 6x zoom (2x optical, 3x digital zoom) allows for shooting from distances. Images can be stored on Secure Digital (SD) or MultiMedia (MMC) memory cards; a 16 MB SD card is included.

A unique feature of the T30 is the LCD. You can write, draw, paint and annotate on your image in the camera, using the touch panel LCD.

It measures 2.1 x 4.1 x 1.1 inches and weighs 6.3 ounces. The camera is powered by an rechargeable lithium-ion battery. This package includes the PDR-T30 digital camera. 16 MB SD memory card, battery, AC adapter, USB cable, neck strap with stylus pen, camera bag, and CD-ROM with image editing software and drivers for Windows and Mac. ... Read more

Features

• 3.2 megapixel sensor captures enough detail for prints up to 11 x 14
• 2x optical zoom and 3x digital zoom (6x total)
• Over 1 minute of video at 320 x 240 resolution; touchscreen LCD control
• Includes 16 MB Secure Digital (SD) card; also compatible with MMCs
• Powered by rechargeable lithium-ion battery (PDR-BT3); connects with Macs and PCs via USB port

Features

• 3.2 megapixel sensor captures enough detail to create medium-quality prints up to 11 x 14
• 2.8x optical/2.2x digital (6x total) zoom lens with autofocus
• Included 8 MB Smartmedia card holds 9 images at default resolution
• Connects with Macs and PCs via USB port
• Uses 4 AA batteries (alkalines included)

Reviews (5)

Unforgivable support and service policies
I've had this camera for almost 2 years. Although it has never really perfomed as well as I'd hoped, the biggest complaint is in their support.

My camera was working just fine (besides a complaint of poor auto-focus since day one). Following Toshiba's recomendations and instructions posted on their website I downloaded and attempted to install a firmware upgrade (1.06A).

The "upgrade" managed to WIPE out all of my camera's operating system. So now I have an useless camera, and because the warranty expired after 12 months, Toshiba won't give me any help except to tell me to send my camera to Bensonville Illinois. ... A good consumer aware company should provide some sort of consideration for the fact that their recomended update is what damaged my camera.

Before this fiasco, I have always had issue with the quality of "auto-focused" shots. Bottom line is: even when making absolutely sure that the object that you want in focus is in the center of the viewfinder when pressing the button down half way before taking the shot-- it is a miracle if the shot comes out focused properly. I have borrowed other camers (specifically elf and minolta) and they are MUCH more likely to return sharper images.)

I have a Toshiba TV and DVD which work fine, but Toshiba has managed to squash my goodwill with this incident. In my opinion it is a very short-sided business strategy.

nice camera, decent price
this is a pretty nice camera. the resolution is great, it has all the features I wanted -- both auto and manual focus, great zoom, short video capacity with sound, connects to a PC easily, etc. the manual lens cover is annoying, and the battery cover pops off if you hit it, which can be a pain. but overall, it's a good camera, and for all the features the price is nice.

Wide array of features, competent performance-good value.
The Toshiba PDR-M71 is a "jack of all trades--mater of none" sort of package. I got one fpr my workplace as I needed a relatively inexpensive unit that provided a wide array of features and provided at least decent performance on all counts.

The M71 certainly has the features, including:

·3.2-megapixel CCD delivering image resolutions as large as 2,048 x 1,536 pixels.
·Real-image optical zoom viewfinder and 1.5-inch color LCD monitor.
·2.8x, Canon 7.25 - 20.3mm zoom (equivalent to a 35 - 98mm lens on a 35mm camera).
·Full Automatic, Program AE, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and six Scene exposure modes.
·Adjustable White Balance with six modes.
·
·Built-in flash with four user-selectable modes.
·Two- and 10-second Self-Timer modes.
·Movie mode with sound.
·Images saved in JPEG format to SmartMedia cards (8MB card included).
·USB cable and interface software for quick connection to a computer.
·A/V cable for viewing images on a television set.
·Power from four AA batteries (set of four alkaline batteries included).

All of the features work well-none are spectacular. Picture quality is truly good only at the highest resolutions-but that sacrifices quantity. Photos at lower resolutions have a sort of pinkish tint to them. The Movie Mode and Sound feature is better than I expected. Zoom works well but is limited-action shots blur, but close in set shots come out well. Battery life is OK.

This works well for the purpose I obtained it-a general use business camera. I think this would be a good choice for the first time user-for a relatively modest price you can get, use and evaluate a wide array of features and decide what you'd really want in a "serious" camera. If you are a serious user looking for a really good unit, I would expect that this unit would frustrate and disappoint you.

Good Value
The Good: 2.8 Optical lens, 3.1 Mpixels, plenty of manual controls, good price point, 3 jpeg compression options.

The bad: I would prefer compact flash over smartmedia. The manual lens cover is a little annoying. The battery door seems flimsy. The battery life is mediocre compared to other brands. It would be nice to have more resolution options (like a 1024x1200 and 1200x1600 option).

I give it five stars for solid overall value, no major drawbacks.

Easy to use
This is my first digital camera and not sure if I want to give up my 35mm yet. This camera's body is cheaper than most of the cameras I researched. I bought an Olympus 3020 and took it back because no hook up to TV, no sound on movie mode, and it cost too much to not have those things on it. The Olympus actually took clearer pictures and really good color. The Toshiba M71 is okay with pictures. It has a little pink tinting and not exactly right on pictures I have taken so far. The video is with sound and pretty good quality.I've only had it a couple of weeks. I am also using it at the highest resolution so I don't think I will be happy at the lower settings for picture taking. Remember also to take the lens cover off before turning on for picture taking or the lens will not come out. Easy hookup for downloading pictures to computer!
Bottom Line-You get what you pay for! I saved... by buying Toshiba. ... Read more

Features

• 2-megapixel sensor creates 1,600 x 1,200 images for prints at sizes up to 8 x 10 inches
• 10x optical zoom and 4x digital zoom for 40 x total
• Continuous shooting mode at 4 frames per second; 2.5-inch LCD; full array of manual controls
• Compatible with SD and MMC memory cards
• Includes 4 AA alkaline batteries (rechargeables recommended); connects with PCs and Macs compatible with USB 1.1

Reviews (5)

Easy to use, Nice, Functional with Great Zoom!
I purchased this camera because I wanted a moderately priced, adequate camera to take photos from, especially on trips. I didn't want to shell out $500+ dollars for a camera with a significant optical zoom because I've lost some expensive cameras in the past. I ordered this one, and it is fantastic. I'm not a professional photographer, of course, but this camera does a great job and the zoom is fantastic! You can easily zoom in on someone's face from over 100 feet away. The large screen is also very good. I really like this camera.

Great for the Mac
This camera works seamlessly on my Mac G4 right out of the box, even without installing the software provided. Toshiba even provides the USB cable needed, something HP and Minolta save a buck on. The auto focus can be easily defeated when necessary. The recycle is speedy and the manual control knob on top is perfectly suited to an almost instant transition from digital stills to movie mode. Review your pix and flix almost as fast as you can push the advance arrow. Awesome camera.

I love this camera
This camera is a dream to use. I read various reviews before buying this model and everyone seemed to really think it was a good value. I agree. I have had 3 or 4 rather mid priced digital cameras before this one, and every feature of this camera is far, far superior to all my others. I keep a couple sets of rechargable AA's in rotation, but I even think this model has battery long life considering all the power. Another reviewer here mentioned great low-light photos, and I'll just add that I used it for a night time Mardi Gras parade for the web and I got some good shots, great color even in that low light at night. You can forget the 40X 'digital' zoom for hand held shots---but the 'real' 10X optical zoom is GREAT !

excellent buy
it took me several days of reading peoples reviews on camera specifictaions and studying about optics and talking to people in the local camera store in phoenix, before deciding that this was the camera to buy. i have been experimenting with in very low light conditions using long exposure and the results are beautiful. it can be enhanced with telescopic lenses if necessary as it has a provision. the remote control based mode is superb and widely appreciated by friends. the manual mode allows one to try out amazing extremes in photography. The best part is the 10x optical zoom. It beats all other cameras in this category hands down.

Best digital for the money I've seen
This was a replacement for my Nikon CP775, and so far outperforms it in every category. This camera has continuous shooting, manual shutter and aperture if desired, selectable flash- it even uses AA batteries rather than a specialty battery, and uses a standard rather than proprietary USB cable! For a semi-pro/ high-end hobby camera, I haven't been able to find this combination of features for this price. 10x zoom means no more separate tele lens, and the TTL viewfinder shows just the pic I'm getting. Clarity is good too. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Although it is only the size of an ordinary deck of cards, the Toshiba PDR-3310 packs a punch. Its 3.2-megapixel sensor can capture images with a resolution of up to 2,048 by 1,536 pixels, allowing for sharp and colorful prints of up to 11 by 14 inches. The 3x optical zoom and 2x digital zoom, for a total zoom of 6x, gives you an impressive range of shooting options.

You can frame your shots with the traditional viewfinder eyepiece or the large LCD monitor, which can also display stored photos and shooting modes. All of the main functions, such as exposure, flash, white balance, and focus, are fully automatic, but can be switched to manual control for greater control of the image. The 3310 can even shoot up to 15 seconds of AVI video at a resolution of 320 by 240 pixels. Use the video-out and view your work on any NTSC or PAL television.

The standard lithium-ion battery's life yields up to 100 shots with flash and 150 without. The included 16 MB SD card stores 59 photos at the normal setting. Since the 3310 is USB compatible, hookup and file transfer to a computer are fast and easy. Also included are photo-editing software, AC adapter, video cable, hand strap, and instruction manual. ... Read more

Features

• 3.2 megapixel sensor captures enough detail to create prints up to 11 x 14
• 3x optical zoom and 2x digital zoom for 6x total
• Included 8 MB Secure Digital card holds 8 images at default settings
• Connects with PCs and Macs via USB port
• Uses lithium-ion rechargeable battery

Reviews (2)

beware
This is a fine camera. Compact, user friendly, takes ideal pictures. However, all the nice points are completely spoiled by the fact that it uses a PRODUCT-SPECIFIC BATTERY which is near impossible to find (only on the internet by the way) and expensive to boot. To make matters worse, it is essential to have at least one spare battery. I've had the camera 18 months to date, and my original battery is all but toast.

small, lightweight, great quality, but some issues
This is my first digital camera, so I don't have anything to compare it to, but I really love it! Digital zoom, however, is completely worthless and ruined several pics on my first try--including a bear and cub shot that would have been great without it. I turned that option off. I have since talked to other digital camera owners who say digital zoom is worthless--makes photos come out pixelated and blurry--why even include it if it doesn't work??? The 3x optical zoom is nice, though. The photos this camera takes are great, even at "normal" resolution--at super fine resolution they are fantastic, but memory eaters, so I usually keep it on "normal." I didn't think I would use the video option when I first got it, but I use it all the time--making me wish I had shopped around for a camera which would include sound and make videos of any length up to memory or battery limitations! (This camera will only take 15 second QuickTime videos with no sound--even if you want it shorter.) Another issue I have with this camera is the battery--apparently it is rare and not available anywhere (including the store where I purchased the camera or Amazon.com)! ... The battery is the biggest limitation on how many photos I can take--I bought a 64MB memory card when I bought the camera and have never been able to fill it up before the battery needs recharging. One of the main reasons I bought this model was its small size and light weight to take backpacking, but without a spare battery, it doesn't last long. If I can get some spare batteries, I will be good to go! All in all, however, I am satisfied and have been enjoying my new toy immensely!! ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

The Toshiba PDR-M5 is a high-resolution 3x zoom digital camera. It has16 MB internal temporary storage for your favorite still shots, plus an 8 MBSmartMedia card for easy transference to your PC. It boasts advancedphotographic features including 1600 x 1200 resolution and ultrafast processing. The Toshiba PDR-M5 incorporates USB connectivity in addition to a serialoutput.

The camera has an ergonomic, stylish design with a backlit LCD controlpanel and easy-to-understand mode dial. The Toshiba PDR-M5 includes multiplerecording modes beyond the single mode. It has a fast-burst mode which uses thecamera's 16 MB of buffer memory to temporarily store photos. In fine mode, atthe highest resolution, the camera can capture an amazing four frames persecond. You can then observe the images on the LCD screen. A multi-image mode ispossible, capturing 16 small images in one 1600 x 1200 frame. Finally, the PDR- M5 records movies in AVI format without sound. Playback can be done on the LCDscreen or the file can be viewed with a program such as Apple's QuickTime.

TheToshiba PDR-M5 is fully compatible with both PC and Macintosh computers.Accessories include a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, AC power adapter, 8 MBSmartMedia card, hand strap, CD-ROM, serial cables, video cable, and USB cable. The included Image Expert software retrieves the camera settings for apertureand shutter speed for each photo so you are able to fully edit your images. ... Read more

Features

• 2.14-megapixel CCD sensor
• 3x optical zoom
• Fast USB connection
• Bright, clear 1.8-inch color LCD monitor
• 16 MB internal storage plus 8 MB SmartMedia card

Reviews (1)

toshiba PDR-M5 digital camera...the dream will come true
i had buy the PDR-M5 tow days ago, and i can give a positive oppinion about it. For 799,95$, it's the best digital camera that you can buy. It's a real toy... for adults only! It's easy to use, a five year old child could take many good picture,and , if you want something of more professional, the PDR-M5 is for you too, you can realize some very professional picture. I know what i say, i'am a fashion photographer.

try it, it's a good deal! ... Read more

Features

• Compact 5.2-megapixel camera--up to 2560 x 1920 pixel images and poster-size prints
• 40X Zoom = 3x optical zoom and 4x digital zoom (for 12x total)x 4XDigital
• 1.5-inch LCD; optical viewfinder; videos with audio up to 320 x 240 pixels at 15 fps
• Includes 16 MB Secure Digital (SD) card; also compatible with MMCs
• Powered by rechargeable lithium-ion battery; connects with PCs and Macs compatible with USB 1.1

Reviews (4)

Magnificent, Compact, Price Competitive Camera
I can not say enough about this camera. This is a sleek, compact, and very good looking camera with the technical capability to compete with the best of them. I must say that the functions are not simple to master, but be assured that after becoming familiar with them, this camera can stand up to the so-called best{olympus, canon, fuji, etc.} The price is what make the biggest difference.

I was pleased with my camera
The pictures were clear. Color was good..The only time my pic's came out a bit fuzzy was when it was far away and I was at maximum zoom. My camera has the 12X zoom. So I give my camera a 4 star..I am happy with it.

Very Disappointed
I will be returning this camera today. I bought it because the price was good for 5mp with digital zoom. The zoom is great but many of my pictures dark and they were blury if there was ANY movement - even in the "action" setting. I liked the size and ease of use but none of that matters when all you've got are dark, blury pictures.

Not a good cam
My experience with this camera was not so good. I thought 5mega pixal cam will be wonderful with this price but it was not so. It take very strange pictures with too much yellow color.
It can not work in rapidly changing light environment too. ... Read more