Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5,
2 votes

Price Paid:  $600.00 from second-hand from pri

Summary:
I bought this body second-hand because I wanted another Contax MF body; this one was 8+ years old but in excellent condition, a testament to the superior build and dependability of Contax cameras - everything about it reeks quality. This is slightly larger than the Aria and feels reassuringly solid. It offers spot and centre-weighted exposure metering. The red viewfinder readout is also easier to read in bright lighting conditions. Everything is laid out in the familiar Contax SLR style, and controls are very intuitive.

Strengths:
Excellent build quality, bright viewfinder, fabulous Zeiss lenses, intuitive controls, easy to use.

Weaknesses:
The shutter is quite loud, making it a tad inappropriate for some situations.

Similar Products Used:
Contax Aria Nikon F80

Customer Service:
Never had to use it.

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
4.00 of 5,
1 votes

Price Paid:  $700.00

Summary:
This is a really nice camera. Its construction is great, like almost all others Contax bodies. The camera is compact in size but when you lift it you inmediately can realize that it has a really serious construction. The operation is very simple and straightfoward as you have all the controls very well placed and they are extreamely easy to understand ergo i also have to say that ergonomically it is also a very nice camera. The metering system is great and performs flawlesly in almost all situations, specially if you know how to use the spot metering. The built in date back is a useful features in some situations. The viewfinder is very clear, bright and contrasty and is very easy to focus even in very dim light.

Strengths:
Excellent built quality. Meter´s accuracy. Bright, clean and contrasty viewfinder. The viewfinder shutter is also a nice adition.

Weaknesses:
Sometimes is miss things like multiple exposure setting mirror lock-up (tough the mirror is very well dumped) and custom funtion to leave the tip out in the rewind. A bit loud (both shutter and rewind) Sometimes for find the grip a bit narrow with bigger and heavier lenses but the aditional battery pack solves this problem nicely. The RTS III´s TTL pre flash metering would be wonderful.

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Price Paid:  $900.00

Summary:
Like other Contax cameras very solid construction, feels very good in the hand. Straight forward operation, controls are very easy to understand and operate. LED read out in viewfinder easy to see in bright light and the large ceramic pressure is such an outstanding concept and feature it is suprising it has not caught on more in the industry (must be a patent thing). The feel is very much like the RTS III, but on a slightly smaller and lighter scale. The specs on paper may not seem impressive as compared to some of todays wonder cameras (the ST is an early 1990''s design), but it is a wonderful camera that requires little instruction to use and takes those GREAT Zeiss lenses. If I had to live with just ONE Contax camera - this would be it.

Strengths:
Quality construction and feel Spot metering Lighted top panel Zeiss Lenses !!!

Weaknesses:
None I can think of, yeah the film leader group does have a point, but it is minor overall. Also, Contax no longer produces this model, but they can still be found on the back shelf at some stores.

Similar Products Used:
Contax RTS III Contax Aria Canon F1, T90, EF

Customer Service:
I have called customer service before and they have always been very helpful.

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Price Paid:  $700.00 from Keh

Summary:
Ergonomic -- exposure compensation and AEL by the shutter button. Very solid -- this feels like a camera. Traditional -- the photographer is involved versus isolated from the photographic process. In other words, the camera is not overly automated. Zeiss lenses -- need I say more?

Strengths:
Build quality, relative simplicity and Zeiss lenses. Value rating of five stars, as I bought a demo model.

Weaknesses:
Lacks multiple exposure setting, mirror lock-up. Loud -- both shutter and rewind.

Similar Products Used:
Nikon N80 Contax RTS II

Customer Service:
None so far.

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 3 of 5

Visitors rate this review
3.00 of 5,
2 votes

Price Paid:  $1200.00 from Mail Ordered

Summary:
I love it. Not to gimmicky yet has enough features to handle everything I shoot.

Strengths:
Zeiss lenses, strong build quality, ergonomic controls

Weaknesses:
Losing the film tip on rewind.

Similar Products Used:
Nikon, Canon

Customer Service:
None