Feature-packed point and shoot. great value.

Not many compared with cameras in its category.

A great beefed-up point and shoot camera, with as many options as this category would allow. If you are into serious photography this is not the camera for you, it is aimed at those who are one step ahead of the point-and-shooters, those who want to incorporate some creativity into their photos. Actually I bought an IS-10 Super for my 13-years old son as a first camera. It is a great performer for the casual user, with enough controls for some nifty tricks. It is discontinued but I bought mine S/H from eBay.

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IS-3, IS-5

Available teleconverter lens; easy to understand features. Nice bridge camera.

Size, weight --especially if you add the extra lens + filters. Film advance mechanism broke down after 1 & 1/2 yrs. of average use (10-12 rolls/yr).

Now that price has come down it's a better value, and the pictures usually turn out well. Size makes it less convenient to carry around than the smaller more compact models

Customer Service

Slow, both from Olympus and from Ritz Camera

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Compact point and shoot, both 35 mm and APS.

Nice weight, feels good in hand compared to usual lightweight P&S cameras
High quality lens, great images
More advanced features than most compact cameras

More advanced features...
Auto focus is very slow
When powered on, lens is always extended, making the camera too large for some casual use
Not a "pocket" camera

I am a casual user and wanted to replace my ol P&S. I tried several quite good smaller "pocket" cameras. However, as someone who would like to learn more about photography, I thought this would be a nice bridge camera. The manual settings, and more advanced features really attracted me. The quality of the pictures I have printed has been stunning when compared to my old minolta. I am sure that with some practice and technique, I could do great things.
Some of the reviews for this camera really gave me buyers remorse, but in actuality, I think those reviews were from advanced users who were looking for a professional quality camera. For a regular user - this is more camera than you will ever need. That's why I opted to buy the less expensive IS-10 and not the newer IS-20 or IS-30 models. This is more than enough for me and the pictures have been fabulous! I took a phot of my cat that was so clear and life like, you could actually see the individual hairs in her coat - not posisble in the old Minolta! I will however keep a tiny P&S that I can stick in a pocket for times when carrying the IS-10 is just not practical.

Customer Service

N/A

Similar Products Used:

Minolta Freedom Zoom 70
Olympus Stlyus Epic Zoom
Rollei Prego 90

Nice size, weight and shape. Good sharpness.

Contrast was so poor I found the camera to be unusable. In all lighting conditions, with several types of negative film and different labs, images were always very flat.

Flash metering does not work properly in low-light conditions; resulting in extreme overexposure.

I bought the camera because I thought it was a good concept; I would probably love the camera if it had a decent lens. Unfortunately the picture quality is not nearly as good as my much smaller/lighter/cheaper Stylus Epic point-and-shoot, so the IS-10 sits in the closet. Maybe they should try making an all-in-one camera like this with a prime lens instead of a zoom; that would be useful for people like me who want top quality images without the size and weight of an SLR or the cost of a Leica, Contax or Hexar rangefinder. Or maybe someone could resume making low-priced rangefinder cameras with good lenses, like my old Yashica Electro 35. I bought the IS-10 when it first came out and cost nearly $400; it's cheaper now but still a poor value.

Customer Service

N/A

Similar Products Used:

Minolta X-700, Canon AE-1, Olympus Stylus Epic, Yashica Electro 35

Great glass, Ease of use, Excellent Metering. A few Presets that give some creative control although extremely limited.
Addon lenses. AF assist from IR and flash bursts.

Too little user input options, Semi-Slow glass, Slow AF and hunts in low light.

I knew when I bought this camera used from a friend that it had virtually no manual input, at the time I just wanted a higher quality point and shoot. That is exactly what I got. The camera has held up incredibly well. I owned for about a year after my freind had owned it for about six months. I sold it to my father to replace his old Kodak P&S. He's used and abused it for about four years now. I picked it up the last time I was home and it worked like it did when it was new. If you are looking to learn photography this is probably not the camera for you. But, for anyone looking for a high quality automatic camera, this has got to be one of the better choices. You can buy one used on ebay for around $100. It'll take very sharp and well metered photos.

Customer Service

never needed

Similar Products Used:

Olympus IS-3DLX,Olympus E-10, Canon AE-1/p,A-1,T90, Nikon F100, 8008s, Coolpix 990, Epson PhotoPC 850z