Marc2B4

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
1.44 of 5,
9 votes

Price Paid:  $90.00 from B&H

Summary:
The 285HV is a timeless classic. It just works

Strengths:
Simple straight forward design; I've used a 285 for over 25 years. It just keeps on working. It's a piece of equipment you can depend on time after time.

Weaknesses:
Top heavy when mounted on a camera body, the hot shoe will break if you're not careful. This baby will chew up AAs, so buy rechargable NiCads.

beatsme

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
2.33 of 5,
3 votes

Price Paid:  $90.00 from B&H

Summary:
This flash offers a lot of bang for the buck. I use it on my three Nikon bodies, without any problem. For a close fill flash it is a bit too powerful, but a normal distance to your subject gives you a dead on exposure. The made in China, and some negative experiences with some other Vivitar products lately scared me off a bit, but I'm happy with that flash like a pig in the mud. If you miss TTL: Never mind, the auto settings of this flash are as good! I measured the triggervoltage to be 8 volts, so it only seems to harm Canons.

Strengths:
Lots of power With an extension cable for the sensor you can use it off camera Dirtcheap! Consistent exposure (better than some "name brand" products) Very economical on batteries The battery tray is rather nifty. Have a second one, and changing batteries goes on the fly duing a shooting.

Weaknesses:
Having the settings scale on the side of the flash bothers me a bit. I don't trust the plastic shoe much(cries "made in China" too loud), but can be replaced with a metal shoe.

Similar Products Used:
Sunpak AF 4000Z, Sunpak 622 Super, and smaller Nikon and Metz flashes

Customer Service:
I guess, when that thing breaks I throw it away ... it has made its money already

Yau

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
4.50 of 5,
2 votes

Price Paid:  $90.00

Summary:
Tonnes of postive reviews here, so I will just reaffrim that this is a fantastic flash. I bought a Stofen Omni Bounce to go with it, and the results are great. (Read on web about someone who used Rubbermaid juice container as STOFEN-like diffuser on a 285HV) I will just add here that the newer 285HV has a trigger voltage of 12V (as told by Vivitar on http://www.botzilla.com/photo/strobeVolts.html), and the older 285 has a voltage of 350V. Some digicam makers (e.g. Canon) state that their digicams should only take 6V trigger, although my Panasonic FZ10 is officially cleared to accept 24V or less (as according to ISO 10330 spec). Giving it a 4 for the lack of a swivel head; otherwise a near-perfet flash.

Strengths:
Powerful output for size/price; Even coverage from 35mm onwards; Good range of accessories (but hard to locate); Use normal AA batteries (versus the Nikon SB-50DX's CR123 batt); Fast recycling, even with Alkaline batt; Consistent output; Accurate exposure (be it on analogue or digicam).

Weaknesses:
No swivel head; Dial is not lit/viewable in darkness; Possibly weak foot; Hard to locate accessories in Singapore (but can order online).

Similar Products Used:
Nikon SB-50DX, Sigma EF-500 Super, Canon 420EX, Metz 45CL-1

trevor_little

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
2.00 of 5,
3 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
When I blew up my first 285hv while trying to make a remote sensor cable (yeah its a funny story), i did not hesitate when buying a new one. If you are reading these reviews to decide between the 283 and the 285, I'd definatly invest the extra money and get the 285 (i own both)

Strengths:
~POWERFUL! ~versitile (gives you lots of control over aperature) ~really accurate sensor ~great price (can get them real cheap on the used market)

Weaknesses:
~although i havent had any trouble, i could see myself breaking the shoe off this thing.

Similar Products Used:
2600, 283

Customer Service:
none

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
2.88 of 5,
8 votes

Price Paid:  $56.00 from Allen's camera

Summary:
Excellant flash for the money. One potential problem is the older models of this flash have very high voltage, enough to try an electronic camera like my ELAN II. I used it as a fill light or main light on a light stand. (triggered by a $20 optical slave.) Sturdy except for plastic shoe mount. Various companies make metal shoe mounts for this product (usually for $40 to $50.) One more auto-trysister setting than the Sunpak 383. I prefer the newer Sunpak 383.

Strengths:
Sturdy. four auto-trysister settings. easy to change auto-settings. If you buy a recently made model, it is well worth the price

Weaknesses:
Older models have high voltage (see www.photo.net for discussions.)Cannot swivel, unlike newer competitor Sunpak 383

Similar Products Used:
Sunpak 383, Sunpak 422, Sunpak 544.

Customer Service:
Not needed