Samsung WB550 (aka HZ15W) Review

Photography Blog has a great review of the Samsung WB550 (aka HZ15W).  They give the camera a 4 out of 5 starts and say:

Though it is beginner friendly, Samsung’s WB550 fortunately doesn’t look cheap and cheerful and neither should it for $300. While, OK, it may not be the most svelte compact around, compensation comes in the form of its broader-than-average focal range which provides competition for Panasonic’s similarly specified TZ series of big zoom, small form factor compacts

Amazon.com Price: $215.16 (as of 2010-03-12 01:10:27 GMT) Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon.com at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.

User Reviews Send this to a friend
Manufacturer: Samsung
Customer Rating:
 
List Price: $329.99
Sale Price: $215.16
Availibility: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description

The Samsung HZ15W includes a world first 10x optical zoom and 24mm ultra wide angle Schneider lens and cements Samsung's position as an innovator in the new and important High-zoom category - compact cameras equipped with the sort of advanced zoom lens technology traditionally seen only in SLR cameras. This new technology gives people even greater control and helps them take better, professional standard photos; enhancing the entire photography experience, from shooting to sharing images with friends and family. The 12-megapixel HZ15W also includes HD movie capture so people can "Pause and Re-record" high definition videos and super sharp movie-quality recordings in one movie clip - a Samsung patented function. The cameras also include "Smart Auto" (Scene Recognition) technology: 11 optimized picture pre-settings such as Portrait, Night portrait, Macro and Macro Color, to help people take the perfect shot regardless of the conditions.

Product Details

  • 12-megapixel resolution for large, photo quality prints
  • 10x optical zoom; 24mm ultra-wide angle Schneider lens
  • Dual Image Stabilization combines the strengths of Optical and Digital Image Stabilization
  • Record high-definition video at a resolution of 720p
  • Capture images to SD/SDHC memory cards (not included)

Video Reviews

[No-Edit PMA 09] Samsung to announce its camera HZ15W
The new Samsung HZ15W digital camera
Samsung WB550/HZ15W HD Movie Test (Macro)
The unprecedented 24mm ultra wide wirh 10x zoom! WB550 Review
Imaging Resource PMA 2009 - Samsung Digital Cameras

Customer Reviews

Love that lens!
 
Review Date: February 23, 2010
Reviewer: Rob, San Diego, CA
Other reviewers have adequately touched on the finer points of this camera. I just have to add that I absolutely LOVE the wide angle lens on this camera. It brings a whole new "artistic" element to my photos that I was completely missing out on before. I picked up this camera on an impulse buy for just over 200 bucks and couldn't be happier!
Great product
 
Review Date: February 10, 2010
Reviewer: Vikram S. Thakur, usa
I have had this camera for over a week now and have tried all the modes on it. Manual mode is the one that I love the most. All other modes also performed great for me. I have read some reviewers complaining about poor low light performance of the camera. I would respectfully like to differ here. If you are shooting within the flash range, the still pictures come out just wonderful. Beyond flash range no camera will give you great stills, unless you have an add-on flash with a greater range or a LED camera light. I also own a Canon digital SLR. Low light performance on this one is no different from the Samsung HZ15W. And also if you are using telephoto lens capability in the dimly lit conditions, no camera will fare good enough. I think if you play around a little with the shutter speed/aperture/and ISO settings in the Manual mode, you will not be disappointed, and you will still be able to capture good shots in these conditions. Wide angle shots are amazing. This is where this camera steals the show. The optical zoom holds its integrity very well whether in the wide angle mode or telephoto mode. The lens cover is not very strong though.
I did not shoot a lot of videos with it though. But, whatever I shot was pleasant to watch on the computer. I have not yet tried the video on the TV. Some people have also complained about the zoom sound showing up in the actual video. This camera has the capability to mute zoom sound. All in all this has been a great buy for me so far. There are some things that I thought Samsung could have done better. The charging cable is too short. I think they should have included the manual and the mini-HDMI cable in the box with the camera. The battery does not hold charge for long. I have ordered a spare battery from E bay. I still gave this camera five stars because performance wise I did not find any flaws. And I was looking for a camera that is not a pain to carry around and would still give me some control over the functions.
Great pocket camera with excellent zoom quality
 
Review Date: January 6, 2010
Reviewer: S. Johnson,
I own a Samsung full HD camcorder SC HMX20C, have had it for about 7 months, and the video results are astounding. So in searching for a pocket camera, this Samsung HZ15W had the features I most needed, and expected the inner workings to produce excellent quality photos. It did not disappoint. The 10x zoom produces excellent pictures, macro pictures are very detailed, and the 8g memory card has great capacity. I'd buy it again in a second.
Samsung Camera
 
Review Date: December 28, 2009
Reviewer: John W. French, Grand Prairie, TX USA
The quality of the pictures is stunning and it seems easy to use. Very nice, a bit larger (wider) than I expected though. Maybe Samsung could make them in colors; it would have been nice to have something other than black. The settings are also easy to set except for the time. We haven't figured that out yet as mine, from Amazon, was missing the manual. Or maybe it doesn't have one. I'm very happy with the camera. I bought a 4g memory card and it's enough for us to take many, many pictures.
Very Satisfied
 
Review Date: December 22, 2009
Reviewer: TJL, PA
I purchased this camera primarily to get better quality videos than my older Kodak. I have been very pleased with that result. The only flaw I have found is that if a photo is rotated 90 deg, it reverts to the original configuration. Not a major issue since I deal with that in my photo editing software.

I mainly put photos and video on a DVD to view on a HD TV at 16:9 aspect ratio. The 10 mp setting is 16:9, so that's what I use. Like many feature laden cameras, if you really want to understand it, you need to invest time to read and understand the manual - a somewhat formidible task, but unavoidable.

Within the past year I have purchased this camera, a Samsung HD TV and a Samsung DVD player. They all work very nicely together. I have found the Samsung brand to be excellent!
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