I've been considering the Optio S5z for a while now, but I am not quite
sure how usefull the LCD monitor is outdoors in sunny weather. Any
comments
out there?
It's not bad. LCDs have been improving incrementally over the years, but
I'm not sure how much better they can get as far as viewability in bright
sunlight conditions. I tried the S5z once outside the shop I work at, and
could see the screen well enough to compose the photo. What you should do
is find a shop that has it and will let you take it outside (we let
customers do this, as long as a salesperson goes with them) so you can see
for yourself.
The reason Pentax and other companies are eliminating optical viewfinders on
their point-and-shoot cameras is because market research shows the vast
majority of P&S users rarely (if ever) use them. Even outdoors. So by
removing something no one uses, they're able to both streamline their
cameras and, more importantly, lower their production costs.
In my opinion, optical viewfinders on digital point-and-shoot cameras will
disappear almost completely within five years.
John Celio
...is not a market analyst, but did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last
night...
--
http://www.neovenator.com
AIM: Neopifex
"Hey, I'm an artist. I can do whatever I want and pretend I'm making a
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