REVIEWS / POINT AND SHOOT / SAMSUNG INDIA

Samsung ST66 Review

22 Sep, 2012, 6:37 pm IST | by Anand Tuliani | Point and Shoot

Point and Shoot

The body is just 16.9 mm thick

The body is just 16.9 mm thick
A 16.1 MP ultracompact camera with a good feature set
2.7-inch LCD display and a simple control panel

PRICE IN INDIA

6,690

TECH2 RATING

5.0

AVERAGE USER RATING

8.0

How we test

CONTACT

Samsung India

 1800 3000 8282, 18002668282

 www.samsung.com

Performance

Press the on/off button and the ST66 takes about a second to get ready to snap. We liked the intuitive user interface. But the time taken to write the image to the memory card, coupled with the slow flash recharge, is disappointing. With flash disabled, it takes a good 3 seconds to write a photo to a Class 4 microSD card and get ready for the next shot. With flash enabled, it takes 4.5 seconds. You can easily miss a golden moment during the lag.

 

Noise performance

The ST66 is below average when it comes to handling noise. Only up to ISO 100 will you find the noise level acceptable, beyond which graininess kills the details. We’ve seen entry-level cameras perform fairly well at ISO 400, but this camera doesn’t quite make the cut. The solution to this problem is to scale down the image shot at ISO speeds greater than 400 to 20 percent, apply some sharpening and boost the contrast . ISO 1600 and 3200 yield very grainy results. Thankfully, there is hardly any colour noise which would have otherwise ruined the shots.

ISO 100

ISO 100

 

ISO 400

ISO 400

 

ISO 800

ISO 800

 

ISO 1600

ISO 1600

 

 

Shots taken with the ST66 look nice so long as they are fit to screen. Zoom in to 100 percent and you’ll find that the reproduction of details of distant objects is poor. Even objects in close proximity appear a little fuzzy. This indicates that the optics and the image processing engine of this camera leave a lot to be desired. What we enjoyed the most was shooting with Magic Frames – it’s fun to use with friends.

Magic Frames are fun

Magic Frames are fun

 

 

Shot using Half Tone Dot filter

Shot using Half Tone Dot filter

 

 

Macro mode: Notice the highlight along the bright edges

Macro mode: Notice the highlight along the bright edges

 

 

The video quality was good. At 720p, there is very little jitter, but that can be ignored. Using Smart Filters while recording videos doesn’t affect the frame rate. A common problem with many cameras is the microphone picking up the annoying zoom motor noise and the Samsung ST66 isn’t an exception. There is an option called Sound Alive, which when enabled suppresses the sound of the zoom motor – it does bring some relief.

 

Verdict and pricing in India

The Samsung ST66 is priced at Rs. 6,690. There are many other cameras that fall in this price bracket and they can’t be ignored. It’s only the below average quality of photos that holds us back from recommending this camera. If you don’t have a very high budget and want compactness, we suggest looking at the Canon PowerShot A2300 which costs Rs 6,300. The specifications are similar to the ST66, but the quality of image it captures is far better.

Page 2:

Performance and Verdict


Tags:

Samsung ST66 , Samsung ST66 Review , Samsung ST66 price , Samsung ST66 price in India , Samsung ST66 features , Samsung ST66 specifications , ultracompact digital cameras , digital cameras , Samsung cameras , Samsung compact cameras , Samsung digital cameras

Would you buy it?




Samsung ST66

04 Sep, 2012, 10:59 am IST

Samsung ST66

Samsung ST66 | unboxing

29 May, 2012, 08:24 pm IST

Samsung ST66 | unboxing

 


How We Test

The Tech2 Labs receives many products every single week and each of them is tested with the utmost care and highest level of objectivity. There’s a constant effort to reduce and totally eliminate subjectivity. Each product is tested according to set test processes so the same test scenario is used.

Verdict
The ratings awarded to a product are derived from a number of tests and calculations, keeping certain important factors in mind. These factors consist of features, performance, quality and value for money. In case of software and some other categories, build quality might be replaced with ease of use or ease of installation. Products are compared with other products in a similar price range or product category.


Features
The features component of the score is rated based on the kind of features present on a particular product. Features are a big part of what people look for when they’re buying a new product such as a phone or a camera.

Performance
The performance score is derived from the benchmarks and tests run on the product. In case of the subjective scores, an average of the scores given by the group of reviewers is considered.

Build Quality
The build quality of a product is important so that it doesn’t fall apart after some use. The build quality scores from the way the product is designed and the kind of materials used in the product.

Value
Value for money comes from the fact that a cheap product is able to provide most of the performance of a higher priced product. Once again, value for money is judged by comparing pricing and performance of products in a particular price range or category. 

There are many other aspects of the product that are looked at such as the bundled software and accessories. All of these scores are aggregated together to form the final score.

What do the ratings mean?

Ratings are simple - higher the score, the better the product. A brief listing of the features and what they mean are given below.

1 - 3

The product is bad in almost every aspect. We strongly advise against purchasing this product.

4 - 6

An average product that isn't the best you can buy, but isn't the worst either.

7 - 8

Product with this rating is highly recommended because it's priced sensibly, has a good set of features and performs well.

9 - 10

Exceptionally excellent product with features and performance unlike any we've seen in the past. A must-have for everyone!

What is the Average User Rating?

We at Tech2 take product reviewing very seriously and every product is tested with the utmost care and level of objectivity. The end user who buys a particular product and uses it over an extended period of time has his own take on a product and there might be nuances that he or she can shed light on. The Average User Rating is present to help readers get the complete picture of how good or bad a product is. The Average User Rating is calculated by averaging the ratings by the thousands of readers visiting Tech2.com every single day. To record your own rating of a product, simply click on the user rating bar. If you disagree with our ratings or our community's product rating, please don't hesitate from voicing your opinion in the comments section below the review.

Leaked Images, Availability, Pricing,
Specs, Pre-order

LG X Boom CM9730 Video Review

LG X Boom CM9730 Video Review

21 May, 2013, 05:42 AM

5.0

Samsung Galaxy S4 Video Review

Samsung Galaxy S4 Video Review

14 May, 2013, 11:30 AM

4.8

HP ElitePad 900 Video Review

HP ElitePad 900 Video Review

14 May, 2013, 11:24 AM

2.5

MORE VIDEOS

5 Mistakes to avoid when shooting photos

5 Mistakes to avoid when shooting photos

It’s not the camera, it’s the person behind it! While it may not be...

By Anand Tuliani

Market Watch: Entry-level Digital Cameras

Market Watch: Entry-level Digital Cameras

We list 20 entry-level digital cameras across all popular brands to help...

By Anand Tuliani , Rajesh D'souza

G.O.T.Y. 2012: Compact Digital Cameras

G.O.T.Y. 2012: Compact Digital Cameras

Want to choose from the best compact digital cameras launched in 2012?...

By Anand Tuliani

MORE FEATURES