Casio Exilim EX-FH20 Digital Camera Review - Casio Point and Shoot

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Model Design / Appearance (6.00)
The EX-FH20, like many other ultra-zoom point-and-shoots, cribs much of its design style from SLRs. It's smaller, weighs less, and doesn't feel as substantial as most SLRs, but it still manages to maintain that somber, serious tone, that implies "look at me, I'm using a REAL camera." While the lens doesn't extend very far when the camera is off, once you're fully zoomed in, it points up like a multi-tiered pilgrim's hat

Size / Portability (9.00)
The FH-20 weighs in at 17 oz (483 g) and measures 4.8" wide by 3.2" high x 3.3" deep (122.6mm x 81.4mm x 84.5mm) when fully powered down. While it may be too big to slide into your pocket, it'll happily fit in a purse or bag, and weighs little enough that it won't slow you down.

Handling Ability (6.00)
While the grip on the FH20 may feel a little small for those with large hands, the camera is light enough that you don't need a rigor mortis grip to keep from dropping it. The textured thumb-pad on the rear helps to keep a steady hold on the camera, and it's easy to use single-handed. However, once you bring your left hand into the mix, the situation gets a bit more complicated. The natural tendency when holding an SLR-like camera is to use your other hand around the barrel of the lens. Since the lens is actually rather short in this camera, you can't fit your hand around it properly. You can hold it like a point-and-shoot, but the viewfinder hump makes it feel just a little awkward.

Control Button / Dial Positioning / Size (7.25)
The controls on the FH20 feel a bit small and of dubious quality. Given that there is so much unused space, the buttons could have been enlarged, at least slightly, without too much trouble. Strangely, the only way to switch between shooting and playback is via two buttons, one for each. Traditionally, one button or switch will alternate between the two modes, or at least you can half-press the shutter button to bring you back to shooting mode out of playback. Not so with the FH20. It's not a huge deal, but it does slow you down a little when you expect the camera to handle in a certain way and it doesn't.

We also found the mode dial to be overly stiff, to the point where it requires a significant output of force to change settings. Contrarily, the zoom ring is very smooth, and makes zooming in and out very easy. However, while the ring itself is smooth to control, the actual zooming on the camera was pretty jerky.

Menu (8.00)

The menu system is composed of three tabs, each consisting of a number of pages, with six options on each page. The text is large and clear, with bright coloring. We would have preferred an organizational system with more tabs, as having to go through three pages of settings to get the one you want isn't ideal, but it's not as bad as some cameras we've seen.

The first tab, REC, contains photo settings including face detection, focal options, assist grid and the like.

QUALITY is the second tab, and holds the settings for image quality, dynamic range, sharpening, color, contrast, and, strangely, the flash.

SET UP has the nitty gritty of options for the screen, date and time, location, language and such.

PLAY mode gives you basic editing controls, slideshow, duplicating the image, and other similar settings.

The quick menu is accessed by pressing the SET button, and will let you alter shooting mode; image size; ISO; white balance; exposure compensation; metering; focus and flash without taking over the entire LCD.

Ease of Use (2.00)
This camera offers a significant degree of control to the user. It essentially has the ability to go full manual, with complete control over focus, aperture and exposure time. Unfortunately, they're difficult to alter on the fly, and don't give you the information you'd hope for with regards to over- or under- exposing an image. In most cameras, when you set it to Auto, almost every setting is controlled for you, like ISO and white balance. With the FH20, only the shutter speed and aperture are automatically set, making it similar to the Program mode you see in more advanced cameras.

Components	Page 6 of 14		Modes
Casio Exilim EX-FH20 Digital Camera Review Navigation
Intro	Physical Tour	Color and Resolution	Speed and Timing
Components	Design / Layout	Modes	Control Options
Image Parameters	Connectivity / Extras	Overall Impressions	Conclusion
Sample Photos	Specs / Ratings