Casio Exilim EX-Z850

Value
With a price tag of just under $400, the Z850 is at the higher end of point-and-shoot cameras. You get some pretty impressive features with the Z850, including a huge 8 MP sensor, a plethora of Best Shot modes, helpful functions such as Anti-Shake DSP and white LED illumination for both still images and movies, super battery life and a range of manual options. For all that money though you’d think Casio would have put a better LCD on the back of this camera. Just 115,000 pixels on a 2.5-inch screen doesn’t cut it in this price range.

Of course, we still need to look at image quality is our full review to see if those 8 MPs are really being fully utilized in this model, or if it’s just a number to sell more cameras.

Who It’s For
Point-and-Shooters – A great pocket camera with a lot of firepower, the Z850 is made to order for the point-and-shoot crowd, though they might be disappointed by the relatively low resolution on the screen.

Budget Consumers – This camera is definitely aimed at the consumer with a little extra spending money. Budget consumers interested in Casio should look at the $249 EX-Z60 instead.

Gadget Freaks – Gadget freaks will probably have fun picking through the layers on layers of features in this camera, though there’s nothing really cutting edge to satisfy them over the long haul.

Manual Control Freaks – This camera surprises with its range of manual control, including aperture and shutter priority AE and the ability to manually select white balance. While not offering as much control as a DSLR, it’s not bad for a little camera like this.

Pros / Serious Hobbyists – If this model stands up to quality tests in an upcoming review, we’d recommend it to pros and hobbyists as a great 8 MP pocket camera you can bring along as a fun backup.

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