Samsung i7First Impressions Review

by Richard Baguley
Published on March 21, 2007

Navigation
Intro	Physical Tour
Components	Design / Layout
Modes	Control Options
Image Parameters	Connectivity / Extras
Overall Impressions	Conclusion

 

Samsung supplies their Digimax master software with the i7, which is a basic but functional program for downloading, editing and organizing photos. They also supply the Digimax converter program, which converts videos into the XVID MPEG-4 format that the media player mode of the i7 supports.

The i7 includes a USB 2.0 connection, plus a switchable NTSC/PAL composite video output. However, both of these are connected through the dock that is supplied with the device, so if you want to use either on the road, you’ll need to take the dock with you. You can’t use a generic USB or A/V cable.

The usual support for DPOF (for flagging images for later printing from the memory card) and PictBridge (for connecting directly to a PictBridge printer) support is included, providing a good number of ways to print an image without a PC.

The i7 uses a 1100 mAh battery, which seems a little small for a device with a large screen like this. Samsung did not supply any information on the expected battery life of the device, but we wouldn’t expect it to be especially long.

 

An impressive 450 MB of internal memory is included, and the i7 supports SD and SDHC cards up to 4GB. Larger cards (which will be available soon) may work, but 4GB is the maximum they guarantee.

 

MP3 player – The i7 can also work as a digital audio player. However, Samsung only claims support for one audio format: MP3. There is no indication that it will work with the other common audio formats (such as WAV or AAC+), and it isn’t clear if the Digimax converter will be able to convert files from other formats to MP3. Plus, it won’t work with any copy-protected music downloaded from online music stores such as Napster or iTunes. Basic support is provided for plays lists and searching music by artist, album, or title, but it’s not going to replace your iPod.

 

Video player – The i7 can also work as a video player, and the sample videos on the device looked impressive. The playback was smooth, and color was bright. But again, the player only supports one format: the open source XVID codec. Fortunately, the Digimax converter software does support converting many other video formats to this format and will resize the video to fit the i7 screen. Again, it’s not as flexible or feature-packed as a dedicated media player device, but it would be fine for watching short videos on your daily commute.

 

Advanced Shake Reduction – The i7 includes Samsung’s new ASR (Advanced Shake Reduction) mode, an electronic image stabilization system that boosts the shutter speed and sensitivity to avoid camera shake.

 

World Travel Guide - If you happen to find yourself in need of a cup of tea in Thailand, the i7 can help. Like all of Samsung’s new cameras, it features a world travel guide that includes tourist information for 30 countries, such as currencies, maps, and details of tourist attractions.