Samsung SH100 Digital Compact Camera Review

Features
Handling
Performance
Verdict
Specification

NB. Due to similarities in performance, some of the review is the same as the Samsung ST90 review.


The Samsung SH100 was released in January 2011 and offers various features which are fairly uncommon in digital compact cameras, such as Wi-Fi connectivity as well as a 3inch touch screen. It is available in red, black and silver from £112.00.

Samsung SH100: Features

The SH100 is all about sharing our pictures whether at home or on the move. With built in Wi-Fi you can upload directly to Facebook, Picasa, YouTube or Samsung.com. You can also set the camera to automatically backup to your PC and display you pictures and videos on a TV.

The camera can also be connected to your smart phone, using Remote Viewfinder, where you can control zoom, flash, resolution etc. as well as geo-tagging. If your phone allows personal hotspots then you can take advantage of Wi-Fi tethering, where the camera will connect with your phone and utilise your 3G connection to upload your pictures and videos to the web.

The camera is controlled using the wide 3inch LCD touch screen. Other features include Smart Filters for both images and videos, Magic Frame and Object Highlight.

The SH100 can shoot 720p HD videos at 30fps with and the 5x optical zoom lens can be used during recording. Sound Alive is a special zoom noise reduction technology which helps give crystal clear sound recording.

Key Features

• 3.0inch Wide Smart Touch LCD screen
• 14.2 Megapixel sensor
• 5x optical zoom 26mm wide-angle lens
• Wi-fi connectivity
• PC Auto Backup
• Wi-Fi Tethering
• Remote Viewfinder
• Smart Auto 2.0
• Smart Filter
• Magic Frames
• Smart Face Recognition
• Object Highlight
• Digital Image Stabilisation
• Sound Alive
• ISO80 - 3200
• 720p HD video recording

Samsung SH100: Handling

The Samsung SH100 is a well built camera which is certainly going to impress your friends and family and is small enough to carry around in your pocket when out and about. Although it takes a little while to get used to, the touch screen is impressive and easy to use.

There is a zoom rocker and four buttons, these being the power, shutter release, playback and home buttons. The camera's menus are well laid out and easy to navigate, with the screen easy to view, although in bright conditions there is the need to shield the sun from the screen.

The camera is ready to shoot within a couple of seconds of switching on and focusing speed is good. In continuous shooting mode the camera is capable of around 0.7fps and 6.3fps when using motion capture, although the image size is reduced in this mode.

Samsung SH100: Performance

Detail is better in the centre of the images with a hint of blur around the images when viewing them at full size. In the bright sky on the wide shot there is some slight lens flare and purple fringing. The camera is capable of good close-up macro pictures thanks to a minimum focus distance of 5cm in macro mode.

Wide-angle, ISO80, 1/350, f/3.3, 4.7mm (35mm equiv: 26mm)		Full optical zoom, ISO80, 1/350, f/5.9, 23.5mm (35mm equiv: 130mm)
Digital zoom, ISO80, 1/350, f/5.9, 23.5mm (35mm equiv: 130mm)		Macro, ISO100, 1/45, f/3.3, 4.7mm (35mm equiv: 26mm)

There is a touch of noise at ISO80, this barely worsens though at ISO100, and again to ISO200. Noise does start to kick in at ISO400 and is much worse at ISO800. Images produced at ISO1600 and ISO3200 have plenty of noise and are best suited for small sized use. Throughout the ISO range, colour reproduction remains very good.

ISO80, 1/4, f/5.1, 20mm (35mm equiv: 104mm)	ISO100, 1/4, f/5.1, 20mm (35mm equiv: 104mm)	ISO200, 1/8, f/5.1, 20mm (35mm equiv: 104mm)	ISO400, 1/15, f/5.1, 20mm (35mm equiv: 104mm)
ISO800, 1/30, f/5.1, 20mm (35mm equiv: 104mm)	ISO1600, 1/60, f/5.1, 20mm (35mm equiv: 104mm)	ISO3200, 1/125, f/5.1, 20mm (35mm equiv: 104mm)

Below are some sample images taken using the SH100. Using the camera's Beauty Shot mode, portrait shots are easy to take with pleasing skin tones, although there is a touch of red-eye in the example shot below. In Landscape mode the camera takes images with excellent blues and greens. The fourth image was created by taking shots using the cameras AEB mode, which took images at -0.5, ±0 and +1 exposure compensation and then merged using Adobe Photoshop CS5.

Portrait, ISO240, 1/90, f/5.9, 23.5mm (35mm equiv: 130mm)		Landscape, ISO80, 1/125, f/9.4, 4.7mm (35mm equiv: 26mm)
Object highlight, ISO400, 1/20, f/3.3, 4.7mm (35mm equiv: 26mm)		Three AEB images merged in Photoshop to create HDR, ±0, -0.5, +0.5, ISO80, 1/1000, 1/180, 1/750, f/3.3, f/9.4, f/3.3, 4.7mm (35mm equiv: 26mm)

During testing the ST90's auto white-balance performance was good and proved perfectly capable under our fluorescent and incandescent studio lights. Using the fluorescent preset under the fluorescent lights gives a slight green cast in the image, the AWB preset does a much better job.

Auto White Balance - Incandescent Lighting, ISO100, 1/15, f/4.2, 8mm (35mm equiv: 42mm)		Preset Incandescent WB - Incandescent Light, ISO100, 1/15, f/4.2, 8mm (35mm equiv: 42mm)
Auto White Balance - Fluorescent Light, ISO100, 1/3, f/4.2, 8mm (35mm equiv: 42mm)		Fluorescent White Balance - Fluorescent Light, ISO100 1/3, f/4.2, 8mm (35mm equiv: 42mm)

Smart Filters

Below are sample images taken using the various Smart Filters available on the SH100.

Original, ISO80, 1/8, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)	Vignetting, ISO80, 1/6, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)	Soft Focus, ISO80, 1/10, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)	Old Film 1, ISO80, 1/8, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)
Old Film 2, ISO80, 1/10, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)	Half Tone Dot, ISO80, 1/10, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)	Sketch, ISO80, 1/10, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)	Fish-eye, ISO80, 1/10, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)
Defog, ISO80, 1/10, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)	Classic, ISO80, 1/10, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)	Retro, ISO80, 1/10, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)	Negative, ISO80, 1/10, f/4.7, 9mm (35mm equiv: 50mm)

Video Mode

The ST95 shoots videos at 720p HD, 640 x 480 and 320 x 240 all at either 30/15 fps and allow the use of the 5x optical zoom, an example of which can be seen on the ePHOTOzine Youtube page. For added creativity, videos can be shot with the addition of the following smart filters: Palette Effect 1, 2, 3 & 4, Miniature, Vignetting, Half Tone Dot, Sketch, Fish-eye, Defog, Classic, Retro and Negative.

Value For Money

The Samsung SH100 can be bought for around £112.00. If you are looking for a camera with Wi-Fi connectivity then this represents superb value for money as they are extremely rare. An alternative to built in Wi-Fi are the Eye-Fi memory cards which can do a similar job. If it's the touch screen which catches your eye there are a few other compacts to consider, such as the Kodak Easyshare Touch, Fujifilm FinePix Z900 EXR and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS37.

Samsung SH100: Verdict

In terms of picture quality, performance is consistent with other Samsung compacts we have reviewed of late, with excellent colour reproduction. This particular model differs from the rest with its Wi-Fi connectivity and touch screen which both prove to be a welcome addition. The Wi-Fi means that images and videos can be shared quickly and easily, at home or on the move, on sites such as Facebook.

The Smart Filters on offer here are good and they are also available for use on videos as well. Available from just £112.00, the Samsung SH100 is certainly great value for money for a camera which does something a little bit different from the others.

The Samsung SH100 offers some unusual features including Wi-Fi, good performance and all for a great price.

Samsung SH100: Pros

Excellent colour reproduction
Wi-Fi connectivity is extremely rare for a compact camera
Filters available on images and videos
Camera is very compact and looks good
Optical zoom available on videos
AEB rare on compact / budget cameras

Samsung SH100: Cons

Some purple fringing and chromatic aberration at times
Requires a Micro SD card

FEATURES
HANDLING
PERFORMANCE
VALUE FOR MONEY
OVERALL

Samsung SH100: Specification

Price	£112.00
Contact	www.samsungcamera.co.uk
Optical zoom	5x optical zoom, f = 4.7 - 23.5mm (35mm film equiv: 26 - 130mm), f/3.3 - 5.9
Resolution	14.2 megapixels
Sensor size	1/2.3in
Sensor type	CCD
Max image size	4320 x 3240
Aspect ratio	4:3
Focusing system	TTL auto focus
Focus points	Multi AF, Center AF, Face Detection AF, Smart Face Recognition AF, One Touch Shooting AF, Smart Touch AF
Focus distance	5cm
File types	JPEG
ISO sensitivity	ISO80 - 3200
Metering system	Program AE
Metering types	Multi, Spot, Centre Weighted, Face Detection AE
Exposure compensation	± 2EV (1/3EV steps)
Shutter speed range	8 - 1/2000 sec
Image stabilisation	Digital Image Stabilisation
Movie mode	Recording time: 20min Size: 1280 x 720 (30/15fps), 640 x 480 (30/15fps), 320 x 240 (30/15 fps) Zoom: Optical 5x
Monitor	3.0in LCD Touch Screen
Media type	Micro SD/SDHC Card
Interface	USB 2.0
Power	Rechargeable battery: BP85A
Box Contents	Wrist strap Lithium Ion battery Quick Start Manual Software CD AC Adapter/USB Cable
Size	93.0 x 53.9 x 18.9mm
Weight	110.2g (not including memory card and battery)