HP PhotoSmart 850 4MP Digital Camera w/ 8x Optical Zoom

by HP

Product Details

Product Manual [2.06mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 2.7 x 3.7 x 1.6 inches ; 7 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00006LK1Q
• Batteries: 2 AA batteries required. (included)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (44 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,441 in Camera & Photo (See Top 100 in Camera & Photo)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 3, 2002

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

You have to love a digital camera with a high level of zoom. Hewlett-Packard's Photosmart 850 offers 8x optical zoom in its relatively compact (for the optical length) lens. The camera itself, however, weighs over a pound. The camera also goes right into its 7x digital after you hit the end of the optical range, letting you seamlessly get closer to the action.

Unfortunately, the autofocus didn't always show us a crisp image on the LCD--the photos would show up sharply, but it was difficult to decide where exactly to line up the shot.

Other than minor issues with the zoom, we're enamored with the 850. Its 4.1-megapixel resolution results in deeply detailed images, while its 2-inch LCD displayed photos more brightly and in much higher quality than other digital camera LCDs. And the camera can record video (complete with audio) in clips of 288 x 216 pixel resolution and up to 60 seconds long. You can even record audio with your still photos to give them more life.

You'll want to spend some extra cash to upgrade the camera, however, as it only ships with a 16 MB Secure Digital media card. The optional docking station makes it easier to transfer images to your PC and also includes rechargeable batteries (the camera comes with four disposable AA batteries).

If you have a compatible HP printer, you can also print directly from the camera--no need to pass images through your PC. Although, if you do send your pictures to your computer, you can use HP's suite of tools, including HP's Instant Share, which lets you automatically send pictures to an e-mail recipient or the Web.

With its depth of resolution, high level of zoom, and versatility, the HP Photosmart 850 is a camera worth considering. --J. Curtis

Pros:

• 8x optical zoom
• Audio with still images
• 60-second video clips

Cons:

• Not as portable as some
• Focus issues

Amazon.com Product Description

Combining the look and feel of a traditional SLR camera with the refinement of digital imaging technology, the HP PhotoSmart 850 packs a 4-megapixel sensor, 56x total zoom, 2-inch LCD screen, and video capture capability into a solidly constructed chassis.

Optics and Resolution
The 4-megapixel CCD sensor creates sharp and brilliant images with a total resolution of 2,384 by 1,734 pixels. The 36-bit color depth renders even the subtlest variations in the image to make photos vibrant and real to life. With an 8x optical and 7x digital zoom, the 56x total zoom won't let anything out of your sights. Focusing can be set to manual, automatic, or macro for greater control.

Storage and Transfer
The 850 already has a built-in flash and 32 MB of SDRAM memory. Also included is a 16 MB SD card for even more storage, as the camera is compatible with MMC and SD memory cards. You can transfer your files onto a PC running Windows 98 or higher or Macintosh running OS 9.1 or higher. The USB port is easy to connect, and uploading and downloading files is fast and error free.

Movie Mode
In addition to taking still photos, the 850 can also record up to 30 seconds of video with sound using the movie mode.

More Features
The HP camera includes many presets and automatic functions to fit your photographic needs, such as autoexposure, shutter priority, aperture priority, white balance, and light metering. There are also preset picture modes to use when shooting action, portraits, or landscapes. Add variety to your shots with the black-and-white and sepia color filters. You can easily keep track of all these modes, as well as compose your shot and review photos, using the large 2-inch color LCD screen.

Power, Size, and Contents
Included with the 850 are four AA e2 titanium batteries. The camera itself measures a 4.5 by 3.3 by 3.3 inches and weighs 13.7 ounces. Other standard accessories are a neck strap, CD-ROM with imaging software, user manual, USB cable, and USB host cable to printer.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

71 of 72 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best value for 8x zoom and 4mp, January 22, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: HP PhotoSmart 850 4MP Digital Camera w/ 8x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

1. Zoom:
I don't understand why people buy 3x zoom cameras (digital zoom should be banned because it's absolutely useless -- if you want to crop, it's much better to take the bigger one and do it with software). I've used an Olympus 3x zoom film for years, hardly ever using the zoom. 3x is not powerful enough to be of value.

Now 8x, we're talking.

2. 4MP:
Do I really need 4mp? Not really. How many times have you EVER enlarged a picture you took with film camera? Or enlarge to >11x17??? I didn't think so. I could be quite happy with 2mp. I wish they made it 2mp with a lower price but, hey, with this price I'm not complaining about 4mp, either.

3. Size:
If you want the tiniest, cutest thingy, don't get this. This is the size of an SLR (without lens attachments). But you never get 8x zoom out those cuties. I actually like its retro styling.

4. Photo quality:
Superb, even still objects in VERY low light. I did one with 2 sec shutter, holding it with my hands (which are not the steadiest I'm sure), and it came out OK. Macro is very nice, too. Yes, there's noticable delay between shots, the lower the lighting, the longer. Under sunlight, it feels quite "normal"; under dim indoor lighting, it can take 2-4 secs. But this is the thing about digitals -- the higher the mp, the slower it gets.

As for complaints about shooting moving objects, 1st of all, don't do focus lock by pushing the button half way down. Push it all the way down. This way, the camera focuses and then takes the pic (after the necessary delay for focusing and exposure). For moving objects under bright light, choose "action" or "shutter priority" as the exposure mode. If you're talking about moving objects in low light, heck, no $... camera can do it, be it film, digital, or extraterristial. And, why do you need to shoot moving objects in dark?

5. Features:
Menu very easy. I took it out of box, put in the (included) batteries, and started shooting right away. Installed the software on CD, plugged in USB cable, and got them into my PC. It does NOT get any easier than this.
Focus assist light -- VERY useful under dim light.
Movie & sound -- cool, occasionally could be useful.
TV out -- a must have for digitals, but this one doesn't include a CABLE!
HP share -- it does NOT get any easier than this!

6. Bad part?
Battery -- this thing CHOMPS down batteries. The included Energizer Titanium e^2 (sounds impressive huh?) gave me ~15, only ~4 with flash (and mostly via LCD). Then I tried some el cheapo ones. They gave me ~10 without flash (and mostly via EVF). Yes, the zoom, the larger LCD screen...but still! I'm waiting for the charger now.

---------------Update
1. Got rechargeable batteries. Battery life is quite good now. Forget about disposables, no matter how sexy the name sounds.

2. I tried to upgrade the firmware from hp website, and failed after several times. In the end, the camera is dead. But HP support has been GREAT through this. After advicing me to try a few things, they sent me a new one, with a return shipping sticker for me to return the old one. This kind of warranty replacement policy is something I haven't seen!

So, be careful before you do the firmware upgrade (as always with any firmware upgrade). If you have to do it, then do it before the warranty expires. Kudos to HP for GREAT service!

61 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Picture Quality! 8X optical zoom is fantastic!, November 19, 2002

By 

"awteli" (Sunnyvale, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: HP PhotoSmart 850 4MP Digital Camera w/ 8x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

The HP850 is a great digital camera. I decided to buy this camera because for its price of $[money], you get a 4 megapixel,
8X optical zoom camera. I couldn't find anything else even close to this level of performance for price.

You can also take short video clips with the camera, which is nice. The camera also lets you take pictures in rapid succession, even with the flash. I really like how quickly the flash can charge up and let you take the next shot.

HP got it right with this camera design. It has a very nice look to it and feels well balanced in your hands.

One thing you definitely need to do is get rechargable NiMH batteries for the camera though. It will quickly burn through normal Alkaline cells. It runs off of 4 AA cells (not 2), which is listed incorrectly on Amazon.com I found the battery life very long using 4AA NiMH batteries (1700 mAh capacity).

Also, the camera can recharge NiMH AA cells in the camera (according to the manual) but I haven't tried it yet. So you just need to buy the HP AC adapter and you don't need a seperate battery charger. ( I wish I new this before buying a seperate battery charger :(

My conclusion: The HP 850 is great!

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome Pics + Zoom, bad battery life, December 9, 2002

By 

Anil Raghavan (Stillwater, OK United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: HP PhotoSmart 850 4MP Digital Camera w/ 8x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

The 850 has awesome features, especially considering the price. 4 megapixels and 8 x optical zoom combine to give you terrific pictures and more opportunities than if you had a much better known, but measly 3 x zoom camera. Buy a 3 x zoom and you will be wishing every day that you had more zoom!!! The HP offers only autofocus. There is significant shutter delay, so action shots might not come out exactly as planned. Of course, you can select Action mode to compensate.

Macros look great and the zoom is really really terrific and picture quality is quite good. Acessories (lens, filters, adapter mounts etc) are not easily available, but tech support at a popular camera accessory store stated that they would have accessories in early 2003. Styling is retro, grip is just perfect and the metal tripod mount seems better than plastic ones. Start-up time is fast. Battery life is not so good with ordinary Alkalines, but when I switched to using NimH rechargables, I have been getting much much better life.

Video is quite good and the best thing I like is the Electronic View Finder (EVF). I tried the Finepix 2800/3800 and couldn't see a thing when I used it indoors in medium to low lighting. The 850 EVF is so much better and clear. AutoFocus Illuminator is a big help and most Sony's have it, though most Nikons omit it.

Kudos to HP for giving us a straight-forward camera with great features and more for a really reasonable price. I would definitely recommend it.