Customer Reviews

Reef Master SL155 Sealife DC500 Underwater Digital Camera Pro Set

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I got the SeaLife DC500 proset camera & external strobe flash for Christmas. I took it on a week long dive trip to the Bahamas. First of all, the external flash almost NEVER worked, out of hundreds of shots it worked approximately 3 times, despite extensive babying, tinkering, etc. Secondly, the casing fogged up constantly, even with the included desiccant capsules, making it almost impossible to use even without the strobe. Third, it froze up WAY too frequently, causing me to miss photos from a 140' wall dive that was one of the best dives of my life. I could have taken pictures of animals that were probably "new" to science, but my camera was busy having a seizure. Now, it appears that I probably won't be able to return it because I took it underwater. It seems kind of difficult to me to find out whether an underwater camera works without taking it underwater, but maybe I'm just stupid. Bottom line- buy a disposable underwater 35 mm camera before you buy this piece of junk, you'll get better pictures with less frustration.

I purchased SeaLife Reef Master DC500 and went to my diving trip to Egypt. Housing of the camera started leaking already on the first day. OK, we thought, let's contact the dealer and get it repaired. BUT it appeared not to be so simple. I have sent them 4 e-mails within last 3 months, but got no reply. We don't have SeaLife service in Latvia and the responsible service in USA is just not giving any attention to our attempts to contact them. So, I guess, I'll just trash the camera and forget about SeaLife. My advice to others - DON'T BUY THIS CAMERA IF YOU DON'T HAVE SEALIFE SERVICE IN YOUR COUNTRY!

I recently purchased the DC500 to replace the Sealife Reefmaster I've had for the last 4 years. The DC500 leaked both times I used it, apparently from the lens section of the housing. It was not enough to damage the camera, but taking pictures was futile. It is being sent back to Sealife for inspection, will update on the results.

The picture quality was terrible and the camera would lock and/or fog with each use. Virtually unusable. My friend brought her Casio EXILIM with Underwater housing.... a much better option. I borrowed it and the shots were much clearer and it never locked. I don't know why there is any hype around this camera. It is just a below average camera in mediocre housing. The flash unit is so heavy that it isn't an option for someone of relatively small stature. (I did update the firmware before using. It did not help at all).

Owned two of them. The second was a piece of junk and it replaced the first which was also a piece of junk. Don't waste your time or money.