... Incidentally there is no mention of limiting conditions of temperature in the HP documentation, nor could I find any on the HP site. I have since been told that the problem often lies with the batteries rather than the camera itself, at low temperatures they do not deliver enough voltage to ... Read review
Advantages: small, light, cheap, good zoom Disadvantages: Not very robust, image quality not up with the best of the best
...conditions of temperature in the HP documentation, nor could I find any on the HP site. I have since been told that the problem often lies with the batteries rather than the camera itself, at low temperatures they do not deliver enough voltage to make the camera function.
In general I ... ...have meant no momentoes of a very enjoyable holiday if I hadn't packed the old camera as a reserve. It is plain and functional, and perhaps some of the missing features indicate that it is built down to a price. The design is also in places poorly thought out, and it is this that leads me to ultimately give the camera a low rating.
I bought my (first) M627 just before christmas 2006 from Argos, it was one of their clearance lines and was marked up in store at £99.99 - cheaper than most web offers and around the budget I wanted to spend on a replacement for my old Nikon compact digital camera.
I was even more pleased at the check out when it rang up as another £10 cheaper, on the system as £89.99. I can only guess that this was an Argos overstock issue, as since xmas the prices seem to have gone back up to £120 +
I was buying the camera to take on a skiing holiday with my kids at New Year, I felt the M627 was small enough to fit inside a jacket pocket without getting broken or being too heavy. I liked the ideas of some of the features too, in particular the video recording capability with audio would hopefully grab some memories of the holiday!
Some basic features here may be helpful --------------------------------------------------------------
Resolution is 7.0Mp , middle of the road now but close to cutting edge only a year ago. It has a 6.0 - 18.0 3x optical zoom lens with a further 8x digital zoom available
Memory is not great. It has 16Mb integrated which is frankly useless, without the SD card slot expansion this would hold only a handful of pictures... at maximum resolution you wouldn't run out of fingers counting them! I suspect this is just a way of selling accessories - a 512Mb or 1 Gb SD card is essential.
The camera's weight is 120g, or just more than a typical mobile phone, it is also fairly compact at just 9.5 x 3.2 x 6.2 cm , although I would have preferred it to be somewhat thinner.
Video capture is at VGA resolution of 640x480, with a maximum capture rate of 22fps. This isn't up to a dedicated video camera standard and is a little jerky at times, but is better than not having one. The audio capture is also a little on the quiet side, with no volume control settings available.
There is a built in flash with all the usual red eye reduction modes and so on, I have to say I find the range of the flash a little inadequate and not as good as previous digital cameras I have owned.
There is no built in optical view finder, the user instead has to rely on the large 2.5" screen on the rear of the camera. This is fine almost everywhere except bright sunlight where it is very difficult to see the screen clearly. I would prefer an optical view finder for the extra price this would have added...
------------------------------------------------------------- Me and my camera(s) -------------------------------------------------------------
Life with the new camera started out ok, the software supplied with the camera is bulky and takes a lot of hard drive space, but it installed ok and the connection via usb to my laptop was set up relatively easily. The accompanying documentation was very clear and helpful where necessary.
The first shots at home were ok, certainly much better than the Nikon it was replacing which admittedly had a much lower resolution.
The buttons controlling the camera are a bit fiddly, and don't lend themselves to hurrying to catch a 'moment', surely one of the main uses of these point and click compact cameras. The on off button in particular is difficult as it lies just above the screen at the top, power on is indicated by a blue LED, which is a little redundant as the main viewing screen also comes on and is 2.5" across and only half a centimeter away! The video capture button is also poorly considered, it is very close to the main shutter release button and is easily pressed by the hamfisted (me!) in error.
The buttons on the rear control image review, modes, and oddly zoom. Where the zoom buttons are found on the rear of the camera makes it very difficult to frame a shot without pointing the camera away.
The lens extends on power on to approximately 1 inch from the front of the camera and is quick to open and close. The front of the camera is completed by an LED indicator and a light sensor.
The general appearance of the camera is a little dull, mainly polished aluminium with a few chromed or highly polished areas. The camera is quite boxy looking, despite some attempt at intrducing curves on the right hand side where a user would grip the camera.
-------------------------------------------------- Off we go... lost memories --------------------------------------------------
We arrived in the Italian alps a couple of days before new year, it was cold as the resort we were staying at was a relatively high altitude one.
The camera worked ok on the trip out and on the night of arrival, but on the first day skiing the problems started.
Firstly the camera refused to open, and when it did open the lens was clouded by what appeared to be condensation. I was keeping the camera in an outside pocket of a breathable waterproof jacket, it had got cold but only maybe -5C or so. The moisture must have been condensation from the air as the pocket itself was dry. Back at the hotel that evening a spell on a radiator brought the camera back to life and normal operation, but the cycle was repeated the next day. By the fourth day of the holiday the camera was refusing to work at all, and in total I managed only 20 shots or so on the holiday.
It would be easy to assume that the treatment I was dishing out was too much for a digital camera, some Italians I spoke to said that many have problems on ski trips, but the old Nikon taken along as a reserve worked fine in exactly the same conditions, only one day at above 3000m and -25C proving too much for it.
On return home the camera did not work... it would switch on but the view screen would not display an image nine times out of ten, very disappointing for a new camera only a week and a half old.
Fortunately on returning the item to Argos they exchanged it for a new replacement with no argument, and the new M627 is still working fine now. Perhaps it was a bad one, perhaps it was the conditions it was subjected to. Incidentally there is no mention of limiting conditions of temperature in the HP documentation, nor could I find any on the HP site. I have since been told that the problem often lies with the batteries rather than the camera itself, at low temperatures they do not deliver enough voltage to make the camera function.
In general I am quite disappointed withthe M627, the reliability issue could well have meant no momentoes of a very enjoyable holiday if I hadn't packed the old camera as a reserve. It is plain and functional, and perhaps some of the missing features indicate that it is built down to a price. The design is also in places poorly thought out, and it is this that leads me to ultimately give the camera a low rating.
Advantages: Great screen, zoom and menu. Easy to use. Disadvantages: OK but not great pictures.
8 Months in and this little camera is still going strong, despite some rather rough treatment from a ragamuffin 3 year old.
This was, thankfully a device that worked fine straight out of the box. I came with the usual collection of USB cables, battery charger and 2 batteries. No SD card though :-) And you'll need one - it'll only hold about 10 full-resolution pics on the internal memory. The software was in there too on CD.
Software
The camera ... ...editing software. It's OK but I'll never use it. I have psychological problems at being steered towards a way of working by outside agencies. Big brother and all that. So it has been quickly uninstalled. Before I did, I can confirm that it did download pics from the camera with a minimum of fuss and then catalogued them all. That's the bit I hate. I want full control. If you want the software to do that for you then you won't be disappointed.
Buttons ...
dhillcrest 08.11.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of HP PhotoSmart M627
Advantages: All of the amazing features Disadvantages: No carrying case supplied
Needed a new camera for a tripdown under, the old one was dying fast. Saw this one in the sale at Argos, (£89.99, half price) so i bought it. Oh boy am i glad i did. Now for someone who has limited knowledge of photography this little baby surprised me. it has a large screen(2.5 inches) and takes photographs and video with an additional feature of adding sound. it takes up to a 2GB Sd card to store all those images. It is packed full of features ... ...shot, landscape, portrait, action, night time, beach, snow, sunset, burst and macro. The image quality ranges from VGA to 2MP,5mp,7MP and 7MP best. the iso speed can also be adjusted from automatic to 100, 200 or 400. The flash has 4 settings Auto,Red Eye, On or Off. It also has a built in design gallery which can do stuff like get rid of red eye, apply artistic effects such as soft glow, Kaleidoscope and wait for it SLIMMING, yes it can make the ...
chich1 11.01.2007 (18.03.2007)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of HP PhotoSmart M627
Advantages: Small, Easy to use, Good Range of features Disadvantages: Picture Quality poor & no case with purchase
I had this camera now for about a year. Paid just over £100 for it. I absolutely love it apart from the picture quality. It's not the best I've seen. Especially when you want to take detailed pictures. I've been cataloguing bits & bobs for eBay and some of the items are small and very detailed. When trying to get a photo good enough to put up on eBay, it's virtually impossible. However if you are wanting to take "normal" photos i.e. holiday snaps ... ...simple & user friendly. If you are using standard AA batteries (not Lithium) you normally get a weeks worth of use from. My suggestion would to use rechargeable for those all important holiday snaps. One other draw back is that it doesn't come with a carry case. But with the size of it you can normally get a carry case for about £10.
Overall opinion it's a good camera but just be aware the picture quality isn't the best available for the money you ...
Blondie1005 11.02.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of HP PhotoSmart M627
Advantages: very simple, good quality Disadvantages: will break if dropped
I bought this camera as a replacement for my old one. I was very happy with it because it is such a simple camera. The picture quality is brilliant and it is a trusted brand, HP. i would recommend this camera to people who are new to digital cameras, or are young. It is a compact camera, and its looks are nice. It's layout is very simple with a video button which starts a video the second you press it, a button to take pictures with. It then has ...
george1766 28.11.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of HP PhotoSmart M627
Picture Quality
Range & Quality of Feat...
Ease of Use
Durability
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Value for Money
Quick review of HP PhotoSmart M627
Don't buy this or any other HP digital camera. Camera was great, easy to use, reasonable quality photos but after just over 18 months mine broke and this is where the problem starts ! HP do not provide spares and when I contacted direct I found they do not carry out repairs on digital cameras unless the camera is in warranty. A camera priced at £160 when purchased is now useless. ...
TracyB1001 20.11.2008
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of HP PhotoSmart M627
The easy-to-use HP Photosmart M627 Digital Camera features 7-megapixels and 24x total zoom - 3x optical, 8x digital - to produce amazing-quality photos. The camera also features HP Real Life technologies, including industry-leading in-camera red-eye removal and HP Design Gallery. With the HP Design Gallery, users can easily capture and edit brilliant digital photos. This small, all-metal camera also features one-button ordering and sharing of photos with HP Photosmart Express.
