The camera itself is actually very good considering some of the turkeys Samsung has produced. Picture quality is quite good as is the interface, features, build quality and its excellent looks. A minor complaint is the lack of a viewfinder.
The central and deal-breaking problem however is the software. Unlike older Samsung cameras where one's computer automatically recognised the camera when you just plugged in the USB cable, the NV8 has some very serious driver/software issues, which is why you should test each unit in-store before purchase.
The long and the short of it is that all the computers (5) I tried to connect the camera to will not under any circumstance recognise it no matter what you do. You thus cannot download pictures from it at all the USB route. I suspect these problems are a result of the "recharge via the USB wire" feature in the NV range and the drivers which Samsung has you install.
The instruction booklet in 2 simple steps directs you to install the software provided and connect the camera to download pictures. Upon having the camera connect (from the camera menu) to the computer a small window appears asking what program you would like to use to open the contents of the camera's storage. This menu however does not (and will not) list any programs. Opening the installed Samsung Master 1.0 software and trying to reach the camera from there results in the message that the camera is not connected correctly or not available although it well may be.
I very luckily happen to have an SD port on my laptop which works for downloading. Doing this nevertheless has me fiddling to get the card in and out and is annoying.
The NV8 in this regard is an extremely disappointing purchase.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
(+) Ultra-compact dimensions, fun automatic tools, good performance for the asking price (-) Cluttered menu layout, camera buttons are scarce, specs are almost identical to the Samsung ES15
Jun 19th, 2008
very helpful by (82%):
helpful by (18%):
