Advantages: None - judgment is somewhat clouded
Disadvantages: Please provide larger area the write in!

...I've been a pro photographer for over 10 years. Mainly I have used Nikon, but during a lean period in my career I update my cameras to Minolta due to cost reasons. Big mistake. I bought a 700si and a 9xi. The 9xi was released as a professional camera. It seemed sturdy and very advanced for its time. The 700si had similar features but was less sturdy, it was to be my back up camera. Just over a year after purchase, ie just out of guarantee the 9xi failed with a sticking shutter. It was repaired twice, by reputable repair centers. The final failing was whilst on a shoot in Bergen Norway, when the mirror actually fell out. A few weeks later, the back up 700si failed to rewind the film automatically. Unpeturbed, I used the liitle rubber button underneath to manually rewind. But as you can imagine this soon wore out. The result, no cameras. I... Read review

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Advantages: Lightweight, easy to use, fairly compact, eye cups alter for spectacle wearers.
Disadvantages: Plastic body not waterproof

...I wanted to replace my old binoculars which had got tatty and were not working properly, for some decent, but not too expensive ones. In other words the best I could afford. I took some advice from the sales guy, who seemed to know what he was talking about and settled on these Minoltas. I like the clarity, the accuracy of the colours and the brightness of the image. The eye-cups spring in and out which helps if you wear spectacles, and there is a lens cap. Also in the box, a fairly run-of-the mill case with belt loop and neckstrap. I was a little concerned that the body is plastic, rather than rubber coated, as I spend a fair amount of time outdoors, but they are so compact, they easily fit into a coat pocket anyway, even if you don't have the case to hand. All in all I am very pleased with these good quality "budget" (£60... Read review

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Advantages: Can't think of any
Disadvantages: photo quality, price of development, Minolta customer service

...This camera was bought for me as a gift at Christmas 2001 and since then I have had nothing but trouble with it. The range of feautres is vast, but I don't think any of them add particular value. However, my main complaint is the quality of the pictures - all outdoor pictures (particularly the panaoramic shots) were grainy, dark and out of focus. I had used various films and developers but always with the same results, so I finally concluded the camera must be faulty. I sent the camera back to Minolta, who admitted (after 6 months) that there was a fault with the camera, but that this wasn't responsible for the terrible picture quality. They finally deigned to send me a replacement - the new Vecits 3000 - but charged me £40 for the priviledge. The whole sorry saga has taken 8 months to rectify and left me forty quid out of pocket (not... Read review

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Advantages: Excellent build quality, ergonomically laid out controls, fast auto focus and lcd screen showing plenty of information.
Disadvantages: Expensive camera, expensive accessories.

...settings and it becomes a point and shoot device. I have used the camera for weddings, holidays and proud to say I captured the last commercial flights made by Concorde. All pictures from this camera came out perfectly and have never failed me due to an equipment limitation. My previous SLRs were the Dynax 7 and Dynax 600si and this latest incarnation of the Minolta “7” series SLR does not disappoint. Fans and users of Minolta will find the quality and feel of the camera very familiar.... Read review

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Advantages: Excellent Entry Level DSLR, at a cheap price and aesthetically pleasing
Disadvantages: Lens isn't up to scratch with the new Sony's, and no form of image stabilisation

...The Nikon D50 is a beautifully looking piece of kit (especially in sliver, which I paid an extra £5 for) which feels perfectly weight in the hand (As do most SLR's). If you are a past user of Nikon camera's you will be at home with the size and shape of the D50. In comparison to the entry level Canon and the Konica Minolta 5D (who have now been bought out by Sony) if performs favourably in the area's of colour clarity and ease of use of the menu. BUT it does not have any form of image stabilisation, which is where the Minolta rules! Say good bye to shaky pictures, with blurry lines. Saying that, the crispness possible with the Nikon is amazing to see, with clearly defined lines and colours it shows up beautifully over short and long distance. The provided lens is wide enough, and a telephoto lens will add much variety to the camera... Read review

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Advantages: Cheaply available, good range of accessories
Disadvantages: Basic, limited features

...I have been using an X-300 for ten years now and am still very pleased with the results I get, and its performance. In comparison with a lot of other cameras it is somewhat basic, doesn't offer particularly fast shutter speeds and is quite heavy. However as far as a good starter SLR camera goes, I would recommend it. It is well built, and the only problem I have had in ten years has been the wind crank spring coming loose. I have used a 35-70mm lense on it and have got very good results, and Tokina lenses work just as well as Minolta ones but at a lower price. I have found it slightly unreliable for flash phtography, with no in-built flash, but otherwise have no complaints with it.... Read review

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Advantages: Has loads of functions
Disadvantages: Too many functions for the amateur/beginner

...A fantastic camera, with just a few disadvantages. It has many, many features - too many for the occasional user, and too complex for the beginner. But for those already used to cameras of this kind it is a revelation, it does everything with the minimum of fuss. The huge LCD display is great, you can keep track of everything from there. If you are short/long-sighted the camera will compensate for your lack of focus (up to a certain limit). The body is compact, easy to hold and the buttons are convenient for the fingers - as long as you are a person with small to medium hand size. Those with large hands may find it a touch fiddly as the body is smaller than many older Minoltas. In short, though a bit pricey, well worth the money as long as you are a competant camera user, willing to spend bit of time trawling through the instruction book.... Read review

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Advantages: Same fast printing in COLOUR as well as black
Disadvantages: Can not reduce quality to save toner

...Minolta 3100 colour laserjet printer is the flagship of their range. For small workgroups it's ideal. I personally use it to print a regular magazine, in superior quality, for subscribers. After using my inkjet printer for a few months and being frustrated at not being able to print both sides of the paper automatically, I decided to upgrade my whole output to colour laser. I first tried a budget laser printer from Minolta but found it very slow and noisy. On looking through their brochure, my attention was drawn to the 3100, priced at £1500.00 this was the best of the bunch for me. There were higher priced units but they were more suitable for large corporate businesses rather than my 'work from home' business. With a printing speed of up to 16 pages per minute, duplex printing, high capacity toner cartridges and a large bin... Read review

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Advantages: Use 2 types of cards in one camera
Disadvantages: Pricey

...If like me, you've got a variety of cameras, using different memory cards, you sometimes wish there was only one format. Why? Because then you can just buy a load of cards all of the same sort, and they'd work in all the cameras. The Minolta SD-CF1 is an adapter for those with a whole load of SD (Secure Digital) type cards, who also have a CF (Compact Flash) compatible camera too. Why should I need to buy a 512Mb CF for my Minolta, when I have a perfectly good 512Mb SD card for my brand new Megxon? Well with this device, I won't of course. Although it's made by Minolta, and Minolta themselves only advertise it as compatible with certain cameras in their own range, it will in fact work with a variety of other CF cameras, including Canon and Nikon. It's very simple. You take your adapter, slot the SD card into it, then slot the whole... Read review

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Advantages: 10x optical zoom, large lcd screen
Disadvantages: blue toned photos, no external flash

...for tungsten light and natural light, flash auto always on always off. Li-ion battery pack. Pack contents, camera Kodak easy share dx 6490 appropriate download leads and software (Kodak easy share software) battery pack 700mah 16mb sd card instruction manual... 100,000 pages 1 english. pros, long zoom 35-380mm big screen 4 million pixels cons, blue tone to photographs (results very cold) small built-in flash, no external mounting personal opinion; I was very excited when I read about this camera in what digital camera and amateur photographer it looked very promising. It took weeks to arrive in the shop where I worked so I had to wait to test one. Once it had arrived I jumped at the chance to look at it. I picked it up and the first thing I noticed was that the camera doesn’t sit comfortably into the hand unlike the Minolta dimage z1... Read review

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