5 comments about Vivitar Vivicam V3935 5.25MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom.

1. I'm new to digital and wanted an easy camera for quick shots. So far the vivitar 3935 has done well. It takes much better outdoor photos, it appears to need lots of good lighting. The software sent with the camera is very basic but alows you to make some minor editing, resize images, etc. I've been using a 128mb sd card for memory and it has worked very well with no problems. I stored aproximatley 50 pictures on it from one day and had space left for more. In the "fine" quality setting, pictures were about 10mb a picture, so if you want a lot of large photo's you may need a bigger memory card.
   My only concern so far is the poor battery life. It lasted me aprox 45 minutes taking 15 photos-After that it was spent. I purchased a pack of 4 w/charger. They seem to work well for swapping.
   I purchased the camera for $149 and belive that the battery hassle is worth the $1-200 saved compaired to other models.



2. This camera is very easy to operate. Just point and click, or turn the dial to the desired type of picture you wish to take. It is also easy to transfer the pictures to your computer. I know next to nothing about computers, and was able to transfer my pictures. I would recommend this camera to anyone. I bought this camera to sell stuff on e-bay. It took good pictures for that purpose.



3. This is a great little 5mp camera . Will fit in your pocket or on your belt with supplyed carring case. super pics. the zoom is great. would by again.I have a d70 but some time's I don't like to take it to some events at night.



4. Do NOT use AA batteries! Even on the reviews where people have given this camera 5 stars, they've commented on battery life. I repeat, do NOT use AA batteries, not even if they're rechargeable. Instead, take $15 and make an investment in a couple of CRV3 batteries (don't quote me... I'm not 100% positive if that's the right collection of letters and numbers for the type of battery I'm referring to, do your research). The CRV3's are like 2 AAs in one and are Li-ion (Lithium Ion) batteries, unlike your typical alkaline AAs. A two pack of CRV3s will cost you around $15, but are well worth it, especially since you've already or are planning to make a several hundred dollar investment in a digital camera. Not to mention the fact that you will quickly go through $15 worth of AAs if you don't take this advice. But do not get the new rechargeable CRV3's... there have been reports of the batteries having power surges that have damaged cameras. The battery life is infinitely longer on these batteries because these are the batteries built for taking the kind of abuse digital camera's (and other high end equipment) put them through. I've been using my Vivicam V3935 constantly for the past month or so with my first CRV3 battery, and the battery indicator on the camera is still full.
   
   On to the acutal camera: I'm very happy with the purchase. Of course, I was lucky to get it for close to $150 before the price went back up. Still, at $300 it's cheaper than many of the other 5MP cameras available. The quality is more than satisfactory. I'm not very camera savvy, but I've found manual settings that work well for what I use my camera for, and keep it on the manual setting for most of my pictures without adjusting any of the settings. The automatic setting isn't bad... I just prefer to tell my camera what to do rather than the other way around.
   
   There is one automatic seting that I can't live without however, and that is the automatic flash. The camera calculates how much light there is and then determines whether or not flash is necessary. This will save anyone that is rather camera illiterate lots of time and energy when trying to get those "perfect shots".
   
   Another setting I constantly find myself using is the "micro" setting. It disables flash and adjusts other camer settings so that you can acheive spectacular extreme close-ups.
   
   The camera includes your three basic color modes (color, black and white, and sepia), and a host of other customizable settings: Image size and quality (of course), white balance, exposure compensation, ISO speed, saturation and sharpness, f-stop, and I believe one other option (shutter speed seems to come to mind, but I don't have the manual on hand). I haven't done so personally (though I plan to), but at least look up f-stop and the option that I think is shutter speed... I can't really give you any advice, but I can say that if you want to take action photos (sports?) you will need to master the use of these settings... otherwise you'll end up with the dreaded "out of focus" photo. So, if you've ever tried to blame your camera for taking poor actions shots when you know other people can... now you know why they can.
   
   The Vivicam V3935 is slightly larger than most cameras on the market today. In my opinion, that's a good thing... I'm very good at losing things, and the smaller they are the easier they are to lose. Not to mention the fact that I always feel that I'm going to break smaller electronic gadgets because of their size and weight. If you haven't made the switch to a digital camera yet, then this is probably still slightly smaller than what you're using now... and if not, it at least shouldn't be any larger. Another plus is that anything that opens or comes off the camera does so easily... there's never any doubt about whether or not a certain part of the camera is supposed to open or not.
   
   I'm in love with the zoom feature. I've handled cameras before where I could not tell when the the camera had switched between optical and digital zoom. I avoid digital zoom at all costs because of the loss in quality (minor though it may be), and this camera makes it obvious when it's switched to digital zoom. It even "protects" you from digital zoom. You can hold the zoom button while you're doing an optical zoom and it will stop and require you to push the button again before it will do any zooming digitally.
   
   The only thing I can really say bad about this camera is that there IS a certain amount of uncertainty about how your pictures turn out. Once you get them on the computer, you can see that they've turned out excellent... but sometimes it's hard to tell one the LCD whether or not your photos are in focus and a handful of other things. If you aren't in the general vicinity of a computer... I suggest taking too many rather than too few pictures.
   
   In closing... it takes excellent quality photos, almost too good. On the highest settings pictures can easily end up being between 6 and 10MB, depending on color complexity and a whole bunch of other things. I do use this camera to take pictures for online classified ads, and for the sake of people still using dial up (and the bandwith usage on the sites hosting the pictures) I use FastStone Image Viewer (a free program not included with the camera) to easily reduce the size of the photos from the massive 2560x1920 to a much smaller size and reduce the quality slightly... often reducing my pictures from a whopping 6MB to only 20KB. Also useful if you want to send pictures through e-mail or instant messangers. It's a powerful program for doing simple editing and photo managing, but if you plan on using the extra features go with an editing program like photoshop or GIMP (also free and very well made).



5. This little camera does fine in warm/hot temperatures and has great picture quality, but runs through batteries at an unbelievable pace. Also, you're lucky if you can get 3 or more pictures if the ambient temperature is below 40 degrees. Another annoying feature that I wish I had known about is that there is no memory battery, meaning that everytime you change the main batteries (which is quite frequently) the camera totally resets and you have to set the date all over again. This is a pain. All that being said, I took this camera on a trip to Taiwan recently and I was very pleased with the pictures it produced. It's not the best, and could be improved in several ways, but it's not the worst 5MP camera out there either, especially for the price.

5 comments about Vivitar ViviCam 10 Digital Camera.

1. if ur looking for a cmaera this is the one it is cheap and the pictures are clear has helll i taken over 1 thousand pictures with this camera (not at once) it will take 78 in high res and in low 167! its amazing beuatiful clear pictues i recomend it to ne one!!



2. This is overall an "okay" camera. Yes, it has the auto shut off that gets annoying, yes, you really have to learn how to work it and how to do the settings right to get the quality of pictures you want. Yes, the menu is just way too long to go through to set up what you want. But the fact is, once you figure out how to do the settings correctly, you CAN get some very decent pictures from it. For the price of this camera, you cant ask for much more then that. I think its a good camera for those just getting in to digital cameras, and besides, if you can figure out how to work this camera properly, any other digital camera you ever get will be a breeze..lol. I used this camera for 2 years, I've gotten the pictures I've wanted out of it so it has made me happy. I've graduated now on to a much more expensive and way higher resolution camera from Kodak. Much more user friendly, and a much better camera all the way around. But I paid 4 times as much for it as I did the Vivicam. That leading to my point.. you get what you pay for. And for the price of the Vivicam.. you cant expect much better from it then what it gives.



3. This was my first digital camera, back in 2002. I liked it cause it would take weird pictures that would make great photoshopped images. The image quality is ok, pretty decent I would say.
   
   Nowadays this camera would be okay for kids and such. It's fun and so are the images it develops...



4. First digital and for the price I paid at wallyworld ,I would have only gotten 2 disposables with development.
   Auto shut is annoying ,and no way to over ride.
   menu scrolling also annoying , no way to save settings.
   No viewer ,so until you upload pics you don't know what your getting.
   
   GOOD THINGS....
   once you figure it out it takes really good standard photos.
   easy to upload and edit photos.
   Being left handed ,it seemed to work better for me ,than for right handed people.
   very easy ob batterries , replaced once after 6 months of use ,and then after 4 month due to using flash more.
   close ups are great ,when they work -50/50 success with same settings ,same photo.
   all in all , despite the annoying features it was a good fist camera for it's time.
   would be considered a dinasaur by todays standings, but still good for e-bay photos and online photo albums.



5. I am surprised at how quickly I received this camera. I was happy to receive it. I haven't used it yet but will soon.

5 comments about VIVITAR ViviCam 3705 3.3MP Digital Camera.

1. This camera is basically good for mid quality family pictures and similar shots, you can't expect much from a non-optical zoom/ 3.3 mp camera, PLEASE!!! Anybody who tells you how great the camera is, never had anything better on their hands,LETS BE HONEST it is not a bad camera but not a smart choice if you are looking for quality. It's actualy a pretty handy and easy to use camera, not too many features and cheap, so there you go...if you need something not too fancy, cheap and you are not expecting some awarded National geographic pictures from it, this is your camera.



2. I've had this camera for more than 2 years and it has been pretty good to me. Takes really good pictures on sunny afternoons, but could do a little better at night. Recommended for beginners!
   tip- get energizer rechargeable batteries! they work great with this camera and last for half of a year!



3. This was my first digital camera, bought when I was pregnant with my now 3 yr old son. I got it because it was a good price... $77 at Target the day after Thanksgiving. I never regretted going with a cheap one for one second! My dad did a lot of research, and bought a more expensive one from National Camera that they recommended, and the picture quality didn't compare to what I got. Mine was 10X better. The zoom isn't great... I just cropped the pictures later instead of zooming because it usually would look better that way. The only reason I am not still using this great camera- I let my mom take it to Mexico, and when I got it back, the pictures were all blurry. I don't know what she did to it, but it had never had a problem in 2 1/2 years and after 1 week with her it didn't work, so I do not blame the camera at all. It does go through batteries, but like others said, just buy the rechargable batteries. They worked great! And someone said they last a half a year... I am still using the AA ones I bought over 3 years ago, and they still last just as long, and get a lot of use between cameras and my sons toys. My replacement camera was researched a lot more after seeing the poor quality a lot of other people end up with... I got a Canon PowerShot SD600 Elph 6 months ago... and am in love with that camera. If you are looking for good pictures for a good price, this is definitely the right camera. If you are willing to spend more, the Canon also does great video w/sound, and has replaced my video camera. Both take great pictures, the canon just has more options. In 6 months I have taken over 3000 pictures with this camera. Most people call me obsessive with pictures, so both cameras have definitely been put to the test by me... and both have passed (my dads, and many others I have tried in stores... would never pass.) My #1 recommendation is to go to the store and try them. Look at the quality of the pictures you take, the type of memory card, how fast it takes pictures (or you might miss everything your kids do!), and what features it has. Megapixels is really not important... unless you are planning on blowing it up beyond 8x10. 3 MP blows up to 8x10 with great quality, and getting a camera with higher really won't change that, unless you are going to be printing bigger. Good luck with whatever camera you choose to buy!



4. VIVITAR ViviCam 3705 3.3MP Digital Camera
   
   This camera works great for someone who takes simple pictures. It takes great outdoor camera without touch up needs. Indoor shots sometimes need touch up depending on lighting in the room.
   
   It uses batteries and works best with rechargeabel AA batteries.



5. This camera served me well in the time i used it. I took some great pictures with it on a camping trip i took. The flash is really good but uses up batteries faster than you would like so its good to have rechargeable batteries. Once you have those though, this camera is excellent.

5 comments about Vivitar 5000 AF Slide Projector.

1. THE VIVITAR 5000 ARRIVED WITH THE INNER, MANUFACTURERS BOX, UNPROTECTED
   FROM THE OUTER SHIPPING CARTON. BOTH CARTONS WERE INTACT; HOWEVER, I
   ASSUME IT WAS DROPPED VERY HARD FROM A CONSIDERABLE HIGHT...THREE OF
   THE FOUR LENS IN THE PROJECTOR WERE KNOCKED OUT OF THEIR BRACKETS AND
   LOOSE IN THE VIVITAR ASSEMBLY RENDERING THE PROJECTOR COMPLETELY
   INOPERATIVE. CONTACTING THE SHIPPER BROUGHT IMMEDIATE STATEMENT THAT IT
   WOULD BE PICKED UP AT MY HOME ASAP BY UPS FOR RETURN AND THE SENDING OF
   A NEW UNIT. I HOPE THEY PACK IT MORE CAREFULLY. THE CONTACT PERSON
   SAID IT WAS CAREFULLY PACKED. I'M SURE IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE BUT
   IN REALITY IT WAS NOT!
   
   I HAVE HEARD THAT BOTH FEDEX AND UPS IN THEIR CONVEYOR BELT SORTING
   HAVE TRANSITIONS WITH DROPS OF 2 FEET OR MORE IN THE PROCESS. THIS REPORT
   IS SECOND HAND BUT ONE COMPANY [MAKING HIGH FREQUENCY AMATEUR BAND
   LINEAR AMPLIFIERS] SAID 40% OF THEIR SHIPPING OF AMPLIFIERS WERE
   ARRIVING SEVERELY DAMAGED THAT THEY HAVE RESORTED TO PUTTING THEIR
   AMPLIFIER CARTONS ON PALLETS FOR MORE GENTLE HANDLING BY THE FREIGHT
   COMPANYS.
   
   KENNETH B. HOLDEN
   2107 W. SACRAMENTO AVE
   CHICO, CA 95973
   530.894.8702
   KENHOLDEN@COMCAST.NET



2. I think this is very good product for the money was a little disappointed when my trays didn't fit - however - it was only two trays and the rest all fit so check the trays sizes /types and it will be a great product for you
   Love the auto focus - also sticks occasionaly but slides are all old so the happens -with all projectors I think



3. A projector I got luckily. To view my slides I was unable to find it in the market. Also, once again the price is the most important aspect of this purchase. About 1/7 of its price!! I highly recommend any purchase through Amazon.com



4. Buying this machine is a mistake. There are several Kodak Ektagraphic III Models for sale here on Amazon. Unlike this Vivitar the Ektagraphic models are professional quality that were built with metal gears which do not get brittle over the years. The gears in this projector are plastic and will eventually get brittle and fail even if the projector is not used, just like the plastic gears in the Kodak Carousel models). The Kodak Ektagraphic III model I would recommend was the best selling pro model Kodak sold by far:
   
   Ektagraphic III AMT Slide Projector - without Lens, 1475565,
   
   You can read my "Mini Buyers Guide" for the Kodak slide projectors in the reviews in the AMT listing (it details the Kodak slide projector models, features, advantages, etc).
   
   In short, unless you have a whole lot of Vivitar slide trays and do not want to convert them to Kodak) there is no reason to buy this slide projector when a comparable Kodak Ektagraphic III machine can be had at the same price. This machine is lower quality, auto focus only works sometimes, the image it projects is not as bright or sharp, it is much less dependable, etc.



5. When I received this product, it was a big disappointment to find out the lense came with the projector wasn't the right one for this model. I was lucky to get my full refund but I would suggest not buying it on line. Sorry to say.

No comments about Vivitar ViviCam 3330 Point and Shoot Digital Still Camera - 1.3 MegaPixel.

5 comments about Vivitar V3800N Manual SLR Camera with 50mm Lens & Case.

1. I bought this camera for a photography class I was taking (I had to drop the class because of problems with the camera). The first camera Vivitar sent to me had a broken light meter, so I contacted the company to send it back and have it replaced. The company (Ace photo and digital) made me pay the postage to send back a camera that came broken, and then sent me a second camera that once again didn't have a functioning light meter. I would send it back a second time, but I think I'll just buy a light meter that works with the money I would have spent on postage.



2. I've bought over a dozen of these cameras for a high school photography class, and I can tell you it is rare to find a fully manual 35mm SLR camera (though the light meter is battery operated with illuminated green and red plus and minus signs. Old people will remember the manually operated circle that you would manipulate over the meter needle with the aperture ring or shutter speed knob). The camera is simple, the user actually understands what's going on with the settings, and it holds up to student use. It reliably exposes film to a prescribed amount of light, and that's what it's all about.



3. This is a great camera that anyone can learn to use. Everything on it works well; I've had no problems with it whatsoever. There are no regrets with this purchase!



4. Ace Photo Digital is the type of company that goes on vacation for almost a week, has no intentions of selling you an item, and blows you off until you call them. They used the bait and switch tech on me saying that the package I bought was a mistake of amazons (which it wasn't) and they wouldn't honor my purchase. Very unprofessional company. Asked for a manager to call me, and never did. They do not care about their customers. It was a $150 camera w/ 2 lenses, tripod, flash, and case. They ended up canceling my order when I told them not to. DO NOT ORDER FROM THEM!



5. The camera that I bought is for my daughter. It is is perfect condition and works fine.

5 comments about Vivitar 283 Electronic Flash.

1. Have owned several Vivitar 283's and 285HV's on the Nikon FM2 & F3HP. I like the 283 more because I don't have to mess with the zoom head. Now using a Nikon D70 with the 283. The power is not as high as Vivitar says (ISO 400 closer to 260) but I set the camera on manual and I have auto exposure with auto focus thrown in for free! Vary shutter speed for indoor/outdoor balance. For indoors in low ceilings I can also use bounce flash with great color on grand children . Newer units sync around 8 volts but use a Wein HSBC Safe Sync which allows Vivitar cord and flash bracket for off camera flash.



2. Simple, powerful, sturdy workhorse flash. No needless bells and whistles. I've used 283's on and off for 20+ years and they are dependable. For strobist use, I added the VP1 for manual control and radio slaves. Works great.



3. I bought mine in 1978 or '79 in the Army PX, and it's still firing away to this day, thirty years later. I always use it off-camera, so maybe that's why it hasn't fried my digital camera with its high voltage at the shoe.



4. I recently bought one of these used and am delighted with it. The Vivitar 285HV, although including more power settings, a zoom bracket, and built-in flash diffuser, is actually step backwards from the 283. The construction of the 283 is just rock-solid. You get metal parts, not chrome painted plastic like in the 285HV. The clicking of the flash as you rotate it from horizontal to vertical is precise. Even the build of the plastic is better. Some company needs to pick up the original 283 design, add in power settings down to 1/64th, made the head swivel-able, and put in a built-in optical trigger. Sell it for $90 and that company will be golden.



5. Ummmmm, I have been using an old Vivitar 283 from the 1980s on my Lumix G1 digital camera and it seems to work just fine.
   
   When people talk about "300 volts" and "frying the camera" -- if I had to worry about this, would it have already happened?

4 comments about Vivitar - Binoculars 4 x 30.

1. These binoculars at the price offered just can't be beat. I purchased them as opera glasses for a trip to the Met. I had a chance to compare them with a pair which cost about 5 times as much and could not tell the difference.



2. I was amazed at how clearly I could see thorough these binoculars, and they are easy to use. I have used them twice for the opera and I love them. I was expecting cheap but I got quality. I highly recommend these binoculars.



3. Quite clear images and good depth of field, lightweight. The focus control does little and there is no individual eyepiece adjustment, but easy to use. Good value.



4. With these optics the only way to get a 4x30 is to have a small field of view. It's about 5 degrees, roughly 300ft/1000yd. The clarity is sharp at center with significant chromatic aberration at the sides. If you aren't worried about how wide your view is then these binoculars should suffice.

5 comments about Vivitar V3800N 35mm SLR Camera w/ 28-70mm Lens.

1. My V3800N was my very first camera purchased so that I could have a fully manual camera for my Photo 1 class. Although I haven't used it in a while, I still love my little Vivitar and have plans to take it back out again. It's solidly made with a great hand-feel. It's an excellent beginner's film camera. At at tasty price point, it's well worth the gamble because I promise it will pay off!



2. I am really like this camera it has all the bells and whistles. The photos come out great. I got this as gift and I just wanted to let peopl know it is good choice



3. I rate this with ONE star because it is not adigital. What is with this?? I come here to Amazon and type in DIGITAL SLR and after browsing through several I come to this one! Does someone at Amazon want me to accidently assume this is a digital and buy one?? WHAT IS WITH THIS! Can't hardly be an accident someone somewhere plays games so things will come up whether it fits search perameters or not ... this is so wrong I think



4. product works great and i love it there was a little bit of a shipping delay but he made sure i got it



5. I purchased this for my son who was taking a beginning B&W photography class at our local community college. Prior to making the purchase I read reviews from multiple sources and while most had good things to say, quite a few mentioned a faulty/poor light meter system. I made the purchase anyway, hoping to get a good one, but it was not to be. The light meter system is a bit cumbersome already when compared to all of the SLRs I've used through the years, but I can set the exposure on a subject, take a picture, and check the exposure before taking the next shot (same subject) and get a totally different reading just monents later. And I'm not talking one or two F-stops, this thing goes from a 'green light' at F4 at 1/60 to showing overexposed at F22 at 1/2000. It is so unreliable that I had to buy a hand-held light meter just to get my son through the semester. And you can bet this camera will be returned for repair/replacement once his class is complete.

5 comments about Vivitar 285HV Auto Professional Flash.

1. The service of this seller was outstanding, shipped correct product on time. However, I don't quite understand why the seller has to charge close to $30 for shipping when the item came by US Postal Priority Mail for $4.80. I almost didn't purchase when I saw how high the shipping charge was going to be but bought anyway due to the low item costs.



2. I bought two of these flashes about a year ago. The first stopped working after about 5 months. Just wouldn't fire the flash. I probably used it less that 300 times. The second one stopped working about 12 months after I bought it. It let out a smell like burnt electronics and won't fire. Waste of money.



3. I purchased this flash unit to use as an external flash with my Lumix FZ29 digital camera. It works fine and actually has more features than I need. I selected this flash because it has a trigger voltage which will not "harm" my camera. It has many features such as the bounce feature and it is well made. I give it five stars. I purchased this unit from Amazon and delivery was prompt and the unit was as described on the spec sheet.



4. The 285hv is a favorite among budget-conscious photographers for a reason. For the price, there's simply no other flash on the market that matches it in raw power. It obviously doesn't work with any sort of TTL metering, but manual operation is dead simple and it even provides a useful guide dial on the side if you're so inclined to shoot in that manner.
   
   Personally, I adore this flash. I use it on my Panasonic GH1, and it has never left me wanting for more.



5. I just ordered a second one.
   
   This is the budget flash made famous by David Hobby's Strobist articles. Like so many others I have been inspired to add off-camera flash to my skill set. I've been using this flash for four months without problems. (I'm a pro-sumer photographer that shoots about ten paid sessions a year and countless for-fun sessions. Mostly portraits.)
   
   I gave it a lot of stars because this flash is plenty powerful and has four manual power settings. Most importantly it doesn't cost much compared to other flashes. An additional benefit to using this flash is that due to its recent popularity, if you have questions about specific accessories, cables, or modifications, it's easy to get information from the enormous online Strobist community.
   
   It misses a star because it's relatively big and the plastic foot makes me nervous. Also, the Vivitar PC sync connection is annoying. (I think they call it PC-1?)You'll need an extra conversion cord in many cases to connect to your camera or radio trigger. (To be clear, the flash comes with a Vivitar male to PC Female cord. You usually won't need to BUY an extra cord, you will just need to USE an extra cord.)