Ergonomics and processing as used from the NV-series, deliver Samsung at the processing solid quality. The housing consists the stand thread of two properly matching metal bowls, is likewise of metal, if also not in the Z-axis and also too near at the battery box. Its cover consists of plastic, orders however over a metal hinge. The 1,050 mAh (3,7V) accumulator is easy after pushing the protection back to infer, since a feather/spring presses it out; also wrong inserting is mechanically prevented. To the memory card one approaches likewise well. On the housing front the objective is the most coining/shaping characteristic beside the easily formed handle with rubber trimming. Unfortunately it rattles both in and switched off condition easily, the mechanical play is too large. That however hardly clouds the good impression of the camera.
More annoying there already is the positioning of the stereo microphones at the housing sides, because they become easily of the hands shielded, which is a little beneficial for the clay/tone with video recordings. The loudspeaker is on the top side of housing, where one also the switching on button, the cause, which finds circular and thus well attainable zoom shot jack and the program selection wheel. With the jack the focal length can be steered precisely, but always that does not react to zoom shot on the manipulation. The program selection wheel is somewhat difficult to operate, but it engages in each of the eight positions. Beside full mechanism and motive programs can be stopped here also video mode, program mechanism, manual exposure, binary vertical image control, long-term exposure and Beauty mode. The latter draws skin tones softly, in order to hide skin impurities and folds, costs however in similarly colored other display spaces also details and makes every now and then an unnaturally working picture impression. The vertical image control by mobile stored image sensor stands in all modes for order, in the dual IS mode provides additionally an electronic optimization.
On the back the 2.7 ” (6.9 cm) large screen takes the largest place. The detail dissolution is sufficient with 230.000 pixels (320×240 genuine color pixel), but not towering above. Owing to high contrasts and large point of view independence the display works very brilliantly, a remuneration and/or a coating for anti reflection of the plastic sealing pane provides for decreased reflections. With sharp sunlight the monitor pushes however to its borders. It hands still to the picture composition, darker display spaces works however completely black, although in the photo later very many more details are to be seen there. The faded in information is rich, even a grid network to the better picture composition as well as a Live histogram can be indicated. Additionally there are it with some attitudes of assistance texts, straight for beginners is meaningful.
The silver buttons on the camera back are well operable. Beside the play button there is a “E-key” here, with which one can affect the photo style rich (color selection, black-and-white, sharpness, contrast etc.) as well as a Fn-key, with which one can affect different photograph parameters depending upon selected photograph program such as sensitivity (however with badly legible, small writing), exposure measurement, autofocus fields etc. The menu and confirmation key of a 4-Ways-Ring one encloses, which serves in the menu for navigation, in the photograph mode however directly the lightning attitudes, the screen information, which accessible self and the macro mode take. It is very practical that each depressing the key without annoying menu or confirmation adjusts the respective attitude directly.
In thumb position is still another somewhat jack difficult to operate and small guessed. One is tried, hereby to zoom, her serves however as substitution of an adjusting wheel, and with their one can make parameters such as screen, exposure time or exposure correction fast. During the connections Samsung was somewhat economical against it. A multi-connector takes up USB (practical-proves also as load cable serves) or AV-cables, a HDMI cable is however not connectable, which with so a well equipped camera in the middle price segment unfortunate is.
Equipment scores here the WB500 as the first with the video mode. With 30 pictures per second she comes on a dissolution of hp of 1.280 x 720 pixels in the 16:9 - format. The videos are stored with stereophonic sound by means of modern H.264-Compression in the MPEG4-Format, which permits a high image quality with small storage requirement. During the video recording optical zoom shot remains active, whereby the zoom shot speed for a gentle zoom shot trip practical-proves actual however is slowed down the easy hum of the engine exactly the same as the autofocus in the videos to hear. The video recording makes for fun in such a way nevertheless, and can do confidently without a Camcorder. Practically delay-free the pictures and videos land on the memory card, so that one can to sight briskly the next motive. It becomes annoying however, if one activated the automatic picture preview of 0,5-3 s, because the whole camera blocks and can be broken off not prematurely.
Within other ranges does not need to hide itself Samsung however. There are motive programs for nearly all situations, e.g. for children, portrait or back light situations, in addition, for sunsets - only there is not one sport mode with adjusting autofocus unfortunately. Nevertheless the autofocus is flexible. Apart from a mode with nine measuring fields there is a Spot Autofocus or at least a focus field freely adjustable within an area around the picture center, which particularly with stand photographs is very valuable. We missed in the test against it a manual focus possibility. Here Samsung at Panasonic could take itself a model, whose manual focus with sharpness range adjustment (sharpness depth announcement) is very practicable.
With the sensitivity range (ISO) begins Samsung with ISO 80 and is enough to ISO 3.200. The camera dares itself automatically fortunately only to ISO 640. At the wrong end one saved with the orientation sensor - it is missing. One must turn pictures so laboriously by treatment in the camera, which is recommended before playing a slideshow. The latter quite makes fun with different effects and music pieces - HDMI would have been the i-Dot here.
Lightning is half integrated in the handle on the front, one must already somewhat watch out not to take this off inadvertently. Otherwise there is not much to criticize at it however. The quantity of light is well proportioned, and beside a mechanism one can switch on or off it also forced, also to a long-term synchronisation Samsung thought. The inclination is given to red eyes, what also the optional preflash may hardly prevent, but the camera recognizes red lightning eyes automatically and retouches these when desired, as if they would have been never there.
One can call image quality the 10-Megapixel-image sensor in the age of 12-15 megapixels already nearly moderate. This pixel number is however completely sufficient, also occasional A4 to A3-Printouts is problem-free possible. In addition it requires in addition, a good dissolution, which is limited among other things by the objective. We let examine the WB500 in the test laboratory on all quality parameters, the detailed result with diagrams, note evaluation and engineer comment are observable against a small fee (see resuming left). The laboratory has determined that the dissolution in the picture center is good with all focal lengths not to misjudge in the focal length extremes (wide angles and Tele) is the edge waste however with middle focal length is however quite constant the dissolution into the picture corners.
The electronic processing seizes with some objective parameters strongly beautiful-ends. The edge darkening is electronically on less than a screen stage absorbed, also the distortion is considering the high zoom shot extent well out-corrected; even with distortion-pregnant 24 mm there is only a 0,5-percent pincushion distortion. The artifacts, which arise at fine structures very strongly, are less good and which picture result by color artifacts and moiré effects limit strongly. The sharpening is however counterbalanced for a Shoot ton print camera well, edges is over-divided, it does not arise too much only minimum, tolerable white double lines.
The fact that the noise is strongly absorbed works only in the first moment very positively. It so hardly disturbs, but particularly with higher sensitivities starting from ISO 800 a clear soft draftsman effect shows up. With ISO 3,200 however there are strong Salt&Pepper pixels, color noise plays however with all sensitivities no role. The entrance dynamics are to ISO 800 correct, with ISO 80 and 100 are best it with 8,5 screen stages. Also the output dynamics are good to ISO 800 to use, shade and lights are easily absorbed contrary to the higher-contrast center tones, which improves the picture impression (less peeled off lights). Only with ISO no deep black is more given 1,600 and 3,200, what lets the pictures appear duller.
To good the latter Samsung selected the three compression factors according to our measuring laboratory quite well. The best quality class is visually loss-free, also with the middle shows up hardly artifacts, even the highest compression makes the pictures broken and cannot if need be be used. Also the measured autofocus speed is completely good, less enthusiastic with 0.4-0.6 seconds is we of the release delay of 0.15 seconds - other compact cameras can do that three times so fast. The white alignment does not work likewise always satisfyingly. Above all different art sources of light bring the mechanism fast in hurling, with daylight give it however to nothing to criticize.
Result Samsung WB500 is with their 24-240mm-Zoom an interesting digital camera, whose rich equipment and good processing (with metal housing) exactly the same as most automatic functions know to convince. Only drops of bitterness are the missing HDMI interface, the easily rattling objective and missing semiautomatic. The image quality is through-grows. The picture electronically well regenerated, which includes the reduction of edge shadings and distortions with, the artifact formation and intercarrier noise suppressor are however too strong, the latter costs starting from ISO 400 some details. The fast autofocus is clouded by those comparatively long release delay. It is annoying that one cannot interrupt the picture preview after the admission, particularly since the camera is not ready for input in the time.
