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Details at a glance
Megapixels: 8.5
Zoom: 3x (opt), 8x (dig)
LCD screen: 3 inch
Storage: SD (32mb int)
Size: 96 x 25.69 x 62mm
Weight: 170g
(full details at the bottom of the page)
We clicked with
Excellent software and plenty of features, low power consumption.
Shots in the dark
Lack of visual appeal, the upper row of buttons, automatic mode producing significantly less effective pictures than manual settings.
Links
More
HP information
www.hp.co.uk
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With the HP R927 digital camera you are getting a no-nonsense design, complemented by an easy-to-use menu and software package. This camera is a good all-rounder and a positive step forward for HP. It's let down on some fronts though. Read on to find out…
Appearance and features
The R927 is a rectangular brick-like design (and fairly heavy too) with a fat screen on the back. It offers 8.5 megapixels, a total x24 zoom (3x optical, 8x digital) and 3 inch colour display. It comes with a good paper “quick start” guide, a CD with some acceptable photo software and a full manual, plus docking station.
The arrangement of buttons takes a little getting used to. We have a row of buttons along the top of the camera - flash, macro, direct print, review/camera mode switch, on/off, and finally the shutter and video buttons. Having the buttons along the top of the camera makes one less likely to use them. Any of them can also be accidentally pressed when trying to change the battery.
The zoom button is a rather odd “L”-shape, which just about works and emphasises the square design. The arrangement of buttons is confusing: the designers clearly decided that the camera had to have a big screen and a small body.
The “compass” button at the bottom rear right, with its menu button in the centre and mode menu above works well and is a piece of interface shared with many other all-in-one camera brands. The advantage is that you can access several features independently.
Advanced features
I really liked the creative “design gallery” menu. The effects work superbly on the big screen and perhaps even justify it. In conjunction with the quality software (it is good: fully featured rather than the usual trimmed down versions)- both the simplicity of HP's LCD interface and the way the camera and the software complement each other begin to make sense.
For instance, take a pleasing sunset photo, and then apply the “Ink Dots” feature in the “apply artistic effects” submenu. Save the image and use the HP photosmart premier software for a perfectly good greeting card. Sure, it's not pro-spec, but it's much more effective than most family-friendly functions on cameras which never get used.
Manual modes work well and again the system offers the user helpful advice. In shutter priority, for instance, when you over- or under- expose and half press the shutter down, the R927 indicates that you are about to take a dud by turning the shutter and aperture information red. The user can adjust the shutter speed until a white display is restored. There is even a help menu function which offers users advice on photos they have already taken (and if you remember the “quality control” stickers on your old photos from the developers, you'll know what I mean!)
Simple touches
Other simple innovations include the ability to bracket in three ways: adaptive lighting (which lessens the effects of harsh lighting where there is a lot of contrast), colour and EV compensation. And we love reviewing images in playback mode, which saves power. This means the lens doesn't power up, so you can proudly show off your 200 holiday photos without running down the battery.
Date and imprint is also useful - we often forget that these cameras are popular with professionals (surveyors, insurers etc.) and this function, which can be turned on and off, will be a real boon to them.
Against...
Despite the rich feature set, this camera is not perfect. I found that some of the suggestions offered to take better photos were not always the only solutions. It can be better to use a different metering mode instead of changing the EV as suggested, for example. The night photo feature will, undoubtedly, give you blurry photos when handheld, because the best the camera can do is ISO 400. Likewise, even cloudy days can cause problems, unless you know to set the ISO to 400 and use averaged metering. The lens isn't that bright on this camera so you will need to play around to get the best results. The feature set and the awkward buttons mean this camera will take a good few hours to understand, and in some cases you will need to follow the help menu to get the best results.
Automatic mode on the camera could also perform better. I also found the purple vertical lines that appear on the screen in bright sunlight very annoying. This issue is made worse by the fact that there is no optical viewfinder.
Macro mode has a minimum focusing distance of 16cm, which is not particularly close (you can get down to 5cm and below on many other units in this price bracket).
I tested the camera, setting it to 2MP and printing at 6 x 4 inches, however in conditions where there was some contrast but adequate light it produced images with a lot of noise. This was not very satisfactory. This suggests that while it may have a bundle of extra features; the lens and quality of other components let the camera down.
Last but not least, it seems a little noisy. Not one for private investigators…
Software
Excellent software! Although it claims to have “advanced” functionality, I liked its simplicity. I especially liked its ability to catalogue images on my hard drive, effective photo-stitching for panoramic photos and the “create” feature - for creating cards, calendars and the rest. The back-up feature also seems sensible.
Who will buy...
This camera suits someone who knows a little about f-stops. The general camera design is a little awkward, the buttons are wrong and this camera is never going to win design awards. However, it has a high specification and I appreciate that some people really like the idea of a docking station that deals with the battery-charging and the downloading. The software is very good and if you don't want to have to buy extra software, this package makes sense. Perhaps it is aimed at computer users rather than camera buffs as it is a functional rather than an intuitive design. At around £199 it is also good value.
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Ease of use 
Functions 
Value for Money
Overall 
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The middling lens on this camera is compensated for by above average software and features like the built-in help menu. Once you have accepted the unconventional styling, it is average to use. This isn't a camera to fall in love with. However, if you want a practical good value camera with some very good software this is a strong contender.
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Hewlett Packard Photosmart R927
| Mega-pixels: |
8.5 |
Photo: |
JPEG |
| Optical Zoom: |
3x |
Lens: |
HP Precision |
| Digital Zoom: |
8x |
Focal Length: |
equiv. 35-105mm |
| LCD: |
3 inch |
Shutter speed: |
16 sec to 1/2000s |
| Dimensions: |
96 x 25.6 x 62 mm |
ISO Range: |
ISO 100 to 400 |
| Weight: |
170g |
Exposure Comp.: |
+/- 3EV (1/3 steps) |
| Storage: |
SD, 32mb int |
Movie: |
MPEG (640x480 @ 24fps) |
| Battery: |
Lithium-ion |
Microphone: |
Yes |
| Interface: |
USB 2.0 |
PictBridge: |
No |
| BlueTooth: |
No |
RAW: |
No |
| Windows: |
Win 98 + |
Mac: |
OS X 10.2.8 + |
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Included accessories: HP Photosmart R07 lithium-ion rechargeable battery,
HP Photosmart 6220 Digital Camera Dock, USB cable, Quick Start Guide, User Guide
on CD, warranty/regulatory brochure, CD with HP Photosmart Premier software
for Windows and Macintosh, wrist strap |
