Product Reviews

The Simplified Spelling Society would like to spell rhyme, rime. Phonetic would be fonetic if it ran the world, and envy would probably be nv. How apt. The NV11 is one of the most appealing, attractive and coo-inspiring cameras we've yet had in the MacUser office.

Its cold metal body has a classy matt-black finish, the edges are perfectly curved, and the slim handgrip is far more grabbable and better balanced than you would ever have thought at first sight. To the front there's a sharp Schneider lens with a 5x optical zoom, which takes it from 7.8-39mm (equivalent to 38-190mm on a 35mm model), while behind there's a 2.7in TFT, which is bright and sharp and fast enough to keep up with swiftly moving action. Why is this a good thing? Because the NV11 is more than a stills snapper; it can also shoot movies at 800x592 pixels until they reach 2GB in size. Few cameras could beat that at this price.

Its native resolution is an impressive 10.1MP, which matches consumer digital SLRs like Canon's Eos 400D, and it'll squeeze around 50 of these onto a 256MB SD card. As no card is supplied, though, you'll have to rely on the internal memory, which fills up after eight shots when set to fully auto.

So far, so unsurprising, but the NV11 is more than just a regular camera inside a smart retro body. We were impressed by the charging tackle,

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which is a USB cable slotted into the back of a regular three-pin plug. When you're at home you'll charge it by plugging it into the wall. When you're away you'll remove the USB lead, stick it in your MacBook and charge from there instead, just like you would an iPod.

Best of all, though, is what Samsung calls the Smart-Touch Interface. This is two rows of 13 buttons ranged along the bottom and right-hand edge of the display. They line up with on-screen icons and provide menu access and adjustments across the full range of functions. Want to change the exposure? Simple: press the fourth button down on the right, and then gently slide your finger over the bottom row of buttons to step up and down through the EV values. Want to change the resolution? Press the third button on the bottom row and then scroll up and down through the settings with the buttons on the right. We hope for Samsung's sake that it's patented these menus and controls, as they're the best we've seen on any camera. Anywhere.

All of this would count for nothing if it weren't for the fact that the NV11 also produces excellent output. Photos were well resolved, and colours realistic throughout our tests. It was sometimes a little slow to focus in darker conditions, such as when we used it at a concert, but the flash is well balanced and has a good throw, and we certainly wouldn't hesitate to use it at parties, in pubs and outdoors at night when lighting may be an issue.

But the glaze on this particular gateau has to be the price. If you shop around, you'll beat the £196 we've published above, and indeed we've seen online outlets punting it for £188, which is nothing short of a bargain. Do, however, be aware that Samsung is due to revamp its NV line-up in the next couple of months, and while new models will do nothing to dent the appeal of the NV11, they could drive down its price still further. Waiting a little could pay dividends.