Three Digital SLR Cameras - Assignment Example

Consumer Report on Three Digital SLR Cameras TABLE OF CONTENTS Informative ……………………………………………………………………….2 Introduction ………………………………………………………………………………...3 Discussion of Findings ……………………………………………………………………. 4 Summary of Findings ………………………………………………………………………7 Conclusion ………………………………………………………………………………..... 8 Works Cited ………………………………………………………………………………..10 INFORMATIVE ABSTRACT After extensive inquiry and personal research from different sources, I plan to purchase Nikon D5300 camera. The purpose of this consumer report is to explain to other potential consumers of the process I followed in making the final but informed decision in purchasing the product. The decision to purchase the Nikon D5300 camera was based on a four criteria that were used to evaluate the shortlisted products, which included Olympus TG-3 and Sony Alpha 6000. The criteria consisted of the following: Cost Battery life Resolution Camera weight After an extensive research on the products, from brand websites to consumer review websites, I am confident that Nikon D5300 camera serves best to my needs. The consumer reviews for Nikon D5300 camera indicated that the camera has a capability of producing high quality pictures and reliable battery life. On the other hand, Olympus TG-3 and Sony Alpha 6000 offered a close range competition to Nikon D5300. I eliminated Olympus TG-3 despite being cost effective because it had lower resolution compared to the other two. I also decided to eliminate Sony Alpha 6000 camera at the end because it was slightly expensive than Nikon D5300. In addition, despite having the same resolution power with Nikon D5300, Sony Alpha 6000 had a low life battery comparing to the close competitor. INTRODUCTION Everybody on earth cherishes memories of important events in our life. More importantly, people try to document the events using different means, particularly through photography or video recording. Personally, I am an adventurous person, who travels different places from time to time with my friends. In most cases, I rely on my friends’ camera to get photographs of past events. This way, I find it difficult to capture moments that are more precious to me. In this regard, I decided to purchase a personal camera so that I could get every moment that is precious to me. However, after searching in different shops and online stores, I discovered that there were many available cameras with different features making me to be a little confused. Therefore, I decided to make a list of features that were crucial for the specific type of camera that would suite my needs. The features were as follows: Cost- many cameras with high-end features cost more than $1000. However, considering the fact that the camera was intended for personal use, I decided to limit my price to a maximum of $750. Battery life- most adventurous trips can last long out in the field before returning to a point with power source to charge batteries. Therefore, I needed a camera with a battery that could hold charge for long. In addition, I also wanted a camera battery with long half-life because replacement of batteries can be expensive too. Resolution- I like having good quality picture that reflect true nature on the ground because I share the pictures with my friends on the social media and also print some for personal records. Weight- having a lightweight camera makes it easier and convenient to carry it in every occasion set in the field. Therefore, I needed a camera with the least weight in addition to the above specifications. The sources of my research information came from company website, store websites and consumer reviews. The company websites were important because they provided in-depth information concerning particular products. In addition, consumer reviews also proved helpful because I was able to get a general picture about particular products from experienced users. Further, store websites helped in comparing prices and other features from different sellers. This report aims to inform people on the right criterion for purchasing cameras by comparing Nikon D5300, Olympus Tough TG-3 and Sony Alpha 6000. DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS My research for the Digital SLR cameras began on the camera paradise and Amazon websites. The camera paradise website is well-known store website that sells variety of cameras with different features. On the other hand, the Amazon website is an established medium for selling items online. Therefore, I expected to find enough and reliable information from the websites. In each of the three products, I analyzed the available information according to the criterion highlighted in the introduction. COST Financial considerations are important to many people because consumers like to get value for their money. Similarly, I set out to get the best camera for my personal use at the lowest price as possible. The prices for the three products were within the maximum price range, I was willing to pay for my final product. The camera paradise, an online store that specializes in selling cameras quoted the price for Nikon D5300 at $ 628.60. The Amazon, a well-established online sales store involved in selling various products including electronics, quoted the price for Sony Alpha 6000 at $648. Finally, RitzCamera.com, an online store dealing with a collection of consumer technology hardware and has been in existence for close to100 years, quoted the price for Olympus TG-3 at $349. When comparing the prices of the three products, Olympus TG-3happens to be the least expensive hence attracting more attention for price sensitive buyers looking for the same category of DSLRs. BATTERY LIFE As discussed earlier, battery life was a crucial factor to me because of participating in outdoor activities for nearly a full day hence the need for a battery that can last long. In addition, the half-life was considered in this category in order to eliminate the need for regular replacements that make operation costs to be increased. I obtained battery life information for the Nikon D5300 at the bestbuy.com, an online store that deals with a wide range of electronics. The Nikon - EN-EL14a battery has a 1230 mAh capacity that can enable one to take up to 600 shots. On the other hand, I got battery life information for the Sony Alpha 6000 at the band website, Sony.com. The camera is fitted with a lithium battery with capacities of 1080mAh enabling people to take a number of shots slightly less compared to Nikon D5300. Lastly, battery information for Olympus TG-3, obtained from the brand website, indicated that the camera is fitted with Olympus TG-3 battery with a capacity of 1350mAh, meaning that it can last longer than that of Sony Alpha 6000 and Nikon D5300 hence making it to be the best choice in this category RESOLUTION Resolution for the camera of choice was important to me because I needed high quality pictures for sharing online and printing purposes. In real sense, the resolution capacity for cameras is measured using pixel, the smallest element of a picture. A mega pixel is made up of 1000 pixels of camera resolution. Considering this aspect of camera resolution, people are attracted to cameras that have the highest number of megapixels. In this regard, the brand websites Sony Alpha 6000, Olympus TG-3 and camera paradise.com place the resolution of the three cameras at 24, 16 and 24 megapixels respectively. This means that Sony Alpha 6000 and Nikon D5300 have similar resolution capabilities hence locking out the Olympus TG-3, which has the leas resolution of 16 megapixels. WEIGHT The weight for the camera of choice was important to me because of walking for long distances in different expeditions. In addition, I wanted to be in a position of carrying my camera in almost all occasions that I purposed to attend. Other features such as water and dustproof also featured in this category of selection criterion. Surprisingly, the Olympus TG-3 performed excellently in this category for having the least weight. According to the brand website for Olympus TG-3, the camera weighs 8.7 oz (247g) including the battery. In addition, Olympus TG-3 camera attracted more attention for being water, dust, freeze, crush and shockproof. The second in this category was Sony Alpha 6000. According to Donnel and Jim, editors in a renowned online electronic review magazine, PcMag Sony Alpha 6000 weighs 12.1 oz making it to be second in my category of weight elimination. Finally, according to the brand site for Nikon D5300, the camera weighs 1lb 2.7 oz (530g) with battery and memory card but without body cap. This makes the camera to be heaviest of the three DSLRs that I had interest in buying. CONSUMER REVIEWS After collecting enough information from my personal research in different sources, I decided to check consumer reviews in order to get a general picture of the products in question from experienced users and other professionals in the field. For the reviews from consumers, I looked at consumerreports.org, cnet.com and B & H Foto & Electronics Corp website. Sony Alpha 6000 received an average rating of 4 stars from online consumer reviews. Many consumer reviews pointed out that the camera was fast and had additional features such as Wi-Fi that made the camera to be user friendly. In addition, the consumers cited that the camera produced high quality pictures owing to the high level of pixels installed into the gadget. On the other hand, Nikon D5300 received an average rating of 4 stars also. Many reviews related closely to those of Sony Alpha 6000 meaning that the two cameras command the same amount of attention from consumers because of proving feature that are closely related. In particular, many reviews cited the speedy performance of the gadgets, additional functions such as Wi-Fi capability and high quality pictures resulting from the 24-megapixel camera lens. Lastly, Olympus TG-3 camera received a rating of 3.5 stars from consumers. However, most of the consumer reviews praised the camera for the additional resistance features that made the camera to be one of the toughest designs in the market. In particular, consumers were attracted to the fact that the camera was crushproof because in most cases many people lose their cameras after they fall down accidentally. In addition, most consumer reviews also cited the compact design that resulted in a lightweight camera with additional features such as Built-In Wi-Fi, GPS, and e.Compass. SUMMARY OF FINDINGS Considering the selection criterion highlighted in the introduction, the cost of purchasing the camera was critical in my analysis. Therefore, based on my research findings, all the three cameras fitted into the maximum price category of $750. Therefore, I was comfortable in purchasing any of the three cameras I shortlisted for the research. However, the Olympus TG-3 priced at $349 caught my attention because it could help in cutting extra expenditure when purchasing either Nikon D5300 or Sony Alpha 6000, which had almost similar price range. However, there was need to use the other three selection criteria factors to eliminate the inferior product from the list. The first important factor for elimination was the resolution power because in needed a camera that could produce good quality pictures. In this category, Nikon D5300 and Sony Alpha 6000 had equal capabilities of producing high quality pictures because both of them had a resolution power of 24 mega pixels. Olympus TG-3 had a resolution power of 16 mega pixels hence making it the least powerful camera in the list. The other important factor put into consideration was the battery life. In this category, Olympus TG-3 camera was top in the list because of having a battery with a capacity of 1350mAh. Second in the list was Nikon D5300 camera, which had Nikon - EN-EL14 battery, with a capacity of 1230 mAh. The last in the list was Sony Alpha 6000, which had a battery with a capacity of 1080mAh. Lastly, the camera weight was also a point of concern to my selection criterion. In this category, Olympus TG-3 was at the top of the list by having weight of 8.7 oz. the second in the category was Sony Alpha 6000, which had 12.1 oz. The last in the list was Nikon D5300, which had a weight of 1lb 2.7 oz. Based on the above analysis, I decided to eliminate Olympus TG-3 camera despite the fact that it was the cheapest. This is because I was willing to pay a maximum price of $ 750 and the resolution for my camera choice had the highest priority after the cost. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Based on my research, several conclusions emanate considering the final list of the two proposed products. Although both Sony Alpha 6000 and Nikon D5300 cameras had similar resolution power, Nikon D5300 camera was a little heavier. However, Nikon D5300 had a longer battery life of 1230 mAh compared to that of Sony Alpha 6000, which was 1080mAh. Therefore, Nikon D5300 camera is the most preferred camera considering the fact that it costs $19.4lower than Sony Alpha 6000. The weight difference is minimal, hence ignored in making evaluating the two alternatives. Using my evaluation criteria in the introduction, I categorized the three products in a table with a maximum score of 25 for each criterion. criterion Nikon D5300 Sony Alpha 6000 Olympus TG-3 Cost 21 21 23 Battery life 20 18 20 Resolution 24 24 17 weight 20 21 22 Works Cited Amazon.com. Sony Alpha a6000 24.3 MP Interchangeable Lens Camera - Body only. n.d. Web. 3 Jul 2014. < http://www.amazon.com/Sony-Alpha-a6000-Interchangeable-Camera/dp/B00I8BICCG%3FSubscriptionId%3DAKIAICE7LOAJMK3SSLPA%26tag%3Dpcm_rounduptable-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3DB00I8BICCG >. B & H Foto & Electronics Corp. Olympus Stylus TOUGH TG-3 Digital Camera (Black). n.d. Web. 3 Jul 2014.< http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1042475-REG/olympus_v104140bu000_stylus_tough_tg_3_digital.html/c/product/#inpage:New+Item,+Available+for+pre-order?gclid=CjgKEAjw286dBRDmwbLi8KP71GQSJAAOk4sjWgZ1Fp59LapGG5PyiFE-4i1S-5WcwnkR0Go6NZvnsvD_BwE >. Bestbuy.com. Nikon - EN-EL14a Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery. n.d. Web. 3 Jul 2014. < http://www.bestbuy.com/site/nikon-en-el14a-rechargeable-lithium-ion-battery/3201155.p?id=1219089115501&skuId=3201155 >. Camerapradise.com. Nikon D5300 Body Digital SLR Camera. n.d. Web. 3 Jul 2014. < http://cameraparadise.com/Nikon-D5300-Body-Digital-SLR-Camera-2568.html?tid=aushopping&aushop >. Cnet.com. Nikon D5300 Review. n.d. Web. 3 Jul 2014. < http://www.cnet.com/products/nikon-d5300/ >. Consumerreports.org. Digital Cameras. n.d. Web. 3 Jul 2014.< http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/electronics-computers/cameras-photography/digital-cameras/digital-slr-camera-ratings/models/overview/sony-alpha-6000-99051881.htm >. Donnel, Wendy.S and Jim Fisher. “The 10 Best Digital Cameras.” PcMag. June 23, 2014. Web. 3 Jul 2014. < http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2369450,00.asp >. Olympus.com. Rechargeable Lithium‑Ion Battery. n.d. Web. 3 Jul 2014. < http://www.olympus.co.uk/site/en/c/cameras_accessories/digital_cameras_accessories/digital_power_supplies/li_92b/index.html >. Ritzcamera.com. Olympus TG-3 Tough 16MP Waterproof Digital Camera (Black). n.d. Web. 3 Jul 2014. < http://www.ritzcamera.com/product/OLYV104140BU000.htm >. Sony.com. A6000 Mirror less Camera. n.d. Web. 3 Jul 2014. < http://store.sony.com/a6000-mirrorless-camera-zid27-ILCE6000//cat-27-catid-All-Alpha-a6000-Cameras?vva_ColorCode=BC008&_t=pfm%3Dcategory >. Read More