Sanyo Xacti C1

(known as the Fisher FVDC1 CameraCorder in the USA)

Review Date: November 20th 2004

Page 1
Introduction / Price
Page 2
Features
Page 3
Specifications
Page 4
Design
Page 5
Ease of Use
Page 6
Image Quality
Page 7
Sample Images
Page 8
Conclusion / Links

Image Quality

All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the default 3.2 megapixel 2048 x 1536 mode, which gives an average image size of around 1-1.5Mb.

Noise

There are 4 ISO settings available on the Sanyo Xacti C1 which you can select at any time in the Expert menu. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting:

ISO 50 (100% crop)

ISO 100 (100% crop)

   

ISO 200 (100% crop)

ISO 400 (100% crop)

   

The noise levels look very good at ISOs 50 and 100, with some noise starting to appear at ISO 200. By ISO 400 the quality has deteriorated significantly, making it pretty much unuseable, so overall a fairly good performance from the Sanyo Xacti C1.

Sharpening

Here are two 100% crops which have been Saved as Web - Quality 50 in Photoshop. The right-hand image has had some sharpening applied in Photoshop. There is no sharpening option that you can change on the Sanyo Xacti C1, so you will have to accept that the out-of-the camera images are a little bit soft and will require further sharpening in an image editor.

Original 100% Crop

Sharpened 100% Crop

   
   

File Quality

The Sanyo Xacti C1 has 3 different image sizes available, with 3M (2,048 x 1,536) being the default option. Here are some 100% crops which show the various sizes.

3.2M (2048 x 1536)
2M (1600 x 1200)
   
0.3M (640 x 480)
 
 
   

Chromatic Aberrations

The Sanyo Xacti C1 dealt quite well with chromatic aberrations, appearing in high-contrast situations but generally being well-controlled and not too noticeable. You can see limited purple fringing in the examples below.

Example 1
Example 2
   
Example 3
 
 
   

Macro

The Sanyo Xacti C1 has a pretty amazing Macro setting that allows you to focus on a subject that is just 2cms away from the camera. This does introduce other problems, such as the shadow of the camera getting in the picture (as in the example below), and softness in some parts of the image if a large aperture is chosen by the camera.

Macro Shot (click to view full-sized image)

100% Crop

   

The first image shows how close you can get to the subject whilst still being able to auto-focus (in this case a compact flash card). The second image is a 100% crop.

Flash

The flash settings on the Sanyo Xacti C1 are pretty standard - Auto/Forced/Off - although there is noticeably no Red-Eye Reduction option. These shots of a white wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.

Flash Off

 

ISO 64
   

Auto Flash - Wide Angle (37mm)

Auto Flash - Telephoto (104mm)
ISO 64
ISO 64
   

And here are some shots of yours truly. As you can see, the flash caused horrendous red-eye, and as there is no Red-Eye Reduction option, you will have to use software to remove it.

Flash On

Flash On (100% Crop)
   

Night Shot

The Sanyo Xacti C1 has a maximum shutter speed of 2 seconds, not really long enough if you are seriously interested in night photography. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like. The camera struggled to focus and produced a blurry result, despite being mounted on a tripod.

Night Shot (click to view full-sized image)

100% Crop
   

Overall Image Quality

The Sanyo Xacti C1 produced a pleasing set of test images. Although the 3.2 megapixel images were a little soft straight out of the camera and ideally require some post-processing before they can be printed, most other aspects of image quality was more than satisfactory. Noise is very well controlled at the slowest ISO settings of 50 and 100, only becoming visible at ISO 200 and more so at ISO 400. The Sanyo Xacti C1 did exhibit chromatic aberrations in some pictures, but the effects were well-controlled and not too noticeable. Macro performance was also excellent, allowing you to focus a mere 2cms away from the subject. The blurry night shot and horrendous red-eye when using the flash indoors were not so good. Overall a fairly good performance in terms of image quality from the Sanyo Xacti C1.

Page 1
Introduction / Price
Page 2
Features
Page 3
Specifications
Page 4
Design
Page 5
Ease of Use
Page 6
Image Quality
Page 7
Sample Images
Page 8
Conclusion / Links

DIWAPhotographyBLOG is a member of the DIWA organisation. Our test results for the Sanyo Xacti VPC-C1 have been submitted to DIWA for comparison with test results for different samples of the same camera model supplied by other DIWA member sites.