Samsung WB750 Review

December 8, 2011 | Mark Goldstein | Rating star Rating star Rating star Rating star Half rating star

Introduction

The Samsung WB750 is a 12.5 megapixel compact camera that utilises the company's own BSI CMOS sensor, a 18x, 24-432mm optically-stabilized lens and a 3 inch LCD screen. The WB750 travel-zoom also offers full 1080p HD video recording with a creative movie mode, simultaneous stills and video capture and an HDMI port, advanced A/S/M shooting modes for the more experienced user, auto modes for the beginner, 10fps burst shooting, Live Panorama mode, 3D photos, and a range of creative filters and effects. The Samsung WB750 is available now in black for £249 / $279.

Ease of Use

First impressions of the Samsung WB750 are of a more refined and slimmer design than previous WB-models, with a depth of 25mm and weighing less than 200g. Constructed out of robust plastic in a sober all-black, the WB750 is small and light enough to carry in a trouser pocket or small camera bag. The WB prefix stands for 'Wide' and 'Big' - not necessarily the attributes you'd want attributed to a 'compact' - but here it actually refers to the lens reach, equivalent to an impressively versatile 24-432mm in 35mm terms, which should cover almost every subject that you'll encounter.

Although it hasn't got an 'HD' suffix in the model name, as indicated in our introduction the Samsung WB750 nevertheless offers Full 1080p High Definition video clips at 1920x1080 pixels at 30fps in the economical H.264 format. Videos can be paused mid-record and recording then re-started, so the user can therefore perform rudimentary 'editing' as they shoot. The full extent of the 18x optical zoom is accessible when shooting movies, and it's also possible to take a 10 megpixel still image whilst shooting a movie. The in-camera Creative Movie Maker allows you to combine stills and videos in a slide show complete with background music, although the available templates are a little cheesy and you can't create your own. There are also faster frame rates of 440fps and 250fps available, although only at tiny sizes of 224x160 and 368x272 pixels respectively.

As expected, the large lens dominates proceedings at the front of the WB750, its surround jutting out almost a centimeter even when the camera is inactive, suggesting Samsung could have found room for a lens thread for supplementary attachments. The lens takes up the full height of the face plate, meaning the built-in flash bulb is shifted over to the left out of harm's way. Alongside the flash is a small porthole-style window for the AF assist/self timer lamp. The WB750 has quite a nice textured hand-grip, with a slight outward curve in the camera body providing further purchase, making it easy to hold steady.

Looking down on the camera's top plate, we find a twin set of holes for the stereo sound recording system, and to the right is a small circular indented Power button. To the right, and 'sunk' slightly into the bodywork, is a familiar bottle top style dial for the shooting modes. This feels firm to the touch and well implemented, in that it rarely accidentally slips from one setting to the other.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T90 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T90
Front Rear

Ranged around the dial are the usual Program setting and Samsung's own 'Smart Auto' mode. As it sounds, this is the manufacturer's equivalent of the intelligent auto modes on competitors from Panasonic (its Lumix range), Sony (the latest T-series Cyber-shots) and Canon (Digital IXUS family). Namely you point the WB750 at a scene or subject that hopefully the camera recognizes, automatically adjusting its settings to deliver optimum results. This means that it's not necessary for the user to manually delve into scene modes to call up the likes of 'landscape' or 'flower'; the WB750's operation is merely a case of point and shoot.

Incidentally, as you turn the shooting dial, a virtual version which the same eight settings rotates in tandem on screen, highlighting and explaining each one as you select it. Also found on the dial are a 'Dual IS' mode - which offers both optical image stabilization and the ISO boosting digital variety. In terms of light sensitivity the Samsung WB750 offers a respectable range, stretching from ISO 100 up to ISO 3200. We'll of course be examining how well it does at its higher settings in the Image Quality section of our review.

The dedicated scene mode requires the user to press either the Function button or the Menu button at the camera's rear and scroll through the 12 options to find them. Along with the usual staples of Night, Text, Sunset, Dawn, Beach and Snow, and Landscape, we also get the more interesting HDR, 3D Shot, Zooming Shot, Magic Frame, Beauty Shot and Backlight.

The Beauty Shot mode is useful for both acne-d adolescents and those of us who have over indulged by automatically retouching out spots and blemishes, while the Magic Frame applies various garish frames around your image with the effect previewed on the LCD screen. In the HDR mode the camera takes two shots at different exposures and combines them to create a single image with more detail in the shadow and highlight areas. Spotlighting the WB750's intended audience as the family, Samsung clearly wants its users to have to spend as little time post-processing images as possible - if any.

Samsung's Smart Face Recognition technology automatically adjusts the camera's focus and exposure for up to 20 faces, and it can even recognise the most photographed faces in your photos and focus on them. Smart Face Recognition also lets you quickly search for specific people in your photo album without having to browse through every single photo.

The adjacent setting on the dial is for the new Live Panorama mode, which shoots a Live, Action or 3D panorama simply by holding down the shutter button and sweeping the camera across the scene, much like Sony's pioneering Sweep Panorama mode in fact. The next mode is for the previously mentioned Creative Movie Maker, followed by video mode, which isn't really needed as there's a one-touch movie record button on the back of the camera.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T90 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T90
Side Front

Completing the WB750's range of shooting modes is the A.S.M option, which as the name suggests accesses the Aperture and Shutter priority and full Manual modes. There's no external dial for changing the values, instead you have select from the on-screen graphical options and then press the OK button a couple of times to actually be able to change the aperture or shutter speed. Despite this rather slow form of operation, the A/S/M modes make the WB750 more appealing to a wider, more experienced audience looking for a more capable compact camera.

Staying on the Samsung WB750's top plate, the next control along is the large-ish and springy shutter release button, surrounded by a rocker switch for operating the zoom. Controlled by a protruding lip that falls naturally under the forefinger, the responsive zoom quietly takes around five seconds to travel from maximum wide angle to full telephoto.

Once you've zoomed in and got your composition how you want, with a half press of the shutter button the Samsung WB750 is commendably swift to determine focus and exposure, the AF point highlighted in green and an operational 'beep' confirming you're good to go on and take the shot. With little noticeable shutter lag, at the highest resolution setting an image is committed to memory in just under two seconds, the screen blanking out briefly, which isn't bad at all.

Moving to the back of the Samsung WB750, this is dominated by the three-inch LCD screen, with a vertical strip of controls running from top to bottom at its right. The LCD screen is bright and has a commendable 460k pixel resolution, although we do miss the excellent AMOLED screen of the older WB650 model.

At the top of the run of controls is a welcome one-touch movie record button, making it a cinch to start and stop your high-def movie masterpieces, alongside a dimpled area to aid your grip on the camera. Underneath is the Menu button which provides a range of selectable options, the brevity or otherwise of which is dependant on the particular mode the user is in. Let's assume, for example, we're shooting in Program mode. Selecting Menu opens an icon illustrated vertical bar with five main options that provides drop down access to fine tuning the Camera, Movie, Sound, Display and Settings.

Next to the Menu button is the Continuous Shooting button. The WB750 can shoot at an impressive 10fps for up to 8 images, or slower 5fps and 3fps modes. There's also a precapture mode which takes 8 images between half-pressing and fully-pressing the shutter button, plus single mode and various bracketing options (exposure, white balance and photo styles).

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T90 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T90
Memory Card Slot Battery Compartment

Directly underneath the Menu and Continuous Shooting buttons is a four-way directional control pad with an OK button at its centre encircled by a control dial. This will be familiar to just about anyone who has ever used a digital compact before. Ranged around the four points are options for toggling the Display modes to show a nine zone compositional grid, all shooting information or just the very basics (i.e simply the number of shots remaining), self-timer modes, macro and focus modes, and the various flash settings.

A press of the OK button when shooting video meanwhile allows the user to pause and play/resume the recording - the feature which Samsung is highlighting as one of the WB750's unique ones. It works, though whether most of us would actually need/use it is a moot point. The circular control dial is a little thin and on the sensitive side, but it does allow you to quickly change the camera's options, and it's the only way to alter the aperture and shutter speed in combination with the OK button.

Below the control pad is a self-explanatory Playback button and the useful Function button, which handily doubles up as a delete button in playback mode. As expected the amount of information and options accessed via a press of 'Fn' again varies dependant on which shooting mode is selected. For example in Smart Auto mode the user merely has the ability to adjust the image size. Twist the dial around to the Program mode however and there's the ability to set the image quality, exposure compensation, ISO speed, white balance, smart filter, face detection, focus area, image stabilisation mode, and metering mode.

While that's it for the rear of the Samsung WB750, at its right hand side (if viewing from the rear) we find an included mini-HDMI port for hooking the snapshot up to an HDTV. Increasingly common for DSLRs that also shoot movies, it's still a comparative rarity to find such on a digital compact, even if it does shoot HD video. The required HDMI cable is an optional extra though, so bear in mind if you're on a budget.

Alongside the HDMI connection is a proprietary connector for Samsung's power and sync cable - the WB750 is recharged with the battery in-camera, either from an electrical socket or or alternatively straight from a USB port connected to your computer, rather than via an external recharger, which means that annoyingly you can't use the camera with a second battery whilst charging the first. Note that there is no port for USB and AV out. Also in the box is a quick-start guide as a hard copy, the full manual on CD ROM, plus a wrist strap.

The bottom of the Samsung WB750 houses a centrally located plastic tripod mount and a a sliding cover for protecting for the shared rechargeable battery / SD/SDHC/SDXC memory card compartment - there's also a meagre 8.3Mb of internal memory. Battery life is good for approximately 225 shots from a full charge - adequate if not incredible. As previously noted, Samsung provides a compact plug/charger set up in the box that charges the battery within the camera itself.

Image Quality

All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 12.5 megapixel SuperFine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 4.5Mb.

The Samsung WB650 produced images of good quality during the review period. Noise is the main problem, being obvious at the relatively slow speed of ISO 400 along with some colour desaturation, and then becoming progressively worse at the faster settings of 800 and 1600. ISO 3200 is really only to be used as a last resort.

Chromatic aberrations were well controlled, with some limited purple fringing effects appearing only in high contrast situations. The 12.5 megapixel images were a little soft straight out of the camera at the default sharpen setting and require some further sharpening in an application like Adobe Photoshop, or you can change the in-camera sharpening level.

Macro performance is good, allowing you to focus as close as 5cms away from the subject. Commendably barrel distortion is well controlled even at the 24mm wide-angle focal length. The built-in flash worked fairly well indoors, with no red-eye and adequate overall exposure.

The image stabilisation system works very well when hand-holding the WB750 in low-light conditions or when using the telephoto end of the zoom range. The maximum shutter speed of 16 seconds allows the camera to capture enough light for most after-dark situations.

Noise

There are 6 ISO settings available on the Samsung WB750. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting.

ISO 100 (100% Crop)

ISO 200 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 400 (100% Crop)

ISO 800 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 1600 (100% Crop)

ISO 3200 (100% Crop)

Focal Range

The Samsung WB750's 18x zoom lens offers a very versatile focal range, as illustrated by these examples:

24mm

432mm

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. The out-of-the camera images are a little soft and ideally benefit from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop. You can also change the in-camera sharpening level.

Original (100% Crop)

Sharpened (100% Crop)

   

File Quality

The Samsung WB750 has 3 different image quality settings available, with SuperFine being the highest quality option. Here are some 100% crops which show the quality of the various options, with the file size shown in brackets.

14M SuperFine (4.70Mb) (100% Crop) 14M Fine (2.84Mb) (100% Crop)
   
14M Normal (1.84Mb) (100% Crop)  
 

Chromatic Aberrations

The Samsung WB750 handled chromatic aberrations well during the review, with some purple fringing present around the edges of objects in high-contrast situations, as shown in the examples below.

Example 1 (100% Crop)

Example 2 (100% Crop)

Macro

The Samsung WB750 offers a Macro setting that allows you to focus on a subject that is 5cms away from the camera when the lens is set to wide-angle. The first image shows how close you can get to the subject (in this case a compact flash card). The second image is a 100% crop.

Macro Shot

100% Crop

Flash

The flash settings on the Samsung WB750 are Smart Flash / Flash Off / Auto / Auto & Red-eye reduction / Fill-in flash / Slow sync / Red-eye fix. Somewhat strangely the full range of options aren't available in the ASM modes. These shots of a white coloured wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.

Flash Off - Wide Angle (24mm)

Auto - Wide Angle (24mm)

ISO 64 ISO 64
   

Flash Off - Telephoto (432mm)

Auto - Telephoto (432mm)

ISO 64 ISO 64

And here are some portrait shots. As you can see, neither the Auto setting or the Red eye fix option caused any red-eye.

Auto

Auto (100% Crop)
   

Red-eye fix

Red-eye fix (100% Crop)

Night Shot

The Samsung WB750's maximum shutter speed is 16 seconds in the Night scene mode, which is excellent news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 6 seconds at ISO 100.

Night Shot

Night Shot (100% Crop)

HDR

The WB750's HDR scene mode combines two differently exposed images to increase the detail in the highlight and shadow areas.

Off

On

   

Live Panorama

The WB750's Live Panorama mode shoots either a 2D or 3D panorama image by sweeping the camera either horizontally or vertically.

Live Panorama

 

3D Panorama

Smart Filters

The Samsung WB750 offers an extensive range of Smart Filter effects to help spice up your images.

Normal

Miniature

   
Vignetting Soft Focus
   
Old Film Half Tone Dot
   
Sketch Fish-eye
   
Classic Retro
   
Oil Painting Cartoon
   
Ink Painting Cross Filter

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Samsung WB750 camera, which were all taken using the 12.5 megapixel Superfine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample Movie & Video

This is a sample movie at the highest quality setting of 1920 x 1080 pixels at 30 frames per second. Please note that this 15 second movie is 14.2Mb in size.

Product Images

Samsung WB750

Front of the Camera

 
Samsung WB750

Front of the Camera / Turned On

 
Samsung WB750

Isometric View

 
Samsung WB750

Isometric View

 
Samsung WB750

Isometric View

 
Samsung WB750

Isometric View

 
Samsung WB750

Rear of the Camera

 
Samsung WB750

Rear of the Camera / Shooting Mode

 
Samsung WB750

Rear of the Camera / Turned On

 

Samsung WB750

Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed

 
Samsung WB750
Rear of the Camera / Function Menu
 
Samsung WB750
Rear of the Camera / Main Menu
 
Samsung WB750
Top of the Camera
 
Samsung WB750
Bottom of the Camera
 
Samsung WB750
Side of the Camera
 
Samsung WB750
Side of the Camera
 
Samsung WB750
Front of the Camera
 
Samsung WB750
Front of the Camera
 
Samsung WB750
Memory Card Slot
 
Samsung WB750
Battery Compartment

Conclusion

The Samsung WB750 is the latest entry in a quick-changing line-up of travel-zoom cameras from the South Korean giant, designed to take on and beat the market-leading Panasonic TZ-series. With a new 12.5 BSI sensor, 18x zoom lens, 1080p movies, full manual controls, 10fps burst shooting and a 3 inch LCD screen, it certainly has all the credentials to compete with its rivals, although unwanted noise and colour desaturation at relatively slow ISO speeds, below average battery life and slow flash recycling times does detract slightly from its overall appeal. We also missed the AMOLED screen and built-in GPS of the older WB650 model, which seem to have been dropped from the WB- range altogether.

The 18x lens raises the bar above its main rival, the Panasonic TZ series, and for this generation Samsung have made the WB design slimmer and lighter, no mean feat given the focal range on offer. You can now fit the WB650 into a trouser pocket, although it's still a tight squeeze, and the 24-432mm optically-stabilized lens proves incredibly useful, as do the Aperture and Shutter Priority modes and the full 1080p HD video with lots of bells and whistles. Only the lack of RAW format support will disappoint the hardcore photographers looking for a more serious backup pocket camera.

Officially priced at £249 / $279, as usual with Samsung the WB750 is fantastic value for money considering its wealth of beginner friendly modes and effects, more sophisticated options for more experienced users, and the compelling combination of that versatile 18x zoom lens, good quality stills, excellent video and refined design. As a carry-everywhere camera that won't break the bank, the new Samsung WB750 makes almost perfect sense.

4.5 stars

Ratings (out of 5)
Design 4.5
Features 4.5
Ease-of-use 4
Image quality 4
Value for money 5

Review Roundup

Reviews of the Samsung WB750 from around the web.

digitalcamerainfo.com »

Warning: close proximity to the Samsung WB750 has been known to cause extreme cases of “zoom envy.” Patients may experience shortness of magnification, mild or moderate squinting, and in rare cases, thoughts of return policies.
Read the full review »

Specifications

Image Sensor

Sensor Type BSI CMOS
Effective Pixel Approx 12.5 MP
Total Pixel Approx 14.6 MP

Lens

Focal Length 4 - 72mm (Equivalent to 24 - 432mm in 35mm format)
F No. F3.2 - F5.8
Optical Zoom 18x
Digital Zoom Still Image Mode: 1 - 4x,Play Mode: 1 - 9.4x (Depends on Image Size / Size)

Image Stabilization

Mode Dual IS (OIS + DIS)

Display

Type TFT LCD
Size 3.0"
Feature 3.0" (7.62cm) hVGA 460000 Pixels

Focusing

Type TTL auto focus (Centre AF, Manual Focus, Multi AF, Selection AF, Face Detection AF, Object Tracking AF, Smart Face Recognition AF)
Range Normal: 80 cm - Infinity (Wide), 3.5m - Infinity (Tele) / Macro : 5cm - 80cm (Wide), 1.8m - 3.5m (Tele) / Auto Macro : 5cm - Infinity (Wide), 1.8m - Infinity (Tele) / Manual : 5cm - Infinity (Wide), 1.8m - Infinity (Tele)

Shutter Speed

Auto : 1/8 - 1/2000 sec. / Program : 1 - 1/2000 sec., M : 16 - 1/2000 sec. / Night : 8 - 1/2000 sec.

Exposure

Control Program AE / Shutter AE / Aperture Priority AE / Manual Exposure
Metering System Multi / Spot / Centre Weighted / Face Detection AE
Compensation ±2 EV (1/3 EV steps)
ISO Equivalent Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200

Flash

Mode Smart Flash / Flash Off / Auto / Auto & Red-eye reduction / Fill-in flash / Slow sync / Red-eye fix
Range Wide : 0.3m - 3.35m (ISO Auto) / Tele : 0.5m - 1.85m (ISO Auto)
Recharging Time Approx 4 sec.

White Balance

Mode Auto WB / Daylight / Cloudy / Fluorescent_H / Fluorescent_L / Tungsten / Custom / K

Still Image

Mode Mode: Smart Auto / Program / ASM (Aperture Priority, Shutter Speed Priority, Manual) / Dual IS / Scene / Panoram / Creative Movie Maker / Movie, Panoram : Live Panorama / Action Panorama / 3D Panorama, Scene : 3D Photo / Magic Frame / HDR / Beauty Shot / Night / Landscape / Text / Sunset / Dawn / Backlight / Beach & Snow / Zooming Shot , Smart Auto : Portrait / Night Portrait / Backlight Portrait / Night / Backlight / Landscape / White / NaturalGreen / BlueSky / Sunset / Macro / Macro Text (with Smart Guide) / Macro Colour / Tripod / Action / Fireworks, Drive : Single / Continuous (10fps, 5fps, 3fps) / BKT (WB, AE) / Precapture, Self-timer : Off / 2 sec. / 10 sec. , Face Detection : Off / Face Tracking / Self-Portrait / Smile Shot / Blink Detection / Smart Face Recognition

Image Play

Single image / Thumbnails / Smart Album / Advanced Slide show / Movie Clip, Slide show : Slide show with Effect & Music, Smart Album Category : Type / Date / Week / Face (External Memory card is needed for Sorting the photos by Face)

Date Imprinting

Date&Time / Date / Off (User Selectable)

Movie Clip

Recording 18x Optical Zoom enable (Max Recording time : 20min), (Voice recording selectable : Sound Alive On / Sound Alive Off / Mute), Movie Size : 1920 x 1080 (30 fps) High Quality / 1280 x 720 (30 fps) High Quality / 640 x 480 (30 fps), High Speed : 440 fps(224 x 160) / 250 fps(368 x 272), Smart Movie : Landscape / BlueSky / NaturalGreen / Sunset, Movie Capure Button, Dual Capture (Movie 1280p (30 fps) & Still 10Mpixels) / 1920 x 1080 : 10M (6 fps) / 1280 x 720 : 10M (6 fps) / 640 x 480 : 12.5M (6 fps)
Effect Smart Filter : Nomal / Palette Effect 1 / Palette Effect 2 / Palette Effect 3 / Palette Effect 4 / Miniature / Vignetting / Half Tone Dot / Sketch / Fish Eye / Classic / Retro , Setting : OIS On / Off
Edit Pause during Recording and Playing, Still Image Capture

Storage

Media External memory : SD 1GB, 2GB / SDHC - 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, 32GB (6 or upper class) / SDXC (up to 64GB guaranteed), Internal Memory : 8.3MB
File Format Still Image : JPEG / DCF / EXIF 2.21 / DPOF 1.1 / PictBridge 1.0, Movie Clip : Container MP4, Video H.264, Audio AAC
Image Size 12.5M : 4096 x 3072 / 11.1 MP: 4096 x 2736 / 10M : 3648 x 2736 / 9.44 MW : 4096 x 2304 / 5M : 2592 x 1944 / 3M : 1984 x 1488 / 2 MW : 1920 x 1080 / 1M : 1024 x 768, 2D Panorama: 5000 x 1000 (TBD), 3D Panorama: 5000 x 1000 (TBD), 3D I Mage: 1920 x 1080, Magic Frame: 2M

Interface

Digital Output Connector USB 2.0 (Micro USB)
Audio Microphone : Stereo / Internal Speaker : Mono
Video Output AV : NTSC / PAL (user selectable), HDMI 1.4 (CEC) : NTSC / PAL (user selectable), (Built-in HDMI Type D)
DC Power Input 4.2V

Power

Power Source Type Rechargeable battery : SLB-10A, Connector Type : Micro USB Included items may vary depending on sales region

Physical Specification

Dimension Dimension (WxHxD) 105.3 x 59.4 x 24.9 (32.9)mm
Weight 193.4g
Operating Temperature 0 - 40°C
Operating Humidity 5 - 85%

S/W and PC OS

Bundle PC S/W Built-in PC S / W
Compatible OS Windows XP SP2 / Vista / Windows 7

System Requirement in General

For Windows Intel® Core 2 Duo® 1.66GHz or later, AMD Athlon™ X2 Dual-Core 2.2GHz or later

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