Casio EX-H20G Review

January 31, 2011 | Gavin Stoker | Rating star Rating star Rating star Rating star

Image Quality

All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 14 megapixel Fine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 5Mb.

Our findings with the EX-H20G largely aped our observations from last year governing the EX-H15. That's to say that, as with most Casio compacts, warm, well-saturated colours are the order of the day, shots understandably coming alive when blessed with shooting under blue skies and bags of natural light. Generally there was little in the way of visible blur from camera shake, though inevitably we did get the very occasional soft shot, particularly when shooting at the telephoto end of the zoom. Pixel fringing was also evidenced on close inspection between areas of high contrast, though again this was kept at acceptable levels.

We noticed too a slight loss of definition towards the corners when shooting at maximum wideangle setting; again not totally unexpected, given the much wider than average 24mm equivalent, as is some visible barrel distortion - disguised much better when shooting natural landscapes rather than man made ones.

With a broad light sensitivity range starting out at ISO80 this time around (to the EX-H15's even lower ISO64), up until ISO400 a sharp level of detail is maintained, fractionally softening when we come to ISO800. There's more pronounced degradation on close inspection between that setting and ISO1600. The latter is still very usable however - not bad at all a performance from this class of compact.

At top ISO3200 detail has softened across the image to limit the appearance of noise and it is beginning to take on a fuzzy, watercolour-like effect. However the EX-H20G delivers far from the worst showing we've seen at this setting on a point and shoot; some deterioration is virtually a given, what with the high pixel count on offer.

Noise

There are 7 ISO settings available on the Casio EX-H20G. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting:

ISO 80 (100% Crop)

ISO 100 (100% Crop)

iso80.jpg iso100.jpg
   

ISO 200 (100% Crop)

ISO 400 (100% Crop)

iso200.jpg iso400.jpg
   

ISO 800 (100% Crop)

ISO 1600 (100% Crop)

iso800.jpg iso1600.jpg
   

ISO 3200 (100% Crop)

 
iso3200.jpg  

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 soft at the default sharpening setting and benefit from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop. You can also change the in-camera sharpening level to suit your tastes.

Original (100% Crop)

Sharpened (100% Crop)

sharpen1.jpg sharpen1a.jpg
   
sharpen2.jpg sharpen2a.jpg

Focal Range

The Casio EX-H20G's 4x zoom lens provides a focal length of 24-240mm in 35mm terms, as demonstrated below.

24mm

240mm

focal_range1.jpg focal_range1a.jpg

Chromatic Aberrations

The Casio EX-H20G kept chromatic aberrations largely under control 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)

chromatic1.jpg chromatic2.jpg

Macro

The Casio EX-H20G offers a Super Macro setting that allows you to focus on a subject that is 7cms 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

macro1.jpg macro1a.jpg

Flash

The flash settings on the Casio EX-H20G are Auto, Flash On, Flash Off, Soft Flash, and Red Eye Reduction. These shots of a white coloured wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.

Flash Off - Wide Angle (24mm)

Flash On - Wide Angle (24mm)

ISO 64 ISO 64
   

Flash Off - Telephoto (240mm)

Flash On - Telephoto (240mm)

ISO 64 ISO 64

And here are a couple of portrait shots. Neither the Auto setting or the Red Eye Reduction option caused any amount of red-eye.

Flash On

Flash On (100% Crop)
flash_on.jpg flash_on1.jpg
   

Red-eye Correction

Red-eye Correction (100% Crop)

flash_redeye.jpg flash_redeye1.jpg

Night

The Casio EX-H20G's maximum shutter speed is 4 seconds in the Night scene mode, which isn't good news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 4 seconds at ISO 80. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like.

Night Shot

Night Shot (100% Crop)

night1.jpg night1a.jpg

Single Frame SR Zoom

Single Frame SR Zoom electronically extends the S200's zoom range by a factor of 1.5x to 15x.

Off

On

sr_zoom_off.jpg sr_zoom_on.jpg

Single Frame SR Quality

Single Frame SR Quality promises to deliver images with improved clarity and resolution.

Off (100% Crop)

On (100% Crop)

sr_quality_off.jpg sr_quality_on.jpg

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Casio EX-H20G camera, which were all taken using the 14 megapixel Fine 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 1280 x 720 pixels at 20 frames per second. Please note that this 15 second movie is 20.7Mb in size.

Product Images

Casio EX-H20G

Front of the Camera

 
Casio EX-H20G

Isometric View

 
Casio EX-H20G

Isometric View

 
Casio EX-H20G

Rear of the Camera

 
Casio EX-H20G

Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed

 
Casio EX-H20G

Rear of the Camera / GPS

 
Casio EX-H20G

Top of the Camera

 
Casio EX-H20G

Bottom of the Camera

 
Casio EX-H20G

Side of the Camera

 

Casio EX-H20G

Side of the Camera

 
Casio EX-H20G
Memory Card Slot
 
Casio EX-H20G
Battery Compartment

Conclusion

As with most big zoom compacts claiming to be all in one solutions, the pluses surrounding the Casio EX-H20G - extended creative options due to that broader focal range - outweigh the negative of slightly wider physical dimensions. And it's worth recalling that just a couple of years back you would have to buy an enthusiast-targeted bridge model to get anything like the lens reach offered here. Advantages over the EX-H15 here most notably include the GPS functionality (and HDMI output), though many may feel they can do without that for day-to-day use and plump for the slightly cheaper camera instead.

It's a shame that the obvious mechanical buzz of the zoom lens making its adjustments has necessitated the lens barrel being frozen in place when video recording commences. This is in itself much noisier in operation than on competing models, and is one of the few black marks against Casio's travel zoom Exilim, the other being the slightly sluggish powering up and down, again in comparison with rivals.

That broad focal range, high resolution and a decent battery life do however ensure that the Casio EX-H20G should be on the list of anyone looking for an able travel companion that can return decent results with the minimum of fuss and prior knowledge. As we noted when summing up its EX-H15 sibling, it may not be the prettiest device out there, but it's practical. Just make sure you shop around to get a good price as there's a premium being paid for the GPS facility.

4 stars

Ratings (out of 5)
Design 3.5
Features 4.5
Ease-of-use 4
Image quality 3.5
Value for money 3

Review Roundup

Reviews of the Casio EX-H20G from around the web.

whatdigitalcamera.com »

The Casio EXILIM EX-H20G is Casio's latest compact, but beneath its standard exterior are some unique features: namely the Hybrid GPS technology that combines Global Positioning Satellite technology with a motion sensor to geotag images wherever you are. Beyond this the camera comes pre-loaded with top locations on a map, and a simple click of a button will find your location and what's in the surrounding area.
Read the full review »

Specifications

Number of Effective Pixels 14.1 million
Image Sensor   1/2.3-inch square pixel CCD
Total Pixels 14.48 million
File Format Still Images JPEG (Exif Version 2.3, DCF 2.0 standard, DPOF compliant)
Movies MOV format, H.264/AVC, IMA-ADPCM (monaural)
Internal Memory 14.5 MB*1
Recording Media SDXC-, SDHC Memory Card, SD Memory Card*2
Number of Recorded Pixels Still Images 14M (4320 x 3240), 3:2 (4320 x 2880), 16:9 (4320 x 2432), 10M (3648 x 2736), 6M (2816 x 2112), 3M (2048 x 1536), VGA (640 x 480)
Movies HD: 1280 x 720 (30 fps) / STD: 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Recording Capacity (Maximum Image Size Setting) Still Images Built-in Memory Approx. 1 shot (Fine) / ca. 3 shots (Normal)
SD Memory Card 1GB*3 Approx. 103 shots (Fine) / Approx. 199 shots (Normal)
Movies Recording Time Max. recording time per file: 29 min.
Built-in Memory Approx. 11 second (HD)
SD Memory Card 1GB*3 Approx. 12 min. 10 second (HD)
Operating Speed Start-up Time*4 Approx. 2.8 second
Shutter Release Time Lag*4*5 Approx. 0.007 second
Auto Focus Speed Approx. 0.17 second (At full wide angle; Auto Focus Speed measure conditions defined by CASIO)
Playback Speed*3 Approx. 0.12 second / image
Shooting Interval*3*5 Approx. 1.2 second intervals
Lens / Focal Length Construction 11 lenses in 10 groups, including aspherical lens
F-number F3.2 (W) to F5.7 (T)
Focal Length   f= 4.3 to 43.0mm
35mm Film Equivalent Approx. 24 to 240mm
Zoom 10x optical, 15x Single SR Zoom, 4x digital, max. 159.4x digital (in combination with HD Zoom@VGA)
Focusing Focus Type Contrast Detection Auto Focus
Focus Modes Auto Focus, Macro Mode, Super Macro Mode, Infinity Mode, Manual Focus
AF Area Intelligent, Spot, Multi or Tracking
AF Assist Lamp Yes
Focus Range*6 (From Lens Surface) Auto Focus Approx. 15cm to Infinity (W)
Macro Approx. 7cm to 50cm (W) (First step from widest setting)
Super Macro Approx. 7cm to 50cm
Infinity Mode Infinity (W)
Manual Focus Approx. 15cm to Infinity (W)
Exposure Exposure Metering Multi-pattern, center weighted, spot by imaging element
Exposure Control Program AE
Exposure Compensation -2EV to +2EV (in 1/3EV steps)
Shutter Type   CCD electronic shutter, mechanical shutter
Shutter Speed*7 Auto 1/2 to 1/2000 second
Night Scene (BEST SHOT) 4 to 1/2000 second
Aperture*8 F3.2 (W) to F7.5 (W)*9
White Balance Auto WB, Daylight, Overcast, Shade, Day White FL, Daylight FL, Tungsten, Manual WB
Sensitivity (SOS/REI)*10 Still Images Auto, ISO80, ISO100, ISO200, ISO400, ISO800, ISO1600, ISO3200
Movies Auto
Other Recording Functions Image Stabilization Mechanism CCD-shift image stabilization
Premium AUTO Yes
Single Frame SR Quality Yes
360° Slide Panorama Yes
Make-up Mode Yes (12-level steps)
Landscape Mode Yes (Vivid Landscape: 2-level steps / Mist Removal: 2-level steps)
BEST SHOT   Yes: 27 scenes
Dynamic Photo Yes
YouTube™ Capture Mode Yes
Geo-tagging by snapshots and movie Yes (Latitude and longitude coordinates, shooting ditrections, place name and stamp place)
World map data and sights Approx. 10,000 internal pre-installed sight images
Face Detection Yes
Self-timer 10 seconds, 2 seconds, Triple Self-timer
Built-in Flash Flash Modes Auto, Flash Off, Flash On, Soft Flash, Red Eye Reduction
Flash Range*8 Approx. 0.2 to 3.5m (W), approx. 0.5 to 1.9m (T)
Flash Charge Time Approx. 5 seconds
Monitor Screen 3.0-inch TFT color LCD (Super Clear LCD), 460,800 dots (960 x 480)
Timekeeping Functions Date and Time Recorded with image data
On-image Time Stamp Function Yes
Auto Calendar To 2049
World Time 162 cities in 32 time zones, city name, date, time, daylight saving time, time auto correction with GPS
Input/Output Terminals   USB/AV port (NTSC/PAL), HDMI™ (Mini)
USB Hi-Speed USB
Microphone Monaural
Speaker Monaural
Power Requirements Rechargeable lithium ion battery (NP-90, 1950mAh) x 1
Battery Life Number of Shots*11 (CIPA Standards) Approx. 600 shots (GPS function turned off)
Approx. 480 shots (GPS function turned on)
Continuous Playback*12 (Still Images) Approx. 5 hrs 40 min.
Continuous Movie Recording Time*13 Approx. 3 hrs 20 min.
Dimensions (CIPA Standards) 102.5 (W) x 67.5 (H) x 28.8 (D) mm, 24.7mm thick excluding lens
Weight (CIPA Standards) Approx. 216g (including battery and memory card), approx. 172g (excluding battery and memory card)
Bundled Accessories Rechargeable lithium ion battery (NP-90), battery charger, AC power cord, USB cable, AV cable, strap, CD-ROM

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