Image Quality

All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 12 megapixel Fine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 3.5Mb.

Though the Tryx is capable of delivering bright and realistic colours, on occasion stills do have the look of high quality video grabs, with pixel fringing between areas of high contrast being readily visible as a pronounced purple outline. Though this can be overlooked on moving footage, it's less easy to do so when it's staring you in the face even without viewing an image at 100%. In general, blue skies in an image have a distinctly purplish hue, though we did get some quite usable results with perseverance.

The wide-angle 21mm lens inevitably leads to leaning verticals and a slight fisheye effect to any close ups, but this is something we can live with and less of a deal breaker; indeed it can be used as an advantage when you want to add drama to a scene or subject. And yet in terms of variety we probably wouldn't want the EX-TR100 as our one and only digital camera.

If you've a steady surface - or simply use the frame as a steadying 'handle' - it is possible to get usable night shots when selecting the dedicated High Speed Night Scene from among this Casio's handful of BestShot scene modes. But again these have the overly digitized appearance of video grabs.

Matters improve slightly when we come to the available ISO100-3200 light sensitivity range, with, as we found with the numerically similar EX-ZR100, usable results provided up to and including ISO1600. The picture quality only really begins to soften when we get to top whack ISO3200, and even then noise is kept well under control, so that back lit sensor at least seems capable of proving its value. A mixed bag of results then from the Casio, which is pretty much what we expected when we first set eyes on its funky design.

Noise

There are 6 ISO settings available on the Casio EX-TR100. 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)

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 at the default sharpening setting and benefit from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop.

Original (100% Crop)	Sharpened (100% Crop)

Chromatic Aberrations

The Casio EX-TR100 suffered from obvious chromatic aberrations, with 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 Casio EX-TR100 offers a Macro setting that allows you to focus on a subject that is 8cms 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

Night

The Casio EX-TR100's maximum shutter speed is 1/8th second, which is bad news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 1/10th second at ISO 1600.

Night Shot	Night Shot (100% Crop)

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Casio EX-TR100 camera, which were all taken using the 12 megapixel Fine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample Movie & Video

Product Images

Front of the Camera

Front of the Camera

Isometric View

Isometric View

Rear of the Camera

Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed

Front of the Camera

Front of the Camera

Front of Camera

Rear of Camera

Front of Camera

Rear of Camera

Rear of Camera

Front of Camera

Side of Camera

Side of Camera

Memory Card Slot

Conclusion

One can't help suspect that the Casio EX-TR100 or Tryx is a curio in search of an audience, and one that might not actually exist, at least in large numbers. It could herald a whole fleet of Tryx cameras but we doubt it; Casio hasn't exactly rushed to swell the range since this model was announced at the start of the year, and it will most likely remain a one-off attention grabber rather than a mass-market game changer. That said, Casio deserves praise for daring to be different and breaking from the herd; this 'thinking outside the box' something its background in electronics rather than photography per se has doubtless enabled.

The design thus will be either love it or hate it, and you will literally need to get to grips with this camera one-on-one to decide which camp you fit into. Still, if you're generally a fan of vari-angle LCDs on bridge cameras, Compact System Cameras and the latest raft of DSLRs you will appreciate the flexibility Casio's approach brings. Indeed one couldn't conceivably get more flexible when it comes to lens and screen working in tandem, which they still have to do.

Though there's not quite enough here to give an unequivocal recommendation - the Tryx is simply too oddball for that - this is a camera not without interest, and can be fun for while. We just wonder who, bar a simple desire to be different, will be interested in it when the Casio EX-TR100 confounds as much as it delights.

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

Review Roundup

Reviews of the Casio EX-TR100 from around the web.

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