Samsung WB150F Review
Image Quality
All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 14.2 megapixel SuperFine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 5Mb.
To start with a positive, primary colours look particularly lush straight from the Samsung WB150F when it is left on its default factory settings. But if you do zoom in towards the telephoto end of the zoom, and are standing less than a metre and a half from your subject (350cm officially at telephoto setting, 80cm at maximum wide angle), the camera will struggle to focus if left in auto focus mode, if it can find it at all. The fallback Smart Auto option is also better suited at keeping up with static subjects than moving ones, which have the tendency to blur even in broad daylight. Maximum shutter speed is theoretically 1/2000sec.
In terms of light sensitivity, users of the WB150F will want to stick to ISO 800 or below. Detail is softening noticeably at ISO 1600 as noise reduction kicks in, while at top whack ISO 3200, colour is going awry and it appears as if we are viewing the image through a sheet of cellophane. Conversely, in bright conditions there's a tendency for the camera to lose highlight detail, and the familiar bugbear of pixel fringing creeps in too under such circumstances.
While not a completely clean bill of health for all subjects and all conditions then, having such a broad focal range at our disposal - and in our pockets - is not to be underestimated. And, with a steady hand a bit of luck you can get some very usable results, as our close up wildlife images reveal. For the amateur naturalist the WB150F represents a very affordable option. Inevitably it's also an option for the traveler wanting a cheap snapshot to drop into their luggage too - just be prepared to take two or three shots in both circumstances in order to achieve one with focus and exposure spot on.
Noise
There are 7 ISO settings available on the Samsung WB150F. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting.
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ISO 80 (100% Crop) |
ISO 100 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 200 (100% Crop) |
ISO 400 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 800 (100% Crop) |
ISO 1600 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 3200 (100% Crop) |
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Focal Range
The Samsung WB150F's 18x zoom lens offers a very versatile focal range, as illustrated by these examples:
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24mm |
432mm |
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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.
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Original (100% Crop) |
Sharpened (100% Crop) |
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Chromatic Aberrations
The Samsung WB150F handled chromatic aberrations fairly ell during the review, with purple fringing present around the edges of objects in high-contrast situations, as shown in the examples below.
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Example 1 (100% Crop) |
Example 2 (100% Crop) |
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Macro
The Samsung WB150F 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.
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Macro Shot |
100% Crop |
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Flash
The flash settings on the Samsung WB150F 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.
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Flash Off - Wide Angle (24mm) |
Auto - Wide Angle (24mm) |
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Flash Off - Telephoto (432mm) |
Auto - Telephoto (432mm) |
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And here are some portrait shots. As you can see, neither the Auto setting or the Red eye fix option caused any red-eye.
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Auto |
Auto (100% Crop) |
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Red-eye fix |
Red-eye fix (100% Crop) |
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Night Shot
The Samsung WB150F'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 4 seconds at ISO 80.
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Night Shot |
Night Shot (100% Crop) |
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Sample Images
This is a selection of sample images from the Samsung WB150F camera, which were all taken using the 14.2 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 1280x720 pixels at 30 frames per second. Please note that this 27 second movie is 28Mb in size.
Product Images
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Front of the Camera |
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Isometric View |
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Isometric View |
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Rear of the Camera |
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Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed |
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Top of the Camera |
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Bottom of the Camera |
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Memory Card Slot |
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Battery Compartment |
Conclusion
Though the Wi-Fi enabled Samsung WB150F operates very much as a user-friendly point-and-shoot camera, its manufacturer has packed in more functionality, digital effects, and a diverse range of control options - including manual operability, if so desired - than one would usually expect to find on a camera costing £199.
While there's nothing here that we haven't seen elsewhere before, the expansive zoom range provides a broad range of framing options for pretty much any subject, and it can also be utilized when recording video - even if that footage comes with mono sound and isn't quite Full HD; a couple of ways in which the WB150F (rarely) betrays its budget status. As is the overall image quality. While colours are lush and images vibrant straight out of the camera, they are softer than we'd ideally like, especially at the extremities of the 18x optical zoom.
Perhaps there's something psychological going on here; that's to say because Samsung has packed a basic snapshot camera with a whole host of functionality - more than many rivals would bother to cram into its chassis - this in turn leads the user to expect slightly more of its end performance.
If you view the Samsung WB150F as a means of achieving a wider selection of images than would be possible with a smartphone however, while accepting that it inevitably falls a distance short of the image quality delivered by pricier compact system cameras (including the manufacturer's own NX range) and baby DSLRs, then the conclusion 'can't go far wrong' is one that it is difficult to argue with.
| Ratings (out of 5) | |
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| Design | 3.5 |
| Features | 4.5 |
| Ease-of-use | 4 |
| Image quality | 3.5 |
| Value for money | 4.5 |
Review Roundup
Reviews of the Samsung WB150F from around the web.
reviews.cnet.co.uk »
The WB150F is a great-looking camera that produces a punchy set of snaps. The built-in Wi-Fi makes it easy to share your pictures directly without first downloading them to your computer, but we'd have liked to have seen Samsung push this feature a little further. Still, at £190, it's a bargain.
Read the full review »
pcmag.com »
It's not perfect, but the nicely priced compact Samsung WB150F camera packs a sharp 18x zoom lens and integrated Wi-Fi so you can email or upload your pics to Facebook easily.
Read the full review »
digitalcamerainfo.com »
Samsung’s new WB150F combines two very trendy technologies currently sweeping the imaging world: impossibly long zoom, and Wi-Fi connectivity. But when manufacturers do this, especially at the low end, there’s a tendency for gimmickry to overpower image quality. That may be the case here. We spent some time with the WB150F and both our shooting experiences and test results were mixed.
Read the full review »
technobuffalo.com »
Various camera manufacturers have attempted to incorporate Wi-Fi in the past with limited success, but that hasn’t stopped Samsung from releasing eight models with advanced wireless capabilities. The Samsung WB150F is one of the lower-tier point-and-shoot Wi-Fi cameras offered by the maker of the Galaxy family, but it comes with a slew of wireless features that enable images to be uploaded to social networks and transfer files to any Samsung Android phone. There’s also a wireless Remote Viewfinder that transforms a smartphone into a viewfinder, and the WB150F has one of the best suites of fun digital image effects on the market. But will the WB150F’s 18x optical zoom and 720p HD video be enough to drive a wedge between consumers and their camera phones? Let’s find out.
Read the full review »
Specifications
Image Sensor
| Sensor Type | 1/2.3″ (Approx. 7.76mm) CCD |
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| Effective Pixel | Approx. 14.2 Mega pixels |
| Total Pixel | Approx. 16.4 Mega pixels |
Lens
| Focal Length | Schneider-KREUZNACH 18x Zoom Lens f = 4 ~ 72mm (35mm film equivalent : 24 ~ 432mm) |
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| F No. | 3.2 (W) ~ 5.8 (T) |
| Digital Zoom | Still Image mode : 1x ~ 5x Play mode : 1x ~ 14.4x (depends on image size)(1) |
Image Stabilization
| Mode | Optical Image Stabilisation |
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Display
| Type | TFT LCD |
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| Feature | 3" (7.62cm), 460K dots |
Focusing
| Type | TTL Auto Focus (Centre AF, Multi AF, Tracking AF, Face Detection AF, Face Recognition AF, Selection AF)(2) |
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| Range | Normal : 80cm ~ Infinity (Wide), 350cm ~ Infinity (Tele) Macro : 5cm ~ 80cm (Wide), 180cm ~ 350cm (Tele) Auto Macro : 5cm ~ Infinity (Wide), 180cm ~ Infinity (Tele) Manual : 5cm ~ Infinity (Wide), 180cm ~ Infinity (Tele) |
Shutter Speed
Smart Auto : 1/8 ~ 1/2000sec., Program : 1 ~ 1/2000sec., Night : 8 ~ 1/2000sec., Manual : 16 ~ 1/2000sec.
Exposure
| Control | Program AE, Aperture Priority AE, Shutter Priority AE, Manual Exposure |
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| Metering System | Multi, Spot, Centre-weighted, Face Detection AE |
| Compensation | ±2EV (1/3EV steps) |
| ISO Equivalent | Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200 |
Flash
| Mode | Auto, Auto & Red-eye reduction, Fill-in flash, Slow sync, Flash Off, Red-eye fix |
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| Range | Wide : 0.3m ~ 3.38m (ISO Auto), Tele : 0.5m ~ 1.51m (ISO Auto) |
| Recharging Time | Approx. 4sec. |
White Balance
| Mode | Auto WB, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent_H, Fluorescent_L, Tungsten, Custom, K |
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Still Image
| Mode | Mode (Dial) : 1) Smart Auto 2) Program 3) A / S / M 4) Scene 5) Magic Plus 6) Wi-Fi 7) Set 8) Movie Scene : Beauty Shot, Night, Landscape, Text, Sunset, Dawn, Backlight, Beach & Snow Magic : Live Panorama, Magic Frame, Split Shot, Picture in Picture (Still / Movie), Artistic Brush, Photo Filter, Movie Filter, Photo Editor Smart Auto : Portrait, Night Portrait, Night, Backlight Portrait, Backlight, Landscape, White, Macro, Macro Text, Tripod, Action, Macro Colour, Natural Green, Blue Sky, Sunset, Fireworks Drive : Single, Continuous, AEB, Motion Capture Self timer: Off, 2sec., 10sec., Double (10sec., 2sec.) |
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Image Play
Single image, Thumbnails, Advanced Slide Show, Movie Clip, Smart Album
Date Imprinting
Date&Time, Date, Off (user selectable)
Movie Clip
| Recording | Smart Movie : Landscape, Blue Sky, Natural Green, Sunset Movie Size : 1280 x 720 (30fps, 15fps), 640 x 480 (30fps, 15fps), 320 x 240 (30fps, 15fps) 18x optical zoom (Max. recording time : 20min) Voice recording : Sound Alive On / Sound Alive Off / Mute |
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| Effect | Smart Filter : Miniature, Vignetting, Half Tone Dot, Sketch, Fish-eye, Classic, Retro, Palette Effect 1, Palette Effect 2, Palette Effect 3, Palette Effect 4 |
| Edit | Pause during recording and playing, Still Image Capture, Time Trimming |
Storage
| Media | Internal memory : 18MB External Memory : SDSC (up to 2GB guaranteed), SDHC (up to 32GB guaranteed), SDXC (up to 64GB guaranteed) |
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| File Format | Still Image : JPEG (DCF), EXIF 2.21, DPOF 1.1, PictBridge 1.0 Movie Clip : MP4 (Video: MPEG4, AVC / H.264, Audio: AAC) |
| Image Size | 14M : 4320 x 3240 pixels, 12M P : 4320 x 2880, 10M W : 4320 x 2432, 10M : 3648 x 2736, 8M (1:1) : 2832 x 2832, 5M : 2592 x 1944, 3M : 1984 x 1488, 2M W : 1920 x 1080, 1M : 1024 x 768 |
Interface
| Digital Output Connector | USB 2.0 |
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| Audio | Microphone : Mono Internal Speaker : Mono |
| Video Output | AV : NTSC, PAL (User selectable) |
| DC Power Input | 5V |
Power
| Power Source | Type | Rechargeable battery : SLB-10A Connector Type : micro USB (5 pin) |
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Physical Specification
| Dimension | Dimension (WxHxD) | 106.5 x 59.9 x 23.4 (32.2) mm |
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| Weight | 188.2g (without battery and memory card media) | |
| Operating Temperature | 0 ~ 40°C | |
| Operating Humidity | 5 ~ 85% |
S/W and PC OS
| Bundle PC S/W | Intelli-studio, PC Auto Backup (CD) |
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| Compatible OS | Windows XP SP2 / Vista / 7 |
System Requirement in General
| For Macintosh | Power Mac G3 or above Mac OS 10.4 or above 110MB or more hard-disk capacity minimum 256MB RAM CD-ROM Driver USB Port |
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| For Windows | Intel® Pentium®4 3.2GHz or above / AMD Athlon™ FX 2.6GHz or above Windows XP_SP2 / Vista / 7 250MB or more hard-disk capacity (over 1GB recommended) 512MB RAM (over 1GB recommended) nVIDIA Geforce 7600GT or above / ATI X1600 series or above 1024 x 768 pixels, 16-bit colour display compatible monitor (1280 x 1024 pixels, 32-bit colour display recommended) CD-ROM Driver USB Port DirectX 9.0c or above |
Usage note
- (1) Intelli-zoom : 2x
- (2) Manual Focus
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