ADDED Info: Because someone posted a question on this, I thought I would mention that this camera works fine with a 128GB Sandisk Ultra Micro SDXC card and reports space for 160,227 1MP images or 20.00 hours of 720p HD video.
UPDATE regarding screen glare: I have found some ideas regarding dealing with screen glare. There are some magnified LCD extender viewfinders out there that basically allow you to use a screen only camera as if it had a viewfinder. Most are specific to some Canon DSLR models. I have ordered an inexpensive one to try out and perhaps modify. If I have any luck I will report back here. A simple and free solution that works reasonably well is to grab one of those corrugated cardboard sleeves they have at coffee shops to keep you from burning your hand. It is easy to hold the big end up against the LCD and look through the smaller end. It is not perfect, but if you have on a cap or wide-brimmed hat you can actually see the screen quite well. I try to keep the top flat by extending my index finger to seal off light entering from above. With a couple of minutes fooling with it you can figure out how best to hold it for your purposes. An added benefit is that it folds flat so you can just carry it in your pocket and whip it out when you need it. Nothing bulky to attach. Something a little longer would work even better as long as it is dark colored and probably best not glossy inside. Maybe just make a tapered cardboard tube. Just some thoughts.
UPDATE: I have had a lot of experience with this camera in the last few weeks, including the last few days in Yellowstone. I am even more impressed with it than I was initially. There is not a whole lot to say except that it takes great photos and videos, including full HD video of Old Faithful erupting yesterday. I have also taken some very good images of distant wildlife at extreme zoom.
The direct wifi feature works very well. It is very handy for transferring photos directly from the camera to my phone if I need to. I usually still use a direct USB connection if available, but the wifi has come in handy.
I have come up with one con while using the camera at Yellowstone, but it is something common to all point and shoots. Trying to find and zoom in on a scene in bright sunlight is difficult to nearly impossible. I have a Canon SX50 which also has an electronic viewfinder. Having a viewfinder is very useful for difficult situations. I originally intended to bring both cameras, using the SX50 for the heavy work and the WB350F for pocketability. At the last minute I decided to take only the WB350F. It has been fantastic for 98-99% of what I needed, but when trying to find and zoom in on some distant wildlife in bright sunlight it has been a challenge. Please do not let this deter you from buying this camera. I have been able to use it for those shots, but the viewfinder would certainly have made it easier. Cameras with viewfinders are twice as expensive and usually much larger and heavier. You will not put one in your pocket.
ORIGINAL REVIEW:
This will be preliminary review since I just received the WB350F a couple of days ago. My main purpose here is to alert buyers that this camera uses micro SD. So if you need to buy media with the camera, don't buy full-size SD. I do not consider this an issue, but it might save someone the inconvenience of having to return a card and await replacement. The product description does not mention this so I assumed it used full size SD like the WB250F. This was not an issue for me because I had high capacity cards of both sizes anyway.
I have a very nice Canon SX50 that I love for trips or other situations where I know I will be taking a lot of pictures, like a planned trip to Yellowstone, and will need the mega-zoom. There are a lot of more casual situations like trips to the playground with grandkids, day trips, birthday parties, etc., where it is nice to have something you can slip in your pocket just in case. I still wanted something with a decent amount of zoom. To me, the WB350F is a great combination of small size, plenty of zoom, and a decent price. I have a tiny Fuji camera, but it always felt too small in my large hands.
The menu system is similar to most digital cameras. I was able to find all the settings I needed without using the manual. The hybrid system is pretty neat. You can navigate with the usual menu buttons or touch things on the screen. It is kind of handy. Once you get to a screens using the familiar buttons and get several selections on the screen, instead of moving to your choice with the buttons, you can just tap the one you want with your finger. At first I thought I would probably not use the touch screen, but I guess using smart phones and tablets all these years has me in the habit.
The WB350F seems to create very good images. I confess that I am not overly picky. A crisp, clear image with good color is fine. Don't get me wrong. I do want quality images, but I don't pull out instruments and magnifiers to critique every shot. I am just more interested in the memories.
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This Item  Samsung WB350F 16.3MP CMOS Smart WiFi & NFC Digital Camera with 21x Optical Zoom and 3.0" Touch Screen LCD and 1080p HD Video (White) |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $189.00 | $123.95 | $149.95 | $299.00 | -26% $39.99 List: $53.99 | $69.99 |
| Delivery | — | Get it May 13 - 15 | Get it May 14 - 16 | — | Get it as soon as Tuesday, May 14 | Get it as soon as Tuesday, May 14 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Zoom | ||||||
| Picture quality | ||||||
| Image stabilization | ||||||
| Battery life | ||||||
| Easy to use | ||||||
| Sold By | Camerastore | Focus Camera LLC | Photo4Less | Camerastore | Yuruida | YOODEE |
| display type | LCD | LCD | LCD | LCD | LCD | LCD |
| display size | 3 inches | — | 2.7 inches | 2.7 inches | — | 2.8 inches |
| lens type | Zoom, Wide Angle | Wide Angle | Wide Angle | Zoom | — | Macro |
| zoom type | Optical Zoom | Optical Zoom | Optical Zoom | Optical Zoom | Digital Zoom | Digital Zoom |
| shooting modes | Scene | Easy | Automatic | Scene | Automatic | Program |
| connectivity tech | NFC, USB | USB | USB | NFC | USB | USB |
Reviews with images
Images Have Too Much Noise, Manual Focus Is A Gimmick
I was looking at several cameras in this feature range for $150 - $250 that could replace my Canon A3300IS for everyday use, and possibly my Kodak ZD8612IS for zoom and panoramic shots. I settled on this camera because of its powerful zoom capabilities, 1080p video, manual focus, and full manual settings. Also, I had great experiences with a Samsung S730 that took excellent pictures and had full manual control until I wore out the image sensor.This WB350 has a great feel in my hands and points naturally, allowing quick framing of a distant subject at full zoom. All the different video and picture effects are fun, but most of them can be done on the computer with an editing program. The zoom comes in really handy and is very impressive for a camera this size. It's actually pretty startling when the zoom lens unfurls from the camera body! The auto-focus has some trouble at higher zoom levels, taking several seconds and possibly some motion before it will focus. The camera is ready to take pictures or video about 3 - 4 seconds after powering it on if you start in Auto mode. It will take longer if the dial is turned to ASM, as you are prompted to choose Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, or Manual before proceeding.I bought some spare batteries and a wall charger along with this camera, since I knew the long zoom would probably be very power hungry. I also wanted a wall charger for the batteries, since I like to be able to keep a lot of batteries charged and ready to use, often charging them while still using my camera. The extra batteries I bought last a bit longer than the Samsung battery. I can take about 300 images without the flash, or about 45 minutes of 1080p video without using the zoom much. Using the flash with photos and the zoom with video seems to really use a lot of battery power. The flash has acceptable range, and is pretty useful with adjustable output.Images taken by this camera are usable, but really quite disappointing. I've tried every setting, under every lighting condition, and even at the lowest ISO setting with perfect lighting there is too much noise in the pictures. It's 16.3 wasted megapixels, due to grain distorting any fine details. You might as well take image sizes that are no larger than your monitor's resolution. For some reason, this excessive noise seems to really ruin panoramic pictures, with noise visible even without enlarging the photo. With no RAW support, you're just stuck with the terrible images this camera spits out.Everything about this camera is an upgrade from my previous cameras, except the most important thing: the pictures. My Canon A3300IS, Kodak ZD8612IS (which is only 8MP!), and my Samsung S730 take clearer, sharper images than this newer Samsung WB350 Smart Camera. It really is a disappointment because this camera cost twice what I paid for any of those cameras. Additionally, the much older and less expensive S730 was also made by Samsung, and the WB350 is a downgrade in image quality from that 7 year old pocket camera. It's as if Samsung simply ripped out the camera parts of a cell phone and placed them into a camera body with an excellent optical zoom lens.The fact that this is just a cell phone without the phone (but a great optical zoom) is further supported by the ridiculous use of a Micro SD card. This is a very large camera and could have easily used a normal sized SD card, which is the right size for handling. The camera seems to be geared toward installing the included software and using the USB cable to transfer files from the card, but this camera along with most, only operates at USB 2.0 speed. Removing my high speed memory card from the camera and inserting it into a USB 3.0 card reader is the only way to get the full transfer speed of my card. Such a tiny card is very awkward to handle as I feel like it will break or I will drop it into a crevice around my desk. I've also had the tiny card spring out of the camera and land on the floor between my feet while trying to remove it from the camera! Micro SD is just too small for handling, and the camera's USB 2.0 speed is too slow for my card's full potential.All of the wireless and social media sharing features of this camera are useless to me as I was attracted by the CAMERA features of this camera.This camera is supposed to have a "manual focus", but I have determined that this is just a gimmick. The feature doesn't actually put you in control of the mechanical focus mechanism. The camera still has to establish an auto-focus, then it allows you to move a slider across a preset focus range. The best way to tell it's a fake manual focus is to try and focus the camera in the dark. No matter where you move the slider, the image is never in focus. This completely eliminates the uses I had planned for it.The video looks quite usable (after a firmware update) and is an improvement over the 720p video my Canon A3300IS produces. With terrible picture quality, it turns out that this camera is actually a better video camera than picture camera. The full optical zoom can be used while taking a video, making it much more versatile than any of my previous digital cameras for video. There is a feature enabled by default that magically removes the sound of the lens zooming in and out by slightly muffling the audio. This feature somehow removes the mechanical sounds of the zoom while preserving most ambient sounds. The microphone is mono but is somehow better than any of my previous digital cameras, perhaps because of the sampling rate of 44.1 KHz and variable bitrate up to 128 Kbps. It picks up sound really well - every breath and sniffle while you're taking the video. Oddly, it seems to pick up distant sounds better when you zoom in. The only negative thing about the video function of this camera is the dedicated video button. Using the video button feels awkward, and requires repositioning my fingers to press the button. This often results in a "jerk" in the video when trying to stop recording.In summary, I can't recommend this camera for pictures because of the high image noise. A camera that costs this much should take better pictures than a camera half its price, not worse. I'd recommend a Canon PowerShot in this price/feature range, as I know they take less grainy images. That being said, I plan to keep and use my WB350 due to the video features. If I go on a trip where I plan to take great shots, I'll bring my older, cheaper cameras for that.
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on April 19, 2014
Style: Camera OnlyColor: BrownProduct Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States on September 29, 2015
Style: Camera OnlyColor: BlackProduct Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
Top reviews from other countries
Amazon Customer
Great camera!
Reviewed in Canada on August 19, 2016Style: Camera OnlyColor: WhiteProduct Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
Jeba Prince
It's a smart camera
Reviewed in India on May 19, 2015Style: Camera OnlyColor: BlueProduct Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
hissam
Thanks Amazon - truly ''NO GIMMICKS''
Reviewed in India on October 12, 2014Style: Camera OnlyColor: WhiteProduct Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
Amul Rathi
Worst camera ever!!!
Reviewed in India on December 12, 2014Style: Camera OnlyColor: BlueProduct Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
Kalyani
Good product... but delayed delivery ...
Reviewed in India on November 10, 2014Style: Camera OnlyColor: WhiteProduct Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
