Samsung Galaxy Camera 2 - More Like a Version 1.5

Introduction

With smartphones pushing the boundaries of their built-in cameras, the demand for entry level point-and-shoot compact cameras has dropped drastically. On the flip side, there are certain features and functions of a smartphone that can be useful on a conventional camera. The imaging quality of a digital compact combined with the power and flexibility of a smartphone sounds very appealing, especially when you can upload images directly to social networks like Facebook or Instagram via mobile apps - without transferring your files between devices. 

Seeing the possibility of a unique device that melds the best functions of a compact camera and a smartphone, Samsung was one of the first to release a camera running the Android OS with the Samsung Galaxy Camera. It made a lot of sense on paper, but the actual execution left more to be desired.

The original Galaxy Camera felt like a work-in-progress with average camera performance and certain handling issues. But in keeping with the short product cycle trend for consumer electronics, the Korean conglomerate is having another go at the Android camera segment with the Galaxy Camera 2. Does the newcomer fix our concerns of the original Galaxy Camera 2? That's what we intend to find out in this review.

Design and Handling

If you’re expecting a complete redesign from the original Galaxy Camera, it’s best to manage your expectations. The Galaxy Camera 2 looks a lot like its predecessor and even features the same 21x optical zoom, 16MP sensor and 4.8-inch touchscreen display.

It has however, gotten slightly larger, with its processor and software version getting bumped up. The SIM card slot has also been dropped, making the Galaxy Camera 2 a Wi-Fi-only device. This would probably have the largest affect on those who use apps that require a data connection or would like to upload their photos immediately to their preferred social platform.

For those who have never handled the original Galaxy Camera, the Galaxy Camera 2 is fairly similar in that it doesn’t have as many physical buttons and dials as your standard point-and-shoot compact camera. On the top plate of the camera you have the power button, the flash button which pops out the integrated flash, a zoom lever and shutter release button. The back of the camera resembles more of a smartphone than a camera, with a large 4.8-inch touchscreen display that’s devoid of any physical buttons.

The length of the Galaxy Camera 2 is longer than most compact cameras, which makes it more awkward to shoot with one hand. Fortunately, Samsung has added a ridge at the back for your thumb to rest on, which does help a fair bit compared to the flat surface of the original model. The lack of a thumb rest on the first Galaxy Camera made it hard to maintain a grip on the camera, and as a result there were many instances where our thumb would wander on to the display and accidentally set a new focus area. With a thumb rest on the Galaxy Camera 2, it's much easier to grasp and stabilize the camera without messing up your on-screen settings or focus area.

Thanks to the upgraded processor, the Galaxy Camera 2 runs smoothly for most usage needs and setting a focus area is as simple as tapping on the screen, which is how you would do it on a smartphone. We did, however, experience situations when the display would not respond to light taps, especially when our fingers were damp with sweat, which is something all touchscreen displays have to contend with. On the upside, the Galaxy Camera 2’s large 720p 4.8-inch display makes it easy to view and edit images.

User Interface and Camera Performance

The 21x optical zoom is pretty useable, with good image stabilization all the way to the longest end. Similar to a smartphone, you can also pinch to zoom to further frame your preferred area, but bear in mind that it would be digital zoom in action.

The Galaxy Camera 2, while being a camera, also operates exactly like any other Android device once you leave the camera app. This means that the Galaxy Camera 2 has access to the Google Play store, and users can edit their images with the many photo-editing apps found in the app store.

And that's not the end of it; the Galaxy Camera 2 allows easy and quick uploading of images to the various social networks via the respective apps; just don't forget that the Galaxy Camera 2 is a Wi-Fi-only device, so you will need to be in range of an access point. The lack of a SIM card slot to support data connectivity outside of a usable Wi-Fi hotspot will however be a sore point for some users as the original model had that option.

The Galaxy Camera 2 is aimed at the casual shooter, with 28 preset modes available when you’re shooting in Smart mode. There’s also an Expert mode, which provides you with PASM manual control shooting modes for those who would like to have a bit more control over their shots. In Expert mode a lens barrel will appear onscreen, and on the barrel itself are various rings which have adjustable settings on them. The settings available to manipulate depend on the mode you’re shooting in; for example, shooting in Shutter Speed priority provides the options to adjust shutter speed, white balance and ISO.

While it’s interesting to navigate through your settings this way, after a while it gets cumbersome; it would have been faster if there were dials or wheels to scroll through the various settings. In this regard, we still feel that physical controls have the advantage over touch-based controls, though you can also opt to just tap on the settings at the top of the screen instead of having to adjust them on the virtual lens barrel onscreen.

The Galaxy Camera 2 also comes with a useful feature that lets users select the exposure and focus areas independently within the same image. Double tapping on the focus box will make another box appear on-screen, which you can move to somewhere else in the frame to capture exposure, making this useful when the background and foreground of an image have a great difference in brightness. Here's a common example and how the Galaxy Camera 2 can assist to capture a more representative photo at the time of photography:-

The Galaxy Camera 2 scores 1,800 LPH (vertically and horizontally) in terms of capturing imaging detail. The camera performs well when you have sufficient light, but it doesn’t really do well in low light situations. In fact, the camera’s noise control algorithm is very aggressive even at lower ISO settings - details get smudged even at ISO200 and subjects look soft. We also feel that the glass in the Galaxy Camera 2 plays a part as the center of the frame is much sharper as compared to the corners; so when shooting at higher ISO settings, you will lose a lot of detail in the corners.

Other than the camera aspect of the Galaxy Camera 2, running basic apps like Facebook and Gmail felt quite snappy. We even downloaded and played a round of Asphalt 8, which is a graphically-intensive game but it still ran smoothly. This is likely due to the updated processor within that's coping well with a myriad of tasks.

Below are sample photographs shot with the Samsung Galaxy Camera 2. The photos have not been post-processed and are copyright to SPH Magazines. They are provided for your reference only and we ask that you do not reproduce them elsewhere. Click for the full-resolution images.

Conclusion

So how’s the Galaxy Camera 2? For starters, Samsung has implemented a few minor changes that do improve the handling and usability of the camera. There’s a ridge for your thumb to rest when holding the camera, which makes it easier handle the camera as well as help to lower the chances of your thumb accidentally touching the screen (which may trigger a shot or set a new focus point).

Similar to the original Galaxy Camera, sharing photos is easy as the camera runs the Android OS, and you can upload directly to Facebook and other social networks like how you would with your smartphones. In fact if you consider the fact that the Galaxy Camera 2 internals are similar to what's found in the Galaxy S4 and S3 smartphones, it does seem to make sense to buy it instead of investing in a smartphone and a compact camera. 

However the Galaxy Camera 2 is first and foremost a camera, and unfortunately in that aspect it still possesses some limitations and flaws. Firstly, it’s still a tad too big for a point-and-shoot camera and its image quality does not justify its price tag. While Samsung has priced the product to be equivalent of getting a smartphone and a dedicates compact camera, it doesn't exactly excel in both areas. Also note that it's missing a SIM card slot (which its predecessor had), thus rendering this camera as a Wi-Fi reliant product. Immediately, the Galaxy Camera 2 loses points here for these aspects. If the quality of its glass improves and the camera is made easier to handle in terms of physical size, perhaps it might have been easier to recommend it.

For now the Samsung Galaxy Camera 2 doesn't really stand out from the rest of the crowd except for the fact that it runs Android. Overall, the camera fell short of our expectations of a second iteration of the Galaxy Camera and in fact felt like an intermediate revision like version 1.5.

If you're looking for a more smartphone-centric product that can give you a good optical zoom, perhaps the just announced Samsung Galaxy K Zoom LTE model might be more appropriate for your needs. As for how it fares, stay tuned to our evaluation soon.

Our articles may contain affiliate links. If you buy through these links, we may earn a small commission.