Good, sturdy vacation camera with slight weaknesses

First of all: I am perhaps at first glance the worst imaginable tester for this device have been. I dip not, I can only warm to Canon, when it comes to IXUS compact camera and CanoScan scanners and I'm generally rather the DSR-user as someone who wants to go swimming with his camera. I see the D30 so from a unique perspective, which is not necessarily extremely positive sign. I'm still going to be fair, because to my chagrin, I have over the years become some outdoor cameras (Pentax, Sony, Nikon, Olympus ...) squandered. Away from my Sony Alpha and all other bells and whistles, there are just sometimes situations where you some "robust and tangible 'needs.

Support for this test I got from my brother, who is a passionate diver and the thing has been tested once in the "real life diver" because I can serve it badly. Let us abbreviate at this point and hold it briefly, that genuine "deep dive" with the machine is only possible if you buy an extra bag. Anyway: It has its first (and several more - see the update below) diving operation survived.

While reviews are around Chip & Co at the pictures, I would like to orient to something that I have a clue - the robustness. Before you leave us, but sometimes at the "pictures" look past, so this not so for most peripheral issue was also discussed:
The D30 joins quite well there, where the competition is already. From outdoor and diving cameras to expect superior images is a bit too high (especially for the price), but the D30 does under normal lighting conditions, good images, the flash does what he is, the various modes facilitate "Beautify" and generally come good holiday pictures around in the "Standard" -Knipserei. (Built for this camera yes) under slightly adverse conditions, it looks rather different. Since noise comes into play, the Beautify has sometimes no more purpose, details are lost, edges occur at wide-angle shots, the flash is under water only suitable (lacks a scattered attachment) ... and ... and ... and. However, again a BUT - because yes, there is one thing for an outdoor camera, these "flaws" still good. There are as many devices that are far worse. Only problem: We're talking about a device that comes from a manufacturer that is indeed considered by some as a ne plus ultra. Since the "midfield" performance of this camera is a disappointment somehow for some customers. Photo enthusiasts will be disappointed anyway when you see the very Maue resources with regard to "programs": More than slight "Pretty" is really not possible, neither exposure nor aperture settings can be prepared by professional standards "clean" affect. Here and there (eg with exposure compensation) are minimal settings possible, but over Rudimentary it does not go beyond. It's just a holiday camera. Those who expect professional quality here, which will be definitely disappointed. But who wants to make holiday pictures with a camera that can withstand a lot (see below), which is here in the right place. As my brother, because ...

... Really important seemed the display quality talking to him not before: to him, it was more about, ever to have a robust camera that can be taken sometimes to 25 meters "topless" (without safeguards). The delivering of "fairly decent" pictures since handed him. Whether he so a representative picture of all divers is - well, that I can not judge. "Down there" Anyway, it's usually (except in the Caribbean) rather dark, which is why it would be a great idea by Canon to work on the correction at high ISO speeds. It just does not drive any make in the Caribbean to dive photos.

Video at up to 24 frames per second makes the device well. Nice and at Canon really always there, but underwater? Well, my brother has tried: Without adequate illumination you can only dive lights that wander through the large, dark blue. Conclusion: Without bulb goes nothing.

Oh well. Topic robustness: The device is supposed to survive drops from 2 meters height. Who tests the already? Well, I. I'm testing it like to multiply. Have at the time MDE devices tested for a major purchase, and also have them fall down 100 times from 1.5 meters to see if they match the specified IP standard. When D30 there were now 100 falls, but a few already - on sand, on gravel, on stone. The drop height were so good 1.5-1.8 meters height (my height), so we found ourselves under a scenario usual "accidents in the use". And lo and behold: The Canon D30 stops here, what it promises. The rubberized housing has collected the falls cleanly - the rubber gets here "Schrabbeln" from, but no more. Specifically: It must be. The device is of secondary clean the intended abutting edges when it is dropped from "far enough above". Another is that if you can willfully "Platt dropped" it in a somewhat lower level. Then the unit turns sometimes still the case that the lower abutting edge is made, but still the front gets from a blow. Again, however, no problem: The device puts the away easily. I would just not want to test what happens when the unit is not aligned with a case of, for example, 2 meters high, but it falls flat on the lens. That would already badly deliberately.

Amenities default, it looks quite mau in D30: An additional equipment next to the camera is quasi times "nothing" with (a hand strap, okay), the device offers more inner values. Namely: GPS, 3-inch display, optical image stabilizer, quite fast autofocus (also suitable for snapshots) and burst mode (but only 2 images per second). It lacks the usual suspects: Touchscreen, Wi-manual modes.
But here let me say that these missing features in the outdoor area or on the specific usage scenario also are not really needed. Wi-Fi would be top in order to get data from the camera down - the old-fashioned way but is indeed and therefore the built-in "Battery Eater" Wi-Fi is not necessarily needed. Manual modes - Well, yeah, the would have been nice, but used the rare, right? Touchscreen is submerged upside down on the mountain or in the operation of my children rather silly - would have to be switched off anyway ... since it can therefore also equal to stay away.

The battery, well. So 120 minutes continuous operation under load in it (eg video recordings). Up to 500 or 600 actuations (with flash of course massively less) are also there. So far everything okay - not great, but okay.

There are several alternatives:
Pentax Optio offers the-line Panasonic Lumix line and Olympus also offers outdoor cameras. To name just a few. One can possibly look like in terms of price action cam segment. Depending on the usage scenario result in the even more sense.
In the competition I like at the moment the "Pentax Optio WG-2 GPS" especially. It is very robust, has more modes than the D30 at a similar price and is also suitable for snorkeling & Co, has this but has the advantage that you can now once again finds ORANGE better underwater than blue. Here you can see in the comparison definitely a shortcoming of D30: through their Housing color it is difficult to find underwater.

Overall a rather mixed picture there. The Pentax seen from 2012 (?) In comparison (someone in the diving club my brother in law has) gives the whole then probably still somehow the rest. In any case the Urteill the diving squad was then at the end, not destructive, but rather "one sees now well, which is why the Pentax is more expensive ". Well. For normal operation, the holidays, the Kinderbespaßung and like the D30 is great though. The price is currently well below 300 euros and to cope with, and of course you get a from a processing perspective, beyond doubt sublime, as I said very robust device. The price-performance ratio so. I do not want to jump for joy but. I would have namely just want a lot more in the "inner values" of Canon - the jump from spiritual predecessors (D20) for D30 is indeed been immense, but it is only a beginning and not the end. Canon could show off here, but it did not, but delivered the usual, solid work, to which one can always rely on Canon. Brilliant and a must buy but something else.

Conclusion:
4 stars. The unit is (ie rather my brother in law) be used again intensively in the summer of us. If necessary, I give it my 8 year old daughter time "to play" with. One can namely make no scruples. Who wants to get this camera broken, which must already accrued with a hammer in his hand.

Update 6/23/2014:
The camera had to now by two other "hardship missions". Mountaineering including rucksack-Runterpurzeln and diving up to 25 meters depth are not been a problem, except that camera are relatively quickly below 25 meters "the spirit" on (but only until they bring back to the surface). For extreme sports enthusiasts, therefore, actually limited recommendable. Thanks to the wide-angle or wide-angle effect, incidentally, also for normal "clippers" not bad at all, which depend on top robustness rather than top quality.

Update 11/20/2014:
The camera was now in the process on various occasions. As shortcomings evident especially the battery life and the rather average lens are made - the camera does but in almost all situations what they should. I vacillate now but 3-4 stars and myself rather in the lower rating again because security just can not be all.