GE's G100 compact camera

Getting up close with GE's G100 compact camera

This entry-level camera is built for close ups and portraitures

by Nicholas Yeo 

 

Updated 07:17 PM Apr 25, 2012

 

PHOTO COURTESY GE

The brand General Electric is synonymous with, well, just about everything. Not a surprise really, seeing as they have a 120-year history with its roots linked to American inventor Thomas Edison.

You can see the GE logo monogrammed on trains and appliances and the company even owned NBC Universal at one time, a fact made known in its award-winning sitcom 30 Rock.

Since 2007, GE has also entered the digital camera market under its General Imaging banner. Its latest offering here is the G100 under its Power Pro series.

For all of GE's tradition and culture of excellence, the G100 is, at best, a basic compact camera.

In a test conducted in the office, the consensus was that the G100 would resonate with beginner shutterbugs.

A set of pre-determined scene modes take the brainwork out of the picture and lets you focus on capturing the moment.

Its fast 10-frames-per-second burst mode is great for shooting fast moving events, such as sports, and a fantastic close focus macro feature worked very well even for subjects that were close to touching the lens.

However, more seasoned photographers would be disappointed by the low-resolution screen and the lack of custom settings in Manual mode. With only two aperture settings, f/3.9 and f/9.3, depth-of-field control is very limited. The camera's shutter speed ranges from eight seconds to 1/2000 of a second in Manual mode, which would not be nearly enough in low light conditions. But at those low speeds, camera shake would be a more immediate concern.

A relatively weak flash - up to 1.5 metres on ISO100 - means this camera is not great at night but, on the flipside, means you won't get washed out pictures too.

At a retail price of S$239 {updated April 25, 10.47am], the GE G100 camera is an affordable first camera and its great macro function would make it a hit with entomologists and amateur jewellers. Nicholas Yeo

Source: www.todayonline.com