HP PhotoSmart R837 Review

This is the record screen when using "Auto" exposure mode. At the top there are icons for storage media (SD), battery condition, number of pictures remaining, and image size/quality. Any other shooting mode selection will be shown by an icon in the bottom left corner, such as a flower for macro mode (not shown).

Press the Mode button to change the exposure mode, selections are: Action, Auto (default), Beach, Landscape, Macro, Night Portrait, Panorama left, Panorama right, Portrait, Snow, Sunset, Theatre, Steady Photo.

Record menu options:
(Note, the Help option displays info. on a selected function)

Self-Timer - Off, On (10 seconds) and On - 2 Shots
Adaptive Lighting - Brightens dark regions of images
Image Quality - 7MP Best, 7MP Normal, 5MP, 2MP, VGA, or Help
Burst Mode - On or Off
Tag - Marks image with a Tag as they are taken
Date & Time Imprint - Off, Date only, Date & Time, and Help
Exposure Compensation - ±3 EV in 1/3 EV steps and Help
Exposure Bracketing - Camera takes 3 pictures using a range of settings
White Balance - Auto, Sun, Shade, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Manual and Help
ISO Speed - Auto, 100, 200, 400, and Help
AE Metering - Center, Spot, Average, and Help
Camera Setup - Setup Menu
Camera Help - Camera Help Menu

Setup menu options:

Display Brightness - Low, Medium, High
Camera Sounds - Off, Low, High
Display Timeout - Never, 15, 30, 45, or 60 seconds
Digital Zoom - On, Off
Date & Time - Set Date and Time
USB Configuration - Digital camera or Disk drive
TV Configuration - NTSC or PAL
Language - Choose from 12 different Languages

The PhotoSmart R837 captures 640x480 (Best 24fps or Normal 12fps quality) or 320x240 (24fps) MPEG movies with sound, the length is limited only by the capacity of the memory. You can use the optical zoom while recording video, but you will hear the noise of the lens movement.

Video menu options:

Video Quality - Best (VGA 24fps), Better (VGA 12fps), Good (QVGA 24fps)
Self Timer - On, Off, Help
Tag - Marks videos with a tag as they are taken
Exposure Compensation - Adjusts image brightness
White Balance - Adjusts color balance of images for difficult lighting conditions
AE Metering - Specifies region of image to use for auto exposure
Camera Setup - Setup Menu
Camera Help - Camera Help Menu

You can access the Help menu in either Record or Playback mode. This is a very useful tool, that gives users a lengthy description of various features and controls of the camera.