HP PhotoSmart R927 Review

By Movable Type Admin

Posted 4/10/2006

Click to take 360-degree QTVR tour of the HP PhotoSmart R927

Click to take a 360-degree QTVR tour of the PhotoSmart R927

The PhotoSmart R927 is the flagship of HP's 2006 lineup and features HP Real Life technologies with HP Instant Share, a technology that makes sharing, printing, and saving digital photos easy. In addition, the PhotoSmart R927 offers 8.2-megapixels of resolution, a large 3.0-inch color LCD, a 3x optical zoom, 32 megabytes of internal memory and PictBridge capabilities, all wrapped up in a very compact, stylish and durable stainless-steel body.

The R927 also features other HP Real Life technologies, which includes Adaptive Lighting and HP Image advice. The in-camera red-eye removal system, automatically eliminates red-eye in your images, to ensure the best possible photos and memories. At the push of a button you can select the fully automatic mode, one of 13 useful scene modes, aperture priority, shutter priority or full manual. If you feel even more creative you can select the metering mode, the color mode, and make adjustments to the sharpness, contrast and saturation. When the action requires it, just press the convenient movie shutter button and capture high-quality VGA resolution motion video with sound.

HP Instant Share makes sharing, printing and saving digital photos easy. Users simply take a photo and select its destination right on the back of the camera - up to 34 destinations, including e-mail addresses, online albums, printers and more - by simply pushing a button. When the digital camera is later connected to a computer or the optional camera dock, the selected photos are automatically printed and/or e-mailed without burdening friends with large file attachments. E-mail recipients see thumbnails of the images right in the body of their e-mail message, as well as a link to the web page where they can very easily view, print and save the photos, upload them to online albums and more.

HP's Adaptive Lighting technology (ALT), automatically adjusts high-contrast photos to bring faces out of shadows and details out of backgrounds. The technology balances brightness relationships between bright and dark areas in a photo, preserving gentle contrasts while compressing harsh contrasts. The result is automatic-contrast adjustment that lightens poorly illuminated objects and produces a true-to-life image that mirrors the natural beauty that the user intended to capture.

The included HP 6220 camera dock will allow users to easily share, print, e-mail and store photos and video clips. At the same time, the dock recharges the in-camera battery. The included high-capacity battery provides power for up to 200 shots (CIPA standard testing.) Optional HP 6221 Premium Camera Dock allows connection to a TV and the HP 6222 Wireless Dock Base adds wireless networking to the HP 6221 camera dock.

PhotoSmart R927 Features:

8.2-Megapixels of resolution for prints up to poster size
Fuji 3x optical and 8x digital zoom lens (35-105mm in 35mm equiv.)
Compact, lightweight, stylish and durable stainless steel body
HP's Adaptive lighting technology and In-camera Red-eye removal
Large 3.0-inch high resolution color LCD with 170° viewing angle
Total of 17 Shooting modes and a customizable My Mode
Add audio memos to still images (up to 60 sec.)
Record MPEG-1 movies with audio at 640x480 (24fps)
Long Exposure up to 15 seconds, with noise reduction
In-camera panorama preview and stitch of up to 5 photos
Exposure metering: Average, Center-weighted or Spot
Built-in flash with modes for Auto, Off, Auto+Red-Eye, Forced On and Night
Adjustable ISO, white balance, saturation, contrast and sharpening
Color, Black & White and Sepia modes
Date & Time Stamping on the image
Built-in orientation sensor
Li-ion rechargeable battery and docking cradle included
32MB of internal flash memory + SD memory card slot
JPEG Exif 2.2, USB and PictBridge compatible

The HP Photosmart R927 will be available in April 2006.

Physical Views

The PhotoSmart R927 compared to a standard CD.

The 7-megapixel Casio Exilim EX-Z750 and the Photosmart R927

Continue on to
Features & Controls

PhotoSmart R927 Specifications

Image Sensor	1/1.8 inch, 8.3-megapixel, primary-color CCD (8.2 million effective pixels)
Image Quality settings	8MP * 8MP (normal) 5MP 2MP VGA **
Storage media	32MB of internal flash memory Secure Digital (SD) card slot, supports up to 2GB
Recording format	Still: JPEG-compatible (Exif Ver2.2) DPOF-compatible PictBridge-compatible Movies: MPEG-1 w/sound (Motion JPEG) Still Sound: WAV compatible
Video capture	640 x 480 pixels at 24fps w/sound Length is limited only by the capacity of the memory
Audio capture	Up to 60 sec's. of audio annotation can be added to each still picture (limited by available memory)
Lens	Fuji 3x optical zoom lens 7.8mm - 22mm (35 - 105mm, 35mm equivalent) 8x digital zoom with 41 steps
Aperture range	Wide: f/2.8 - f/7.8 Telephoto: f/5.0 - f/8.5
Focus system	TTL auto-focus, contrast-gradient, Normal, macro, infinity, manual focus, multi-zone or spot focus
Focus range	Normal: Wide 0.5 m (20 in.) - infinity, Telephoto 0.6m (23.6 in.) - infinity Macro: Wide 0.12 m - 1 m (4.7 in. - 39.4 in.)
ISO equivalent	Auto, 100, 200, 400
Exposure compensation	±3 EV in 1/3 EV steps
Exposure modes	Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Beach/Snow, Theater, Sunset, Aperture Priority, Shutter priority, Document, Panorama Right, Panorama Left, Action, Manual, My Mode
Metering	Average, Center-weighted, Spot
White balance	Auto, Sun, Shade, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Manual
Image control	Saturation, Contrast, Sharpness
Color modes	Full Color, Black and White, Sepia
Adaptive Lighting	Balances the relationship between high and low contrast areas (Off, Low, High)
Shutter	Mechanical shutter working with CCD electronic shutter
Shutter speed	Automatic: 16 - 1/2000 sec.
Self timer	10 sec.
Viewfinder	LCD monitor
Flash	Built-in auto-adjusting flash (Auto, Forced Off, Auto w/Red Eye, Forced On, Night Flash working distance: Wide - Maximum with ISO set to Auto: 4.75 meters (15.6 feet) Tele - Maximum with ISO set to Auto: 4.75 meters (15.6 feet)
Shooting modes	Single shot still, burst (2fps up to 3 frames),self-timer, self-timer two-shot, movie (VGA/QVGA) mode
Playback modes	Frame-by-frame, Close-up playback (up to 4x), Movie playback, Multiple-frame, Slide-show playback
LCD monitor	3.0 inch (7.62 cm) 230,400 pixels (960x240), color LTPS TFT LCD with 170° viewing angle
Interface	Cradle with USB standard B connector HP 6220 camera dock with USB Mini-AB receptacle
Video Output	Optional with HP 6221 Premium Camera Dock
WiFi Networking	Optional with HP 6221 Premium Camera Dock and HP 6222 Wireless Dock Base
Power source	HP PhotoSmart R07 Li-ion battery (200 shots CIPA) HP AC adapter (3.3Vdc, 2500 mA, 8.25 W) HP 6220 Camera Dock (included)
Dimensions	Measurements with camera off and lens retracted (LxWxH): 96 x 25.6 x 62 mm 3.78 x 1.00 x 2.44 inches
Weight	0.17 kg (0.37 lb), without battery and recording media
Compatible Operating Systems	Microsoft® Windows 98, Me, XP Professional, XP Home Edition, 2000, Mac OS 9.1 and OS X 10.1.2 and higher
Computer Requirements	Pentium® 166 MHz or higher, 32MB RAM, 300MB free hard disk space, SVGA 800x600 16-bit color display, CD-ROM drive, USB port.
Package contents	HP PhotoSmart R927 digital camera, HP R07 rechargeable lithium ion battery, HP 3.3V AC adapter, USB cable, user's manual, CD with HP Image Zone software for Microsoft Windows and Macintosh, HP memories disc creator, ArcSoft Panorama Maker 3.5, and American Greetings Create & Print Greeting Cards

Specifications are as represented by the manufacturer.

Continue on to
Features & Controls

Return To Our
Reviews Menu

Jump to Page:

Next: Features & Controls

Visitors of Steves can visit the stores below for real-time pricing and availability. You can also find hot, soon to expire online offers on a variety of cameras and accessories at our very own Camera Deals page.