Sanyo Xacti VPC-E6 Review

The Auto screen display. Notice there is very little overlay information. This is a fully automatic exposure mode with various adjustments for ISO, white balance, metering, focus modes and much more via the Record Menu.

When you half-press the shutter release to achieve the focus and exposure lock, the AF target marks will display and show what area it is focusing on. You can also see the aperture and shutter speed values will also be shown in the lower left corner. The "wavy hand" icon indicates that the camera recommends you use the flash.

Pressing the Menu button brings up this screen. Here you can enter Movie mode, choose a scene mode, or enter the onscreen Menu system.

The Scene option gives access to various exposure modes (AUTO Sports, Portrait, Landscape, Night View, Fireworks, Lamp or Best Shot) as well as several digital filters (Cosmetic, Monochrome, Sepia, Sharpness, Contrast or Color Saturation.)

Here's the "Lamp" Scene mode which allows you to use slower shutter speeds for flash-less photography in low light.

Record mode Menu options:

Touch Sensor - On/Off
Resolution - 6M-H (low compression), 10M (interpolated), 6M-S (high compression), 4M, 2M, 0.3M
Focus - Auto, Macro, Landscape, or Manual
Flash - Auto, Fill, Forced Off, Red-eye reduction
Self-Timer - 2 or 10 seconds
Mode - Single frame, Photo with Audio, Sequential, Scheduling Photo, Composite, ID Photo
Focus Method - 9-point or Single AF
Exposure Measure - Multi, Center, Spot
Flicker Reduction - On/Off
ISO - Auto, 50, 100, 200, 400
White Balance - Auto, Sunny, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Tungsten, or One Push Manual
EV Compensation - ±1.8 EV

The E6 has a very respectable macro (close-up) focusing range. Auto focus mode covers a range of 7.8 in. (20 cm) in Wide and 19.7 in. (50 cm) to Infinity in Tele. While the dedicated Macro option covers from 0.4 in. (1 cm) in Wide to 19.7 in. (50 cm) Tele.

You can record high quality MPEG-4 encoded motion video with sound at resolutions of 640x480 (H 30fps or S 15fps), 320x240 (H 30fps or S 15fps) and 160x120. The optical zoom can be used during recording. There is also a Flicker Reduction filter, which helps eliminate the flicker effect from fluorescent and vapor lights. The length of a clip is limited only by the amount of space left on your memory card.

Movie mode Menu options

Touch Sensor - On/Off
Video Clip Quality - 640x480 H, 640x480 S, 320 H, 320, 160, or Sound only
Focus - Auto, Macro, Landscape, or Manual
Self-Timer - 2 or 10 seconds
Focus Method - 9-point or Single AF
Exposure Measure - Multi, Center, Spot
Flicker Reduction - On/Off
ISO - Auto, 50, 100, 200, 400
White Balance - Auto, Sunny, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Tungsten, or One Push Manual
EV Compensation - ±1.8 EV