Samsung Galaxy Camera 2 review – Performance
Image: A close-up crop of these leaves shows some impressive detail captured by the camera in macro mode
I am pleased to see the improvements made to the Galaxy Camera 2’s operation speed. Pinch zoom and touch focus are responsive in good light, while AF assist beam provides some assistance when photographing poorly lit subjects.
The device also comes with 28 smart modes that make it easy to find the right settings to match your scene, or even help you create a range of artistic effects. I was impressed with how well the device read each scene and came up with appropriate suggestions. These modes will be a great help for anyone who needs a bit of guidance or inspiration.
Image: Action Freeze Smart mode is great for capturing fast-moving subjects
When shooting in ideal conditions, the images captured by the Galaxy Camera 2 look beautiful on its 4.8in HD screen, being vibrant, bright and crisp. Both the metering and the dynamic range are satisfactory enough for a camera with a 1/2.3in sensor, while colours and tone captured by the device are largely faithful to those appearing in the scene before you.
Unfortunately, on close inspection, the Galaxy Camera 2’s images suffer from artefacts and smudging created by overly aggressive noise reduction, even at lower ISO settings. Images beyond ISO 800 are almost painterly, and lack detail and texture. That said, for sharing via social media or printing at modest sizes, there’s absolutely no issue, so it depends on what you’re planning to use this device for.
These images show 72ppi (100% on a computer screen) sections of images of a resolution chart, captured with the lens set to its 100mm point. We show the section of the resolution chart where the camera starts to fail to reproduce the lines separately. The higher the number visible in these images, the better the camera’s detail resolution is at the specified sensitivity setting.
