The Minolta Dimage Xt takes up where the first Minolta Dimage X
camera left off. Equipped with a 3X zoom that is installed vertically
in the camera, the Xt provides a 3 megapixel resolution, in an incredibly
flat and compact shape.
The Dimage Xt is the newest version of the design which was first introduced
with the Dimage
X, a 2-megapixel model. Next in the series came the Xi, a 3 megapixel
camera, and now the Xt, which reworks the exterior appearance and adds
a number of features.
The
top part of the Dimage Xt is generally similar to earlier models. The
shutter release is oblong, and located closest to the edge of the camera.
The power switch is a small round button, which activates the camera —
ready to shoot — in about 1.1 seconds. To turn off the camera, the
button needs to be held down for about a second, thus avoiding accidentally
turning the camera off.
On
the back of the Dimage Xt, the external controls are grouped in two areas:
near the top, and below the LCD monitor. Above the LCD monitor, a new
4-position Mode Dial offers:
Still
image recording
Playback
Movie
with sound, and Sound recording
Setup
menu
While in
the upper right corner, a cluster of 3 buttons referred to as the controller,
serve primarily for the zoom and menu navigation. The centre button provides
telephoto when pushed towards the top and wide angle when pushed towards
the bottom. In addition, it can be pressed in to confirm a choice, acting
as an OK button.
In Playback, the control serves to magnify an image on the screen (up
to 6X).
Besides being used to navigate the menu, the right and left buttons can
be assigned any one of five functions, and are set by default to control
exposure compensation (± 2EV in 0.3EV increments). A menu option
allows the default function assigned to the right and left buttons to
be changed to: white balance, drive mode, sensitivity, or colour mode.
(See the Characteristics section of the review for an explanation of
these options).
Four
more buttons below the 1.5 inch, 110,000 pixel LCD monitor, form the remaining
external controls of the Dimage Xt. Starting on the left, the buttons
control:
calls
up the menu appropriate to the camera mode.
serves
to start the Quick View mode, or delete images in Playback.
the
Display button cycles through: LCD screen On with information overlaid
on the picture; monitor On with only the image coming from the lens;
and monitor Off.
allows
selecting the Flash modes: Autoflash, Autoflash with red-eye reduction,
Fill-flash, Flash cancel, Night portrait flash (Slow synch).
While the microphone is tucked behind a single row of small holes on the
front of the camera, sound is played back through a small speaker hidden
being a double row of holes on the lower right of the Dimage Xt's back.
On playback, the volume can be adjusted using the zoom button, but the
sound from the little speaker is somewhat faint.
Nowadays,
when most manufacturers offer at least one super-compact camera, the splash
that the original Minolta X camera made when it was first released in
early 2002 is unlikely to be repeated by the Xt. Nevertheless, both the
Minolta Dimage X and now the Xt remain very special because of their lens
design and size.
