1 Looove it!!!
I got my Vivitar for an early Christmas present as well. So far I'm loving it. Takes wonderful pictures! I had a Sony digital camera that cost over 300.00,and this little camera takes way better pictures than my other one.
As for what the other person wrote about everytime they change the batteries,you have to reset everything,well,it says in your instruction manual that you will have to do that. It takes what,less than a minute?
And I agree,it has a wonderful flash. So to me,its worth the battery changing to get such great pictures.
I'm so happy,that I now have a camera that will take great pictures of my children. And is easy to use.
2 Useless
I started with Alkaline batteries and they were dead after a few minutes of camera use. I bought rechargables and those lasted no longer. Besides, the need for reprogramming (see other reviews) is a pain. Furthermore, there is no way to completely disable the video function and frequently I was accidentally shooting video instead of still shots. The only use I have for this camera is with an A/C adapter which I bought to take pictures for Ebay listings. The camera has proven useful for that.
3 Great camera but a battery sucker!!!
Lets hope that you like to buy batteries cause that is what you will be doing. I loved this camera but i had to replace the batteries all the time. Also everytime i took the batteries or memory disk out I had to re-program the camera. Overall i love it.
4 battery eater, memory card cheater!
I had my camera for 1 week and the batteries in it were brand new. To my dismay I went to use the camera after installing the batteries and reading the manual and the batteries were already dead. I have replaced the batteries and took about 8 pictures, now my memory card is full. I would expect to be able to get more than 8 pics on a memory card. Hind sight is 20/20.
5 Purchase something else
I've owned and used this camera for almost 8 months, since Christmas 2003. I liked it at first, as it was easy to use and operate. It became quickly apparent, though, that it sucks batteries dry at the speed of light. Whenever I changed the batteries--which was often, 99% of the time I also had to reprogram the camera--a huge pain if you want to catch a particular moment. The 3x digital zoom zooms to 3x, there is no in-between, no control at all over the zoom. Over the last month, the zoom has worked sporadically--not working when I wanted and needed it the most. The picture quality is good, what you would expect, I think, from a 3.3 MP camera. But, overall, I wish I could get my money back.
6 More than satisfied
I can't compare this Vivitar camera to any others on the market because it's the first digital camera I've had, but I am more than satisfied with the purchase. For the price, it's a steal. It's simple to operate, and the resulting pictures are clear, crisp, and surprisingly large. The software packaged with it makes it an even more worthwhile buy. You can edit, resize, and get creative with your photos without having to buy a lot of other expensive software. Uploading photos to your computer can be accomplished with a minimum of fuss.
The only complaint I have is one voiced by others: this baby eats up batteries. But if you pick your subjects wisely and avoid the temptation to snap away with reckless abandon, this is a great camera for the price.
Brian W. Fairbanks
7 Good Quality, Simple Camera
I've been thinking about buying a digital camera for quite some time now, and when I saw this on sale for $70 at a local Fry's Electronics store, I bought it. It took me five minutes, tops, to set it up and begin taking pictures. With XP, it was very easy to link it to my computer. The images are excellent, very clear. My only complaint is how quickly it eats up batteries. Other than that, it is an excellent camera for the price.
8 Piece of Junk
This camera is a piece. I have had problems with it every since I have gotten it for christmas. I was going to return it but My spouse thought he may know what the problem was. I can take approximately 8 pictures and the batteries are dead. Then even with new batteries it shuts off right when it comes on. I don't recommend this camera to anyone.
9 Fun little camera
I bought the camera new at a pawn shop last week. I wanted something inexpensive to start with before investing in a high priced camera. The only problem so far is having to access the memory card through the battery door which requires resetting the date, time, etc. I have been looking for a AD/DC adapter to use for downloads and accessing the memory. Using the LED outside is nearly impossible. It's the right size for taking anywhere and seems to be built with quality in mind. The Kodak cameras I looked at seemed very cheaply constructed so I looked elswhere.
10 An "ok" Camera if you get it cheap!
I bought one at Target for $88. Not bad for a 3.3 mp camera. But it is a cheapie ... cheap optics, cheap construction. If you get a good price and go in knowing the limitations, probably an ok deal. Close-ups suck, must be apx 24" away or image is blurry. The flash takes forever to recharge & washes out images when used. If you want to take your SD memory card out to transfer images, you have to open your battery door & reset date/time each time. If you're taking a pic in a even pretty good lighting setting you need to hold the camera perfectly still for quite a while or image will be blurry. Don't try to review images on the nominally backlit display unless you are in a closet. It's a battery hog, buy recharge-ables .. flash charges a bit faster with rechargables too.. Minimal onboard memory, you'll want to upgrade memory right away. All in all it's ok for the price & pics are really good if taken outdoors during the day.
11 Eats up batteries like no camera I've ever seen
Regardless of the fact that this camera takes great pictures, it really eats up batteries easily. NiMH's last longer than regular batteries, but still not long enough in my opinion. I'd suggest forking over an extra $50 to get a better camera!
12 I hated it
I bought this for my birthday, and it wouldn't even turn on. I would highly reccommend not buying it.
13 Good Camera
I received this camera as a Christmas gift. It was my first experience with a "technical" digital camera. It takes great pictures and is fairly easy to learn how to use. HOWEVER, the batteries are a different story. Twice I have wanted to use the camera and it wouldn't work. Three sets of batteries since Christmas is not my idea of reasonable. I will try the NiHM rechargeable batteries in the hope of better results.
14 Great Camera
I have been amazed at how good most of my pictures have turned out.
One thing people need to know is lighting is important florescent lighting seems to be the worst to deal with. The Vivicam has settings for all kinds of lighting plus automatic. I took a close-up of an item that had the UPC label on it. I could read the upc bar code numbers on screen clear as can be. I strongly recommend Nickel Metal Hydrate rechargeable batteries and carry spares besides (2+2). Helps to turn screen displays off and manually turn off after you take your pictures - else set auto-off for less than 3 minutes. Vivtar has great documentation at their web site. This is my second Vivtar and I am well satisfied with the value.
15 Nice entry level digital camera-
I received mine for Christmas from my dad and stepmother, my dad being a professional photographer with a scrutiny for cameras. With the addition of a 128MB SD card, this camera holds hundreds of pictures even at the highest resolution. The 4x zoom is a nice feature and the motion video feature is nice too. I never really cared for the burst function which usually produces really blurry pictures. I have only two complaints- the shutter is slow, which is typical for most digital cameras and the batteries in mine are used up fast but that is because Vivitars have some of the best flashes- even my dad agrees on that one. For the batteries, try rechargeable NiMH batteries, they are about $20-25 for a pack and charger but I haven't yet regretted the purchase. Even Lithium and Titanium batteries are used up in my camera, which I don't my camera that often, last maybe a week. The USB sync is pretty fast and the pictures are pretty fine at the medium resolution. I have been a diehard 35mm SLR fan for years. But this simple digicam has seen more action in less than a month than my 35mm SLR (competely manual!!!) has seen in five months. This is great package for a camera- 3.3MP, 4x zoom & Adobe Image Ready for less than $150. I just wish I had a tripod now. Believe me, this was my favorite Christmas gift in a few years. Cheers.
16 Very disappointed
This camera was not very good at all. I received this camera for Christmas from my boyfriend. He didn't buy the memory card that goes along with it. I'm sure that is a huge factor why it isn't very good. I could only take 20 pictures and then the memory is full. I received the camera on December 24th and had to change the batteries twice and I've only had the camera for five days. Vivitar is not a good brand at all, I would go with a Cannon. I have heard nothing but good things about those cameras.
17 Excellent Easy Camera
This camera is one of the easiest camera's to use. I have done some amazing photos already with this camera. The night shots I've taken of turn out amazing with all the exposure settings that you have to choose from (tripod will be needed for pictures of christmas lights for example). Compact enough camera fits in a pocket. Takes crisp clear shots on the superfine settings. Easy download. Just an excellent camera for anyone wanting to get started in digital imaging. A lot of features for the price.
18 Do Not Buy this CAMERA!!!
I bought this camera on Dec 21st, hoping to use it for Christmas. I was only able to take about 20 pictures and it crashed. I went through about 8 batteries!!!! I returned the camera and recieved another one (same model), WHen i brought it home, it did the same thing. Needless to say, i want another camera and surely not this one.
DO not buy this camera. It is not worth the aggrevation!!!!
19 great camera!
I purchased this camera less than a week ago and I love it. It takes great pictures, even close-up pictures without the flash whiting everything out. The camera has tons of features I haven't even begun to use but it's nice to know they are there. It is super easy to delete pictures and download pictures to your computer -- I didn't even have to download any drivers or software. The camera even takes video clips.
My only complaints with this camera are that it eats batteries, but that is something you can expect with a lot of cameras. Also, it takes HUGE pictures, but that can be easily fixed with editing software. The case over the lens works well, and the camera even came with a black velvet camera case to help protect and maintain your camera.
A great 3.3 megapixel camera for a cheap price!!
20 Pile 'o Junk
I got this camera as an early Chirstmas gift. The day I got it we had to take it back because the LCD screen was BADLY scratched. The new one worked fine for a while, but after a couple of weeks the internal battery died or something because everytime the batteries were changed ALL settings went back to the default.
Now you'll have to bare in mind that this camera is so inefficient with batteries that it drains them dry after maybe 10-20 shots. Having to reset the month, date, year, hour, minute, flash option, date stamp option, etc. EVERYTIME you change batteries is unexceptable.
I'm now on the third camera and when batteries are changed it loses some options. I have no idea if it's a sign they'll all start getting lost in the future or the option I like just gets reset because they were morons and didn't make it save that setting, but either way I'm planning to take the camera back.
This has been an awful experience and I plan to avoid Vivitar in the future. It's really a shame, their Vivicam 10 was such a great little sub-$50 camera that would be nearly perfect if it had better resolution and an LCD to view what you took.
21 Pleased WIth This CAMERA
I got This camera for the holidays, So far I am pleased. Easy to use and has good quality features. For a $100 you can't get one like this. Price met my budget and outcome is satisfactory. I wanted a good camera to build memories and seems like Target came through with Vivitar for the holidays. Looking forward to building many family memories. Next step for our budget would be a digital camcorder.
22 a fun and easy camera to use
I got this camera right after Thanksgiving and have really enjoyed it. It is easy to use and has given me great pictures. I have never had a digital camera before, and for my first one it has been a great camera to use. I would tell anyone who doesn't want to spend a lot of money on a digital camera that this one is great on price and you get great pictures with it. glad I bought it.
23 Nice little camera
I received this for Christmas this year and am very happy with it for a first digital camera. It is not the highest quality on the market but for a first digital camera experience, it is not bad at all. The images are clear and it is easy to use.
24 No customer service
I found that it was fairly simple to set up and take the pictures. There is a delay in focusing and it goes through batteries quickly. I had difficulty with the USB driver, however. When I called the only number I could locate in the owners manual, I got the corporate office. There were options to connect with customer service or tech support, but you have to leave a message on a machine for them to call you back. More than a day later, I get the phone call (while I'm driving down the road) and when the Vivitar employee couldn't answer my questions, he offered to transfer me to tech support. Another answering machine!! If you don't encounter any problems with this camera, count your blessings. If problems do arise.. good luck! I certainly won't be purchasing any more Vivitar products.
25 Satisfied
I have had this camera since the day after Thanksgiving. I work with digital photos and am pleased with the high res size. For what I paid, I got what I expected; nice point and shoot pictures that can be printed at 8x10 and smaller. I would not recommend a digital zoom if you are a person that expects to do a lot zooming- choose optical zoom. I would highly recommend this camera for simple photography/printing needs.
26 Vivitar 3MP Camera - 3705
I bought if on the day after thanksgiving. It was so cheap...under $90. I think it's a good digital camera with the good price. I only need to post some pictures on the internet, send some photos to my family, and get some photos to send out. You would like it if you only need this digital camera for fun and not for something so professional. I took about 20-25 pictures and then the batteries dead. No problem...I went to the store and bought a battery charger and also rechargable batteries. I was going to buy Fuji FinePix $299 but my husband didn't want me to spend alot of money. I was so sad but after I tried this vivitar camera I felt alot better. I was looking at Vivatar cameras before. The prices were too cheap, so I didn't buy any of them. Now, I realized that it's ok if I would buy a cheap one. You'll like it if you want to buy a digital camerca that is cheap and pretty good in quality of the pictures.
I bought a 64MB memory card at $29.99 at target ( it was on sale ).
You might get a 128 MB one if you want to take more pictures.
27 Wonderful Digital Camera for the Price
I purchased this camera the day after Thanksgiving and so far I am very pleased. It is very user friendly. It comes with 8mg of memory. It has 4X zoom, which gets very close up. It is very easy to download the pictures on to your pc. I have printed pictures and they have turned out wonderful. The only negitive is that it does go through batteries fast. Other than that you cant beat it for the price. I would recommend this camera.
28 Not such a hot deal
I bought this camera because I wanted a 3MP digital camera and I am very disappointed. The pictures are not good quality and there is a HUGE lag time for the camera to focus. I bought these as Christmas gifts for family and I am going to advise them to return them and get something else.
29 VIVITAR 3705
I recived the camera yesterday for my birthday. I was impressed at the simplicity of it. Setup was very easy, and taking pictures was a snap. By simply plugging it into your computer, (I have Windows XP), you have a list of options such as view pictures, save to disk, etc. The included software is aldo very simple to use. It gets rid of the red eye very easily. The only thing I am wondering about is why, after a half a day of use, the camera says that the batteries are dead. Other than that, I am very happy with it.
30 3mp vivitar
So far so good! We have only had this camara sense the day after Thanksgiving but for the Holidays this is being a very handy addition to the family. The instructions are simple. Doesn't come with a xtra memeory, but enough to get you by if your home and near a computer. Always carry xtra batteries too.
Otherwise wonder purchase.
31 vivitar
great little camera but why no batteries. If ou give as a gift and are told everything is there to take pictures then you find out they haven't use yet because of no battery. Great pictures.
32 This Camera Has Style and Price
This is my first digital camera and i am thourghly impressed with its features and the quality of this camera. Very good pictures and an excellent movie mode . Great Price for Great Camera
