Over this weekend, I am going to try and start putting the S4 Zoom camera to task.

But before I list all the items, I thought I would mention the dreadfully low resolution panoramic mode photos. I have discovered that if you take them holding the phone vertical the 173kb file size is increase to about 750kb. Still totally unacceptable, but a start in the right direction. Both Samsung and Clove Technology are now investigating this matter urgently so hope to have an update by the end of next week. A quick thanks too for Clove being so helpful in trying to resolve this for me.

As a heads up, here is a list of the features/options I need to test –

– Zoom ring, Camera Voice Commands, 12 filters from Vignette to Fish Eye
– Optical Image Stabiliser
– Face detection, smile shot, blink detection,
– Focus lock, Auto mode, Expert mode – Program, Colour Wizard and Manual options
– Smart mode, smart mode suggest, beauty face, best photo, continuous shot, best face, kids shot,
– Landscape, dawn, snow, macro, food mode, party/indoor, action freeze, rich tone HDR, panorama, waterfall
– Animated photo, drama shot, eraser, sound and shot, silhouette, sunset, night, fireworks, light trace
– My modes
– Options in settings for EV (brightness), ISO, WB, Metering,
– Drive Mode – continuous normal, continuous high, Auto exposure bracketing
– Flash – Auto, OFf, Red Eye, Fill in, Slow Sync, Red Eye Fix
– Focus Area – Centre AF, Multi AF
– Photo size, quality, auto contrast options
– Adjust images for colour, saturation, sharpness or contrast
– Timer
– Video – movie size, motion speed, sound and windcut,
– Sharing options
– Camera volume, beeps, guidelines, descriptions on or off, auto screen off, review, date/time imprint,
– GPS tag, Voice options, Contextual filenames tags, AF lamp, start mode, storage options, reset

That certainly makes for some heavy testing. Wish me luck!