Samsung L74W digital camera

7.2 megapixel camera with 3-inch touch screen

By John Virata

Samsung's L74 wide is the first digital camera that I've looked at that features a touch screen LCD to access most all of the controls. In this first look, I looked at some of the features this camera offers that are interesting to this camera.

Samsung has taken a different approach with its L74 wide angle digital camera in that it features a touch screen display to access most all of the functions. This 7.2 megapixel digital camera is made of a metal alloy rather than plastic, is black in color, and features a bright, 3-inch touch LCD display. It has a 28mm,  3.6X optical zoom lens to capture 7.2 megapixel images. It features the standard mode wheel at the top of the camera that enables you to change to Auto mode, Program mode, ASR mode, Night mode, Portrait mode, Scene Mode, and Movie Clip Mode.

A notable feature with the L74 is the World Tour Guide, which gives you some basic information on various touristy locations throughout the world, popular locations in selected cities. For example, I pressed Philippines and it came up with a list of popular tourist spots, not your Cherry Lodge spots, but real touristy areas, such as Manila Bay, El Nido, and Boracay, the latter two of which are world class beach resorts.

Samsung's L74w features a 28mm wide angle lens.

The rear has few controls. Most everything is adjusted via the touch screen display.

There are also factoids built into the guide as well as some interesting, and even bizarre spots to visit. For example, there is a brief synopsis on the Transgender show that takes place in Manila, complete with a sample photograph on the bizarro end, and on the other end there is a shot of the Pagsanjan Falls on the other end of the must photograph in the Philippines spectrum.

 

Switching over to California, there is information on some of the biggest cities in the state, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Anaheim, and even Catalina Island. The World Tour Guide features some of the most popular worldwide cities with popular spots in each to visit and shoot photographs. Another notable feature is the camera's Face Recognition AF & AE feature which works surprisingly well. Many digital cameras have this feature and the L74 has a fairly solid implementation of this feature.

The L74. Image courtesy Samsung.

In use
The Samsung L74 is really a very nice camera to hold. It is not so small that you'd fumble with it, nor is it too heavy that you'd get tired of holding it. The ergonomics are well thought out, with a built in metal thumb rest with ridges at the rear that also doubles as the strap holder, and a raised rubberized ridge up front for your fingers to rest down on as you shoot. The tele-wide angle control sits right above the thumb rest and under the top of the camera, giving you easy access to the control.