"Picky Details" for the Konica Minolta DiMAGE X50 digital camera
(Timing, Power, and Storage Info)

Timing

When you press the shutter release on a camera, there's usually a lag time or delay before the shutter actually fires. This corresponds to the time required for the autofocus and autoexposure mechanisms time to do their work, and can amount to a fairly long delay in some situations. Since this number is rarely reported on (and even more rarely reported accurately), and can significantly affect the picture taking experience, I routinely measure both shutter delay and shot to shot cycle times for all cameras I test, using a test system I designed and built for the purpose. (Crystal-controlled, with a resolution of 0.001 second.) Here are the numbers I collected for the Konica Minolta DiMAGE X50:

Power

The Konica Minolta DiMAGE X50 uses a custom rechargeable LiIon battery for power.

Like most subcompact digital cameras, the Konica Minolta DiMAGE X50 has rather short battery life when its rear-panel LCD is used as the viewfinder. At just 58 minutes in this mode, battery life is shorter than most cameras in its class, so you'll definitely want to buy a spare battery right along with the camera. On the other hand, when run with its LCD off, run time stretches to a phenomenal 57 hours. Unfortunately, the rather tight optical viewfinder means that you'll need to rely on the power-hungry LCD screen more often than not.

Storage Capacity

The Konica Minolta DiMAGE X50 stores its photos on SD / MMC memory cards, and a 16 MB card is included with the camera. (I strongly recommend buying at least a 64 MB card, preferably a 128 MB one, to give yourself extra space for extended outings.) The chart below shows how many images can be stored on the included 16 MB card at each size/quality setting.