GE A730 7MP Digital Camera Review (Black)

I bought the GE A730 because it has by far the best feature set of any camera in its class at an unbelievable price. It's pocket-sized, with image stabilization, manual controls, a useful 35-140mm lens (35mm equivalent), a one-thirds grid on the LCD to help with composition and keep horizons straight, and on and on. It also has the best user manual I've ever seen. When I got it home, however, I immediately discovered its Achilles heel. I could not use the LCD in full sunlight, even at its brightest setting, and the A730 does not have an optical viewfinder. Also, the LCD is so reflective that the reflection of your own image blurs the screen even further, even in less than full sunlight. Besides that, I found that the automatic focus tended to hunt in almost all lighting conditions--though, in fairness, that could be just a flaw in the particular camera I bought, or "pilot error" due to my lack of experience, and not a general flaw in all A730s. I returned the camera for a refund and called GE Customer Service. I had called them once before with questions about the camera and they were savvy, polite, patient, and eager to please. When I told the person who answered about the problems I had with the A730, I could hear him typing it into his computer. He thanked me, said GE's R%26D department wanted as much feedback as possible, whether good or bad, and said he was forwarding my remarks to them "as we speak." Except for the LCD (and perhaps the hunting AF) the A730 is a landmark point-and-shoot with superb features, at an unbeatable price, supported by excellent customer service. Despite my disappointing experience, I'm not giving up on GE cameras. Almost all new products have "bugs" in them that have to be worked out.

The company seems more than willing to correct flaws, and if it does, there won't be a camera in the A730's class that can touch it. I'll watch with great interest to see if GE follows through on the feedback, and am looking forward to the release of their E850, which has a 28-140mm equivalent lens, a bit more resolution and all the other fine features of the A730. I hope GE makes the necessary corrections. They are just "this close" to producing a camera, backed by a customer support system, that all others will be measured by.
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