Features:
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Full-featured 35mm SLR
28-80mm zoom lens
Fully automatic operation with manual option
Built-in flash; includes batteries and wide strap
Accessories:
Konica Minolta 70-210mm f/4.5-5.6 II Zoom Lens for Maxxum Series SLR Cameras (Silver)
Minolta Maxxum CH-100 Eveready Camera Case
Konica Minolta AF Zoom Lens 28-100mm f/3.5-5.6 for Maxxum Series SLR Cameras
Tamron Autofocus 28-200mm f/3.8-5.6 XR Aspherical (IF) Lens for Minolta SLR Cameras (Silver)
FujiFilm Super HQ 200 Speed 48 exp Film (2 Pack)
Spotlight customer reviews:
Summary: Outstanding 35MM SLR Film camera
Comment: I've shot Minolta 35MM SLRs since 1974 (SRT101). I've owned this camera for 6 years and it is a workhorse in my camera bag. (I also own an Olympus 5 Megapixel digital).
The Minolta consistently delivers consistently higher quality than the olympus, and I love the flexibility of film.
Summary: Exposure Problems
Comment: I have a mixed review of this camera since i bought it about 8 months ago. Over all the technology for the price you get in this camera is great, with the exception of the Auto Focus (AF). When used in manual, you can get great pictures with this camera, but then you can get good pictures with any camera that works in manual, if you know what your doing. So the real issue is how good the AF works, which is how you end up taking 80% of your shots anyways. The AF on the Minolta HTsi Plus has some problems. One, it is a little slow to focus. I tried the Canon Rebel in the camera shop after I bought this camera and found the AF to be much faster. Two, this camera seems to have some serious exposure problems in AF. It never quite gets the exposure right. For example outside shots look bleached out more often then not, even when you try to light meter off the brightest spot first. Also, the contrast in color seems to always come out weak with this camera. I am not sure how much of this is the camera's fault or lens's fault as film also plays a role here, but pictures defiantly come out color poor. I have used a number of different films with this and they all come out color poor.
Over all the technology in this Camera is good -AF so if you always use manual, this camera is good for that. But if you think you are going to do some percentage of point and shot with this camera, I would look elsewhere. If i had to do it over, I would have spent a little more and got the Canon Rebel.
Summary: Minolta HTsi Plus AF Camera
Comment: This has been a great camera for 3 years and 2000 pictures. However it recently has been giving me some trouble. It is now at Minolta getting fixed for $130.00. The first thing that happened was the built in flash would not fire anymore. Then a few weeks later the camera would not even power up. This camera has taken alot of great pictures for me I was just a little disapointed it just quit on me. The only cons I would say about the camera is no Date Imprinting,no Depth of field check. There also is no Panoramic mode and the XI 3500 flash I used when, on the camera hotshoe the red eye function would not work. It is a good camera I would just recomend an extended warranty.
Summary: Minolta HTsi Plus AF Camera
Comment: This has been a great camera for 3 years and 2000 pictures. However it recently has been giving me some trouble. It is now at Minolta getting fixed for $130.00. The first thing that happened was the built in flash would not fire anymore. Then a few weeks later the camera would not even power up. This camera has taken alot of great pictures for me I was just a little disapointed it just quit on me. The only cons I would say about the camera is no Date Imprinting,no Depth of field check. There also is no Panoramic mode and the XI 3500 flash I used when, on the camera hotshoe the red eye function would not work. It is a good camera I would just recomend an extended warranty.
Summary: Perfect for beginners who want to become experts.
Comment: I went from a point and shoot camera to this one and I love it! In plain English, I can set the f-stop, set how long the shutter stays open, take two pictures in the same frame, take continuous shots, and exposure bracketing lets me set the meter then it takes three shots: the one I set, 1/2 stop under and 1/2 stop over. Plus, in the five program modes I just press a button to select which mode (macro, night, landscape, etc.) and it automatically knows where to focus for the kind of picture I want. Just about all the features of a full manual camera, yet I just press the P button and it goes right back to full-auto point and shoot mode. With 400 speed film I've taken excellent pictures in almost no light in the night mode.
As far as I can tell it lacks only two features: it doesn't time-date stamp and there is no panoramic mode. Also, the infra-red sensor on the front of the camera is apparently for the auto-focus, not for a remote/remote shutter capability, as I was told when I bought it. A remote shutter release cord is available for this camera... (Minolta part # RC1000L for the 16ft and RC1000S for the 15in.)
I bought my HTsi Plus in a camera shop and paid... more for it, so you can't go wrong getting it here.
Editorial reviews:
The Minolta Maxxum HTsi Plus provides the superior picture quality of a single-lens-reflex camera (SLR) with the easy-to-use automatic controls of a point-and-shoot camera. It's a good choice for both advanced photographers and beginners who want better-quality pictures.
The picture quality of point-and-shoot cameras pales in comparison to those produced with an SLR camera, which gives you better optics, a through-the-lens view that lets you accurately frame your photos, and manual options for full control of your exposure and focus. If you are used to point-and-shoots, this camera makes the transition to SLRs easy; however, you'll have to refer to the manual to get the hang of using the extensive menu of advanced settings. In our tests, the HTsi Plus offered the full range of advanced controls--it let us set the aperture, exposure, and focus manually. The HTsi Plus also made it easy to switch into full automatic mode, in which we just pressed the shutter button, and the camera performed the focusing and exposure for us.
The Minolta Maxxum HTsi Plus is quite lightweight for an SLR and includes both a pop-up flash and an external flash shoe. It includes five preset exposure modes including portrait, landscape, and macro; burst mode; aperture and shutter priority modes; and a self-timer. For serious amateurs or professionals, the HTsi Plus offers all the standard SLR functions, although we found its aperture setting method (you have to push the aperture preview button and turn the camera's selection wheel) a bit disorienting at first. The HTsi Plus's 28-80 zoom lens gave us a good range for everything from portraits to landscapes. We especially liked the automatic exposure bracketing and multiple exposure functions; these features are useful in getting the right shot and exercising your creativity.
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