Comparison of affordable compact 28mm cameras

I did not find many sub-$200 compact cameras with a 28mm or wider (sharp) lens.

I found:
Olympus XA4 28mm f/3.5
Olympus Mju Wide 80 28mm-80mm f/4.5-8.4
Olympus Mju III Wide 100 28mm-100mm f/4.6-11.9

Am I missing any? Can you offer opinions on the options?

Seems the main drawbacks of the Mju are the inability to override the metering in difficult exposure situations. The weather resistance is a plus over the XA4.

The reason for interest in this is to have something small and pocketable that I could take as a backup for my 35mm SLR, while also eliminating the need to pack a wide angle lens. I am not a frequent wide angle user and mainly use them outdoors in good light.

Thank you

Fuji Natura S has a 24mm lens. They run more than $200 on eBay.

There is a Nikon P&S with a 28mm/3.5 prime lens. I believe it's the original Lite Touch / AF600 , not to be confused with later Lite Touch Zoom models. It is pretty bare bones, don't expect a lot of features or manual overrides, which can be ok. I personally do not care for the very slow zoom lenses on most zoom P&Ses.

I think the era of that thing existing, particularly that price point, is long gone save for exceptional chance bargains. There's a nostalgic mythos to 35mm compacts among folks under...let's say 30? that has driven the prices sky-high, even though a bunch of them are neither rare nor special.

Canon Powershot S100 and S110 cameras, are still available used. For comparative sizing



WA to 24mm equiv, 12MPixels. My camera of choice when dSLR is simply too much to bring.

There are lots of inexpensive 35mm P&S cameras with wide lenses -- even wider than 28mm, as has been pointed out. Your SEARCH has been inadequate. Konica even made a 35mm P&S with a 17mm lens!!! Many of these are referred to as panorama 35mm cameras. Most of these will be USED cameras, but a few are still being made.

Minolta made at least two:

(1994) The Minolta F20R has a new, more compact body, basically a fixed focus version of the AF 101R. The "R" in the model name stands for "red eye reduction", which is done by a separate lamp near the flash, which may be permanently disabled by a switch on the front. It has only one shutter speed, and has a DOF of 5' to infinity -- thanks to its 28mm f/5.6 lens. The shutter is fixed at 1/125s. The built-in flash is automatic with anti-red eye lamp, but can be set for fill-in flash or flash-off modes with a switch on the face. The range is 5-9 feet. It has a flash-ready LED signal. Film speed: DX coded films for ISO 100–400 -- non-DX films are exposed as ISO 100. Automatic film loading and advance, and manually activated motor rewind. Powered by two AA batteries. A CR2025 cell is used in the optional date back version. It was also available in an auto-focus version -- the AF 101R.

(2000) The Minolta F20R is a simple, fixed-focus camera with extra-large viewfinder for easy viewing -- and labeled "BIG FINDER" on the front. It comes with a wide-angle 27mm f/6.3 lens (three elements in three groups). Great for kids, anyone with impaired sight, or in any situation where you want a fast-acting camera and don't want to risk your more expensive gear. The built-in flash is set by the built-in meter. It has a single shutter speed of 1/100. ISO film setting of 100/200 or 400. Automatic film advance. Uses two AA batteries. Built-in lens cover. It has a built-in flash with red-eye reduction, auto film advance and rewind, and reads DX codes on film cassettes. Also available in an auto-focusing version -- the AF35.

Thank you, I ended up going for the Mju Wide 80... if it doesn't pass muster I may sell it and go for an XA4. Images I've seen from both have been good, though.

It's easy to find compact camera bargains with 35mm lenses, it's when you go wider (and still require a sharp edge-to-edge result) that things get expensive. There are many wide ones with plastic or triplet lenses and very smudgy corners.

Consider a Konica zup 28 wide, 28 to 50mm zoom. The lens is really sharp, likey the best of the point and shoots I have used. Downside not as compact as a fixed lens 28mm compact.

loccdor said:

The weather resistance is a plus

Click to expand...

By this point, most of that weather resistance will not be trustworthy.

Paul Howell said:

Consider a Konica zup 28 wide, 28 to 50mm zoom. The lens is really sharp, likey the best of the point and shoots I have used. Downside not as compact as a fixed lens 28mm compact.

Click to expand...

From Konica, there are also fixed 28mm construction site cameras named Genbakantoku/off-road. Not tiny but pretty good lenses and rugged. Nikon made something similar that I don't recall the name of.

Fuji DL Super Mini Zoom (aka Tiara Zoom) - 28-56mm 4.5-7.5

I have one. Good lens. They're pretty nice if the LCD still works. I think they're still under $200.

I have seen Rollei Prego cameras with 28mm lens.

The Ricoh GR1 of course, how can that be forgotten? And if you want 21mm instead of 28mm there is the GR21.

250swb said:

The Ricoh GR1 of course, how can that be forgotten?

Click to expand...

Because it's a little bit over $200?

But if money is not a concern, there's always Nikon 28ti. Or Rollei QZ35W.

Thanks everyone. I had a look at these cameras and some could make the list.

Additions:
Rollei Prego 90 28-90mm f/3.6-9.8
Fuji Tiara Zoom 28-56mm f/4.5-7.5
Konica Z-Up 28W 28-56mm f/3.5-6.6
Nikon AF600 28mm f/3.5
Konica Genba Kantoku 28mm f/3.5

Possible (lens looks a little unsharp in the edges):
Minolta F20R 28mm f/5.6
Minolta AF101R 28mm f/5.6

The others were digital or more expensive.

I'm sure these recommendations can help someone else with a similar need.

brbo said:

Because it's a little bit over $200?

But if money is not a concern, there's always Nikon 28ti. Or Rollei QZ35W.

Click to expand...

Well a Ricoh GR10 then, only the price of a couple of rolls of film more than $200.