Group: Moderator
Post: 2,042 (563 liked)
Join date: April 2014
Status: Long, long time Contax and Yashica user; glad to be here and hope to contribute.
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on Apr 22, 2021 15:54:47 GMT
Posted: Apr 22, 2021 15:54:47 GMT
This was bought for a mere £5 a few days ago - Kyocera's M410R digital camera. There is one for sale on Ebay which carries Yashica branding - a rare alternative, presumably from its earliest period of sales.  M410R completeFor a 4Mp camera, it's well specified with a decent 10x optical zoom (let's not dwell on the additional 6x digital zoom), a 3.3fps burst rate, and a sophisticated menu of options for both still and moving images. Indeed, its English language User Manual runs to 186 pages. Although small and plastic, the body feels pretty robust although I would not like to accidentally knock the front of the lens as it feels more delicate. I'm pleased to say that it uses 4 AA batteries which makes obtaining spares a very simple proposition almost anywhere in the world. The leather case is one of the better ones from Kyocera and definitely will protect the camera against all but the hardest of blows. The camera came complete with all its papers and accessories; time to start wading through the user manual...sleep is for wimps anyway... |
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Post: 286 (39 liked)
Join date: April 2014
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on Apr 22, 2021 20:16:39 GMT
Posted: Apr 22, 2021 20:16:39 GMT
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Group: Administrator
Post: 770 (71 liked)
Join date: August 2016
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on Apr 22, 2021 21:55:49 GMT
Posted: Apr 22, 2021 21:55:49 GMT
I agree -- AA batteries in a digital is such a PLUS!!!. Most have a special batteries that need a special charger and take so long to charge. What a nuisance! What are you supposed to do while the battery is charging? Tell everyone what other wonderful features the camera has???
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Group: Moderator
Post: 2,042 (563 liked)
Join date: April 2014
Status: Long, long time Contax and Yashica user; glad to be here and hope to contribute.
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on Apr 23, 2021 9:26:52 GMT
Posted: Apr 23, 2021 9:26:52 GMT
Hi bobblehat, Some very fine piccies there! I look forward to getting to know the little camera better over the coming days. Your images back up the suggestion that the lens is a decent performer and show the versatility of the camera. I was thrown initially by the fact that the main manual was for the M400R but included in the box was a supplement for the M410R; that was until I spotted the image of the M400R on your chart - it looks like the old Yashica FX-3 vs FX-7 notion: assign a different model number based on the colour of the camera... That it was released in early 2004 probably explains why some had Yashica branding on them - what I don't know is whether the boxes were printed with Yashica Kyocera joint-branding in the first production batches; the Yashica on-camera branding was in the form of a sticker. |
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Post: 1,371 (303 liked)
Join date: February 2017
Status: Failed treatment for L.B.A. and G.A.S,
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on Apr 23, 2021 19:40:11 GMT
Posted: Apr 23, 2021 19:40:11 GMT
... the Yashica on-camera branding was in the form of a sticker. That's a scary thought for the loyal Yashica employees of 2004 to see how impermanent their brand becomes when the parent company starts using a peel-away pedigree. That seems pretty harsh and it looks like they were already prepping to jettison the whole company a year or more before it happened. |
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Group: Moderator
Post: 2,042 (563 liked)
Join date: April 2014
Status: Long, long time Contax and Yashica user; glad to be here and hope to contribute.
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on May 16, 2021 16:27:16 GMT
Posted: May 16, 2021 16:27:16 GMT
Hi bobblehat , Some very fine piccies there! I look forward to getting to know the little camera better over the coming days. Your images back up the suggestion that the lens is a decent performer and show the versatility of the camera. I was thrown initially by the fact that the main manual was for the M400R but included in the box was a supplement for the M410R; that was until I spotted the image of the M400R on your chart - it looks like the old Yashica FX-3 vs FX-7 notion: assign a different model number based on the colour of the camera... That it was released in early 2004 probably explains why some had Yashica branding on them - what I don't know is whether the boxes were printed with Yashica Kyocera joint-branding in the first production batches; the Yashica on-camera branding was in the form of a sticker. Well, that will teach me to be more observant in the future... The image below shows the M400R (silver) next to the M410R shown earlier.  M400R_M410RThe M400R and M410R are not merely differently coloured versions of the same model as I had wrongly assumed; just look at the lens housings... The earlier M400R has a shallow protective collar leaving the barrel vulnerable to being knocked when its fully extended; the M410R has corrected this vulnerability by offering an extended housing, affording much greater protection. The 'grip' at the front of the extended collar is purely cosmetic and is part of the plastic moulding. It also explains why their respective lens caps are so very different but the M410R has one other advantage over the original model - the provision of a 49/52mm Adapter Ring which screws into the front of the extended lens housing and allows the addition of filters. Other than that, their specifications are identical. I had spotted a number of Ebay listings for a Kyocera 49/52 Adapter Ring but it took a while to figure out which lens it was intended to fit... |
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) ... and I fell in love with it! It was so versatile, and for its day was a very good performer as a "Bridge type" camera. I had so much fun with it! "Bread & Butter" shots, Macro shots, wide-angle to zoomed-in, drive sequence .... you name it I had a go.
