Sony cybershot DSCS500 + HEWLET PACKARD Pavilion A1615 desktop.

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alecalgo@madasafish.com - 13 Jan 2007 15:39 GMT

Sony cybershot DSCS500 + HEWLET PACKARD Pavilion A1615 desktop.
Hello there,
I am looking to replace my basic cheapo dial-up system (win98 running
on 1999 hardware) with another basic system ... This time though the
comp has to be capable of dealing with digi camera input ... (A sony
cybershot DSC-S500 ... which is another cheapo (£80) item in Comet's
sale ... which I MAY** ? buy). All I want from such a camera are
simple pictures for record purposes i.e. pictures of houses, rooms
..... car mechanical parts ... nothing much that is 'going to move'
---
One of the drawbacks with that Sony model is they eat batteries ...?
... and the MS memory cards (Sony's own) are twice as much (£35 for a
512mb) than the much more common SD ones.
My Question ... to anybody who would be kind enough to help ... does
the above camera/computer combination (see remarks below and comp spec)
make any kind of sense ? ... or is it all just to cheap and nasty. Can
anybody tell me also where the Sony DSCS500 fits into the Cybershot
family ... is it a bottom of the range basic ...? or a 'onetime great'

:-)) but now superceded and hence discounted.

-------(computer)---------
Comet have the following £348 "reduced sale item" Comp (see spec at
bottom) advertised in the national press. It is obviously as basic a
machine as you can get ... fit for not much more than basic office
work, as Comet's own spiel says (I've been down for a print off). So
... ? ..will it be any good for basic digi photo work ... the
processing of, storing and sending etc. I ask because of Comets own
rather negative note in their spec sheet .....
"Shared Graphics 256MB.............this is an economical solution that
borrows your computers main memory to use for graphics. Fine for basic
computing tasks but not powerful enough for digital photography, video
editing and gaming"
---
That is my main worry ... then it's very basic bottom of the pile Intel
Celeron 352 2.8Ghz processor ... is it up to it ?? Mind you it is a
hell of a step up from the 433 Mhz one on this old machine ...;-)) (433
megahertz Intel Celeron 32 kilobyte primary memory cache 128 kilobyte
secondary memory cache :-)). And as I certainly don't do games or
video etc ... what would I need a fast processor for anyway ..?
---
Lastly, as I intend to remain on dial-up only, I will have to buy an
external modem as the Comet one has not got one .... neither has it a
floppy disc drive :-(( ... so how the hell I am going to be able to
transfer my 1gb of text files over to a new machine I just don't know
?? (can anybody give me some clues on what to do ..?.. my old machine
has no USB 2 or 1 port ... and certainly no 'writing to CD' facility).
I suppose I could alway laboriously get the main ones onto floppies
... then go down to the library and use their comp to get them onto a
memory stick ...?
------------(comp spec)----------------
£348 .....HEWLET PACKARD Pavilion A1615 desktop ... with 15" screen.
(in the ad it shows a wide screen ... so I'll challenge them on that
aspect ... :-)).
Processor : Intel Celeron 352 2.8Ghz
Processor bus 533 Mhz
Processor cache 512 kb
RAM 512 mb
Hard drive 160 GB
Optical drive ... 'plays and records CDs and DVDs'
2nd optical drive .... not got one
OS .... Windows XP media centre.....microsoft works
---
Shared Graphics 256MB............."An economical solution that borrows
your computers main memory to use for graphics. Fine for basic
computing tasks but not powerful enough for digital photography, video
editing and gaming"
---
7 USB 2 slots
Firewire ....yes
Media Card slots 9-in-1 Use cards from your digital camera - a
quick and easy way of getting your digital photos onto your PC
-------o0o---------
Hey aren't I just the cheapskate .... but when cash is short that's
what you've just got to do ...;-(( or do without ....
cheers
alec

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alecalgo@madasafish.com - 13 Jan 2007 16:29 GMT

Sorry Asaar and Roy for posting the whole stupid lot again .... I could
not find the post on the site and presumed it had not landed ... now
I've belatedly found it .... and with it your two posts, both
containing some good tips .... nothing shown up on the camera yet but
the comp side is of course far more important. Being a non-techie I
am a bit mystified with this line though :-
<<<Be aware however that on all the HP machines the built in Card
Readers are dead slow, USB 1.1 only. So they are no bloody use. >>>
.... if you could possibly go into a bit more detail on that ? ... and
I thought every thing was USB 2 now ? well on the 'outside of the
can' it is ...:-))
anyway thanks ... much appreciated ...
alec

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ASAAR - 13 Jan 2007 17:00 GMT

> nothing shown up on the camera yet but
> the comp side is of course far more important. Being a non-techie I
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> I thought every thing was USB 2 now ? well on the 'outside of the
> can' it is ...:-))

I can answer that one, since I bought a new HP computer several
months ago. All of its USB ports are USB 2.0 High Speed. There's
also a USB spec. known as USB 2.0 Full Speed, and unfortunately it
operates at exactly the same speed as USB 1.1, which is *very* slow.
The problem with HP computers is that while there's no problem with
their USB ports, the built-in card readers that HP supplies with
their computers operate very slowly. They were either designed as
USB 1.0 or USB 2.0 Full Speed, and whichever it was doesn't really
matter. They're slow enough to make using them an unpleasant
experience. Even an operation that should be relatively quick, such
as deleting files can take several minutes. Solution are to either
transfer directly from the camera (but only if the camera has a High
Speed USB port) or to buy an inexpensive USB 2.0 High Speed card
reader.

Reply to this Message

Roy G - 13 Jan 2007 19:06 GMT

> Sorry Asaar and Roy for posting the whole stupid lot again ....> am a bit
> mystified with this line though :-

> <<<Be aware however that on all the HP machines the built in Card
> Readers are dead slow, USB 1.1 only. So they are no bloody use. >>>

> .... > anyway thanks ... much appreciated ...
> alec

Hi

Well all 7 of the USB ports are USB 2 and quick.

It omits to mention anywhere in the advertising or users manual, that the
Card Reader Slots are only USB 1.1. Downloading 600 Mb of photos takes
about 30 minutes using the slots.

I now plug my USB 2 Card Reader into the USB socket on the fascia of the
Inbuilt Card Reader and download the same amount in about 2 Minutes.

Guess how stupid this arrangement looks.

Also, if you happen to buy a HP, don't throw your old keyboard away, the
letters are already beginning to wear off the keys on the one that came with
it, and the mouse used a rubber ball to make it work, and immediately got
binned.

The Computer cost £660 without a Monitor, and apart from the above stupidly
penny pinching faults, it is a nice machine.

Roy G

Reply to this Message

ASAAR - 13 Jan 2007 19:54 GMT

> Also, if you happen to buy a HP, don't throw your old keyboard away, the
> letters are already beginning to wear off the keys on the one that came with
> it, and the mouse used a rubber ball to make it work, and immediately got
> binned.

No such problem with my HP keyboard. It has only 6 months of use
on it but there are no signs of legend wear on the keys. It's a
cheaply made keyboard though, that creaks and groans when keys are
firmly pressed. I've so far resisted the urge to press its many
custom keys (Search, +hp Club, Internet, Info, E-mail, Burn CD/DVD,
etc.) The mouse is optical, and HP may have decided that it
wouldn't use IR, so it alternately has a dim and a bright red glow.

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ray - 13 Jan 2007 17:03 GMT

> Sony cybershot DSCS500 + HEWLET PACKARD Pavilion A1615 desktop.
> Hello there,
[quoted text clipped - 61 lines]
> computing tasks but not powerful enough for digital photography, video
> editing and gaming"

IMHO - I'd recommend to stay away from the Celeron and get a 'real'
processor. It's basically a somewhat brain damaged P4. I would also
suggest that you get more 'bang for the buck (or pound in this case)' with
an AMD processor. I also don't like shared memory graphics systems - if
you end up getting one, it would be nice to have more than 512mb RAM.

Also IMHO - you would get much more value for your money if you install
Linux which can be obtained free and comes with literally thousands of
dollars of free software (as compared with an MS system).

In either event, you should be made aware of OpenOffice.org (free open
source office suite - for MS as well as Linux) and the GIMP (image
manipulation software - also free open source available for MS as well as
Linux).

> ---
> 7 USB 2 slots
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> cheers
> alec

I can see two ways you might transfer data from the old computer to the
new one. You mention no USB ports on the old one, so I imagine you read
pictures directly from the camera - there is a possibility you might be
able to write as well - so transfer data to camera memory card and then
read it on the new system. Another option would be a serial to serial
transfer - it would only take a simple cable.

Reply to this Message

ASAAR - 13 Jan 2007 17:25 GMT

> I can see two ways you might transfer data from the old computer to the
> new one. You mention no USB ports on the old one, so I imagine you read
> pictures directly from the camera - there is a possibility you might be
> able to write as well - so transfer data to camera memory card and then
> read it on the new system.

Uh, if transferring directly from the camera, wouldn't the camera
still need to be plugged into a USB port, which the OP has stated is
not available on the old computer? Only some very old cameras have
a serial port to complement their USB port, so I'd be surprised if
the DSCS500 is one of them.

Reply to this Message

ray - 13 Jan 2007 18:25 GMT

>> I can see two ways you might transfer data from the old computer to the
>> new one. You mention no USB ports on the old one, so I imagine you read
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> a serial port to complement their USB port, so I'd be surprised if
> the DSCS500 is one of them.

Yes, you're right. One of the problems with long posts - I tend to forget
details when I get to the end.

Reply to this Message

ASAAR - 13 Jan 2007 19:00 GMT

>> Only some very old cameras have a serial port to complement their
>> USB port, so I'd be surprised if the DSCS500 is one of them.
>
> Yes, you're right. One of the problems with long posts - I tend to forget
> details when I get to the end.

Been there, done that. Welcome to the club. :)

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