Compact and weighing less than one pound, the Sharp VE-CG40U employs a 4.2-megapixel CCD (charged coupled device) to give you outstanding clarity and richness of detail in your shots. The camera features an all-glass Canon 3x optical zoom with 3x digital zoom, USB interface, white balance control, and image effects. The camera also includes a removable 16 megabyte SD memory card and AC power adapter. With the VE-CG40U, you can also records movie clips (motion JPEG) with sound up to 30 seconds in length.

Sharp has also equipped this camera with such high-end features as program auto-exposure, exposure bracketing, aperture and shutter priority and full manual exposure modes. You can also shoot from five scene modes that will give you the just the right exposure, shutter speed and other controls that your picture demands. The camera gives you added ease-of-use with gamma correction, adjustable ISO sensitivity, white balance options, exposure compensation and "after capture" image effects filters. The VE-CG40U also has an easy "quick link button" that lets you take advantage of one-touch photo transfer from the camera to your computer. Simply connect the included USB cable to the camera and the computer, hit the button, and your photos are on their way to being stored for emailing, re-touching or printing. It's that simple.

What's in the Box
Sharp VE-CG40U digital camera, set of alkaline batteries, AC power adapter, 16 megabyte SD card, USB and audio/video cables, strap, CD-ROM driver disk, USB driver and download software for Windows and instruction manual.

So, what would make the VE-CG40U better? (1) manual focus mode (autofocus is unreliable in low light), (2) a hot shoe for an external flash unit, (3) better battery life (NiMH rechargables are a "must," as Alkalines are drained very quickly), and (4) an eyepiece adapter for the LCD screen (easier than those reading glasses).

For [$] or less, this is probably as good as it's going to get for a little while. It's not quite in the SLR class, but it isn't far from it, either. I've used mine for scenery, people, flower close-ups at near-macro range, and commercial images for the web. You can get crisp (in 35mm terms) 8x10 prints, even with some cropping, provided that your printer is up to the task.


Good all-round camera   March 26, 2003
 1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Great little camera in all respects - except one ..... it has difficulty focusing in poor light. Other than that, it works like a charm. True 4 mpix clarity. Fast processing. Easy to use.

I had no problem with the software provided .... because I did not need to use it. I enjoyed USB plug and play connectivity with my three different computers with three different operating systems: Mac OS X, Widows XP professional and Windows 2000.


Good for the price - novices need not be so picky.   March 22, 2003
 2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Ok, the other reviews go into detail after detail so I won't repeat it all. Here's the points:

First, no where will you find a 4 megapixel camera for under $ that has ALL features on it. For under $, yes, you will get a cheesey lens cap. You will get a lower grade of plastic in the camera body, and no, you will not get a camera that compares with a $ camera.

More basics: ALMOST ALL digital cameras eat alkaline batteries like candy, so stop complaining! Buy a set (or two) of NiMh rechargeable batteres and a charger and you don't have to worry anymore. Also, if you are one of these "I've used an SLR film camera and am switching to digital" people, then yes, you will be disappointed; buy a "digital SLR" for five times more, and you'll have your match.

The lens on this camera is a Canon lens - which is good. Images capture a good amount of detail. Sometimes odd lighting will cause a blue-ish cast to the images. The tiny 1.5 inch silicon screen is small, but is viewable outdoors in sun. Focusing indoors in low light is not the best - it has no auto focus assist light that comes on to help the focus work, so if it's dim, you may get a blurry photo. Those with larger hands may have a cramped time of it - the hand grip is a bit too close to the lens barrel so larger fingers will rub against it (no harm in it though).

I'm giving it a "three star" because of the odd colors under some conditions, the tight hand grip, and the fact it has no auto focus assist light. But for the price, it's hard to beat.


Camera is Great!!!   January 15, 2003
I think this camera is great and for the price you can not beat it. I think it got a few bad raps by people who don't understand how to upload the pictures to their computer. If you are a little computer literate it works fine. Also, I took the digital card to sams and put it in their computer and uploaded the pictures I wanted printed at just 20 cents each. They came out beautiful including an 8 x 10. The clarity and color was great. I recommend this camera highly and at the price ... you can't beat it...


4mp under$300!   January 4, 2003
 7 out of 7 found this review helpful

I bought the camera because it had 4mp and was [reasonably priced].The sharpness of 4mp didn't disappoint as the photos were very sharp.I also liked having the option to manually overide most functions which does come in handy in poor lighting.The camera is great outdoors but does struggle at tmes when lighting is poor.Using NiMH batteries you will get pretty good battery life.Regular alkaline batteries is poor;about 1/4 the life of rechargeables.Also get 64mb or 128mb card.(the 64mb will have faster access times)