The Sanyo WH1‘s regular barrel-style feels a tad too old school. So how does its pistol grip sister, the Sanyo CA9 fair out and about in the big bad world. We’ve given this waterproof cammie the once over and the results are in. Read our complete Sanyo CA9 review now and we’ll give you our verdict.
The Sanyo CA9 crams in some pretty impressive specs into a neat little package. As well as its headline grabbing waterproof abilities (down to 1.5 metres), it can also shoot 720p HD video and take 9 megapixel snaps too. As well as that you get a 5x optical zoom and image stabilisation.
Bust the Sanyo CA9 out outside and it’ll easily handle adverse conditions. While central London didn’t afford us the chance to take it surfing, we at least managed to get it soaked in a downpour, with the results looking respectable. HD video was obviously a tad blurred by all that water and the stills were ample. However, they were no better than snaps you’d get off a decent 8MP camera phone.
The Sanyo CA9 does lack in some critical areas though. It feels a tad top heavy, always as if it’s going to slip from your grasp. The buttons, too, feel cheap and mean tasks like zooming can be clunky at first.
Button placement is also an issue. For a device aimed at shooting straight out of the box, it’s rather unintuitive. The playback button down the side isn’t obvious and the menu system leaves a lot to be desired. That said if you’ve got a squick shot to take, the ‘photo’ and ‘movie’ keys mean you can change modes easily.
At over £200, the Sanyo CA9 is also a tad pricey compared to rivals such as the Flip Mino HD. Sure it’s waterporrof, but if you’re not a beach bum, it’s not a dela breaker. You’re more likely to take stills on your phone or compact snapper, so we’d suggest plumping for something else if you want a basic HD camcorder.
