Easy to operate. The custom settings allow a lot of flexability in how you work with the camera.
14-segment honeycomb meter, 1/4000sec shutter - fine for its price.

Flash system supports only usual TTL, instead of more precise E-TTL (Canon) or 3D-flash (Nikon).
Difficult to set up spot metering with holding a button with one finger and pressing the shutter release with another.

I have been using it for 1 year. It`s quite user friendly. Very good camera for a beginner who wants to have almost all the pro features.

Customer Service

None needed yet for this camera.

Similar Products Used:

Canon Rebel 2000

Great specs. 14-segment honeycomb meter, 1/4000sec shutter, spot meter and high speed sync. The autofocus is flexible and responsive, better than that of my 600si. I love the wireless off-camera TTL flash, that feature got me into the Maxxum system in the first place. It's great for portraits and macro shots. I use fill flash alot, so the high speed sync with the 5400HS flash is wonderful. The HTsi Plus is nice and light, a real pleasure to carry.

Plastic lensmount, but it shouldn't be too much of a durability issue for non-pros. AF, winding and shutter are all noisy, but better than the 400si. I don't care for picture modes, so I don't use them. I really dislike the automatic popup flash, but it can be turned off, so it's a minor annoyance. Program shift would be nice. Canon and Nikon have it in their cheapest SLR's. AF could be quicker. CR2 batteries are costly, it's a good thing I rarely use the built-in flash.

I purchased it to replace my 400si, and am glad I did. Great choice for beginners or for advanced amateurs wanting to pick up a second body. VERY competitive with other cameras in its price range. Minolta deserves more respect for its SLR's. Alot of photographers are real Nikon or Canon snobs, and completely overlook some excellent products such as the Minolta HTsi Plus. This camera sells for nearly same price as STsi, but is vastly superior. If you buy one of these, do yourself a favour and get the 3500xi or 5400HS flash. You'll be amazed at how easy off-camera flash photography can be!

Customer Service

None needed yet for this camera. Minolta service here in Canada was prompt and effective when I needed it previously.

Similar Products Used:

Maxxum 600si, 400si, 7000; Nikon Pronea S, Pronea 600i, Nikon F-401.

Lightweight, Custom Functions,bright viewfinder, 14 segment honeycomb meter, multiple exposure, 3-point crosscut autofocus sensors, AND my favorite the spot meter.

Autofocus not that fast, but it is faster than similarly classed SLRs. Plastic lens mount.

This is the perfect camera for any aspiring photgrapher who learns quickly. You won't outgrow this camera easily. The best thing I like about a camera like this is that it is relatively not expensive at all. Therefore, you can spend more money on a better lens. I highly recommend this camera to any beginner or casual shooter.

Customer Service

Have not yet used

Similar Products Used:

Nikon N60
Nikon N70
Canon Rebel 2000
Canon EOS Elan II

Light, compact, clear bright viewfinder. Well implemented subject modes - they give great results.

No cable release. Slow AF. Noisy AF and rewind (especially at a quiet wedding). In Manual cannot quickly adjust both speed and aperture.

I've had this camera for about 18 months and when I first got it felt as though I'd never outgrow it. As an introduction to SLR photography its great, but I started to outgrow it the more I used it. To be expected I suppose. The weaknesses I've pointed out are the sort of things that wouldn't be apparent to an SLR novice, so they shouldn't be viewed as harsh. Overall a great camera for someone who is just starting on SLRs, especially if they are unlikely to move beyond hobby photography.

Similar Products Used:

Canon EOS300, Canon EOS1V (phwoar!)

Weight, size, easy to set up in either auto or manual. Good Minolta 28-80 zoom lens
Price w/lens:under $400

None

Turned both the Pronea S (aps) and the Minolta STsi in to get the HTsi+. Easy to use. Feels good in the hand. Use it with my Meade ETX. This is the camera I will keep!

Customer Service

haven't used it yet.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon Pronea S
Minolta STsi
Minolta Weathermatic

Very light, small and reliable. I can almost every thing I want to do. The only thing I miss is DOF button. A great camera for almost every condition. The ‘P’ (Panic, like some else call it before) button is really a great way to get back to standard operation after a lot of changes in a trial-and-error-but-really-learning situation.

Just the DOF preview, but I think it is not necessary in a entry level camera.

Great camera, I love to buy photo equipment, and don’t really care of the brand. But Minolta is doing some good and interesting things now. With this camera I proved to some friends that the camera is just a tool not the artist maker. Great photos in all preprogrammed modes and all the options to make experiments, like multi exposure and auto bracketing are there!

Customer Service

Not needed.

Similar Products Used:

Have the Canon AE-1P (the last really great Canon Camera), the Canon Elan Iie, Nikon N60 (witch is almost of the same pr

Brilliant package, easy to use with controls in ergonomic positions. Brilliant wireless flash system.
2nd hand goddies come cheaper in the Minolta range.
Excellent light metering.

Cannot take a cable release, plastic lens and tripod mounts, no dof preview, relatively slow AF

Excellent all-round package, ideal for the abitious amateur > allowing for serious upgrade potential. Blows all similarly priced products away on specifications.

Customer Service

Never needed but known in SA for brilliant service. Came with a 3 year warranty.

Similar Products Used:

Pentax ZX7
Canon EOS 300
Nikon F60

The Minolta HTsi is one of my very first cameras. I was very happy with my purchase. It has everything that you need as a starting photographer for the price. It even has custom functions! Many beginner cameras doesn't even feature a spotmeter, but this camera has one! It also features Minolta's 14-Segment honeycomb metering, which I found to be very accurate. A very good camera for the beginning photographer.

Lacks metal lens mount. Autofocus is not as fast as I want it to be.

If you are on a budget, but want the best camera for the money, this is it. It has a lot of features that I liked and very useful. The multiple exposure is useful, but you have to keep turing the dial if you want to take more than 2 pictures. Canon Rebel 2000 is also good, but Nikon's beginner cameras are not good. Only top Nikon cameras are good.

Customer Service

No problem.

Similar Products Used:

Minolta 400si, Nikon F100

Lightweight, 1/4000s shutter, 14seg metering, true spot metering, AA battery pack available. 14 custom functions, Film leader-out rewind.

Plastic lens mount, no center weighted metering, rather loud/noisy.

This is a great camera for the beginner and amateur and makes a good pro-backup body. I find the 14 segment meter & spot metering to be reliable and accurate. The AF is fast and the viewfinder is brighter than in preceeding models. Though offering only (OTF)TTL flash, it exposes 'non tricky' situations well. Fill flash and slow syc exposures yield excellent results too, even with the pop-up flash.

Though there is no on board AF assist beam, the on board flash fires a series of intermittent flash bursts that allow you to auto focus in dark situations. I'm not crazy about the feature, but, short of situations in which it is impractical, it works well.

The camera is designed to be lightweight, and the trade-off is that it has an excessively audible film drive & mirror/shutter assembly. This would not be ideal in situations where you may want to, or have to be discreet. However, couple it with a 50mm prime and you have a very light SLR outfit with many advanced functions. For the price, it is a great value; a lot of camera in a little package.

Customer Service

Never needed it.

Similar Products Used:

minolta 430si
Canon EOS A2

1/4000 shutter, meter, wireless flash control

I am scared that I will break the thing.

I shoot a lot of chrome through this little camera and on Program mode the metering us usually dead-on. HSS up to 1/4000 with the 5400 flash is nice (although I rarely use it.) A good value for the price.

Customer Service

Have not used it

Similar Products Used:

Canon Rebel, Elan2, eos-1, 400si