Vast array of existing lenses, well-designed and held its own in a class full of Nikon and Canon cameras. 20+ students and I had the only Maxxum.

No longer manufactured or supported. i hope it never breaks. Auto-flash wants to pop up at most inopportune times. Lenses have gotten expensive again since they work on Sony DSLRs.

I bought a Maxxum 7xi as a step up from the 3xi I bought ages ago. This camera served me very well during the latter part of my first b&w photography class and all through the second term. It's a great machine, delivering consistent images.

When I originally bought it, I had just the 2 'kit' lenses - the 35-70 and 75-200 f4.5 lenses. One I bought on eBay, the other came with the 3xi. The 7xi didn't come with a lens, so I used the 35-70 for a couple of weeks.

Then I scored. I found a 35-105 f3.5 lens at a local secondhand shop, complete with an A1 skylight filter and end cap. That lens was mated to my 7xi and is still there now, serving me well.

Customer Service

NA - Minolta won't help you, and Sony will tell you to buy a DSLR.

Similar Products Used:

Maxxum 3xi, Mamiya DTL 1000, Olympus OM-88

solid, great exposure meters (inc spot) clear and easy to use, great to use in A/P with flash no worries about results.can take anywhere with confidence

heavy on Batteries (small price to pay considerign everything else)

Bought this as a bargain was supposed to be faulty , turned out the batteries wered dead ( suprise ) I have owned 3 of these delightful cameras each was bought second hand , and each time I sold to go to different make, always came back. lovely metering always get skin tones just right, never under/overexposes, focus adequate for my use( weddings) solidly built, reliable. Better pictures than my friends canon a2

Customer Service

Never needed it

Similar Products Used:

Minolts 7000i 9xi and now dynax 9

Superb metering,build quality, flash, ergonomics.

Focussing a little slow, battery life generally very poor. Lacks a few program modes.

Five years ago the camera shop where i worked was a month from closing down when a customer strolled up to the counter wanting to sell his 7xi and lenses. Because of our situation the owner wasn't buying second-hand gear so i put in an offer myself and landed the camera, sigma 28-80, cobra 700af flash and an -admittedly v. cheap- 100-300 lens all for £130. Absolute bargain...or so i hoped- this would be the first SLR that i would own after tinkering with the stock for years! And i was not dissapointed- after five years of use its safe to say that the metering system is superb, delivering correct exposures in most circumstances; the camera is superbly built and extremely robust and the built-in flash is more than adequate for most occassions. The 7xi is pretty heavy albeit ergonomically sound. The viewfinder is bright with extremely clear readouts and the controls very intuitive. In common with most Minolta SLRs it aint the prettiest beast but you know you can rely on it to take some knocks. The AF is showing its age though, and whilst adequate for my purposes cannot live with more modern cameras in this department. The biggest demerit (as others have mentioned)is battery life. It is generally poor but also far from consistent- at the moment its been four or five rolls since i last changed the battery but once a battery only lasted ONE roll. And i KNOW i didnt leave the camera switched on in the bag- i use AF and flash pretty consistently too so im still at a loss to understand this aberration...having said that even five rolls is pretty poor albeit i get the batteries cheap (but not so cheap that it doesnt annoy me!) All-in-all a great camera- my best results came last year when i covered my brothers wedding in addition to the official (and expensive) photographer and numerous people commented that they preferred my shots or thought that they were just as good- kudos to the 7xi tho, cos for the most part i just left it on full auto and snapped away.

Customer Service

Never used

Similar Products Used:

Canon T-70, EOS 50.

For its model, great AF, uses custom function cards that add a whole realm of possibilities to this camera that give it functions close to that of cameras 3 times the price. Holds up body wise, not prone to scratching or dust, was fairly easy on batteries.wireless flash is superb, and wont be found in other cameras in this price range

AF isnt great in low light, unless you have a strong flash on board. it is a more dated generation of cameras, no new ones made in years, so not much of a weakness, just give it a close look over before purchase.

I bought the camera new in 1994. I didnt part with it until Dec 2001, and then to buy more minoltas ! !I put this camera thru hundreds of rolls of film, and never had a misfire. Only glitch that finally showed up, was when you went to choose which AF sensor you wanted to use, it would only pick the bottom one, or all. Other than that, I loved it, great size, durable, accurate.

Customer Service

needed AF function switch worked on, sold before bothering.

Similar Products Used:

Maxxum 9xi, 700si, 600si, Maxxum 7, maxxum 5, 500si

Versatile, wide ranged features, well integrated with lenses (even the xi crap) from Minolta. Light. Controls well placed and easy to use. Off camera wireless flash (3500/5400) is GREAT! Metering is reliable. AF is not 100% reliable. In low light, AF is terrible and error prone, especially at distances of more than 10 feet.

No DOV preview. Doesn't integrate fully to 5400 flash unit.

Best SLR I've ever owned. Wish Minolta optics were a little better (Forced to buy "pro" lenses to get best results). Receive my Maxxum 9 in two days. 7xi will become "backup" camera.

Customer Service

Never had to use customer service.

Similar Products Used:

Pentax/Yashika

Excellent metering; bright view finder; comfortable to hold; easy to use controls.

A little on the heavy side; no built-in flash exposure compensation (forced to adjust film speed manually to do this); some features only accessible via expansion cards.

The honeycomb matrix metering system Minolta first introduced in the 7xi is still the finest of all the multisegmented metering types around. Spotmetering used with the multi-spot card allows user to average up to 8 spot readings; great for work with an ISO 50 slide film. The metering is the reason why I chose the 7xi over similar Nikons and Canons of its genaration. The metering on the 7xi has the kind of versatality made popular by the Olympus OM-4, but is much easier to use. AF is a little slow by today's standard, but still adequate for most situations. Program mode insists on using the built in flash a little too frequently, but flash can be disabled. The ability to shift programmed exposures by manually varying shutter speed or aperture settings while maintaining the same EV is extremely helpful under fast shooting conditions. Overall, I'm very pleased with the quality of this camera. I've had mine for about 9 years and it still performs flawlessly.

Customer Service

Never used.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon n8008s, Canon eos a2, Pentax PZ-1.

Sturdy body with good lens attachment. Good metering.

Everyone else that has reviewed this SLR has praised the AF which is one of the few things I'm not satisfied with! I think it is way too unsecure and muddled. Sometimes it is very accurate and precise but as soon as the light go down a bit or if the air isn't perfectly clear I don't think the camera shows its best side!
Minolta optics isn't always what they should be in matter of quality!

I am very satisfied with my 7xi even though the AF leaves room for improvements, the metering has seldom left me swearing over it. I do not regret buying it, even though I wouldn't buy an equal camera today, I would rather save up some more and buy a Nikon.

Customer Service

Quick and obliging, nothing to complain about.

Similar Products Used:

N90 (best slr ever tried), Pentax's

Light enough to carry around.
Good AF.
Easy to operate with good basic function set.

Require expansion cards for a many useful functions like multiple exposures.
Noisy motor.

I have had this camera for more than 8 years as X'mas gift (all the thanks goes to my wife). I treasured this camera and it has served me well over the years. At times I felt I could use many fuctions but this one does not equip. So I bought a Nikon F100 recently.
Minolta makes good camera, what they need to improve is their optics. They can not compete with Nikon or Canon if they stay as where they are today.

Customer Service

Nver used them in 8 year.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon F100.

Solid. Excellent meter. Fast AF (especially after upgrading from 5000i and 500si). I've heard complaints about its battery use, but I'm still on the same battery that came with the used 5000i I bought 2 years ago. I've run over 100 rolls through the three cameras on this one battery, and 25+ in this 7xi. Great built-in flash unit.

This camera is solid, comfortable, and a joy to use.

A bit heavy compared to my lower-end 5000i and 500si cameras. The shutter button could be in a better location. I wish the &*#*((@#$ flash wouldn't pop up automatically.

I paid $250 for my 7xi used. I'm very happy with it for my surfing photos, landscapes, and even my son's birthday party! The AF blows away the other bodies I've had. Tracking moving surfers with a 300mm lens from a pier is a piece of cake, as is tracking seagulls in flight. I can't wait to take it to the zoo and play around with it there.

I've also been using it as a meter when shooting landscapes with my Yashica TLR. Pretty impressive metering. Great auto-fill flash too! In fact, all 3 of my Maxxums I've had have been nice about the fill flash.

This is my favorite all-around camera!

Customer Service

When I've e-mailed with questions about my other Minolta gear, I've always gotten fast, informative responses.

Similar Products Used:

Misc. Maxxum bodies, x370 MF body, and medium format TLR's.

I have owned this camera for eight years, dropped it twice, put 20+ batteries through it and more rolls than I can remember...never needing customers service: it is durable. for the price it has one awesome metering system and a very fast motor drive.

being an auto this-and-that camera it is a battery hog, always keep a spare with you; 2cr5s have constant voltage characteristics then drop quickly.

If given only this camera its technological idiosyncracies will grow on you. bang for the buck (especially used) it is a very powerful camera system with a nearly 4 fps builtin motordrive, spot meter, and a comfortable feel in the hand. With top end optics (those with internal focusing and builtin lens motors) it will focus very quickly with little tendency to hunt. using the central sensor with "slow" telephoto zooms I have caught eagles in flight and up close...hard to do with many other cameras and 100-300 zooms (autofocus also requires a practiced technique, any camera/lens can be learned) I would not recommend that combo for much faster and smaller birds without manually prefocusing. This camera is a steal used and minolta's 100 macro and 100-300 apo are a potent nature package for any photographer who also carries a 4x5 for an everyday camera. I'm keeping mine!

Customer Service

none needed

Similar Products Used:

Maxxum 7000, a dinosaur in comparison