Samsung WB252F

Samsung WB252F

A well-specified little travel compact from 2013, and one of Samsung’s “Smart Camera” models — built-in Wi-Fi lets it talk directly to a phone or tablet, with remote viewfinder control from the phone and direct upload built in. The 18x zoom runs from a wide 24mm out to 432mm equivalent, which is a lot of reach in something this flat, and the BSI-CMOS sensor handles low light better than the CCD compacts of the same era. A 3" touchscreen paired with physical controls, full manual exposure modes if you want them, and 8fps burst. Tested and working.

• 14.2MP BSI-CMOS sensor
• 18x optical zoom (24-432mm equivalent)
• Built-in Wi-Fi with direct phone transfer and remote viewfinder
• Optical image stabilisation
• 3" touchscreen with hybrid physical controls
• Full manual exposure modes, 8fps burst
• 1080p video
• Takes SD, SDHC and SDXC cards (32GB Included)
• Tested and working — 2 month warranty

A note on the Wi-Fi: the hardware works, but Samsung retired the Smart Camera app and the social upload services it was built around, so treat it as a period feature rather than a working phone-transfer solution. Getting photos off is simple either way — a USB cable is included, and a card reader works too.