I've had this camera for almost 2 years. Although it has never really perfomed as well as I'd hoped, the biggest complaint is in their support.

My camera was working just fine (besides a complaint of poor auto-focus since day one). Following Toshiba's recomendations and instructions posted on their website I downloaded and attempted to install a firmware upgrade (1.06A).

The "upgrade" managed to WIPE out all of my camera's operating system. So now I have an useless camera, and because the warranty expired after 12 months, Toshiba won't give me any help except to tell me to send my camera to Bensonville Illinois. ... A good consumer aware company should provide some sort of consideration for the fact that their recomended update is what damaged my camera.

Before this fiasco, I have always had issue with the quality of "auto-focused" shots. Bottom line is: even when making absolutely sure that the object that you want in focus is in the center of the viewfinder when pressing the button down half way before taking the shot-- it is a miracle if the shot comes out focused properly. I have borrowed other camers (specifically elf and minolta) and they are MUCH more likely to return sharper images.)

I have a Toshiba TV and DVD which work fine, but Toshiba has managed to squash my goodwill with this incident. In my opinion it is a very short-sided business strategy.

The Toshiba PDR-M71 is a "jack of all trades--mater of none" sort of package. I got one fpr my workplace as I needed a relatively inexpensive unit that provided a wide array of features and provided at least decent performance on all counts.

The M71 certainly has the features, including:

· 3.2-megapixel CCD delivering image resolutions as large as 2,048 x 1,536 pixels.
· Real-image optical zoom viewfinder and 1.5-inch color LCD monitor.
· 2.8x, Canon 7.25 - 20.3mm zoom (equivalent to a 35 - 98mm lens on a 35mm camera).
· Full Automatic, Program AE, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and six Scene exposure modes.
· Adjustable White Balance with six modes.
·
· Built-in flash with four user-selectable modes.
· Two- and 10-second Self-Timer modes.
· Movie mode with sound.
· Images saved in JPEG format to SmartMedia cards (8MB card included).
· USB cable and interface software for quick connection to a computer.
· A/V cable for viewing images on a television set.
· Power from four AA batteries (set of four alkaline batteries included).

All of the features work well-none are spectacular. Picture quality is truly good only at the highest resolutions-but that sacrifices quantity. Photos at lower resolutions have a sort of pinkish tint to them. The Movie Mode and Sound feature is better than I expected. Zoom works well but is limited-action shots blur, but close in set shots come out well. Battery life is OK.

This works well for the purpose I obtained it-a general use business camera. I think this would be a good choice for the first time user-for a relatively modest price you can get, use and evaluate a wide array of features and decide what you'd really want in a "serious" camera. If you are a serious user looking for a really good unit, I would expect that this unit would frustrate and disappoint you.

The Good: 2.8 Optical lens, 3.1 Mpixels, plenty of manual controls, good price point, 3 jpeg compression options.

The bad: I would prefer compact flash over smartmedia. The manual lens cover is a little annoying. The battery door seems flimsy. The battery life is mediocre compared to other brands. It would be nice to have more resolution options (like a 1024x1200 and 1200x1600 option).

I give it five stars for solid overall value, no major drawbacks.

This is my first digital camera and not sure if I want to give up my 35mm yet. This camera's body is cheaper than most of the cameras I researched. I bought an Olympus 3020 and took it back because no hook up to TV, no sound on movie mode, and it cost too much to not have those things on it. The Olympus actually took clearer pictures and really good color. The Toshiba M71 is okay with pictures. It has a little pink tinting and not exactly right on pictures I have taken so far. The video is with sound and pretty good quality.I've only had it a couple of weeks. I am also using it at the highest resolution so I don't think I will be happy at the lower settings for picture taking. Remember also to take the lens cover off before turning on for picture taking or the lens will not come out. Easy hookup for downloading pictures to computer!
Bottom Line-You get what you pay for! I saved... by buying Toshiba.