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canon G1 vs olympus C3040Z

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Steven48529

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Hi all,
I want to buy either canon G1 or olympus C3040Z. I still
don't know which one is better. Let me add more information.
I plan to use it for taking picture of my baby (50%),
travel (30%), others (20%).
Please let me know.
Thanks,
Steven
 
Steven: I agonized between the two and went with the G1. I have not done a controlled experiment but I am really happy with the G1.
Also, you will have ascertainment bias posting in this forum. mark
Steven said:
Hi all,
I want to buy either canon G1 or olympus C3040Z. I still
don't know which one is better. Let me add more information.
I plan to use it for taking picture of my baby (50%),
travel (30%), others (20%).
Please let me know.
Thanks,
Steven
Click to expand...
 
Steven said:
Hi all,
I want to buy either canon G1 or olympus C3040Z. I still
don't know which one is better. Let me add more information.
I plan to use it for taking picture of my baby (50%),
travel (30%), others (20%).
Please let me know.
Thanks,
Steven
Click to expand...
For me, it is the same meaning of (1 Gig Microdrive) or (128mb SmartMedia Card)

If you planning to shoot more on travel , I think G1 is the good choice.
 
I had the Oly 3030z which I later gave to my father. I then bought the G1 just to try something different. The picture quality is the same on both cameras but I prefer the G1 because I can shoot hundreds of photos on an inexpensive 1 gig microdrive ($375 or 37 cents/meg). Smartmedia only goes up to 128 meg and costs much more (~ $1/meg). With CF cards you can reuse them in your next prosumer camera. I believe Smartmedia format is becoming the ugly stepchild. I also like the fact that the G1 uses the same battery as the Canon D30, which I'll buy this winter when hopefully the price drops another $500 or so.

In the Oly's favor, movie times are limited only by the size of your card. G1 movies are 30 secconds max.
Steven said:
Hi all,
I want to buy either canon G1 or olympus C3040Z. I still
don't know which one is better. Let me add more information.
I plan to use it for taking picture of my baby (50%),
travel (30%), others (20%).
Please let me know.
Thanks,
Steven
Click to expand...
 
Steven said:
Hi all,
I want to buy either canon G1 or olympus C3040Z. I still
don't know which one is better. Let me add more information.
I plan to use it for taking picture of my baby (50%),
travel (30%), others (20%).
Please let me know.
Thanks,
Steven
Click to expand...
I did this comparison myself.

Where the G1 and the C3040Z are close or equivalent:

Excellent pictures.
Excellent low-light performance.
Excellent reputation.
Standard memory (interchangeable with other camera brands).
Included remote.
Movie mode includes sound.
Extensive control over pictures.
Supports external flash (C3040Z requires an external bracket).
Both have less shutter delay than most other digicams.

Where the C3040Z is better:

Much better grip.
Uses standard AA batteries (cheaper, and easier to obtain.)
Lasts equally long if LCD is not used.
Lighter, slightly smaller.
More accurate focusing (focuses on what you expect it to focus on.)
More third-party accessories seem to be available for the Olympus.
Cleaner pictures at ISO 100 (no ISO 50 option).
Larger memory buffer means better for action shots.

Where the G1 is better:

Swivel LCD.
LCD is visible in direct sunlight (no glare).
Uses Lithium-Ion battery (lasts longer, but more expensive and proprietary)
Supports MicroDrive, for up to 1GB (next year 2GB) of memory.
Includes a hotshoe for flash.
Feels sturdier, but heavier.
CF memory comes in larger sizes (both are similar in price.)

Comes with rechargeable battery and AC adaptor (must be purchased separately on C3040).
RAW option instead of TIFF allows more highest-quality photos.
ISO 50 option gives cleaner pictures (less noise) than ISO 100.
Menu and buttons made more sense to me.

Both are excellent cameras. You won't be unhappy with either one. G1 used to be cheaper, but they're now both about the same. The picture quality of the Sony DSC-S75, Canon G1, Olympus C-3040Z, and Nikon Coolpix 995 are comparable (all best in class). It all depends on which of the additional features are important to you.

jk
 
Steven said:
Hi all,
I want to buy either canon G1 or olympus C3040Z. I still
don't know which one is better. Let me add more information.
I plan to use it for taking picture of my baby (50%),
travel (30%), others (20%).
Please let me know.
Thanks,
Steven
Click to expand...
Thanks for your advice. I think I will buy Canon G1.
Steven
 
Excellent comparison Jonathan! Which one did you go with and do you regret it?
Jonathan said:
Jonathan45562 said:
Steven wrote:> > Hi all,> > I want to buy either canon G1 or olympus C3040Z. I still> > don't know which one is better. Let me add more information.> > I plan to use it for taking picture of my baby (50%),> > travel (30%), others (20%).> > Please let me know.> > Thanks,> > Steven> > I did this comparison myself.> > Where the G1 and the C3040Z are close or equivalent:> > Excellent pictures.> Excellent low-light performance.> Excellent reputation.> Standard memory (interchangeable with other camera brands).> Included remote.> Movie mode includes sound.> Extensive control over pictures.> Supports external flash (C3040Z requires an external bracket).> Both have less shutter delay than most other digicams.> > Where the C3040Z is better:> > Much better grip.> Uses standard AA batteries (cheaper, and easier to obtain.)> Lasts equally long if LCD is not used.> Lighter, slightly smaller.> More accurate focusing (focuses on what you expect it to focus on.)> More third-party accessories seem to be available for the Olympus.> Cleaner pictures at ISO 100 (no ISO 50 option).> Larger memory buffer means better for action shots.> > Where the G1 is better:> > Swivel LCD.> LCD is visible in direct sunlight (no glare).> Uses Lithium-Ion battery (lasts longer, but more expensive and> proprietary)> Supports MicroDrive, for up to 1GB (next year 2GB) of memory.> Includes a hotshoe for flash.> Feels sturdier, but heavier.> CF memory comes in larger sizes (both are similar in price.)> Comes with rechargeable battery and AC adaptor (must be purchased> separately on C3040).> RAW option instead of TIFF allows more highest-quality photos.> ISO 50 option gives cleaner pictures (less noise) than ISO 100.> Menu and buttons made more sense to me.> > Both are excellent cameras. You won't be unhappy with either one.> G1 used to be cheaper, but they're now both about the same. The> picture quality of the Sony DSC-S75, Canon G1, Olympus C-3040Z, and> Nikon Coolpix 995 are comparable (all best in class). It all> depends on which of the additional features are important to you.> > jk
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
I have used both a G1 and an Olympus 2040Z. I believe the 2040 and 3040 are mostly identical featurewise except for CCD resolution, so I'll just add a few things I've noticed:
Jonathan said:
Where the C3040Z is better:
Click to expand...
[...]
Jonathan45562 said:
More accurate focusing (focuses on what you expect it to focus on.)
Click to expand...
  • Also has a spot focus mode, with brackets on the LCD to indicate the focus area.
  • Has matrix-style meter (compared to G1's center-weighted meter).
  • Has a multi-spot mode similar to the high-end Canon 35mm SLR's that allows you to average several meter readings.
  • Does not suffer from any of the flash metering gotchas of the G1 that have been endlessly discussed on this forum, and works well with third-party flash units.
  • Diopter correction knob stays put once set. G1's lever is easy to
move accidentally.
Jonathan45562 said:
Where the G1 is better:

Swivel LCD.
LCD is visible in direct sunlight (no glare).
Click to expand...
It's visible but still pretty washed out and not terribly useable IMHO.
Jonathan45562 said:
Feels sturdier, but heavier.
Click to expand...
  • Metal tripod socket.
Jonathan45562 said:
Menu and buttons made more sense to me.
Click to expand...
  • The 4-way pad is easier and quicker to control than the 4-button layout of the Olympus, IMHO, and overall I find I need less button-pushing and menu-navigating to use advanced modes on the G1 than on the Oly.
  • If you need TTL flash, it is much cheaper to get there on the G1. Olympus offers only one flash unit, the FL-40, which costs as much as grey-market 550EX but does less, and you need to spend an extra $100 for the special bracket and cable. That's nearly $400 to even get started with TTL on the 3040z.
Jonathan45562 said:
Both are excellent cameras. You won't be unhappy with either one.
G1 used to be cheaper, but they're now both about the same. The
picture quality of the Sony DSC-S75, Canon G1, Olympus C-3040Z, and
Nikon Coolpix 995 are comparable (all best in class). It all
depends on which of the additional features are important to you.
Click to expand...
Agree here. Overall I'd recommend the Olympus for a novice who wants to take vacation or baby snaps with a high degree of success and minimal fiddling. My experience has been that the Olympus cameras deliver better point & shoot results than the G1, especially given the matrix metering and, IMHO, better white balance (and possibly less tendency for CA). The 2040 is also a great buy if you don't need 3.3 megapixels or a large memory buffer.

I'd say it's a toss-up for a more advanced photographer. The G1's high quality CCD w/noise reduction, RAW mode, hotshoe, and CF/Microdrive support, vs the IMHO better metering, AF, and flash capabilities of the 3040z.

Paul S.
 
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