Ian Hayden
Well-known member
When you first see this camera its hard to believe that it's shock and water resistant, the finish is very nice and it feels solid and well constructed. I purchased mine online and I was quite surprised at how small it is.
Start up is very fast and in general performance is good. Image quality is reasonable but not inspiring, this is not a low light camera, but for general use noise is well controlled, lens distortion and control of fringing is good considering the size of the lens assembly. The 3X zoom is a bit sluggish.
The card/battery and USB compartments are lined with small rubber seals, which must be kept clean if the waterproofing is to be maintained. I found the camera easy and good fun to use, although the controls on the rear are very small and rather fiddly at times. the LCD is clear but has a slow refresh rate.. The case is not scratch resistant, it’s a pity that the special silicon skin that you can get in the US does not seem to be available in Europe
You should consider this camera if ruggedness and water resistant features are high on your list of requirements, there are plenty of other cameras out there in this price range that will give you better looking images straight from the camera but not many you can take in a swimming pool with you !.
I have not tested the camera underwater yet, preferring to refer to it at this stage as water resistant, bear in mind its only waterproof to 9 feet so its not IMO and underwater camera as such.
There are some nice features for beginners such as the very comprehensive scene modes and a very useful "guide" mode which can be used to adjust many camera functions, the menu system in general is reasonably easy to follow.
If you need a strong and water resistant compact Camera that you can take out in a kayak or to the beach that’s easy to use and you are happy to post process the images to get the best out of them, then this is the one to get.
Problems:
Images are soft, and lack contrast although exposure is balanced and they respond well to post production. Check out some sample images on review sites before buying.
No way to control image parameters such as sharpness, contrast and saturation within the camera, which is disappointing.
30 fps movies are limited to 10 seconds! (I read somewhere that this is a Hardware limitation to prevent overheating)
No Paper Manual, I know Olympus have been doing this for years, but its annoying, especially for beginners. There is a quick start guide, who covers the basics, but most people want something they can slip in a bag and read at their leisure.
Start up is very fast and in general performance is good. Image quality is reasonable but not inspiring, this is not a low light camera, but for general use noise is well controlled, lens distortion and control of fringing is good considering the size of the lens assembly. The 3X zoom is a bit sluggish.
The card/battery and USB compartments are lined with small rubber seals, which must be kept clean if the waterproofing is to be maintained. I found the camera easy and good fun to use, although the controls on the rear are very small and rather fiddly at times. the LCD is clear but has a slow refresh rate.. The case is not scratch resistant, it’s a pity that the special silicon skin that you can get in the US does not seem to be available in Europe
You should consider this camera if ruggedness and water resistant features are high on your list of requirements, there are plenty of other cameras out there in this price range that will give you better looking images straight from the camera but not many you can take in a swimming pool with you !.
I have not tested the camera underwater yet, preferring to refer to it at this stage as water resistant, bear in mind its only waterproof to 9 feet so its not IMO and underwater camera as such.
There are some nice features for beginners such as the very comprehensive scene modes and a very useful "guide" mode which can be used to adjust many camera functions, the menu system in general is reasonably easy to follow.
If you need a strong and water resistant compact Camera that you can take out in a kayak or to the beach that’s easy to use and you are happy to post process the images to get the best out of them, then this is the one to get.
Problems:
Images are soft, and lack contrast although exposure is balanced and they respond well to post production. Check out some sample images on review sites before buying.
No way to control image parameters such as sharpness, contrast and saturation within the camera, which is disappointing.
30 fps movies are limited to 10 seconds! (I read somewhere that this is a Hardware limitation to prevent overheating)
No Paper Manual, I know Olympus have been doing this for years, but its annoying, especially for beginners. There is a quick start guide, who covers the basics, but most people want something they can slip in a bag and read at their leisure.