americanbear's Full Review: Olympus Stylus 850 SW / µ 850 SW Digital Came...
Introduction
I bought this Olympus Stylus 850SW because I was looking a small camera that I could take to the lake - and even in it if I wanted. A camera that I could take out in the rain without worrying. A camera that I could hand to my little cousins and let them play and if it got dropped in the mud, I could just wash it off.
I had two choices - this or the $70 more expensive Pentax Optio W60. I chose to go with this camera because, well, to be honest, it was cute. I went against my instinct, because I do not think much of Olympus as a company. I've never thought their cameras take terribly good pictures or represent a good value-for-the-money. But there aren't many choices.
Olympus has some bad practices, for example they use their proprietary xD memory cards. Not only that, but if you don't use Olympus cards you can't use the in-camera panoramic stitching. In a new slight loosening of Olympus policy, you can use microSD cards with the included microSD adapter, with the same restriction as third-party xD cards - no in-camera panoramic stitching.
First impressions
This camera looks amazing. Cute and playful with a metallic, professional look as well. Sadly, the moment I decided to try using it - the first impressions wore off.
I couldn't figure out how to do anything and I'm familiar with cameras. I thought the camera had almost no manual control. I took pictures with it on automatic and they were TERRIBLE except in really bright light - blurred because the camera chose very low shutter speeds. White balance was bad. It was a mess. A total mess. And to think I ordered it from a place with no returns unless defective!
First impressions can be totally wrong
After a few days of mediocre results and total regret, I figured out how to put the camera on program auto mode. This let me at least bump up the ISO inside and play with white balance settings to get good pictures. No longer was the camera unusably awful!
Image quality
Outdoors, images are totally acceptable - not great. Just totally acceptable.
Inside, they're good when the camera is on program and you bump up the ISO if necessary. Otherwise, they're terrible unless you leave the flash on (and tiny on-camera flash ruins your pictures for other reasons...)
To see some examples, go here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/comicexpressions/sets/72157606420697589/detail/ . Photos starting with P were taken with this Olympus. Photos starting with IMG were taken with my Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT.
Ease of use
This camera is easy enough to use on the auto program settings - it even has a shooting guide where you can select what you want to do. Sadly, none of these settings are that great for inside as most inside ones involve use of the on-camera flash and don't work well with it turned off.
In order to prevent people from getting confused presumably, they make the program mode where you can change ISO (sadly not shutter speed or aperture) manually very hard to get to...
An underwater warning
While I haven't had a problem yet, I do not expect underwater cameras to last as long as a normal camera. One leak and it's done for, and ironically it's not guaranteed against water damage. One grain of sand in a seal, and the camera could easily be ruined. Check the seals before you use it every time and keep them clean. Don't touch them or get anything oily on them because that can break down rubber.
Olympus recommends replacing the seals once a year, but I have no plans on doing this - the camera must be sent in and I can't imagine it's cheap. My plan is to check the seals and when I'm no longer confident in them, buy a new one and give this to my cousin as a normal use camera. If Olympus says one year, I expect two years with good care out of the seals. After two years, I'm sure I'll be tired of the old technology anyways...
Conclusion
This is a cute, fun, little camera that takes totally acceptable pictures. You can get portable digicams that take much better pictures for nearly half the price though... You're paying for the waterproofness. But that alone was worth it to me, because it opens up whole new photo opportunities unlike anything I've ever seen or had the chance to take photos in before.
If you do not feel waterproofing will be a benefit worth an approximately $100 premium to you, Canon and Sony and others offer far better cameras for your money.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 254.99 This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts
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