Sleek Functionality
Written: May 13 '03 (Updated May 14 '03)
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Pros: Picture clarity, features, price
Cons: Red-eye, battery life.
The Bottom Line: A sleek camera with excellent features, but battery life and the extreme red-eye will get you everytime.
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| cyburn7's Full Review: Olympus Camedia C-350 / D-560 Digital Camera |
The new D-560 Zoom is the much needed replacement for last years D-550z. Unlike its predecessor the D-560 does not have the much complained about pop up flash. That one problem is what stopped me from purchasing the D-550z last year. When I saw the newer, sleeker D-560 I thought that this was the camera for me.
I purchased the camera last night and fiddled with it for about 4-5 hours, trying out every feature that I could with the initial batteries.
Okay, in the box you get...
- the camera
- a usb cable
- video cable (for your tv)
- 16mb xD picture card
- 2 AA non-rechargeables
- wrist strap
- cd-rom with camedia software and manual
- 41 page printed manual and a fold-out quick start guide
The D-560Z has a matte silver, plastic body. The camera is very easy to hold, and will fit in most pockets quite comfortably, although I won't be doing that because I really don't want to scratch the LCD. Besides the plastic casing the overall camera feels quite sturdy.
The dimensions of the camera are 4.2"W x 2.2"H x 1.6"D, with a weight of 170 grams empty. It's not a super-small camera like the stylus 300, but it any smaller in my mind would be hard to hold and operate.
I don't mind the 16mb card too much, but I'm still in the stages where I'm fooling around with it trying out all the features. Like most cameras you will want to get a large capacity card. xD cards come as large as 256mb. Also, get a set of rechargables and a quick charger or you can use a CR-V3 lithium battery.
The stylish silver cover doubles as a power switch and slides away to expose the F3.0, 3X optical zoom lens. The focal range is 5.8 - 17.4 mm, which is about the same to a 35 - 105 mm. As with most compact cameras, the lens is not threaded. In the centre of the camera is the built-in flash. The range of the flash is approx. 0.2 - 3.4 m at wide-angle, and 0.2 - 2.0 at telephoto.
Located on the back of the camera is a fluid, bright 1.8" LCD, with 85,000 pixel resolution. The brightness of this LCD is adjustable in the main menu. Above the LCD is the optical viewfinder, which is a decent size, but I have a bit of difficulty with it because I am more comfortable looking through the viewfinder with my left eye. Also, there is no diopter correction knob, so if your vision is less then perfect you might have a hard time.
To the right of the LCD is a "Quick View" button, if the camera is off, push the button to view your pictures, if the camera is on, push the button twice rapidly to view your pictures. Below that is 4 arrow buttons and an enter "ok" button. The 4 arrows also control other features, such as macro, self-timer, and flash control (auto, auto w/redeye reduction, fill flash, flash off).
The top is pretty boring, only having the shutter release and the zoom. If you push the shutter release in half-way it will lock the zoom, then press completely to release the shutter. The zoom button is quite akward to control, having to push quite hard to activate it. The lens moves at a single speed, smoothly and quietly.
From the back if you go to the left side of the camera you will locate the video out and the DC-in, which are kept under a fairly sturdy rubber cover. When you go to the right side of the camera you will see the USB port, the battery compartment, and the xD slot. All 3 of these compartments are fairly well built, but as with anything, if you apply a little unnecessary force, it could break.
The only thing on the bottom of the camera is the plastic tripod mount, this mount is not in the centre of the camera or in line with the lens.
Using the Camera
To get the camera on and the flash "warmed-up" takes a little over 3.5 seconds. According to most camera specs this is about average.
The time from shot to shot is about 3 seconds, but can be faster if the flash and LCD are off, bringing the time down to about 1 second between shots, which I think is pretty good.
When I first got the camera I found the Red-eye unbelievably bad, even when using the software's and camera's red-eye reduction. Although, the more I use it the less red-eye their seems to be. After the first night I was seriously thinking of returning it, but now I'm not so sure.
The quality of the pictures is crisp and clean, although I have only used the SHQ and HQ quality modes.
# pics
Quality Resolution (16mb Card)
SHQ 2048 x 1536 6
HQ 2048 x 1536 20
SQ1 1024 x 768 76
SQ2 640 x 480 165
When transfering the files to your PC you will see the picture naming format of PMDD####.JPG (M - Month, DD - Day, #### - 0001 - 9999) This makes it easy to scroll through your pictures, and gives them unique names for the year, but just throw next years pictures in a different folder.
I will attach a photo gallery at a later date. That is the only true way to show off a digital camera.
Conclusion
The camera does what it was designed to do, be an affordable point-and-shoot camera with excellent quality, with enough features to keep you busy for a while.
Although it's missing a few nice features such as an AF Illuminator, I still might keep it, as of the moment I'm undecided. Although I do recommend the camera.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 350
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts
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Epinions.com ID:
cyburn7
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Location: Ontario, Canada
Reviews written: 5
Trusted by: 1 member
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