Low Price Olympus Stylus 7010 12MP Digital Camera with 7x Dual Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.7 inch LCD (Silver)

Olympus Stylus 7010 12MP Digital Camera with 7x Zoom

I've taken thousands of photos with my Nikon DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex), but my wife won't touch it because "it's too big and complicated". So, we bought this tiny Olympus for her.

Pros:

- Camera is capable of taking excellent photos.

- Smaller than a pack of cigarettes, the 7010 is easily carried on your belt, kept in a purse, your pocket, a car's storage bin, etc. In its case on your belt, someone might think it's a cell phone. There are smaller cameras available, but not with the features (such as the zoom) of this model.

- Automatic lens guard. When the camera is off, the lens is protected from dust or objects touching it. Turn the camera on and within a half second, the lens extends and the lens guard opens. Cameras without this built-in protection are much more likely to collect dust on the lens.

- The optical zoom (to 7x) is astounding for such a tiny camera. On the other hand, landscapes or other wide-angle scenes are quite doable with no zoom. (Of course, the built-in image stabilization is mandatory for high-zoom shots.) The telephoto lens moves very quickly at the touch of a button, almost too quickly; but at least you don't have to wait.

- Excellent, sharp, 2.7" LCD screen to view scenes, images/movies taken, menus, etc.

- On the !AUTO setting, the camera selects shutter speed, ISO, white balance, flash/no flash, etc., which is what my wife wanted. All you do is point, and shoot. On P, you can "program" those variables, and other options; then, you can then quickly switch the mode dial between !AUTO and P while walking around.

- The "movie" setting is used to capture a moving scene with sound (but it's a far cry from even a rudimentary camcorder). It couldn't be easier. Select "movie", zoom if you want, and press the shutter "release". When done, press the shutter release again. You can't change the zoom once you start shooting a movie.

- Battery seems to handle a couple of hundred shots, but that depends on how the camera is used. If it's used a lot on a vacation for example, you should do a recharge daily.

- Has many other features too numerous to go into, such as macro & super macro (extreme closeup), panorama stitched shots, connection to a TV for viewing images, scene settings, controls that light up at night (for a second or two), etc.

- There's only a slight delay on startup or when taking a photo.

- Construction quality is excellent.

Cons:

- In spite of the "dual image stabilization" feature, out-of-focus photos are too common. Of course, holding the camera as still as possible (or supported), not "jerking" the shutter release, etc., helps enormously -- not to mention good lighting. Although she took many excellent shots, a fifth of the photos my wife took on a recent vacation were noticeably blurred. In addition, far too many indoor flash photos are also less than ideally focused, so multiple attempts may be required. It could be me, but I find it harder to hold a tiny camera steady versus a large DSLR; so perhaps part of the focus issue is user "error".

- On the !AUTO setting during a sunny day, over-exposure (too bright) of part of a scene frequently occurs if some subjects are in a shaded area and others are in the sunshine. (I'm possibly being too critical here, but my DSLR handles this situation much better.)

- Buttons and controls are tiny, especially if you have large hands.

Other:

- 12 MP images at normal compression are around 2,600 KB each, so a 2 GB picture card will hold about 750 photos. A 30 second movie consumes about 10 MB.

Summary:

Put the Olympus on your short list if you want a really small camera with an excellent image-stabilized zoom, for not too much money. It's also a good backup camera when a big DSLR is impractical to carry. In fact, it's so easy to carry around, you might want to take it wherever you go. In spite of the occasional focus issues, I gave it 4 stars because of its extensive features and relatively low price.Get more detail about Olympus Stylus 7010 12MP Digital Camera with 7x Dual Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.7 inch LCD (Silver).