Olympus D-490

[Guest]

Mannn, I like this camera. I wanna buy it soon.
What do you think about it? Does anyone have this toy?

Here is its official link:
http://www.olympusamerica.com/product.asp?s=12&product=637



Sanik

 

[Waterdog]

Hey man:

Does it bother you that it is only 2.11 megapixel? I am looking at buying a digital camera but why purchase one that is below the bar? The 3 megapixel cameras out there give more pixels=more detail=better photo. Just curious about your reasoning...

Waterdog

 

[Waterdog]

Here is a reviewer's conclusion I found about the D490 at http://www.steves-digicams.com/d490z.html

Steve's Conclusion
Olympus continues to refine the "classic" D-400 series cameras and the D-490 Zoom carries on the tradition in excellent fashion. The 2.1 megapixel images are always sharp, well-focused and the colors are right on the mark. This is point-n-shoot perfected in a pocket-sized package. And now you can also capture 15 to 60-sec movie clips, they will be silent though because the D-490 lacks a microphone.

The camera fits the hand nicely, the controls are easy to get to and as minimal as possible. The menu system is easy to navigate and understand without spending a whole lot of time with the manual. The zoom mechanism is a little noisier than I like but it is smooth and positive. Autofocus is quick and accurate under most ordinary shooting conditions short of darkness but there are the "quick focus" presets of 8ft and infinity to fall back on if needed.

The shot to shot time in single drive mode is nearly instantaneous until the RAM buffer fills up but most average users will never take that many shots in succession. If you want the ultimate in image quality there is the uncompressed TIFF mode but be prepared to wait a good 30-40 seconds between shots. Battery life is excellent especially if you don't use the color LCD a lot. I'd say you could easily shoot all day and then some on just one set of fully charged NiMH batteries.

I have always liked the sliding lens barrier instead of a lens cap that gets lost. All of the Olympus D-400 series cameras closely resemble their film counterparts in both look and feel so it makes for an easy transition to the world of digital. The only negative is that it has no USB port. It's just not reasonable to expect the user to download high resolution images via a serial port. Other than that minor complaint the D-490 is a great camera for the beginner or experienced digicam user and delivers excellent pictures time and time again.

 

[Guest]

Yeap I am with you waterdog. I liked those features, I read them before, I tried this toy (in malls) and this was great, even if there are some 3 megapixel dig. cameras out there, I like Olympus, I have the Olympus for my photo camera, they look almost similar and they both automatically turns "ON" when protective lens barrier slides open.

Thank waterdog for sharing opinions about this beauty.

 

[seanmcne]

I used to sell these cameras retail... I like the olympus i dont think this cammy has a USB uplink though. Besides that this is a damn good camera. Best of luck!

 

[Guest]

Just bought it and have had it for a week now. GREAT picture quality. I printed several 8.5 x 11 pictures and it was still only 46% of the original picture. The lithium AA batteries are still working after 300+ pictures.

All round great camera.

 

[Guest]

Thats a big rap for a camera, We dont sell olympus which is a pity, I have a mavica which is 3.3mp, and its a great camera, I love it

 

[Guest]

I received the D480 Zoom as a Christmas gift. My only complaints are the lack of a USB port and the use of Smart Media.

The lack of the USB port forced me to purchase a USB card reader (note: the camera came with a coupon for one which I still have not received). This card reader cost about $40. The good news is it can transfer a full 64MB card in a few minutes.

The use of Smart Media means you're limited to 64MB of memory max. Supposedly (big supposedly) is that the camera will support 128MB cards but that'll probably be the max due to the crazy way Smart Media is built. It's controllerless so the cameras and readers have to be built to the current standards. With Compact Flash the controllers are built into the memory cards themselves which is why any Compact Flash device can fully utilize any size memory card. Compact Flash is also a "faster" memory format.

The only advantages to Smart Media are the cost (64MB card for $77) and the size. They're also more flimsy which is an issue when you have to keep removing and plugging in the card for every PC transfer.

Overall I'm pleased with the camera's results. VERY good pictures. People are hard pressed to tell it's a digital shot JPG (highest quality JPG mode) when printed in 8x10 format on my Deskject 722C or a Kodak Picture Maker.