Olympus Stylus 1010 Digital Camera

Olympus Stylus 1010 Digital Camera

By Wayne  Mar 29, 2008 | 4 out of 4 found this Olympus Stylus 1010 review helpful

Pros: Incredible battery life; Highest resolution pictures and highest zoom available in a compact Point-and-Shoot; Effective stabilization and face detection; Fashionable color scheme; Oversized, bright, 2.7 inch display usable in direct sunlight; Well built, small and lightweight; Backlit buttons; Fast start up and minimal shutter lag time; MicroSD memory card adapter included; Decent video with sound; Panorama mode; Full-featured AUTO setting covers it all for casual users; Plethora of manual settings for the advanced photographer

Cons: Lack of finger depressions and slippery; Limited to 10 seconds of video in highest quality

The Stylus 1010 is nearly identical to the Stylus 840 with the exception of the following enhancements: 10.1 Mega pixels versus 8, 7X Optical Zoom versus 5, LI-50B rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery versus LI-42B (25% more power), Purple model versus P...ink. Silver, Black and Blue also available and all are glossier, Underwater shooting in combination with optional underwater case. The all important still picture quality is truly excellent (in my opinion) in highest quality (3648 X 2736 pixel) resolution and fine (highest quality, larger file size) JPG compression setting. I found the full motion video (640 X 480 VGA at 30 frames per second) to be of good quality and smooth even at full optical zoom (zoomed ahead of shoot). However, this highest quality video mode is limited to 10-second clips. The other 3 modes (320 X 240 QVGA at either 30 or 15 fps; or 640 X 480 VGA at 15 fps) in AVI motion JPG format are limited in length only by the memory available on the memory card. Among the most impressive features is the INCREDIBLE battery life. There are many features found in this camera making it a pleasure to use and guaranteeing great pictures in almost any conditions while set to “AUTO”. Start up time is about a second (ready to go after power button pressed) and shutter lag time is almost non-existent after pressing the shutter button half way to allow for focus. Dual-image stabilization effectively eliminated blurred pictures caused by shake. The camera is very fashionable and ergonomic in its sleek, modern design in various glossy colors combined with silver and gray accents. The power button on top is surrounded by a lighted, blue halo while turned on and most buttons on the back are backlit in green for 3 seconds after any is pressed – a nice touch and useful in low light. A pleasant beep provides tactile feedback. Fingers and thumbs must search for a comfortable grip on the slippery case void of finger depressions while avoiding accidentally pressing buttons but that is typical of small, point-and-shoot models. The oversized, bright, 2.7 inch HyperCrystal LCD display works well with sufficient contrast to be useable even in direct sunlight showing the tiniest details. The large, 79-page, indexed, instruction manual (written entirely in good English grammar) is clear and concise with many detailed pictures, charts and tables accompanying the instructions. I think Olympus has a real winner here in the high-end, compact, point-and-shoot class. Compared to its recently released, highly rated, close cousin (Olympus Stylus 840) this model offers many enhanced features and specifications for a mere $50 more. Read more Less