A review of the Olympus Mju 740 digital camera
There doesn’t seem to be a digital camera around these days that ticks all boxes and pleases everyone, however we have had the pleasure to be united with the Olympus Mju 740 which we think will raise many eyebrows with its impressive features and stunning looks. Design |
| Olympus like to try different designs with their digital cameras and we love it because it gives us something different to write about and the Olympus Mju 740 is no exception. We know that Olympus have used the wedge design on most of the Mju range, but this one is the most sleek and stunning of them all. The body is really nice to hold and feels solid and robust while still having a great slender look. It’s only 128g and its dimensions are 96mm (w) x 54mm (h) x 24.3mm (d) so it will slip into your shirt pocket or even the skinny jeans that are about. The wedge shape is very comfortable in your hand and the thicker part is in your right hand and most of the buttons and dials are in easy reach of your thumb. The front of the camera has the lens which protrudes elegantly and did tend to weigh down the light body. The flash is next to the lens and that is all on front. On top is the shutter release which has been placed nearer the centre than most cameras so your finger needs to stretch a little further than normal to reach it. There is also the power button on top. The back hosts the 2.5” LCD screen which dominates the space, with the dials and buttons next to it on the right. At the top of the rear is the zoom rocker and just below is the mode dial which hangs off the side of the body for ease of rotation with your right thumb. The menu panel is just below which at first glance looks a bit complicated but with a few goes becomes second nature and really easy to use. There is 4 shortcut buttons around it which are print, menu, display and delete. This little wonder is available in 3 gorgeous shades of Moonlight Silver, Twilight Blue and Sunset Red. |
| Features |
| The Olympus Mju 740 is an all-weather digital camera which boasts a generous 7.1 mega pixels with a 5x optical zoom to get closer to those tiny objects with an impressive 23 scene modes to ensure perfect shots in any shooting situation. There is also an impressive Guide in the on-screen menu that will explain all menu options and help you with any problems you may have with a certain shot. It’s like having your own personal tutor with you at all times and there is almost no need for the paper manual as we found it on the floor whilst using the camera and forgot to even refer to it. The famous BrightCapture technology is present which is absolutely great to assist with framing and taking photos in low light conditions and will correct movies even taken in low light. We would like to stress that the Olympus Mju 740 is Weatherproof and not Waterproof so you can take it out when it’s chucking it down, but please do not submerge it in the paddling pool. We took it out on a very rainy afternoon and the camera coped very well with the downpour, but as we looked back at the images on the LCD screen it got very wet, which meant we couldn’t see the screen much at all. There is highly reflective surface over the LCD screen and in direct light makes it very difficult to view. However, in normal lighting conditions the screen is superbly detailed and clear with 215,000 pixels. |
| Performance |
| The images we achieved from the Olympus Mju 740 were of a high standard with minimal noise up to ISO 400 and even at ISO 800 images were still usable. The colours were pretty accurate and detailed and focus was impressive. With a cool 2.4 seconds from start-up to first shot and only 2.1 seconds between shots it really is a quick result compared to the start-up to shoot time of the Olympus FE 200 which took 7.5 seconds! The shutter lag time was very impressive at only 0.6 seconds. The Image Stabilisation feature on board was not the greatest as it only reduces shake whilst zooming and not on the images taken. Bit of a false selling point and we would strongly recommend a digicam that has this feature instead; however models with this addition are going to sting your pocket a bit more. |
| What's In The Box? |
| Stylus 740 digital camera LI-42B Li-Ion Rechargeable battery Battery charger USB Cable Audio/Video cable Wrist strap Manual CD-ROM with Olympus Master Software Warranty card |
| Overall Opinion |
| We really like many aspects of the Olympus Mju 740 digicam and on the whole it is a good digital camera for its price. With its weatherproof design, lovely large zoom and above average photo quality, it is also an attractive purchase for most photography needs. |
| By Hayley Malyon |
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Pros + Stylish and compact design + 7.1 mega pixels + 5x optical zoom + Weatherproof + On-screen Guide |
Cons - Lacks optical Image Stabilisation - LCD hard to see when wet |
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Picture Quality 9/10
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Battery Life 9/10
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Setup Simplicity 9/10
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Build Quality 9/10
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Ease of Use 9/10
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Overall Rating 
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11/12/2006
at 3:56:44pm
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