Olympus Stylus 810 digital camera review
| Design |
| With its stainless steel body and 170g weight, the 810 is arguably the smallest and best looking camera on the market. It’s just under four inches wide and less than an inch thick and the 3x zoom is the equivalent of 35mm to 105mm. While it’s waterproof it isn’t good for deep sea diving but the weather-resistant body does protect your camera dust or particles, just in case you find yourself in the Sahara. The top panel homes the power switch and a shutter release panel. At the back of the camera you’ll find a 2.5 inch LCD screen that boasts of 230,000 pixels and a dial with controls for the five settings including movie, scene, playback, recording and Guide. There’s a four way control pad with the obligatory OK button in the middle to select and these link to the menu, digital image stabilisation, bin and display functions. The four-way-plus-OK control pad is surrounded by four additional keys: menu, digital image stabilization/printing, trash, and display. The last button cycles the camera's screen through various modes, including a rule-of-thirds grid for composition and a live histogram. The OK/function key opens a menu of the most frequently used shooting options: white balance, ISO, drive mode, and metering. |
| Setup/Installation |
| While the Olympus digital camera is easy enough to start shooting from it does have a fantastic Guide button. If at any point have a problems or are confused, just switch on to the Guide mode and the menu will ask you a series of questions and work you through what you need to do for the best results. |
| Features |
| The Olympus Stylus 810 digital camera has a BrightCapture technology attached which helps in capturing the ambiance of night time photography – and reduces that artificial look usually conjured up when the flash goes off. It does this through exposing the camera to the exact amount of light so that the colours come out as close to natural as possible. In addition to the 8 megapixels the camera comes with a 3x zoom using a collapsible lens which adds to its dinky size. Because of the BrightCapture technology the LCD screen looks much brighter when you actually look at the pictures even when shooting in low light. The 810 has an ISO range extending from ISO 64 to 1600, and then can go up further to ISO 3200 in 3.0 megapixel mode. So it means you can employ a faster shutter speed and reduce the chance of camera shake. But if somehow you still manage to see some movement in your pictures there’s a Digital Image Stabilisation editing function on the camera. The camera comes with 20 scene modes including beach, snow and candle and also a programme auto mode. You can also record film at 640x480. There is 28MB of internal memory but you also have the facility to add an XD- Picture card. There’s also an in-camera album and calendar display which will chronologically put your photos in date order. |
| Performance |
| For such a little machine it socks a good punch. The Olympus Stylus 810 takes no time to power up – switch it on and it’s practically begging to begin. And once its heated up it has a shooting mode as fast as a Kalashnikov gun. Well, alright that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but it does go fast. You can take around 12 shots in under three seconds, which in our books for a compact is pretty good. And the picture quality that you get is pretty good – providing good detail and colour. However noise was the biggest weakness in the 810 particularly in ISO400 and 800 mode. But other than that it wasn’t a bad camera. |
| What's In The Box? |
| Olympus Stylus 810 digital camera, adaptor. |
| Overall Opinion |
| If you’re looking for a small, portable camera that is easy to use and just involves pointing and clicking the Olympus Stylus 810 digital camera is a lovely. It looks great, comes with a 3x zoom, and you can operate it using one hand, leaving the other hand free to stabilise the camera. |
By Babita Wakelin
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Digital image stabilisation Quick burst mode High ISO settings Good image quality. | No manual controls. |
| Factor | Rating |
|---|---|
| Ease of Use | 4/5 |
| Durability | 4/5 |
| Style | 4/5 |
| Service & Support | 4/5 |
| Value for Money | 4/5 |
| Recommend | 1/5 |
| Overall | 4/5 |