If you are ready for a "prosumer" camera - this is it!
Written: Mar 31 '06
Product Rating:
Ease of Use:
Durability:
Battery Life:
Photo Quality:
Shutter Lag
Pros: FAST startup, very little shutterlag in comparison, nice EVF, WIDE ANGLE, configurable, solid feel.
Cons: NOT a beginners camera! Buy a cheaper model if you only want family snapshots.
The Bottom Line: I love this camera! After WEEKS of reviewing it's rivals, I agree with the PROFESSIONAL reviewers that this is the camera by which all other prosumer cameras are measured!
bnjghome's Full Review: Olympus Camedia C-8080 Wide Zoom Digital Camera
I have an Olympus c-3030zoom. I've used it for about 5 years now, I guess. I've really enjoyed the camera, but it's taken some knocks and I was yearning for something better. At first I thought I'd go with an extreme telephoto digital, but after thinking about it, I decided that I rarely ever find myself wishing that I had more zoom in my pictures, I wish I had a wider angle. I had purchased a wide angle lens off ebay for it, but it was very poor quality.
So I started researching. and researching some more. I figured I'd go with a wide angle camera with a lot of megapixels so that I could make up for a lack of zoom by cropping my images in Photoshop. I ended up looking at the Sony DSC-F828, the Minolta Dimage A2, the Olympus 8080 and the Nikon8700 and brand new 8400. All had a wide angle equivilant to 28mm except the brand new Nikon 8400 which has a 24mm lens. By the way, they ALL use the same CMOS chip that is made by Sony to capture images. It's all about the lens on the outside, and the processing that the hardware does with the image that makes one camera stand out from the other.
I liked the manual zoom and focus rings on the Sony and Minolta, but the Sony had A LOT of problems reported about "noise" in darker shots, and "purple fringe" in backlit daylight shots. The Minolta didn't have the purple fringe problems, but it was still "noisy" and there were reports of mis-focused shots using Auto Focus.
Someone said in a previous review that they couldn't recommend ANY digital camera when compared to a Canon Rebel or any other Digital SLR. Let me tell you what kept me away from the DSLR side... MOVIES. DSLR's still use mirrors, so they are not capable of recording digital movies with sound. NONE of them. I have a digital Video Camera, but there have been dozens of times when I simply didn't have it with me, or I would have missed the moment if I run to go get the Digital camcorder. With a digital camera, you simply flip the switch, and you're taking video. These new cameras take TV-size HIGH QUALITY video.
I highly recommend the professional reviews at www.dpreview.com and www.luminouslandscape.com - the first is much MUCH more technical studio driven and measurement keen, and the second is more "I've used this camera on this trip, and here's what I liked and didn't like". Combining both reviews gives you a balanced view... just be prepared for a LOT of reading.
EVERYONE said that the Olympus 8080 is the current measurement by which other 8 megapixel cameras are measured. So between that and the fact that I was familiar with Olympus quality by now, I chose the 8080. If I could have found the Minolta A2 online at a good price that wasn't a refurb or gray market, I probably would have gone with that, but now that I've used the 8080, I'm glad I didn't.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 650 This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts
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