Thread: Olympus SP560UZ Digital Camera

Olympus has released a new series of ultra zoom cameras. The entire series is targeted at prosumers and professionals who can't afford a digital SLR.

FEATURES & BUILD QUALITY: As is usual with ultra zoom cameras, the lens is the highlight of the camera-however it isn't a very heavy burden. The lens assembly
is split into 3 parts that retract to a large extent making the camera similar in size to a large compact camera. The rear of the camera has a large 2.5-inch screen that is best used in an indoor environment. The camera features an electronic viewfinder right above the screen for outdoor shots. The electronic viewfinder is well isolated from ambient light and is very visible even in the brightest of environments.

This model also features a diopter adjustment for photographers who need to wear glasses. A small button on the right of the viewfinder enables users to switch between the two displays. To the right of the display is a five-way navigation cluster that has the usual four direction buttons and a select key in the center. On the four corners surrounding the button cluster are dedicated buttons for the menu, preview, OSD selector, and trash. The top of the camera has a popup flash that has to be manually opened by pressing a button on the right. At this model's price point, we would have liked to see an automatic popup mechanism for the flash. The grip on the right of the camera houses the battery compartment that holds four AA batteries. A flap covers the slot on the rear right of the camera that holds the XD card for external storage.

On the left of the camera is another flap that covers a port for connecting the USB cable and the AV cable. This port is not a standard USB connector and requires a proprietary cable which is included with the camera. So if you lose this cable, you will have no way to connect the camera to a computer. However the non-standard design of the connector is typical of all Olympus cameras and enables connection to an analog display such as a TV set from the same port. The camera looks very much like a digital SLR, but it is not a good idea to hold it like one unless you have really small hands. Since the unit is rather small, it is hard to hold, and it is best to hold it like any other compact camera.

PERFORMANCE: The 560UZ comes with an 18x optical zoom lens and a 1/2.35-inch 8 megapixel CMOS sensor. This sensor is a typical CMOS sensor which provides acceptable quality. In our test shoot carried out in a typical day-lit environment, the color saturation was well represented, with no bias towards any primaries. Its detailing is not the best we have seen-even at ISO 100, detailed subjects seemed to merge into one another.

However, the output of the sensor is very clean and there is no apparent fringing, or aberrations. The optics on the 560UZ are way above those on any compact camera that you might have come across. The 27-486mm focal range is just about the best available in any non-professional camera. The zoom lens is only powered by the motor and there is no way to zoom manually.

VERDICT: The Olympus SP560UZ has a lot of good features and is probably the best prozoom camera available in the market. The optid, and sensor quality are very good, and its output is competitive. FOR: Good focal range, superb zoom level, face detection, image stabilization and other processed shooting modes. AGAINST: RAW shooting capability is slow enough to be useless.



Specifications
Size(WxHxO): 116 x 78.5 x 78 mm,
Weight: 460 g, CCO: 12.35 inch, 8 MP, 7 Shooting Modes,
Zoom: 18X, LCD: 2.5 inch,
Focus range: 27-486mm,
Internal Memory: 47 MS,
Expasion slot: XO