Olympus Stylus 1030SW 10.1MP Digital Camera with 3.6x Optical Wide Angle Zoom (Black)
The Stylus 1030 SW is one tough camera. The shockproof, waterproof, freezeproof and dustproof design gives active people the confidence to take this camera anywhere and shoot in nearly any condition. Plus, the wide-angle lens lets users capture more of what they see. It is great for divers, surfers, rafters, skiers and anyone with an active lifestyle.
Olympus Stylus 1030SW 10.1MP Digital Camera with 3.6x Optical Wide Angle Zoom (Black) Accessories
 Olympus 2 GB xD Picture Card Type M 202170
Olympus Neoprene Soft Digital Camera Case
Olympus STRAP FLOAT ORANGE
Olympus SKIN SILIC 1030 SW CLEAR
M+2 Gb Xd-picture Card
Olympus BATTERY LI-ION LI-50B
Olympus 202027 2GB M Type Xd Card (Retail Package)
Olympus STRAP FLOAT RED
Olympus LI-42B Li-Ion Rechargeable Battery
SanDisk 8GB microSDHC Card CLASS 2 (SDSDQ-8192, Bulk Package)
Olympus Stylus 1030SW 10.1MP Digital Camera with 3.6x Optical Wide Angle Zoom (Black) Reviews
If you think quality matters than don't buy this camera, believe me or not you will find out yourself. My friend tried to convince me that my investment was good but even he can tell the huge difference, all the details, focus are lost with this olympus SW 1030 camera. ALL & EVERY picture that was taken by my $300 something camera was noisy and not focused well, while pictures taken by canon were way better. I know how to shoot good pictures and I am so pissed that I spend 300 bucks on this high-end camera and it takes lousy pictures. I've sold mine after Thanksgiving plus the extra 60 bucks I spend on the cases, xD cards, I am thinking of moving to a canon sd 990 but don't have the money now, I'll just wait for the price drop on sd 990. Don't say I am not buying the right camera because this camera is good for waterproof, shockproof and all that things.
Of course I love those features but I love good quality too. I was upgrade from a Canon A610 and bought my girlfriend a Canon SD 900, I moved to Olympus because I read an article said that they had a very good DSLR E520, so I figure the SW 1030 should be good, and also I do lots of hiking, mountaineering and sea kayaking, it's just the picture quality is too bad to tolerate, it's far worse than my 3-year-old A 610. And this Thanksgiving my friend came from Detriot to Boston and brought his Canon 1100is, we went to Boston, Harvard University and took a trip to Ipswich which is a beautiful town north of Boston. I wasn't trying to compare anything but just copied all our photos into one folder and boy was I surprised. I bought a refurbished one on Amazon on Oct 27,2008; and I first seen this camera when hiking with my friend in New Hampshire last winter, I heavily relied on the customer reviews on Amazon to make a decision (was going to by a canon SD), and somehow I pretty set up my mind in buying one so I just ignored the negative reviews and think they either got a lemon or they don't know how to shoot a good picture. I've always leaving 4,5 stars reveiws, and there is a reason I think 1030 sw sucks.
Back to Canon now. The movies are absolutely terrible - seriously, I could probably draw a flipbook better than the movies this thing takes. I was amazed how absolutely horrible the movies are after my previous two cameras - one 3.2MP and the other 6.0MP. The camera takes rather blurry pictures when it should not - it's pot luck - some turn out alright, many do not. I got this camera a few months ago to have a rugged camera that I could use at the beach and stick in my pocket. I realize this is not a camcorder, but it's nice being able to take brief movies when the moment arises - as my old Canon was able to. This camera doesn't allow that so when a moment strikes -pictures often come out either overexposed, blurry, or grainy. I like simple cameras that don't require me to adjust the setting for any moment.
To summarize. I was disappointed with the Canon as it was so delicate so I decided to switch back to Olympus. Ridiculous for a camera of this price. Actually that's the best thing so far - I have no worries that she'll break it and don't really care if she does. I have not used the underwater capabilities but have let my 3 year old niece use it to see how rugged it is. This camera is well below average.
Overall - I am very dissapointed with this camera.
I had a Canon Powershot SD600 before that had been ruined by beach spray.
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There is a setting that is supposed to eliminate this problem, but it does not.
Previous to that I had an Olympus Camedia D-560 Zoom in college which had been abused thoroughly and survived 5 years and mutliple countries.
I waited to write a review after a few months, thinking I might be able to work out the kinks - but after a wonderful Thanksgiving - I felt I must mention this camera's inadequacies:.
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I have tried using it in a variety of settings and all have been subpar.
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We also bought the orange flotation strap which did keep the camera from sinking in water. I won't go over all the points & features others have already covered well. It doesn't have the best lens by any means or the strongest zoom, but it is amazingly waterproof. The charger will charge the battery fully in about an hour or so. Worked like a charm. You do have to play with the numerous settings and modes to get some pictures to look just right especially in lowlight situations.
(Daylight pictures were no problem). It's a good, solid all purpose camera which we had a lot of fun using. We used it in the ocean snorkeling as well as in the pool taking various shots and videos. Also the flash is not the strongest either so be sure your main subject(s) are fairly close and pretty much forget about the background showing up if it's any real distance away. I found some night pics didn't always come out so well and it was very much a matter of trial & error to get them to work, so be sure to practice before trying to take pictures of an important event, trip or moment. The camera fits nicely in the pocket of your shirt or pants. The panorama function worked really well in just about every situation and the camera can even stitch the images together for you itself and you can see the results in a few seconds.
So I'll just quickly note I am very happy with this camera.
We have had no problems with this camera at all and buying through Amazon is absolutely the way to go. This is the third Olympus Stylus 1030 SW I've purchased in the last year for myself and family members. The only negative feature with this camera is very, very low volumn when you use the video side of the camera and Olympus is aware of the problem.
Very expensive and disappointing. The screen stopped working before a dozen pictures were taken. The warranty does not cover the shipping.
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