Olympus SP-600UZ Digital Camera Reviewed
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The Olympus SP-600UZ digital camera brings a bit of unique to digital cameras by standing out differently than its cousins. The SP-600UZ camera is styled much like a DSLR camera, but it's a compact and unassuming camera. The camera actually features a large amount of internal storage, where the typical compact camera features very little internal memory, relying on memory cards instead. The SP-600UZ also includes a 2.7" LCD display, just like other cameras in it's price range, but curiously doesn't include a viewfinder. Did Olympus decide that the buyers of this camera would be more interested in the LCD than the viewfinder?
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Olympus SP-600UZ 12MP Digital Camera with 15x Wide Angle Dual Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.7 inch LCD
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The Olympus SP-600UZ digital camera is specifically designed for photographers who just want a good point-and-shoot camera without a lot of fumbling around with menus and whatnot. It's very simply designed, with just a few buttons on the back of the camera, bringing most of the options to the 2.7" LCD screen instead. The plastic body makes for a lightweight camera, but not so light that it feels cheap.
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For a fixed lens camera, the 15x optical zoom available to the Olympus SP-600UZ camera has been unique in the past, but is becoming more of a standard. However, the camera does feature a 28mm wide-angle lens which will allow a little more of the panaroma capabilities available to more expensive digital point-and-shoot cameras. Compensating for the zoom features, Olympus designed sensor shift and digital imaging stabilization into the camera. Except at the most extreme points of the zoom spectrum, the stabilization system should help alleviate any blurring associated with moving subjects or hand shake.
What makes the Olympus SP-600UZ camera a bit unique in this market is the large onboard memory. 1 Gb of memory is quoted by Olympus as being available, but because the software units within the camera use a bit of the memory, usable space is around 830Mb. That's still a fairly good junk of memory still, allowing for around 140 pictures before you need to insert a memory card. If you were to use the SP-600UZ for video instead, expect around 9 minutes of video on the internal memory.
That brings us to the last part of our review: the video recording aspect. The Olympus SP-600UZ is capable of 720p HD video with a nice red button on the rear of the camera for quick record start and stop. Stabilization and zoom are both provided with video just like with still photos. We were surprised the the SP-600UZ does not include an HDMI Port. Unfortunately, the camera only sports a USB port, so to be able to watch your HD videos in 720p, the owner of this camera will need to download to a computer, or plug the SD card into a device that will play it across an HDMI connection to the HDTV. That's not entirely true, since A/V ports are available, but if we're recording HD quality video, we want to watch it in HD, and A/V just won't get you there.
That being said, the Olympus SP-600UZ digital camera does provide fairly good image standards for a sub $200 camera with it's 12 megapixel resolution against a CCD sensor. With all point-and-shoot cameras of this price range, you'll see grainy or choppy photos at either end of the ISO shooting spectrum, but cameras like the SP-600UZ are designed for the in-between shots. And even though it's a point-and-shoot camera, the SP-600UZ does have a few options available, like ISO, which would be good to review right out of the box. We've found recommendations for the Olympus that stated that the ISO should be set to high to reduce blurring further, and we couldn't agree more with that statement.
The Olympus SP-600UZ digital camera's main interest to us is it's fairly low price for what you get. The fantastic zoom level along with the internal memory are fairly strong selling points for the SP-600UZ. It's also extremely lightweight (plastic body), and fairly compact enough to not be in the way on a day trip, which makes one more likely to want to carry it around instead of the larger, bulkier DSLR cameras. The SP-600UZ is not a professional photographer's camera, being designed more for the novice photographer who just wants to take quality photographs. But the more experienced may find this Olympus camera to be fun to play with also!
Olympus SP-600UZ Digital Camera Photos
Olympus SP-600UZ Digital Camera Specs
* Model / ASIN: SP-600UZ / B0031RGEVI
* Colors Available: Black
* Resolution: 12 megapixel resolution using a CCD sensor
* Lens: 15x optical zoom, wide-angle lens
* Digital Zoom: 5x digital zoom
* Video Recording: 1080i or 720p HD quality video; video is easy to start/stop with one button operation
* Minimum Focus Range:
* Continuous Shooting: 1.1 fps for 9 images in high resolution; 11.8 fps for 24 images in 3 megapixel resolution
* Shutter Speed: 1/2000 second to 1/2 second
* Aperture: f/3.5 - f/5.4
* ISO: 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600; uses auto or Hi auto which is manually set (we recommend Hi auto)
* Viewfinder: none; use the 2.7" LCD display for shot setup, menu options, and playback
* Flash: included, but manually operated
* File Format: JPEG for still photos; MP4 for HD video
* File Storage: 1Gb of internal storage (830Mb usable); compatible with SD or SDHC memory cards (not typically included)
* Outputs: USB; A/V
* Power: uses 4 AA Ni-MH batteries; we recommend rechargeable for expense
* Dimensions: 4 3/10" x 2 4/5" x 3" (W x H x D) and weighs just 15 ounces (without the batteries)
Reference
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Olympus SP-600UZ Digital Camera - Youtube Video Review
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B. Daniels is the lead review expert with Find Cheap Bargains. B. was more than likely the person responsible for the hands-on review of every product on the site. He also spends time searching for sale bargains when not conducting and writing the reviews.
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