Panasonic announced four compact cameras today – merely updates to last year’s low-end models which probably won’t get any “oohs” and “aahhs” from the crowd but people who want a small, affordable camera might consider looking at these.
Panasonic Lumix FS6 and FS7
(Point-and-snap cameras)
- 8 effective megapixels (FS6)
10 effective megapixels (FS7)
- 33 – 132 mm (f2.8 – f5.9) 4X optical zoom lens
- Optical image stabilization
- 2.5 inch LCD for FS6, 2.7 inch LCD for FS7
- No manual controls
- Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically) with face detection and Intelligent ISO
- WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Available in March for $160 (FS7)
- Comes in your choice of silver, black, pink, blue or green
Panasonic Lumix FS15
(Compact camera)
- 12 effective megapixels
- 29 – 145 mm (f3.3 – f5.9) 5X optical zoom lens
- Optical image stabilization
- 2.7 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically) with face detection and Intelligent ISO
- Subject tracking and intelligent exposure
- WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Available in March for $200
- Comes in your choice of silver, black or blue
Panasonic Lumix LS85
(Budget camera)
- 8 effective megapixels
- 33 – 132 mm (f2.8 – f5.9) 4X optical zoom lens
- Optical image stabilization
- 2.5 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically) with face detection and Intelligent ISO
- WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
- Uses 2 AA batteries
- Available in April for $120
- Comes in your choice of silver, black or pink
Canon announced their latest entry-level camera today – The new PowerShot A480 is 25% smaller than the old A470 it replaces and sports some new things other than design (Such as motion detection).
Canon PowerShot A480
(Compact entry-level camera)
- 10 effective megapixels
- 3.3X optical zoom lens
- 2.5 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- Motion and Face detection with a redeye removal tool
- VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
- Uses 2 AA batteries
- Availability and price unknown
- Comes in your choice of silver, black, blue or red
Here’s my review of the Stylus 1050SW aka mju 1050SW, Olympus’ latest heavy-duty compact camera – now with tap control. Along with the review, I’ve got the Olympus Stylus 1050SW photo gallery ready for you.
Continue reading the Stylus 1050SW review
Over here is the Olympus Stylus 1050SW Photo Gallery which contains full-sized pictures taken by the camera. Be sure to check out the Olympus Stylus 1050SW review for details and an opinion about this rugged, waterproof camera.
View photos in the gallery
Casio made an announcement of several compact cameras with some rather… unique features today. The high speed FC100 is the most interesting of the bunch and it doesn’t have a whole lot of megapixels either (at least compared to the 12 to 15 megapixel compacts we’ve been seeing lately)
Casio Exilim FC100
(Compact camera with high-speed shooting)
- 9 effective megapixels
- 37 – 185 mm (f3.6 – f4.5) 5X optical zoom lens
- Sensor shift image stabilization
- 2.7 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- 30 FPS burst mode at 6 megapixels: Slow motion, high-speed anti shake, high-speed best selection and night scene take advantage of this to take many photos in order to reduce blur/pick the best shot
- 720p HD 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Available in March for $400
Casio Exilim FS10
(Ultra thin camera with high-speed shooting)
- The Exilim FS10′s feature set is a whole lot like the FC100 except in a different design and form factor. Here are the changes:
- 38 – 114 mm (f3.9 – f5.4) 3X optical zoom lens
- NO image stabilization =(
- 2.5 inch LCD
- Available in March for $350
- Comes in your choice of gray, white, red or blue
Casio Exilim Z270
(Compact point-and-shoot camera)
- 10 effective megapixels
- 28 – 112 mm (f2.6 – f5.9) 4X optical zoom lens
- Sensor shift image stabilization
- 2.7 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- Dynamic Photo feature allows you to superimpose/overlay one photo over another
- Makeup feature reduces skin wrinkles and blemishes
- 720p HD 24 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Available in March for $230
- Comes in your choice of gray, black, pink or gold
Casio Exilim Z400
(Compact point-and-shoot camera)
- The Exilim Z400 is a whole lot like the Z270 except a few changes:
- 12 effective megapixels
- 28 – 112 mm (f2.6 – f5.8) 4X optical zoom lens
- 3.0 inch LCD
- Available in March for $300
- Comes in your choice of silver, gold, brown or pink
Casio Exilim S5
(Low cost ultra-compact)
- 10 effective megapixels
- 36 – 107 mm (f3.1 – f5.6) 3X optical zoom lens
- 2.7 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- WVGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Available in March for $180
- Comes in your choice of silver, black, gold, pink, blue or purple
Casio Exilim S12
(Low cost ultra-compact)
- 12 effective megapixels
- 36 – 108 mm (f2.8 – f5.3) 3X optical zoom lens
- 2.7 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- Dynamic Photo and Makeup features
- 720p HD 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Available in March for $250
- Comes in your choice of silver, black, green or pink
Sony just announced a very interesting (but rather expensive) compact camera which is equipped with a huge touchscreen LCD and built-in WiFi connectivity. The built-in WiFi (there’s even a web browser in the camera!) allows you to upload photos and videos online to places like YouTube and Photobucket.
Sony Cyber-shot G3
(Large screen camera with WiFi)
- 10 effective megapixels
- 35 – 140 mm (f3.5 – f5.6) 4X optical zoom lens
- Optical image stabilization
- 3.5 inch touchscreen LCD
- No manual controls
- Intelligent scene recognition and dynamic range optimization features
- Built-in WiFi connectivity with a web browser!
- VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes Memory Stick Duo memory cards (4 GB internal memory)
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Available now for $500
- Comes in your choice of silver, black, blue or pink
Sony announced just one camera today (hmm will we see more before CES this weekend?) which is an entry-level compact camera.
Sony Cyber-shot W220
(Entry level compact camera)
- 12 effective megapixels
- 30 – 120 mm (f2.8 – f5.8) 4X optical zoom lens
- Optical image stabilization
- 2.7 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- Intelligent scene recognition and dynamic range optimization features
- VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes Memory Stick Duo memory cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Available in March for $190
- Comes in your choice of silver, black, blue or pink
And here’s where the rumor and speculation part comes in (I don’t really do rumors, speculation and such but I couldn’t resist, seeing Sony only announced ONE camera today which is odd)… surely Sony won’t just announce just one lone compact camera and be happy for the rest of spring 2009. Based on their history in announcing cameras over the past years, I suspect we’ll see several higher-end models with bigger screens (3 inches?), larger zoom lenses and of course, megapixel increases; which probably will be announced between this weekend and PMA 2009 in March. Speculation for model names, if anyone’s interested: I’m thinking Cyber-shot W250 for a slightly higher-end model and Cyber-shot W500 for the flagship W-series with lots of megapixels (could be 14.7 megapixels like the others, or Sony could push for even more! Oh no!)
Olympus announced a whole lot of cameras today, included the new Stylus SW series, now rebranded as “Stylus Tough” cameras as promised. And let’s begin with Olympus pushing the “most zoom in a single lens” barrier yet again with their latest SP590 Ultra Zoom which has a whopping 26X optical zoom!
Olympus SP590 Ultra Zoom
(Super zoom camera with a 26X lens)
- 12 effective megapixels
- 26 – 676 mm (f2.8 – f5.0) 26X optical zoom lens
- Sensor shift image stabilization
- 2.7 inch LCD with EVF
- Full manual controls and wireless flash control
- New multi-exposure, soft background focus, birdwatching and beauty fix modes
- VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes xD Picture cards
- Uses 4 AA batteries
- Available in March for $450
Olympus Stylus 5000, Stylus 7000 and Stylus 9000
(Compact cameras with large zoom lenses)
- 12 effective megapixels
- 37 – 260 mm (f3.5 – f5.3) 7X optical zoom lens for Stylus 7000
28 – 280 mm (f3.2 – f5.9) 10X optical zoom lens for Stylus 9000
- Sensor shift image stabilization
- 3 inch LCD for Stylus 7000, 2.7 inch LCD for Stylus 9000 (I have no idea why)
- No manual controls
- Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically), Beauty Fix mode and OR button (OR stands for Olympus Recommended) brings up panorama, Perfect Shot Preview and Shadow Adjustment functions
- VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- HDMI port
- Takes xD Picture cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery (LI-42B for Stylus 7000, LI-50B for Stylus 9000)
- Available in February for $300 (Stylus 7000) and $350 (Stylus 9000)
- Stylus 7000 will come in your choice of silver, black or blue
Stylus 9000 will come in your choice of beige or black
Olympus also announced another camera: the Stylus 5000, a compact with 12 megapixels, a 5X zoom lens equivalent to 36-180 mm and 2.7 inch LCD.
Olympus Stylus Tough 6000 and Stylus Tough 8000
(Rugged compact cameras)
- 10 effective megapixels for Stylus Tough 6000
12 effective megapixels for Stylus Tough 8000
- 28 – 102 mm (f3.5 – f5.1) 3.6X optical zoom lens
- Rugged design:
Stylus Tough 6000 is waterproof to 10 feet, drop proof to 5 feet and freezeproof to 14 degrees
Stylus Tough 8000 is waterproof to 33 feet, drop proof to 6.5 feet, freezeproof to 14 degrees and crushproof up to 220 lbs
- Sensor shift image stabilization
- 2.7 inch LCD
- Tap control and a new LCD backlight boost button like the FE-series
- No manual controls
- Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically), Beauty Fix mode and OR button
- VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes xD Picture cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery (Stylus Tough 8000 can be charged via AC adapter)
- Available in this month for $300 (Stylus Tough 6000) and in February for $400 (Stylus Tough 8000)
- Stylus Tough 6000 will come in your choice of white, blue, yellow and orange
Olympus Stylus 550WP
(Low cost waterproof camera)
- 10 effective megapixels
- 38 – 114 mm (f3.5 – f5.0) 3X optical zoom lens
- Waterproof to 10 feet
- 2.5 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically)
- VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes xD Picture cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Available in February for $200
Olympus FE3000 (aka FE45), FE3010 and FE5010
(Entry level compact cameras)
- 10 effective megapixels for FE3000
12 effective megapixels for FE3010 and FE5010
- 36 – 108 mm (f3.1 – f5.9) 3X optical zoom lens for FE3000 and FE3010
36 – 180 mm (f3.5 – f5.6) 5X optical zoom lens for FE5010
- Sensor shift image stabilization for FE5010 only
- 2.7 inch LCD
- No manual controls
- Intelligent Auto mode (camera picks a mode automatically) and usual in-camera help and face detection
- Smile shot and expression edit for FE5010 only (I have explained these two features in reviews of previous Olympus cameras: the first one waits for a person to smile and the camera takes a picture automatically; while the expression edit does just as it sounds)
- VGA 30 FPS movie mode with sound
- Takes xD Picture cards
- Uses a lithium-ion battery
- Availability: FE3000 for $140 this month, FE3010 for $150 in March and FE5010 for $190 this month
- Each camera will come in your choice of three different colors:
FE3000 in silver, black or pale blue
FE3010 in silver, black or purplish-pink
FE5010 in black, deep blue or maroon
