Digital Trends

Olympus SP-510UZ October 30th, 2006 | by David Elrich

Features and Design

Sad to say, but the Made In Indonesia silver-bodied SP-510UZ feels cheap. I know I typically use and review better cameras but this one feels as light as a feather, with a mostly plastic case. It looks like a candidate for a blister pack in Wal-Mart, rather than resting on a velvet cloth display at your local camera store. That said, it’s similar to the Kodak Z710 but not as solid as other mega zooms. It weighs 11 ounces without battery and card and 15 with both; and it has one of my least favorite features—a lens cap that gets attached to the camera strap with a piece of string. This is so tacky—and annoying--as to defy belief. I realize many mega zoom cameras have this but it still bugs me dealing with a lens cap flapping in the breeze…

The camera is very compact, making it a good candidate for a backpack or a deep pocket as you’re checking out the sights. It measures 4.25 x 3 x 2.88 (WHD, in inches). The front is taken up by the camera’s key feature—a 10x optical zoom that translates to 38-380mm in a 35mm camera. This gives you a lot of options, from macro shots (less than 2 inches) to tight telephotos. Try it out in the store to see what this—or any other—mega zoom offers. Also on the front are a self-timer/AF Assist lamp, a mic and a few logos ticking off the camera’s highlights. You’ll also see a decent-size pistol grip (where the batteries are tucked away) with a faux leather non-slip accent to help hold it properly.

The top of the camera is fairly standard—a power button, another to engage or disengage the digital image stabilization, a sturdy mode dial with solid clicks into position and the wide/tele zoom lever. The flash is here are well. It’s not an auto pop-up variety so you have to hit a button on the rear to open it up. The mode dial has the usual options such as Auto, playback, aperture/shutter priority, manual and access to a variety of scene modes. This camera has 20 of them and when you pick one, the camera shows an example with a brief written description, making it very friendly for new users. There’s also a Shooting Guide setting on the dial that has 13 options such as Shooting Into Backlight, Blurring Background and so on. When you choose one, you’re given parameters to change without the need for searching for the right one. This is a real plus for people getting their digital toes wet—and even for those who know what they’re doing since the SP-510UZ’s menu system is kind of weird. It’s not a disaster but not nearly as intuitive or clean as some competitors such as Casio, Kodak, HP and Sony’s new DSC-T50.

Image Courtesy of Olympus

The rear of the SP-510UZ is dominated by a 2.5-inch LCD rated a so-so 115K pixels. Like most mega zoom cameras, the Olympus has a small electronic viewfinder (EVF); unfortunately it doesn’t have a diopter adjustment. Still having the small peep sight is good for those times the LCD wipes out. You’ll also find the ubiquitous four-way controller with center OK/Function button. There are other keys for Menu, the self-timer and Display options (handy grid lines for properly aligning photos are just a touch away). The final keys are to open the flash and to switch between the LCD and viewfinder. Pretty basic and straightforward.

The right side has the xD Picture Card compartment with a solid door. You’re probably familiar with my rants against the xD Card (hard to find, too expensive) but recently prices have dropped a bit so they’re closer to the more popular SD cards. The left side has a USB out that doubles for image transfer and as an A/V out to connect to your TV. These cables are supplied. On the bottom is a tripod mount and battery compartment.

The Olympus SP-510UZ comes with a decent kit. There’s a quick start guide and a Basic Manual. The full manual is on CD ROM, a real pain since most people don’t carry a laptop to discover the camera’s finer points. It comes with four alkalines so go out and purchase rechargeables to save money and the environment. Olympus rates the batteries at 630 shots, an impressive figure. Also purchase at least a 512MB xD Picture card. You’ll also find cables, a neck strap and another CD ROM with Olympus Digital Master software. It’s a good, basic program with RAW support since the camera captures that type of file as well as the more common JPEGs.

Image Courtesy of Olympus