Olympus 18x zoom, 15 fps compact

[dllavaneras]

This just blew me away. Just read it on dpreview.com

Today is Olympus day with the announcement of eight new cameras in the FE, Stylus (Mju) and SP ranges. Most interesting is the SP-550 UZ ultrazoom, boasting the world's first 18x (yes 18x) zoom capability. Covering an astounding 28-504mm (equiv.) range it is sure to appeal to travellers seeking a compact camera for all occasions. Also featuring CCD-shift Image Stabilization, a 15fps burst mode (1.2MP) and a 7.1 megapixel sensor, the SP-550 continues a legacy of innovative large-zoom cameras from Olympus

18x zoom, and starting at a wide end! FIFTEEN FPS! (albeit at 1 Mp, but still!)
If the IQ is good, then this camera will be perfect for travelers! Too bad the IS is not in lens, but IS is always good to have on such a long lens.

 

[dllavaneras]

There, the link has been fixed now.
LINK

I wonder what the speed of the lens is, and it's Image quality. It'd be a bummer if the images were soft

 

[EstorilM]

Continuous shooting modes in p&s cameras don't mean anything, they use electronic shutters (ie. no moving parts.)

It's the same thing as using video mode and taking out frames, especially given the low resolution in this case and the small amount of data being stored (18mp equiv / second) compare that to a DSLR like the D200 which stores an equiv. 51mp of data per second in continuous (that's JPEG too, the amount of data would go up exponentially in RAW obviously.)

Still, it looks like a cool camera and all, I just thought I'd point out that a lot of point and shoot cameras have really quick continuous modes.

 

[Abstract]

Most small cameras don't have such great continuous modes, actually. And you can't compare this 15 fps to shooting a video in Video Mode on your point and shoot. It's not so simple. Remember that most "video modes" work at 320x240 or 640 x 480, which is 0.15 MP or 0.30 MP. This Olympus is still much better than taking a still image from a video.

And electronic shutter or not, these CCDs/sensors don't like to be overheated. When you do overheat them, they produce very weird effects. Try leaving your DSLR on BULB for 3 minutes without Long Exposure NR on. You should get weird orange streaks or something because the CCD will overheat. This would be a concern for 15 fps continuous shooting.

 

[sushi]

I wonder if it can do optical zoom while taking a video?

 

[robbieduncan]

Most small cameras don't have such great continuous modes, actually. And you can't compare this 15 fps to shooting a video in Video Mode on your point and shoot. It's not so simple. Remember that most "video modes" work at 320x240 or 640 x 480, which is 0.15 MP or 0.30 MP. This Olympus is still much better than taking a still image from a video.

It's 15fps mode is not full resolution. It's 1.2MP. So 1280x960. That's better than 640x480 but still pretty low resolution these days.

The lens is listed as F2.8-4.5.

Edit to add: it's only do 20 frames at 15fps so that's a little over 1 second. Should be no real heat issues.

 

[EstorilM]

Most small cameras don't have such great continuous modes, actually. And you can't compare this 15 fps to shooting a video in Video Mode on your point and shoot. It's not so simple. Remember that most "video modes" work at 320x240 or 640 x 480, which is 0.15 MP or 0.30 MP. This Olympus is still much better than taking a still image from a video.

And electronic shutter or not, these CCDs/sensors don't like to be overheated. When you do overheat them, they produce very weird effects. Try leaving your DSLR on BULB for 3 minutes without Long Exposure NR on. You should get weird orange streaks or something because the CCD will overheat. This would be a concern for 15 fps continuous shooting.

I'm just saying, there are no REAL huge technical feats to overcome in order to get 15fps with an electronic shutter. The biggest limitations have always been data transfer/buffering/processing and mechanical speed, neither of which are a problem with this.

I don't really worry about that with MLU btw lol.


On the other hand, I'll admit that this lens does sound impressive indeed - that's a VERY good aperture considering the reach on the tele end! (Yeah yeah, I know it's a smaller sensor ie. less glass to achieve wider apertures, but still.)

The only p&s I want is the waterproof Pentax.

 

[BoyBach]

18x zoom...

And I thought the 7.1x zoom on my Ricoh was extravagant!

 

[Abstract]

It's 15fps mode is not full resolution. It's 1.2MP. So 1280x960. That's better than 640x480 but still pretty low resolution these days.

Well some HD TVs have a resolution of less than 1280x960 (720p HD TVs), so that isn't so bad.

The lens is listed as F2.8-4.5.

Really? That's amazing for this lens. And it's also interesting that it starts from 28 mm. That's really good. I guess it would have been a lot more difficult to have a lens start from 36 mm and still get 15x (36 x 15 = 648 mm!!!)

The only p&s I want is the waterproof Pentax.

Even after seeing this camera? Yeah, I'm not so sure about this camera. I want to see photos from this thing. And besides, it takes xD cards.....bah!

I'm actually most interested in the Olympus 770SW. I was interested in the 725 SW, but this one kills it. Even the FE-240 model has a 7x zoom, and this is from Olympus' low end. Their more expensive (and new) MJU 760 has a 3x zoom. The FE-240 does have a smaller sensor, though.

 

[EstorilM]

Haha yeah I've seen it, and nothing is really toooo impressive about it, but it's one of the few certified waterproof (as opposed to water resistant) cameras out there. I mean for ~200 or less you can't go wrong!

I do like the olympus cameras though, good looking little things too.

 

[dllavaneras]

Now that this raises the bar up again, this should be an interesting PMA... I wonder what Canon and Nikon will come up with

 

[wmmk]

why hasn't bousosoku commented yet?

anyway, it apparently does UW, as listed modes include:
• Underwater wide 1
• Underwater wide 2
• Underwater macro

It also goes up to ISO 5000 and shoots RAW (and does in camera RAW editing?). How much does it cost?

that is just amazingly cool...