Olympus SP-350 Digital Camera (8.3MP, 3264x2448, 3x Opt, 25MB Internal Memory, xD Slot)

Olympus SP-350

SP-350 Digital Camera (8.3MP, 3264x2448, 3x Opt, 25MB Internal Memory, xD Slot) Review, by Eric Butterfield September 21, 2006

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• Reviewed by: esstek

  Strengths: HOT SHOE works fine with most large, AUTO flash units. Able to be manually adjusted for most settings. Excellent 2.5" LCD display. Nice handgrip. Optical viewfinder.

  Weaknesses: BATTERY LIFE is almost non-existent! I'm lucky to get 25 to 35 photos with 2500mAH or 2650mAH NiMH rechargable batteries. Lithium pack is much better, but expensive.

  Overall: This is a very capable camera for use by advanced amateur photographers! It can perform almost anything you care to manually adjust it to do. Or, you can simply set it to AUTO focus and PROGRAM mode and use it for snapshots. Very versatile with extremely good images when handled properly. Great MACRO modes, too! I have upgraded the firmware to v1.3, which was supposed to fix low battery threshold, but I can't tell much difference. It still seems to need fresh batteries constantly...

• Reviewed by: Burtsbud

  Strengths: Standard AAA batteries, size, weight, ease of use, quality of the pictures.

  Weaknesses: Not good when you want a rapid series of shots. (Use the video instead)

  Overall: I wanted a good quality "knock-around" camera to keep with me at work and while on the road. Love at first sight! This camera takes excellent pictures. I'm still learning my way around with all of its "bells & whistles". I do miss the speed of my Minolta slr (film) when I want to take a rapid series of shots. However, the excellent quality, features, and price should entice anybody. The camera also takes very good quality video. I had purchased a cheaper 5meg camera to use for general use and wanted to reserve the SP-350 for when I wanted/needed high quality pictures. Well, the 5meg camera sits on my closet shelf. Invest in the optional power cord which comes in very handy, rechargeable batteries and a good quality photo printer. My prints rival Lab Quality pictures.

• Reviewed by: chibacat

  Strengths: compact, 8.3 meg, easy to use, Great price!

  Weaknesses: I don't know of any for me

  Overall: I love this little camera. Had all I wanted and paid less than $200 for it. I upgraded from a Fugi Finepix A210 ( for which the software that came with it NEVER worked). What a difference. Easy to pack for trips and carry around. I'm not a killer photographer so I don't have the complaints that many do. 3x zoom is fine for me and I had no problem with it shaking when extended. I also had no issue with buying an Xd card ( got the 1 G one) that some complained about. I like using all the different modes available. IF you need a camera with a zillion bells and whistles then you should probably invest more money instead of trying to get it all in a small camera and then whine that you didn't. If you're like me, you'll love it also.

• Reviewed by: foortiz

  Strengths: This camera just takes incredible pictures. And the print quality will surprise you even more. Color is great and it feels firm and secure allowing you to take pictures using only one hand.

  Weaknesses: Battery life is very short. When you view your pictures it takes time to load from shot to shot. Sometimes pictures are blurry.

  Overall: This is the best camera I ever owned!! I love this camera!! I have taken incredible pictures with it. Prints look amazing and when you enlarge, prints maintain sharpness and focus. I like the hot shoe which will allow me to connect an external and more powerful flash. So far the internal flash has done and excellent job in low light situations, though. I recommend using the flash all the time when taking family pictures. I wish the 3x zoom would be more powerful, but I suppose you have to compromise somewhere. I like the large LCD monitor but this is probably the reason why battery life is short. When viewing your shots it takes time to load, which is a nuisance if you are looking to view one particular shot among many. My bulkier digital SRL allows me to view my pictures instantly. But I totally love the size of this camera. I can take it everywhere in my shirt pocket.

• Reviewed by: touristguy87

  Strengths: Good-looking images, fairly easy to use, very handy, nice in-viewfinder information, nice viewfinder :) small and light for a 10x zoom

  Weaknesses: the lens is not well-mounted and shakes when extended. Not confidence-inspiring

  Overall: I like this camera. I think the sp-310 makes better images (probably because it has a bigger CCD, the sp-350 has a 1/2.5" to the 1/1.8" 7mp ccd on the sp-310. It is noticeably not quite as good as the sp-310...but...the sp310 doesn't have the 10x zoom. You choose one or the other when you choose between these two cameras, but otherwise the sp-350 is a great choice. If you can get past the lens mounting. But with a big 2.5" LCD and good button positioning and full manual control it really is a nice camera. Its true downsides are that the shutter speed is limited to 1/1000 and the movie capability is pretty basic. And it's not one of those fuji or canon pocket-sized frames. Last but not least, the LCD is fixed, and you are going to miss that when the camera is not in front of your face.