DCVIEWS Looks at the Olympus C-5060 Digital Camera

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.dcviews.com/reviews/Olympus-C5060/Olympus-C-5060-review.htm' target='_blank'>http://www.dcviews.com/reviews/Olympus-C5060/Olympus-C-5060-review.htm</a><br /><br /></div><img src="http://www.digitalmediathoughts.com/images/ol_5060f.jpeg" /> <br /><br />"Looking back into digital history, Olympus have always been a dominant force in the digital camera market and over the years they have released quite a number of products that range from basic entry level models to their very advanced and professional all digital SLR, the E-1. As a successor to their well received C5050 of some time ago, Olympus have now released the Camedia C-5060 Wide Zoom. A 5.1-megapixel camera that features a 4x wide-angle zoom equivalent to 27 to 110mm in 35mm terms. It features a swivelling LCD and an external hot shoe for mounting an extra flashlight. For extra versatility, Compact Flash cards or xD-Picture cards can be used simultaneously..."<br /><br />I've always been interested in Olympus cameras, but never took the plunge because they focused on Smartmedia, but with this model they were smart enough to support CF as well. Looks like a strong contender!

[bbarker]

I've been the same way. Olympus models have been highly rated and innovative, but I never wanted anything with Smartmedia. I was disappointed but not surprised that they were parties to yet another new format, xD. Why not go with SD or CF and keep things simple?

I'm happy to see them at last support CF. Maybe they've had an earlier model that did as well (the higher end ones?) but I hadn't noticed.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

E100RS, 5050, E10, E20, E1 and the upcoming 8080 all have CF support.

[bbarker]

Thanks for the info. and the correction. I guess I formed my perception about them early and never went back to look.

[chrisspera]

I have an Olympus E10 and it has both SM and CF support. I've had it for about 4 years now. The camera takes great pictures at 4MP, and supports an 11MB TIFF as its native file.

While I have never used that setting (I instead use the 2.5MB SHQ JPG file setting), there's definitely enough resolution here to take and print native 8x10's without any pixelation...

The E10 is a great camera, and I'll probably keep it until it breaks...

Kind Regards,


Christopher Spera

[James Fee]

I like that it supports RAW format. :way to go:

[Jonathon Watkins]

Nice - I never gave Olympus a second glance because they did not previously support CF or SD. Glad the manufacturers seem to be standardising. Ever Sony is offering a CF slot on it's latest and greatest! Good news. 8)

[Jorgen]

I don't understand you guys. The camera is what is important and the Olympus cameras are very, very nice to use! I am on my third Olympus and my wife on her second.

But, yes, it would be nice if all devices used the same storage media so data could easily be transferred and I wouldn't have to buy new types of cards every second year.

Jorgen

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Well, most of the folks who posted here are PPC users, and I've not heard of a PPC with a Smartmedia slot..

[Jorgen]

Well, most of the folks who posted here are PPC users, and I've not heard of a PPC with a Smartmedia slot..

I have used PDA's since the 80ies when Psion came out with their twoline thingie and long given up expecting compatibility even within the same make. And my HP-calculators likewise used different kind of memory modules as well. :(

Jorgen

[SassKwatch]

I've always been interested in Olympus cameras, but never took the plunge because they focused on Smartmedia, but with this model they were smart enough to support CF as well.
My first digicam was an Oly C3030Z. Great little camera, but the SM was definitely the downside. Good to see they're supporting other formats.

No doubt the 5060 would be a good choice.....especially considering that the lens will open up to ~28mm equivalent on the wide end. That's been a lacking capability in a lot of digicams (even some expensive ones) up until now, and was a significant factor in my purchase of the Minolta D7Hi I'm using currently.

[Paul Martin]

I had the chance to borrow a 5050 for a few days. I loved it...just couldnt' afford to buy my own! At that point, I don't think I'd ever really had a digital camera to play with. Even with my newbie status, I still managed to take a couple of nice shots. I imagine the 5060 would be also be a great camera.

[James Fee]

I don't understand you guys. The camera is what is important and the Olympus cameras are very, very nice to use! I am on my third Olympus and my wife on her second.
A 128 meg SM card is just too small to use. Sure you can buy a couple, but its a dead format.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

it isn't that small.. with 5mp JPEGs I reckon you can squeeze some 60 photos into it. two cards and it's 120, a respectable amount.

[James Fee]

it isn't that small.. with 5mp JPEGs I reckon you can squeeze some 60 photos into it. two cards and it's 120, a respectable amount.
For you that's fine. I'd just rather have a 512meg card and not worry about running out of room.

I can't argue at all with what you said, but I do so hate the SM format. :twisted:

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

I didn't like it for its very exposed contacts. That is asking for trouble!