Don't Try Don't Know: June 2009

In the true spirit of Don’t Try Don’t Know, I decided I need (ok more like I want I want I want ;) an Olympus camera – specifically one with waterproof features.

Having heard from a few friends and read a number of great reviews (over the internet of course), I looked around and after some probing and testing, absolutely fell in love with the Olympus Tough 6000.

I was however quite taken aback and pretty disappointed at the performance of the camera within the first week of purchasing it. So I’ve decided to post my (I assure you very objective) review of this gorgeous camera for the benefit of users out there.

The T6000 comes in four gorgeous colours but white is not available locally. See its full specs at http://www.olympusimage.com.my/products/compact/sw_mju_series/mju-t6000/

2.7-inch LCD screen with anti-reflection coating
*Images obtained via Google images

You can pretty much get the selling points and technical analysis from tech site reviews so this is going to be purely a user review.

Shop around

If you have time to shop around before making a decision then my suggestion is to check out concentrated retail places such as the Digital Mall in Section 14 PJ and Low Yat Plaza in Bukit Bintang KL. While the Digital Mall in PJ only has two large camera retailers (the rest are small kiosks that in my opinion are probably there for show as the staff were not bothered to sell at all), Low Yat has a bigger host of camera retailers to bargain with. Prices don’t vary much but you may be able to get a better package in these places.

For example, retailers at a shopping mall I checked gave a standard package at RM1,180 that consisted of:

Box Content

Lithium Ion Battery: Li-50B
Lithium Ion battery charger: Li-50C
USB&AUDIO/VIDEO multi-terminal
Olympus Master 2 software CD-ROM
Strap
Camera case (soft; light grey)
Written guarantee
Manual
microSD attachment: MASD-1

Non-box content

2GB original Olympus SD memory card OR 4GB compatible micro SD memory card
Screen protector
Mini tripod

Retailer at Digital Mall on the other hand, gave a slightly lower price of RM1,120, with which it also came with:

1 original Olympus camera case (hard)
1 pc compatible rechargeable Lithium Ion Battery
Discount on photo processing at 45cents per pc of 5R (unlimited copies and time)

I was told the panoramic settings only work with original Olympus memory card so I had to purchase one at an additional RM50 (it’s RM65 without the purchase-on-purchase discount). I have however, begun to wonder if this is just a marketing ploy as you’ll see further down this post the failed panoramic shots despite using the original memory card.

Warming up

Given that my brand new T6000 could not seem to take any decent pictures during its first week in service, I thought shockproof was a handy feature as I was so ready to toss it after that week. Fortunately though, we soon warmed up to each other although it took about two weeks of relentless snapping and exploring.

However, its performance is still a disappointment mainly because I’ve discovered better alternatives that are retailing at lower prices. So for hopeful users out there, here are some pros and cons I personally experienced, along with some photo examples that I hope will help you in your decision.

Pros:

Works best in natural and fluorescent lights
Does not overexpose even under extremely glaring sunlight
Awesome LCD screen that can be seen even under sunny glare

Waterproof – you can use the camera up to 10ft under water
Shockproof – if you drop it from an average person’s standing height, it will survive
Weatherproof – taking it to cold countries and back will not cause fungus to grow on your lense
Gorgeous and stylish exterior
Wide angle lens (wider scope in pix)
Panoramic image capturing (remember however, apparently this only works with original Olympus memory card, which comes in a maximum 2GB)

Cons:

Due to the camera’s light absorption limitations, I’d say some photography knowledge is needed in manoeuvring this camera to take the pictures you desire. Not entirely for dummies like myself
Poor light absorption causing very poor pictures indoors and at night, esp. under ambient lights
Overpowering and uncontrollable flash that makes photos totally overexposed

Either too dark or too bright – Overexposed even though picture was taken with Cuisine mode

In the evening/ night, the camera could not focus enough for a clear shot (left pix) without flash and since the flash symbol kept blinking I decided to take the machine’s advice and the result is the totally darkened shot on the right. Preset mode did not help either.

Although I managed to find an angle where the camera finally managed to focus, the resulting picture is obviously still slightly blur.

Panoramic capturing only works well in good lighting and is easily distorted

These are my panoramic gone wrong despite using an original Olympus 2GB memory card – I have yet to figure out the factors that contributed to these distortions because some other shots taken by same unskilled me turned out alright (refer to pix further below).

The connections are sometimes pretty visible e.g. these two pix where even the colours are for some reason different

This, on the other hand, is an example of a rare perfect panoramic shot – when the camera feels like behaving :)

I’ve also experienced:

The camera is pretty slow in focusing and capturing, so I’ve missed many a candid shot
It also became unresponsive/ “hang” by the third week of usage

Having used it for about a month now, the T6000 has somewhat warmed up to me (same settings I used when I first started so it is not a settings nor a user problem :p). But for those who are eager to own a waterproof camera, do check out other options that are available in the market before deciding on your pick. Here are a few I’ve noticed since purchasing my Olympus T6000:

Panasonic Lumix DMC FT1