Olympus Camedia D-40 4MP Digital Camera with 2.8x Optical Zoom

by Olympus

Product Details

Product Manual [4.00mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 1.7 x 3.4 x 2.7 inches ; 6.7 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00005Q7DG
• Item model number: 225310
• Batteries: 2 AA batteries required. (included)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,675 in Camera & Photo (See Top 100 in Camera & Photo)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: November 17, 2005

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Until now, choosing a digital camera has meant a tradeoff between size and functionality. The feature-packed, high-resolution SLR replacements were too big to tuck in a pocket or purse, and the ultracompact models lacked the extensive manual controls many advanced photographers desire. With the D-40, Olympus has bridged the gap between portability and power--it's one of the smallest digital cameras on the market, yet it includes virtually all of the advanced features found on full-size models.

Compared to an ultracompact like the Canon Elph, the D-40 is the same width, about half an inch taller, and three-fourths of an inch thicker--still small enough to easily slip into a jacket pocket, and less than half the size of most compact models. Despite the tiny dimensions, Olympus packs a 4-megapixel sensor, 2.8x optical zoom lens, full manual controls, and a movie mode with audio into the camera's small plastic body. The trademark Olympus sliding clamshell cover turns the camera on and off, and also protects the lens, viewfinder, and flash when closed.

Images are stored on SmartMedia cards. A 16 MB card is included, which holds 16 images at default settings. If you want to take advantage of uncompressed mode and movie mode, or plan to take more than a handful of photos at a time, you'll want to get a 64 MB or 128 MB card. Like virtually all Olympus cameras, the D-40 has a flexible battery arrangement, accepting either a disposable lithium battery (one is included), or a pair of AA batteries (rechargeables strongly recommended).

This is a camera you won't quickly outgrow. If you're just getting started in photography, leave the camera in Auto. In this mode, taking pictures is as easy as sliding the lens cover open and pressing the button. As your photo skills progress, you can start taking advantage of the camera's advanced modes, including shutter priority, aperture priority, and full manual modes, plus manual focus, slow-sync flash, spot metering, manually adjustable white balance, exposure compensation, and more. The D-40 also comes with a remote control, making it easy to include yourself in group shots and it allows you to keep the camera steady in low-light situations.

For a break from taking pictures, spin the control knob to movie mode and you're ready to shoot mini-videos with sound. Though they don't have the resolution of camcorder movies, these clips of up to 30 seconds are perfect as e-mail attachments.

When it's time to transfer the images to your computer, the D-40 is a breeze to use. Connect the included USB cable between the camera and your computer, and the operating system (Windows 98 or newer for PCs, OS 8.6 or newer for Macs) will automatically detect your camera as an external drive, making picture transfers drag-and-drop easy.

If you can't decide whether to grab a full-sized digital camera for its advanced features or a tiny point-and-shoot for its portability, consider the D-40--it offers the best of both worlds.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

150 of 153 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comparison to Canon Powershot S40, April 15, 2002

By 

netscorer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Olympus Camedia D-40 4MP Digital Camera with 2.8x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

1) Size. Both cameras are small but the crown goes to Olympus, even if only by few cubic points. Olympus is also lighter of the two.
2) Resolution. Both cameras feature 4.1Mpixel CCD. What Canon misses and Olympus has is an extrapolation to 3,200 X 2,400 (or 7+Mpixels). By making an extrapolation from a raw image (not even TIFF!) the camera may make a much smarter decision then your average Photoshop program. This is the must if you want to print a poster from your picture.
3) Picture quality. Very good and comparable between both cameras. Even the most advanced reviewers have a hard time giving clear advantage to one or the other. Canon has a slightly better rendering algorithm, so the nod goes to Powershot but not by much. ...
4) Lenses - for all purposes the same. Not as fast as on any of the bigger cameras but satisfying for most applications.
5) Zoom - same.
6) Storage media. Olympus uses SmartMedia, while Canon uses CompactFlash (types I and II). Both supply laughable 16Mb out of the box, so you have to purchase larger modules. The prices for memory are comparable but advantage goes to Canon, since Compact Flash is a more advanced format and comes in bigger sizes. Still, 128Mb is more then enough for a day of shooting.
7) Batteries. Both cameras are not ideal. Canon pretty much forces you to buy additional module ... since it uses a proprietary format, but Olympus does not supply a rechargeable batteries and does not allow to recharge in camera, so you need to buy NiMh AA batteries and charger, which would cost the same (smart investment). Still I would give an advantage to Olympus because you can always find AA batteries in any store if you ran out of power. I also want to address here the power consumption since a lot of users are giving their thumbs down based on this feature alone. Both cameras are bad. This is a sad reality if you want a subcompact camera. But not make a tragedy out of this. If you use both cameras smartly, it should last you the whole day of shooting quite easily.
8) Price. Still too high IMHO for both of cameras. Canon is slightly more expensive but not by much. You can buy any camera now for less [money]. With all accessories (memory, batteries, case, etc.) you should just be able to fit in ... budget.
9) Flash. Mediocre at best for both cameras. Canon does a slightly better job at red-eye reduction, but Olympus is slightly better with white-balance adjustment. Still this is probably the weakest point for both cameras.
10) Video. Both cameras have built-in video mode with sound recording and speaker for later review. Since I don't care much for this feature I won't discuss it here.
11) Supplied software. Olympus ships with camera the Adobe Photoshop Elements - by far the best photo-editing package on the market now.
12) Nice extras. Canon comes in a metal casing which gives it a very sophisticated and ruggish look. Olympus casing is more stylish IMHO and is made of very sturdy plastic. Both cameras have auto USB connectivity and optional waterproof cases. Olympus has three unique features that made me buy it. First is a low-light noise reduction that can be activated when you switch camera into night shot option. The special algorithm that Olympus uses allows it to compensate for long-exposure related errors (such as "hot" pixels) and results in a much better looking pictures. If you like to make night photos (I do) you can't live without this feature. Second feature is pixel mapping that allows camera to compensate for dead pixels in CCD. Until you have this problem you won't probably think much about it. The third feature is "User Mode" which allows you to store your preferable settings and access them by simple switch of the dial. I use it quite often and it saves a lot of preparation time before shot is taken and results in a better quality picture. It is especially useful if you take a series of pictures in challenging lighting conditions (such as twilight time).

Overall, I chose Olympus for the above mentioned features, but you can't go wrong with any of these little cameras.

123 of 125 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally.. a high resolution pocket size digital camera!, December 30, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Olympus Camedia D-40 4MP Digital Camera with 2.8x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

I've used Olympus point-and-shoot cameras for years, starting with the XA. Though my 'main' camera is a Nikon F3, over the years I've opted to carry the small Olympuses for travel. If it can't fit in my pocket or purse, it doesn't go!

Finally... there is a pocket-sized digital camera that rivals the resolution of a film: the Olympus D40Z. It has more bells and whistles than the average photographer will ever need, but it also runs just fine in the 'PHD' AUTO mode. And the quality is fantastic! Another feature I really liked was the drag-and-drop feature that allows you to offload pics direct to a PC hard drive through the USB port makes download a snap. On a short boat ferry, I powered up my laptop and had the pics downloaded in less than 30 seconds. (One friend uses his Olympus to transfer files from one PC to another at home!)

Battery life has not been a problem - I've run several hundred photos through the camera and am still on the original battery. I don't however use the viewer much - I save battery life by downloading photos to the PC rather than viewing and editing them in the camera. Nevertheless, purchasing the rechargeable batteries is recommended in the long run.

I was looking at the Nikon CoolPix 990 and 995 before this camera was released. Though the quality and durability is very good, I was put off by the larger body size and weight of the Nikon (if it's not small, it will probably be left in the drawer more often than not). So if you're in the market for a digital camera and need small size, high picture quality with enough features 'headroom' to allow a high degree of control over the image, you should definitely consider the Olympus D40Z.

88 of 89 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Tiny camera, many features, December 10, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Olympus Camedia D-40 4MP Digital Camera with 2.8x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

This is the second Olympus camera I've owned, and I bought it specifically for travel. It fits easily in a jacket pocket (or shirt pocket without the case) or a briefcase, so there's no excuse to leave it behind. Like all Olympus digital cameras, the D40 optics are excellent, and the resulting pictures have good color fidelity and saturation. The extra pixels also make a big difference in enlargements. 8x10 prints from the D40 are noticeably better than the 8x10s from my two-year old, 1.3 megapixel D620. Even subtle scenes like sunsets are captured with excellent fidelity - almost as good as film.

The camera has a dial that lets you select from several pre-programmed modes for scenes like landscapes, portraits, etc. One really cool pre-programmed mode is a night setting that allows long exposures by cancelling the noise that normally builds up in digital pictures. Of course, there is also an "auto" mode for us lazy folks, but if you're ambitious, you can navigate the menus, set everything manually, and save it as a user-defined, custom mode. It also shoots QuickTime/MPEG movies (with sound).

While I like the portability, the camera does have a few drawbacks. It uses a LOT of battery power, so the two AA cells run down very fast. Olympus ships the camera with a disposable 3V lithium battery, but get this, it costs about $10 to replace! I use rechargeable NiMh AA cells, and while they only last 1/3 as long as the throw-away lithium battery, over time they will save $$$. Be sure to get the newer 1600 or 1800 ma-hr AA cells, and pack four of them in the camera case.

Another potential drawback is the complexity of this camera. I enjoy learning how to operate stuff like this, but if you are intimidated by options and menus, you might want to look at a different model.