Olympus Camedia C-50 5MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom

by Olympus

Product Details

Product Manual [4.94mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 1.6 x 3.9 x 2.3 inches ; 8 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00006JLOT
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (72 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,021 in Camera & Photo (See Top 100 in Camera & Photo)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 15, 2002

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Five-megapixel resolution is quickly becoming the new standard for digital cameras. But these cameras are often bulky, heavy things to lug around. Enter the Olympus Camedia C-50, a svelte, lightweight image capturer with a fair amount of features.

The 3x optical zoom lens folds up inside the camera case with the covers sliding shut over it when not in use, making the camera's small metal frame easily pocketable. While the camera also uses the tiny XD media for storage, it only comes with a 32 MB card, barely enough to hold a dozen images at the highest resolution, so you'll want to stock up on storage (which is thankfully getting cheaper by the month).

Although only 1.5 inches in size, the bright LCD provides an accurate and easy to view image of framed shots before capture. The C-50 also offers an optical viewfinder for framing shots and saving on battery life.

Speaking of, the battery recharges quickly (averaging about two hours) and lasts for several hundred shots before needing a recharge. Even with the limited surface area, the well-placed dials and menu buttons are within easy reach when using the camera, making it a snap to utilize one of the camera's six different scene modes or five flash modes.

With its 5.0 megapixels, captured images offer incredible details and bright colors and can be printed at nearly poster size without any loss of resolution. The C-50 also captures short QuickTime movies, albeit without sound, small enough to be e-mailed to friends and family. Users of newer computers (both Windows and Mac) don't even need to install a driver to transfer images and movies to their system via the camera's USB cable.

The sticker price on the C-50 is still a bit hefty for a point-and-click compact camera, but not bad when you consider the potential of all those megapixels. --J. Curtis

Pros:

• Very compact
• High-quality images
• Long battery life

Cons:

• Only 32 MB memory card
• No sound in movie mode

Amazon.com Product Description

Early Adopters Pick: October 2002. State-of-the-art digital camera that is the first 5-megapixel camera to use the new XD memory format; also has a bright (f2.8) 3x zoom lens and precision metering system.

Combining first-rate photo technology with a compact metal body, the Olympus Camedia C-50 will thrill quality-conscious photographers looking for a state-of-the-art digital camera. Incorporating a 5-megapixel CCD, bright (f2.8) 3x zoom lens, and precision metering systems, the Camedia C-50 offers effortless shooting and provides sharp, well-exposed, lifelike results. More ambitious photographers will appreciate the manually adjustable features, such as aperture, shutter, and white balance. The C-50 is also one of the first digital cameras to use the new XD memory format, and it includes a 32 MB card.

Optics and Resolution
Featuring a 5-megapixel CCD sensor, the Camedia C-50 delivers a wide range of detail and color (with images up to 2,560 x 1,960 pixels) and prints up to 11 by 14 inches and beyond to poster size. It boasts a 3x optical zoom lens and 4x digital zoom for a seamless total zoom of 12x.

Storage and Transfer
The Camedia C-50 is one of the first Olympus digital cameras to be compatible with the new XD memory card format. Comparable in size to a penny and weighing less than 1/10th of an ounce, the XD memory card is not only the smallest storage medium, it also uses less power for better battery performance and has faster data transfer rates than other memory cards. The included 32 MB card will store approximately 27 images at 2,560 x 1,920 pixels (at HQ setting).

Images can be downloaded to either a Mac or PC via USB connectivity, which means it can be connected to any USB-based Windows Me/2000/XP and Mac OS 8.6 or later computer without installing any software.

Movie Mode
In addition to taking still photos, the Camedia C-50 can also record movie clips at 15 frames per second with sound in two formats: HQ (320 x 240 pixels, up to 16 seconds) and SQ (160 x 120 pixels, up to 70 seconds). The QuickTime Motion JPEG format offers a limited resolution, which is great for capturing a short movie that can be e-mailed to friends and family, but is no replacement for a true camcorder.

More Features
Like other cameras in its line, the Camedia C-50 features Olympus's TruePic technology, which uses all the pixels captured by the CCD at all resolutions to create an image and "smoothes" it to get a smoother and clearer image. Unlike other digital-camera designs that throw away pixel information to create smaller file sizes, TruePic uses all the pixel information to create a better and truer photographic image at the lower pixel resolutions.

Other features include:

• Built-in flash with auto mode for backlight, red-eye reduction, fill-in mode, and slow-shutter synchronized flash
• Shutter speeds of 1/1,000 second to 1/2 second
• Six selectable scene programs
• Panoramic ability when combined with Camedia Master software and optional Olympus brand XD memory card

Power, Size, and Contents
The camera is powered by a lithium-ion rechargeable battery (included). It measures 3.9 x 2.3 x 1.6 inches and weighs 6.8 ounces. This package includes the Camedia C-50 digital camera, 32 MB XD memory card, lithium-ion battery and charger (model LI-10B), wireless remote control, USB and AV cables, wrist strap, and CD-ROM with Camedia Master imaging software and USB drivers for Windows and Mac.

See all Product Description

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

77 of 81 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars All my research and patience paid off!, May 4, 2003

By 

Roy Chan (Long Beach, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Olympus Camedia C-50 5MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

Pros: Ultra compact, five megapixels, manual exposure options, Compact, high resolution, razor sharp, bright LCD, Small, lithium ion battery/charger, picture quality, compactness, easy to use, loaded with advanced features yet point-and-shoot simple on automatic, multiple resolution options, including uncompressed TIFF, compact and light.

Cons: No LCD screen cover, no AF assist light, questionable low-light capabilities, many settings, price, uses new xD picture card, Poor LCD viewing in very low light, extremely slow save for TIFFs, occasional image noise, works poorly with a tripod.

Summary: I did quite a bit of research before deciding on the Olympus C50. I wanted a small digital camera that had some manual controls. The camera also had to feel sturdy and have a menu system that was intuitive for me. The C50 won out over my other choices hands down (Minolta F100 and Nikon CP4500). Overall, I'm happy with my purchase and can live with the little quirks I've read about with this camera. The remote comes in handy when displaying your pictures on TV. Also, the battery life on this little guy is quite good -- much better than the Kodak I had. Olympus could have done a better job on the printed manual. The manual on CD is much better and they should have just printed out that manual in the appropriate language for the countries they ship to.

51 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Chock full of features in a compact design., January 2, 2003

By 

M. J. Mincey "Electronics Geek" (Orlando, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Olympus Camedia C-50 5MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

I've been a big fan of Olympus from day one. I've been using digital cameras for a few years but have never owned one until now, so I wanted to make sure I got the most bang for my buck. I was looking at this camera and the Canon S45 which has just hit the shelves. I opted for this camera over the Canon, despite it's few shortcomings. Let me explain...

To start off with, I'll give you the downside. You can't record audio in movie mode (so, just get a video camera if you want to record videos). Low lighting shooting can be difficult since there is no infrared sensor top assist with the shots. Disappointing. Finally, there is no manual focus, which could actually assist with the low light shooting, but alas, it was not included. This is why I give it 4 stars.

On the positive side, pictures are fantastic! I take this camera with me everywhere and barely have to make any adjustments for my picture taking. Also, the camera allows you to rotate the pictures and crop WITHIN the camera itself!!! So, for those of you that take lots of portrait shots, like me, have that capability before downloading to your computer. Such a time saver.

The xD-picture card that it utilizes is the size of a postage stamp. The card has a current capacity of 128 mb with the 256 mb card due by the end of this month. In another year or so, the capacity will theoretically reach almost 8 gb! That's an insane amount of pictures, but it's what you need on those vacations.

Plus, the battery life is excellent. I've used this thing like a workhorse and have taken pictures to fill up my 128 mb card, downloaded the pictures, and started taking more and still didn't have to recharge the battery. I'm getting a backup just so I don't ever have to take my charger with me.

Bottom line is this 5-megapixel camera has all of the bells and whistles you come to expect from Olympus and then some. For a camera this small that I can pop in my pocket and forget about it, I think the money spent is well worth it, even with the 3 shortcomings I mentioned above. I highly recommend it!

89 of 96 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars decent camera but loses out to competition, September 24, 2003

By 

jemaerca (River Forest, IL, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Olympus Camedia C-50 5MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

pros:
- 5MP resolution in a small, well-designed metal body.
- allows a great deal of manual control.
- good color reproduction.
- higher than expected contrast from tonal balance.
- low image noise with moderate shutter speeds.
- spot metering.
- shooting priority play mode (double press of quick view button).
- good night exposures with automatic noise reduction.
- solid build quality.
- bright, high resolution LCD monitor with anti-reflective coating.
- included Infrared remote control.
- decent battery life (but i'd still recommend getting a spare).
- compact dimensions 3.9 x 2.3 x 1.7 in, weighing 8.0 oz.

cons:
- some purple fringing / chromatic aberrations.
- noisy images, "jaggies" visible.
- limited adjustment on image parameters.
- no manual white balance.
- no manual focus.
- some blue cast using the flash.
- no AF illuminator.
- high redeye occurrence.
- poor movie mode when compared to competition.
- manual is on CD.
- LCD not very useful in very low light.
- glacial write times for TIFFs.
- slow image write times.
- RAW format not supported.
- you can't slide the lens cover to turn the camera on and off when mounted on a tripod nor can you change the battery or xD card.
- poor macro ability.
- fastest continuous shooting speed is only 1 fps.
- no histogram display in record or play mode.
- the supplied 32MB xD card is inadequate. be prepared to shell out a few more bucks for more memory.
- the batteries supplied are proprietary so add a few bucks to your budget for a spare.

the c-50z is a decent camera with 5MP resolution in a compact package. but there is no manual white balance and no manual focus plus the images compare unfavorably against its competition. at this price point, check out the canon s50.

i hope this helps you in your buying decision. peace.