Customer Reviews

Olympus Camedia D-510 2MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom Value Package

5 star:		(66)
4 star:		(38)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I have had my D-510 for over 2 months now and am happy with my purchase. I initially spent a couple weeks reading reviews all over the web on different 2 and 3 mega pixel digital cameras. Bottom line is that I would recommend this camera to anyone that is just starting out with a digital camera and wants to have a powerful camera that is a great value.

Pros
1. 3x zoom (You should get at LEAST a 3x optical zoom, digital zoom does not matter because you can do the same thing in software later)

2. Retractable lens.
I really like the fact that the entire lens retracts into the camera and gets covered so there is no danger of it being scratched. Some people might not like the fact that when you open the lens protector to turn on the camera for picture taking, the flash will come out and you have to wait a few seconds for the lens to come out. I got used to this and did not find it very bothersome.

3. Small size - it fits in the pockets for easy carrying around. Nice compact package when the lens is retracted.

4. Crisp and colorful pictures. The 4 x 6 prints I made turned out very nicely. I couldn't even tell the difference from pictures that came out of a regular camera. If you need bigger pictures often though, a more expensive 3 or 4 mega pixel camera would probably be bigger.

5. Fast USB connection, in my opinion you do not need to get a separate digital film reader.

6. Output pictures to TV, cables comes included.

7. Can fit over 200 pictures on a 128MB card. It uses 3.3V Smart Media. Don't buy the wrong stuff! Viking works great.

Cons:
1. Only comes with a 8MB card. You need to buy Olympus Smart Media if you want to use panoramic mode. You can just buy a new card of a cheaper brand and use the one that comes with the camera for panorama pics, which is what I do.

2. Software could be more robust, it works though.

3. Batteries, you need to get lithium ion batteries. If you do not have a set and charger already, you should get the 510 package to save money. Batteries will last a pretty long time if you do not leave the LCD monitor on and use flash all the time.

So far I love this camera. I tried a Fuji Finepix 2600 first, but it's ISO rating is too low for versatility. Not so the D-510. It handles 100, 200 and 400. I takes truer color pics inside the house WITH the flash than without, but that's normal. I found the instructions to be easy to follow. I've heard a lot of complaints about the lack of documentation included, but Olympus included a manual in PDF form on the CD that covers every single feature and function of this camera!

You take your shots, plug the cable into your camera and into your VCR and preview the pics in 5 seconds!! Be warned, though, the color you will see on your TV will not compare with your computer monitor unless you have a high resolution TV. However, I didn't get red eye on people even without using the red eye flash setting.

The camera has night mode, white balance, sharpening ability, self-timer, manual or auto ISO settings, fill-flash, no flash... you name it and this camera delivers! However, while it says it has a panoramic setting (which only works with Olympus media), it really just takes two consecutive pictures of your choosing. YOU have to join the shots together yourself in the software to make it a panormic, so I would hesitate to actually call it a panoramic feature.

All in all, it's a great camera! You can't beat taking a picture, plugging it into your PC, and within seconds, you have pictures!! Find the manual on the CD, read through it carefully, have fun while you're learning, and you'll be a digital camera buff in no time!!!

I really like this camera. I've noted several people reviewing this camera mention the "cheap" feel/look of the body of the D-510. I personally disagree, I think the camera looks pretty good and has a nice solid feel to it without feeling too heavy. The picture quality and color fidelity of this camera are both excellent. In SHQ mode with a 128 MB SM card you get 90 pictures, more than enough for almost any vaction or trip you might take. The storage-class USB makes getting pictures off of the D-510 a snap, and is far easier than any other digital camera I have owned. The movie mode only records 30 seconds of video at SQ mode and only 15 seconds of video in HQ mode. It doesn't matter how large a smart media card you have, you need to press the shutter button to take video clips with an approximately 2-3 second delay between each clip as the movie is written to the SM card. Important note: There are 2 "click stop" settings for the camera cover. You need to make sure the cover is fully open before the camera lens will extend. I think this camera is a worthy replacement of the D-490.

I shopped around a lot for my first digital camera, and this value package cinched it for me, since it came with rechargeable batteries, charger and camera case, all for the same price as the major chains. Overall, I love the camera. It was really easy to use right out of the box, and I know very little about taking pictures. Although the automatic setting is handy, you can experiment easily with the specialized settings, and the menus are easy to navigate. It's great that this Amazon value package comes with rechargeable batteries because, as every other review has noted, this camera eats batteries. However, the rechargeable batteries that are included do not come with any instructions, so you have no idea how long you're supposed to charge them. The charger even says "Read instructions before use," but where are the instructions? In general, the pictures were easy to transfer to my iMac. Whereas the manual says you don't need to install the Camedia software to use the USB, I did in fact have to install it, though that took seconds. And frequently, the USB connection doesn't work, and I have to fiddle with the cable and restart the computer before it works. Maybe it's my computer.
Some other tips:
1) To turn the camera on, you have to slide the lens cover all the way until you hear it snap. If you just slide it without hearing the snap, the camera does not work.
2) If you use any specialized settings or the digital zoom, these settings are wiped out when you turn the camera off, and when you turn it back on, you start at automatic again w/o digital. If you want to keep digital on at all times, go to the shooting menu and navigate it to "hold settings." When you do that, everything you set is stored in memory.
3) The instruction manual is very skeletal and does not go into detail. A more detailed description of the camera's features are in Adobe format on the included CD-ROM.
4) It took me a while before I realized you can preview your shots while you're in shoot mode (i.e., while the camera lens cover is open) just by hitting the monitor button twice.

Yes, I would recommend this camera. It's got a lot of great features in a sleek package.

I have been looking for a digital camera for a long time now and was about to buy the Olympus D-490, but luckly I found out about this newer model. There are three reasons why I went with this camera instead of the older model. This model features a Quicktime video mode that allows you to capture up to 66 seconds of footage on the provided 8mb card. This I thought would be a great way to send short movies to family and friend or just if something big was hapening and I wanted to make sure that I caught it. I also liked the easy USB conection opposed to the serial cable on the previous model. USB is alot faster, so most people end up buying a seprate USB card reader, which costs extra. With this camera this can be avoided. The third and final reason that I went with this camera is the improved zoom range. The D-510 has a 3x opical zoom and a 6x digital zoom. This allows for a longer shooting range.

Don,'t believe any of the few negative reviews posted here. Those people didn't take the time to read the manual on the CD. The printed manual says right on the front "basic manual" and that's what it is. Anyone that would get a D-490 must like waiting all day for their pics to transfer. If you have a computer old enough to not have any USB ports on it then try spending 400 bucks on computer upgrades instead of a digital camera. The optical zoom works fine. Panorama mode is cool and sequence shooting is as well. Pics can be viewed easily after taking them. You can either setup an option to immediately preview each picture you take as it's being written to the card or you can double click the monitor button to view them. It eats batteries true, but doesn't any digicam that uses AA's do that ;) This camera has way more options than the competition at this price range. If you're a more advanced photographer who wants more user configurable settings go for the C-2040 Zoom which is only [amount] more, or The C-700 if you want a "mega optical zoom" with its 10X optical/27X Optical + Digital

If you're going to spend [price] or more on a digicam and you're an amateur photographer do yourself a favor and pick one of these babies up.

I opened my D-510 last night and took about 75 pictures today. My first impression is that it's a wonderful digital camera in keeping with my prior experience with Olympus film cameras. Picture quality, expecially photo colors are wonderful. I would not recommend the camera to someone who must have simplicity. While I quickly learned how to use the camera, I have extensive camera experience. The written documentation enclosed with the camera is minimal. While I had the camera operating within minutes, downloading photos to my PC did not go so well. The necessary drivers did not appear on my PC. I had to call the Olympus 800 number. The technical help I received was excellent and the wait time was short. One point - the 800 # message said that I might have a 20 minute wait. I actually only had to wait about two minutes. One of my relatives saw the pictures the camera took today. She's already ordered a D-510 for herself!

Here's the only negative with the camera: The slide-door that turns the camera on and off. It feels flimsy and might some day be a cause for concern, plus it's kind of strange that you have to shut it part way, wait for the lens to retract, then shut it the rest of the way.

But, uh, that's just not a very big deal to me. The controls are intuitive enough. The optical zoom works great, no problems there. The digital zoom could maybe be more accessible, but most of the time you're not using it -- it works well once engaged, however. The ultra-close feature creates excellent detail.

One other cool thing is that the Olympus doesn't seem to try to tell you how your picture should look, i.e., it doesn't super-saturate every picture it takes like some of its competitors. I mean, I KNOW how to saturate a picture. Additionally, the images are ultra sharp and ultra clear, even with some really questionable lamp lighting.

It's a drain on batteries (it uses AA) of course, but so is every digicam and rechargeables are readily available in most parts of civilization. The display on the back is awesome -- I wish my laptop looked that good.

I guess in todays high tech society It would be foolish to purchase something without fully checking it out. Well after reading all the reviews posted here as well as a host of others concerning different Digital cameras, I decided on the D-510. I use it constantly for my business and I must say that it was a very wise decision to purchase this camera. Anyone that is thinking about purchasing a digital camera for the first time will be pleased with the quality,functionality and overall performance the D-510 has to offer. I appreciated all the helpful tips when I decided to purchase a digital camera for the first time and offer a few of my own.
1) Rechargeable batteries are a must.
2) To save even more battery life I purchased a "SanDisk" USB downloader which is fast, easy and doesn't require you to use your camera(your camera doesn't even have to be there)
...Hope I may have been some help....

After considerable research, I decided on the Olympus Camedia D-510Zoom for my first "real" digital camera. I couldn't be more pleased with the ease of use (considering the deep menu which is somewhat intuitive for a technophile), long list of cool features/controls, and excellent image quality. Although you can start taking pics immediately with the quick-start guide, TAKE THE TIME TO READ THE FULL MANUAL ON THE CD and practice!

The video clip and panoramic features are very fun toys/tools and proved to be much better quality than I expected. The Camedia software effortlessly stitches up to ten pics together for interesting panoramic shots and the video feature saves short silent clips in Quicktime MOV format. I would recommend spending the extra ten bucks or so on an Olympus-brand SmartMedia card with the panoramic code for your first or second large-capacity card (since the card that comes with the camera is only 8MB and other brand cards don't have the proprietary panorama code that works with the software.)

My camera says it will shoot about 22 pictures in the highest TIF resolution (1600x1200) and 1300 pictures in the lowest JPG resolution (640x480) on a 128MB card. The highest JPG resolution (SHQ at 1600x1200 w/minimal compression) is where I keep mine set most of the time and I get about 90 shots per 128MB card. The default JPG setting (HQ at 1600x1200 w/medium compression) gets about 230 shots per 128MB.

As with any zoom camera I've ever used, you need to keep the camera still or your image will blur. Use a tripod as often as you can, particularly for zooming, night shots and definitely for panoramic shots. The 3x optical zoom is nice but it will not make my SLR (35mm film camera w/zoom and macro lenses) obsolete by a long shot-perhaps if I dropped a grand or two on a high-end Nikon or Minolta digital...

The camera does eat batteries, but not as bad as I expected, considering all the moaning and groaning in these reviews. Just buy an inexpensive NiMH charger and eight rechargeable batteries. I find my Energizer ACCUrechargeables last much longer than the batteries the camera came with and I'm very happy with them. I also keep a set of Duracells in the camera bag just in case.

The housing has been described as cheap (among other things) but I think it has a good solid feel to it and if you treat it like the somewhat delicate piece of electronic equipment it is, instead of like a football, it will probably last a long time.

I don't have a card-reader or AC adapter yet since I don't see an urgent need for them. The camera works well by itself as a card reader and the transfers are quick (about 4 minutes to transfer a full 128MB card) so I don't think I'll shell out the fifty bucks for the adapter (ouch!).