Olympus SP-500 Specification Sheet

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EVFThe SP-500 uses an electronic viewfi nderwhich is reasonably clear and bright andshows all of the scene via a video feed fromthe CCDLCDThe 2.5inch LCD monitor is a very usefulsize, and is bright and clear. The menufollows Olympus’ usual rotary style frontpage, with nested sub menustopfrontsidePRICE £300llllllllll6megapixelsscores86%1716181718valuedesignimage qualityease of usefeatures38 What Digital Camera 39What Digital Camerawww.whatdigitalcamera.comOLYMPUS CAMEDIA SP-500 UZquick viewTURN TO PAGE 128 AND USE OUREXTENSIVE BUYING GUIDEWE WILL HELP YOU CHOOSE THERIGHT CAMERA AT THE RIGHT PRICEup againstSONY CYBER-SHOTDSC-H1£320CHECK OUT THESE SIMILAR CAMERASIN OUR PRICE COMPARISONBEFORE YOU BUYbuying guideInvesting inan TCON-17adaptor enablesconversion lensto be used withthe SP-500 UZThe USB and A/Vpoint is protectedby a rubber cover,adjacent to thestrap eyeletAdjacent to thepop-up flash onthe top plate ofthe camera sitthe mode dial,AEL, shutterand Power OnbuttonsSENSOR 1/2.5inch CCD (Total 6.37MP, Effective 6.0MP)LENS 38-380mm f/2.8-3.7SHUTTER SPEEDS 15-1/1000secEXPOSURE MODES M, A, AP, SP, P, 21 SceneFLASH 0.3m - 4.5m (W) 1.2m-3.4 T, GN9ISO Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400MONITOR EVF 201,600 pixel/ 2.5inch 115,000 pixel TFTOTHER 320x240 30fps Video,10Mb int, xDPOWER 4x AADIMENSIONS/ WEIGHT 105.5x74.5x71mm/285gJamie Harrison tests a Superzoom camera that lookslike it’s a compactMost Superzoom cameras are quite bulkycompared to compact cameras. Someare even approaching the size of an SLR,albeit including a 10x or 12x zoom lens. Olympus,though, has taken a slightly different, althoughpredictably Olympian, route. The new SP-500UZis small, yet still manages to squeeze an awful lotinto its diminutive stature.Why is this predictably Olympian though? Thecompany has always made a point of producing smallbut perfectly formed cameras. Look at the originalmju cameras, the OM series, the Pen EE half frames.Olympus has always been slightly odd, too. Camerassuch as the O product and Ecru displayed a forward-thinking design ethos, while in 1991 Olympus in-troduced the idea of the bridge camera, halfwaybetween compact and SLR, which has defi ned thedesign ethos for most of the modern digital Super-zoom. So what does Olympus do now? It designs asuperzoom camera that looks more like a traditionalcompact.SPECIFICATIONSThe SP-500 is well specifi ed for such a small camera,with an impressive 38-380mm lens and large 2.5inLCD on the back. Like other cameras in the genre,the camera offers much for the enthusiast, includingRAW recording and the full set of exposure controls,Program, Aperture priority, Shutter priority, and fullManual. For less experienced photographers or thosewho prefer the easy life, the SP-500 still allows au-tomatic mode, as well as 21 scene modes.Technology has also fi ltered down from the recentC-7070 model, including that camera’s impressivePredictive AF system for tracking moving subjects,not to mention the company’s IESP metering system,and 143 individual focus points, which can be linkedto the spot metering function.Many cameras of this size have forgone the view-fi nder altogether, but Olympus has still managed tomaintain an electronic version, with 201,600 pixelsthat manages to be sharp and detailed, with theadded benefi t of electronic readouts such as live his-‘In many respects this is a camerathat people have been crying out for’www.whatdigitalcamera.comMANUFACTURER: OlympusMODEL: SP-500 Ultra ZoomPRICE: £300CCD: 1/2.5-inch 6.0MP eff/6.37MP totalMAX PRINT SIZE: 14.08 x 10.56-inch at 200dpiLENS: 6.3 - 63mm f2.8-3.7(35mm equ 38-380mm)SHUTTER SPEEDS: 15-1/1000secISO: Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400EXP MODES: Auto, AP, M, P, SP, 21 scene modesFLASH: GN9DRIVE MODES: Single, burst, high-speed burstMETER: Digital ESP , spot, centre-weightedWHITE BALANCE: A, 7preset, customFOCUS: Spot, iESP autofocus, Predictive AF, AFselectable from 143 points, ManualVIEWFINDER: Electronic 201,600 pixelsMONITOR: 2.5-inch TFT LCD, 115,000 pixelsCONNECTION: USB 2.0, DCREC FORMAT: Jpeg, RAW, QuickTime Motion JpegFILE TYPE: Pictbridge, Pictbridge EasyPrint, PrintImage Matching III, Exif 2.21, DPS andDPOF supportVIDEO OUTPUT: PalPOWER: 4xAASTORAGE: xDOTHER: 320 x 240 at 30fps movie mode,panorama function, 3cm super macroDIMENSIONS: 105.5 x 74.5 x 71mmWEIGHT: 285gPROS: Good functionality, RAW,LCD and EVFspecificationstogram and AF/metering frames.In many respects this is a camera that people havebeen crying out for. The price is good, at £300; theresolution at 6MP allows for reasonable A4 prints;it’s got plenty of photographic control and it easily fi tsinto a pocket. Plus it’s got that long lens. But it’s notperfect.There has to be compromises to fi t the price and theplastic body isn’t as tough as I’d like. It’s not bad, but itisn’t the same as last year’s metal-bodied C-770 and C-765 cameras. It’s also just a little bit bland to look at,and lacks the style of some other cameras at that price.However the traditional looks may well work as an ad-vantage, particularly in appealing to fi rst-time digitalbuyers transferring from fi lm, or for those who don’twant a style statement but a good, functional camera…and there are plenty of those people about.VERDICTThe SP-500 is competent and a truly useful camera. Itacts like a compact, with the features of a superzoom,and is the ideal camera to chuck in your bag when youdon’t want to carry an SLR or other bigger camera.You won’t be able to use it as a complete alternativeto an SLR, but it’s not a bad back up. Similarly at theprice, if you want to try out digital and all it has to offerthen you could do worse, while students could benefi tfrom its budget price and traditional controls. I reallylike it. WDCDecember 2005 December 2005KONICA MINOLTADIMAGE Z6£350TAKE THE 360 OVIRTUAL TOURwww.whatdigitalcamera.comONLY ON THE WEBCANON POWERSHOTS2 IS£340OlympusCamedia SP-500 UZCONS: Bland looks, somefringing, some oversharpeningand image noiseExposure is one area I’ve never been ableto criticise Olympus for: the companyknows how to meter. Time after timedespite the varying September condi-tions, the SP-500 produced perfectlyexposed pictures. Image sharpness is agood point too, and despite worries thatthe lens could be overstretching itself, Iwas impressed with the results. At times,images look a tad over sharpened, espe-cially JPEGs, though not with RAW. There’salso the odd case of purple fringing, es-pecially in high contrast conditions. Likepretty much every camera we test withsmall sensors, image noise is a problem,though lower ISO settings prove to be wellcontrolled. Colour is good, though a littletoo saturated for my taste, and an AdobeRGB option would have been nice.see more on the webDownload our SP-500 UZ testimages on our websitewww.whatdigitalcamera.comimage qualityp38 Olympus sp500 jphbjh.indd 38-39 2/6/06 14:31:59

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