Customer Reviews
A little pricey, but what Olympus isn't? 
2008-07-02
The Good:
With the quality and dependabilty individuals have come to rely on for years, Olympus has done it again and come out with another wonderful camera. The Stylus 850 SW is WONDERFUL! It lives up to every expectation I had of it so far, and is still suprising me. Some people have been saying the picture can be grainy and yes, it can be... if you have it on some strangely high ISO setting inside for no real reason! This camera comes with all the presets you could ever want, including settings for candlelight, behind glass, online auctions, regular portraits, self-portraits, food, AND fireworks! The 'favorites' menu is genius; ever want to show someone a picture you took and you have to go through all 286 vacation photos to find that ONE picture? No more! With 'favorites,' you can set pictures that you have taken as a favorite, and then when you want to get directly to them, simply turn the selector wheel to the star ('favorites') and all your favorite pictures are in one place, no searching required. There is even editing available right on the camera so you don't have to wait to get home to take out the red eye or shadows in that great shot of Aunt Martha. With the fun 'frame' edit, you can even put her newly red eye free picture in a 'frame,' right on your camera! Then just hook it up to a printer at a local computer place and voila! Great for the accident prone short person such as myself. Being 5'4", I'm probably not going to drop the camera from more than 5', which just happens to be what it is rated for so this is a match made in heaven. Simply simple, simply AMAZING!
The Bad:
- Some reviews have stated that if you do happen to take this camera on an underwater adventure, to be sure and keep a good hold on it because it sinks like a lead weight. I can see why. Not the lightest camera ever made. Lighter than my 3mp Olympus from the dinosaur age by a number of pounds, but they make the floating strap for a reason.
- I'm a little saddened by the battery situation. Every time you need to charge it, you have to take it out of the camera, which makes you reset the date and time every time you put the battery back in. Not a huge issue, just may get a little annoying after awhile. Plus, repetitive removal of the battery could lead to dust or other particles getting in the battery door, making the waterproof function, well, MAL-function. Just be very careful, read the directions and follow them to a T.
- Didn't come with a screen protector. Traditional screen protectors aren't waterproof, so I'm wondering how expensive its going to get to buy screen protectors for this camera... It isn't a big deal since the camera is waterproof so you can just wash off anything icky that may get on it, but it would be nice for scratches and such. They do make silicon protectors for the outside of the camera that fit it like a glove, which is great for protecting the body.
Amazing Camera 2008-07-01
This camera is well worth the money!!! I wanted it to have fun at work (I am a lifeguard) and we are always in the water with it. It takes quality pictures that more expensive cameras does. For only 299$, the camera is a bargain.
Good camera for the price 
2008-06-30
We wanted a camera that was waterproof and shock resistant, primarily for backpacking and canoeing. We took the camera on a 7 day backpacking trip to Isle Royale in early June and it performed very well. It is a battery hog, tho. A second battery was a necessity. We used it in pouring rain with no problems and it survived the week bouncing in my pack and cargo pocket just fine. Since then I've held it underwater taking pictures of fish as they were coming to the net, again, no problems. Cons: battery life, lack of manual control over shutter speed/aperture, settings options default to original on power down. For the price, tho, it is a good point and shoot that is also waterproof and shock resistant.
Waterproof, but only for a while 
2008-06-27
I took my son on a rafting trip down the Grand Canyon. Two days before we left, my wife gave me this camera as a b-day gift. (I'm usually a Canon type of guy). The camera worked great for the first 4.5 days, until I went swimming with it in Havasu Falls. The camera remained at least a foot from the surface, nor did I leave it underwater for more than a few minutes. Later that evening, as we were setting up camp, I pulled it out to take a pic of a scorpion. The image on the LCD was a complete fog (when I returned home, the pic was also a fog.) It took several days until the LCD showed a clear image. Now I'm hesitant to use it for what it was intended for, and the camera store that my wife bought it at has a 10 day return policy, and it's been longer than that, so I might, or might not, be able to return it.
All other functions worked well.
I was able to take over 300 pics and 3 minutes of video on the fully charged Li-ion battery. (An after-market battery fared considerably worse, only allowing 50-60 pics.)
is the worst I've seen 
2008-06-23
Truly the camera OLYMPUS STYLUS 850SW 8MP who buys, is the worst purchase I made, with the following:
1. The image quality is the worst I've seen, no matter if it is 8 megapixels, never compared to the SONY in any of its models.
2. I can not use the zoom because the blurred picture emerging, the face of people can't be distinguished. The zoom does not help at all.
3. The battery lasts for only about 120 photos, the worst battery that is used in activities that I have done, I've never been able to take all the photos because the battery is exhausted.
4. and for the quality of images is a camera truly expensive
5. the storage capacity for the video is very poor considering that is 2 GBS,
I decided to buy a OLYMPUS STYLUS 850SW 8MP that I thought it was a chamber of "excellent quality" but I never thought it wrong, AMAZON.COM could sell a product of such poor quality.
My brother who is also a user AMAZON.COM wanted to buy a camera and just after seeing the quality of the photos said that it will not.
Since this e-mail only what you see and not the other buyers, it would be good that the removal of its inventory sales.
Sincerely
MAURICIO GALDAMEZ
Verdaderamente la cámara OLYMPUS STYLUS 850SW 8MP que compre, es la peor compra que hice, por lo siguiente:
1. La calidad de imagen es la peor que he visto, no importa si se trata de 8 megapíxeles, nunca en comparación con la SONY en cualquiera de sus modelos.
2. No puedo utilizar el zoom ya que la imagen es muy borrosa, el rostro de las personas no se pueden distinguir. El zoom no ayuda en absoluto.
3. La batería dura sólo alrededor de 120 fotos, batería que se utiliza en las actividades que he hecho, nunca he sido capaz de tomar todas las fotos porque la batería está agotada.
4. y por la calidad de las imágenes es una cámara realmente costosa
5. la capacidad de almacenamiento para el video es muy pobre teniendo en cuenta que es el 2 de GBS,
Decidí comprar una OLYMPUS STYLUS 850SW 8MP que yo pensé que era una cámara de "excelente calidad", pero nunca pensé mal AMAZON.COM podía vender un producto de tan mala calidad.
Mi hermano que es también un usuario AMAZON.COM quería comprar una cámara y después de ver la calidad de las fotos dijo que no.
MAURICIO GALDAMEZ
LOVE this camera! 2008-07-08
Just got this camera after doing lots of researching of underwater cameras. This camera is awesome for the price! Love that it has a rechargeable battery and so many different shooting modes! It's really easy to set up and get started...even my kids love using it! Purchased a bigger memory card right away and am getting a silicone skin as well. I've been recommending this camera to everyone!
Wonderful Camera 2008-07-08
I bought this camera after our Sony was stolen in South Padre and I couldn't be happier. Yeah I was sad that we lost all our pictures from a week long vacation but it is almost worth it. Along with the camera I have purchased two extra batteries (you will need them) and 2GB xd card and a 4GB micro sd card. On normal mode the xd card holds about 1000 pics. We have updated the software and the videos are amazing. The picture quality is great, at first I didn't like the night pics but once I put it on the correct setting the pictures were wonderful. With my old Sony I never used the scene settings bc I never noticed a difference, with this camera the settings make a huge difference. The panorama was easy to use (but only in P mode)I was one that would never read the instruction manual but with this camera it helped so much.
Also the floating strap is a must, it will sink!! We have put it in water several times with no problems, I check the battery and usb doors every time to make sure there isn't anything in there. We haven't had ideal underwater opportunities just yet, but when we used it we had a blast with it.
I love this camera and have turned many people on to it! And if you are looking for an orange one Best Buy had it.
Great Camera for the price 2008-07-07
We actually purchased this camera for our teen daughter, but have ended up using it as much as she does. She loves the underwater capability and has used it often to take pictures in the pool and at the lake. I love all of the available options and great picture quality. We recently purchased another camera, but chose to take this one on vacation. If there is one downside to the camera, it is that you must have the Olympus software program installed on your computer (comes with camera) to upload pictures. As far as the weird sized memory card that comes with the Olympus goes, we just use the micoSD (which is also used in cell phones) card instead. If you are looking for a fun camera that takes good pics, especially if you want the underwater capability, I think you will enjoy this one.
DO NOT BUY THIS CAMERA!!!!!!! 2008-07-07
I received this camera a couple of days before leaving for a month long vaction in Spain. 2 days after arriving in Spain I went online to update the firmware of the camera so that I could take longer videos. Within a minute of completing the update and making sure that the extended video function worked, the camera shut off. Thought the battery ran down so I recharged it and the camera simply will not start now. Called Olympus long distance from Barcelona and they said I had to send it in for repair. Told them I needed another camera stat and they basically said tough luck. Told them that I would need to leave a negative review on Amazon and they couldn't care less. So, if you're looking for a dependable camera, look somewhere else.
Stylish, functional and so fun! 2008-07-03
My wonderful father sent me this camera as a complete surprise and I couldn't be happier with it! It's lightweight, easy to use, and so far I've had no problems with droppage (as in I've dropped it and it's remained in perfect working condition!) as well as it takes great underwater pictures. I would recommend this camera to anyone who enjoys taking pictures.
