Wed - November 29, 2006

Olympus Stylus Line of All Weather or Splashproof Digital Cameras



Years ago I was paddling with a Pentax WR film camera. It was weather resistant camera, but didn't mind an occasional short dip in water or rinsing under a tap. I was not very happy with image quality at least when shooting slides and the camera was really bulky in comparison to modern digital point and shoot gadgets. However, it was a pretty good camera for wet environment.

Today, I am a happy owner of Pentax Optio W10, a compact, waterproof, digital camera which is quite popular among paddlers and other outdoor enthusiasts. However, I think that for 90% of my paddling a good splashproof camera would be just adequate.

Why anybody would choose a splashproof camera instead of a waterproof one?

  • A lower price?
  • Features not available in a waterproof camera?
  • A better image quality? I would speculate that splashproof cameras may have better lenses since their design is not confined to the a waterproof camera box.
  • A loyalty to a specific brand?
  • Any other reasons?

In addition to waterproof and shockproof Stylus SW 7200, Olympus offers also a line of all-weather cameras which should be more suitable for paddling than regular point and shoot cameras. I am not aware of any other brands of weather resistant cameras being currently in production. You can click links below to compare prices and/or go shopping:

I wonder whether these Olympus cameras can survive anything more than am accidental drizzle. Do you have any experience with modern digital cameras rated as all weather, weather resistant or splashproof?

Related links:

Technorati tags: Olympus Stylus 730



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