Olympus Stylus 850SW 8MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom (Silver)

i really am disappointed with this. i was excited because it was waterproof and drop proof which i took as being "college proof" since i've ruined 2 cameras by either dropping them or getting them wet. however it's almost not worth the crappy pictures it takes. they're all blurry, have this weird glowy haze, HORRIBLE night picture, like absolutely horrible, and it either makes you look really really pale or really really like reddish brown depending on your skin color. i really hate this camera. maybe it's just mine?

If your getting a camera for a college student (as I did) whose previos camera bit the dust (as our's did) at the beach, try this one. It's sealed against water and sand and dust. The pictures have been excellent. You can read about the rest of the features and specs on the Olympus and Amazon websites. Get a spare battery with a higher mAh.

I bought my daughter this camera before surf camp this summer. She loves it. Underwater pics are great. Overall, very good picture quality.

PRO's: Excellent picture quality, very nice slim design, waterproof, shockproof, resistant to cold, very versitile camera that can go anywhere and be used by almost anyone. Camera menus are in my opinion easy to navigate, and the manual features are nice. For inexperienced photographers the stylus has a mannual setting for almost any situation. Of course the auto setting does very well too.

CON's: The video feature on this camera is poor. The picture quality of the video is good, but the sound is poor, and you can only film for 10 seconds at a time. I didn't buy the camera for video, I already have a nice compact HD video camera (Canon HG-10) that meets my needs.

Other Thoughts: The camera takes fantastic underwater pictures, and I am very impressed with what this little camera can do. However, be aware that when you take pics underwater, water or dirt/film can get in between the lens and the lens cover. This will cause some blurring of your pictures. Be sure and clean the internal lens from time to time to ensure the clearest pictures.

I have owned and used several DSLR's. For the money, this is about the best and most versatile camera I have ever had. I can take great pictures anywhere, my wife can use it on auto, and my 2 year old can throw it around or douse it in water. Perfect Camera in my opinion, there is nothing else like it.

I love my camera, it takes very nice pictures but when you want to zoom in on things it frankly sucks. Your better off just taking a zoomed picture and then zooming in on what you want when you go home. Otherwise my only other complaint would be is that I ordered a black on and they sent me a blue one. I like the color of the blue one but at first I was frustrated. The pictures are very nice, and the waterproofness of the camera works very well. I've also dropped it a few times, by accident, of course. I'm also in college so this thing has survived hours of continuous use. I don't know why other people complained so much about the battery life. If you let the camera go dead and then charge it, the battery will learn how to last longer. This is the kind of battery that it is. If you put it on the charger too soon it will think that it starts to go dead at the time and the battery life will then decline. I have no other complaints beyond the zoom. If olympus could make a better zoom with maybe a digital zoom then the camera would be more worth the 300 spent on it.