Olympus C-50 Zoom $599. This is Olympus' first ultra-compact metal camera, and also their first to use a proprietary lithium ion battery.
When it's time to recharge, just pop the battery in the included charger, and plug it into the wall. This isn't one of those chargers with a built-in plug, by the way. Charging the LI-10B takes about two hours.
A built-in lens cover is part of the C-50's stylish design. The cover also doubles as the power switch. I did find it a little to easy to bump it -- especially when opened -- thus turning the camera off.
Another nice item in the bundle is the good old RM-1 wireless remote. This remote has been around forever so has the picture above, but it's very helpful for taking pictures away from the camera, or for playing them back on a television while you sit on the couch.
Look and Feel
The C-50Z is reminiscent of Olympus' D-400/500 series of cameras, except it's smaller and with an all-metal body. The metal body of the C-50 gives it a really solid feel, but watch out, as the surface scratches easily.
The camera is super easy to hold, and fits in your pocket with ease. Controls are generally easy to reach more on this later.
The official dimensions of the camera are 3.9 x 2.3 x 1.6 inches WxHxD, and it weighs 194 grams empty. For the sake of comparison, the Canon S45's numbers are 4.4 x 2.3 x 1.7 inches and 260 grams, respectively.
Let's start our tour of the camera now:
The C-50 has an F2.8, 3X optical zoom lens. The focal range is 7.8 - 23.4 mm, which is equivalent to 38 - 114 mm. As with all ultra-compact cameras, the lens is not threaded.
Just above the lens is the optical viewfinder. To the left of that is the self-timer/remote control lamp.
Over at the top right is the built-in flash. The working range of the flash is approx. 0.2 - 3.4 m at wide-angle, and 0.3 - 2.0 at telephoto. Since I've been unofficially comparing the C-50 to the S45 thus far, I will say that the flash range is substantially better on the S45.
Just below the flash is the remote control receiver. Sadly there's no AF illuminator on the C-50Z, which the S45 and a few other similar cameras do have.
Here now is the back of the C-50Z. It has an average-sized 1.5" LCD display, which is bright and fluid. The resolution is very good as well. The brightness is adjustable via a menu option.
Above the LCD is the optical viewfinder, which is larger than average for a small camera. It does lack a diopter correction knob, but then again, so does most of the competition.
To the right of the optical viewfinder you'll find two buttons, with the following function from left to right:
| Record Mode | Playback Mode |
| Flash mode Auto, auto w/redeye reduction, fill flash, slow synchro, slow synchro w/redeye reduction, flash off | Delete photo |
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Macro mode |
Protect photo |
Continuing to the right, you can see the mode wheel, with quite a few options on it. These include:
| Mode | Description |
| Full Auto | Point-and-shoot, most menus items locked up |
| Portrait | For portrait shots |
| Landscape + Portrait | Landscapes with people in front |
| Landscape + Scene | Standard landscape mode |
| Night Scene | For night shots. Tripod required. Will use slower shutter speeds than all other modes except full manual. |
| Sports | For action shots |
| Self-portrait | Turn the camera on yourself |
| Movie recording | |
| My Mode | Quick access to your favorite settings |
| P/A/S/M | Program, aperture priority, shutter priority, and full manual modes. More in a second. |
I wish Olympus would keep the P/A/S/M options separate on the mode wheel, but I guess there was no room.
Program P mode is still automatic, but you have full access to the camera's settings.
Aperture priority A mode allows you to choose an aperture from a range of F2.8 - F8.0, and the camera picks the appropriate shutter speed. Olympus notes that shutter speeds cannot go slower than 1/30 sec at wide-angle or 1/100 sec at telephoto when the flash is on.
Shutter priority S mode is the opposite. You choose a shutter speed between 1/2 - 1/1000 sec, and the camera chooses the aperture. I don't like how Olympus won't let you use the full shutter speed range in shutter priority mode. If you're using flash slow sync, the shutter speed can go as slow as 4 sec, but otherwise it's 1/2 sec. You can use the Night Scene mode, but most of the camera controls will be locked up.
In full manual M mode, you set both the aperture and shutter speed. The aperture range is the same, but the shutter speed range increases to 8 - 1/1000 sec.
A quick word about My Mode: this is a handy way to save your favorite settings. You can either save the current set, or customize it yourself, and then you can use them anytime by simple switching to My Mode on the mode wheel.
Back to our tour now. To the lower-left of the mode wheel is the Display/Quick View button. Press it once in record mode, and the LCD turns on/off. Press it twice and you'll enter playback mode. If the lens cover is closed, you can press it once to enter playback. I did not like how the button was placed "below the surface" on the body -- it's too hard to press the button. You'll understand what I mean when you try it in person.
The final item on the back of the camera is the four-way switch. You'll use this to navigate the menus and adjust settings. The button in the middle activates the menu system and is also the "OK" button once there.
Here is the top of the C-50Z. Up here, you'll find the shutter release button and zoom controller. It takes about 2.3 seconds to move the lens from wide-angle to telephoto. The lens moves quietly -- totally opposite of the last Olympus camera I reviewed the C-5050Z.
On this side of the camera, you'll find the DC-in port for the optional AC adapter.
And on the other side, you'll find the rest of the I/O ports. THese include video output and USB. The plastic cover feels a little cheap compared with the rest of the camera.
Finally, here is the bottom of the camera. Behind another cheap-feeling plastic door, you'll find the battery and xD slots. You can see both of those over to the left.