Olympus MJU 760 Review

The big attraction of the Olympus MJU 760 is that fact that it is weatherproof. While the majority of digital cameras need to be put away when rain starts to fall the MJU 760 can cope with the wet weather without a problem. This is a relatively slim camera and can fit into a pocket without too much of a problem. It has seven megapixels and a three times zoom lens.

I must admit I'm never too sure what I am going to find when I review a digital camera from Olympus. I have to admit by being disappointed by the majority of their cameras I have reviewed recently.

In my first outdoor test shot the MJU 760 does a fair job with focusing. I have seen sharper photos than this one, but in my view sharpness is at an acceptable level. There is more than a suggestion of a purple tinge to blue lines and areas on the boats. I can also see some noise showing up in the sky and I would also liked to have seen the sky with a little more colour in it.

When the camera zooms right out for a wide angle shot as in my second outdoor shot, focusing is all over the place and the sharpness levels I saw in the first photo go walkabout. This suggests that landscape shots at a distance will not be this camera's forte. I also noticed darker areas creeping into the corners of the shot.

Sharpness levels improve again with the lens zoomed right in for the third outdoor photo. The purple tinge appears again in blue areas of the photo.

My dedicated test for colours shows that the camera is capable of producing strong colours in some circumstances. In fact the vividness of the blue areas of my test plate are somewhat stronger than I am used to seeing.

It is therefore strange to see the outdoor portrait lacking a bit of colour. I would like to have seen a bit more pep in this photo. There are no issues with focusing and the MJU 760 can cope better from this shorter distance.

Lighting for the indoor portrait is obviously not as good as for my outdoor tests. The MJU 760 makes a fair attempt at this shot. Focusing is good and I cannot see any evidence of red eye. The photo is darker than I am used to seeing with this test though. This suggests to me that the flash unit may lack a bit of power when compared to other digital cameras.

Once the light gets very low the MJU 760 has no answers at all. Focusing goes completely out of the window. You can see this from my beer bottles test.

The macro shot gets softer towards the edges. There is also a clear purple tinge showing in the silver around the outside of the watch face. This would not be a problem for outdoor nature close ups, but I have reviewed a large number of digital cameras that cope with my macro test better than the MJU 760 does.

As with many digital cameras once you start to increase the ISO rating there is a clear fall off in the quality of the photos. At ISO 400 deterioration is showing in the photo. At the highest level of ISO 1600 the photo is a bit of a write off.

When it comes to the delay between pressing the shutter button and the photo being taken the MJU 760 performs fairly well. A single photo took 0.42 seconds. This is a bit longer than I like to see, but not too bad. Five photos took 12.46 seconds. This is an average time. With flash times increase to 0.52 seconds for a single photo and 15.07 seconds for five photos. Recently I have reviewed a number of cameras where turning the flash on almost brings the camera to a complete halt. Therefore these are respectable times with flash on.

You can compare this camera to other models by taking a look at the Shutter Lag Comparison Table.

Style: With its sloping front The MJU 760 offers something a little different to other digital cameras. The camera is available in silver, blue and red.

99 x 54 x 24.4 mm

Weight: 120g

Lithium ion. Battery and charger supplied.

xD cards. 18MB built in memory (enough for around 10 photos).

Click here to save money on xD cards..

Ease of use rating: Good. Includes a few basic photography tips.

Points I like: Weatherproof - Style

Where it could improve: Lack of focus for wide angle shots - Photo quality could step up a notch

Verdict:
You are not exactly spoilt for choice if you would like a camera you can take out in the rain. The Olympus MJU 760 does not quite hit the spot for me without being a poor digital camera. A 20% all round improvement wouldn't go amiss with this range of cameras.

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Olympus MJU 760