Olympus FE-340 Review

The Olympus FE-340 is an 8 megapixel digital camera with a 5x optical zoom lens that is small enough to slip into a pocket. In terms of both design and features the FE-340 is a simple, unfussy camera. It offers a bit of extra zoom power when compared to typical pocket cameras. This camera is likely to be attractive to someone looking for an easy to use slim line, snapshot camera and who does not want to pay a fortune.

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Outdoor 1 (Medium Zoom)
Looking through all my outdoor test shots taken with the FE-340 they are of a similar quality. Homing in on the brickwork in the first test shot the picture shows above average sharpness. As you move out towards the edges of the shot most of the sharpness is retained.

I like the colours and brightness in the shot. The FE-340 also copes well enough with sun glare.

Outdoor 2 (No Zoom)
There is plenty of colour in the shot with the sky being quite a deep shade of blue. Focusing is at a similar level to that of the first test shot.

Outdoor 3 (Maximum Zoom)
Here we can see the advantage of that bit of extra zoom in a small digital camera. Again the picture is not quite pin sharp, but focusing is certainly good enough to produce some pleasing snapshots.

Outdoor 4 (Building)
With all the brickwork in this picture it is a big help for me when grading the digital camera for picture sharpness. This confirms my earlier view of this Olympus digital camera being above average, while not hitting the heights that some other cameras have managed. This is another photo where I like the depth of colour in the shot.

Outdoor Portrait
I used face detection focusing and white balance to boost the colour for this shot. The end result is very pleasing.

Indoor Portrait with Flash
The flash unit manages to emit just the right levels of light. Focusing is very good and once again there is plenty of colour in the shot.

Indoor Portrait without Flash
This is another good effort. It is brighter than many digital cameras manage and there is also more detail in the shot. The overall sharpness of the photo is also worth mentioning.

Colours
As you will have noticed I like the balance of colour produced by the FE-340 digital camera. This bodes well for general scenic shots in particular.

Macro
Taking into account the price tag of this camera I think the macro shot is very good indeed. I am impressed by the sharpness. This is also another bright photo.

ISO 400
I always look on shooting at higher ISO levels with compact digitals as something I would only do in an emergency. This would normally be if my subject was out of the range of the flash unit. Picture quality with the FE-340 holds up well. Noise levels are controlled and colours remain more or less true.

ISO 1600
Even at this higher level a good degree of picture quality is retained. Although I would not recommend using this setting unless you really had to it can help to capture a picture when there is not very much light around.

Overall
I am impressed by the results produced by the FE-340. As I mentioned above this is one of the less expensive pocket cameras and the photo quality is very good.

A single shot took 0.39 seconds. Five photos were captured in 10.18 seconds. With the flash turned on it took 0.43 seconds for a single photo. Five photos were taken in 11.69 seconds. These are all respectable times.

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

Like many other digital cameras Olympus has produced the FE-340 in a range of colours. These are silver, black, pink and blue. The front of the camera has a clean, uncluttered look. You should have no problem slipping this camera into a pocket.

96.9 x 57.5 x 22.6 mm

116 g

A lithium ion battery (LI-42B) provides power. Both a battery and charger are supplied as standard.

Olympus have built enough memory into the FE-340 to store around 25 - 30 images. This is enough for a good test of the camera. The camera is also compatible with xD memory cards.

Click here to save money on xD cards.

Very good.

Extra zoom on a pocket camera - simple and easy to use - overall picture quality

Nothing really stands out

An alternative, but more expensive pocket model worth a look is the Sony DSC T200.

Verdict:
There are a number of points I like about the Olympus FE-340 digital camera. First up I was impressed by the quality of the photos I was able to produce with the camera. Next I liked the ease of use of the camera. I also found that the extra length of the zoom lens can come in handy. Finally I like the price tag and feel the camera offers a very good option for someone looking for a cheaper pocket sized digital camera.

Front View

Back View

Top View

Sample Menus

Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information on this site, please make sure you double check the feature set and specification at the point of purchase.

Olympus FE-340