Olympus MJU 840 Review

Ultra Compact

Picture
Olympus MJU 840 Ease of Use 9
Features 7
Movie Mode 8
Build Quality8
Colours 8
Photo Quality 8
Style 8
Lowlight 8
Macro 7
Value for Money 8
8 Megapixels
5x Zoom
2.7 inch LCD Screen
96.4 x 56.5 x 24.0 m
130g

Overview

The MJU 840 Olympus digital camera is a stylish, little camera that should fit into a pocket. The MJU 840 has 8 megapixels and a 5x optical zoom lens. The lens being that bit longer than standard can help you to get in that bit closer when you need to. The camera is not over burdened with features and should appeal to someone looking for a simple, point and click model.

Main Features

Megapixels:
Zoom:
LCD Screen:
Dimensions:
Weight:

8
5x
2.7 inches
96.4 x 56.5 x 24.0 m
130g

Macro:
HD Movies:
Manual Controls:
Batteries:
Memory Cards:

3cm
No
No
Lithium ion
xD

Image Quality - See Sample Images Below

Outdoor Scenic Shots in Good Light

Outdoor 1 (Medium Zoom): Looking at my first test shot taken with the Olympus MJU 840 digital camera, the first points I notice are the colour and brightness of the photo. The colours have plenty of depth without being overpowering, while I also like the brightness of the picture.

In terms of sharpness the photo is not as sharp as some digital cameras manage and I would rank this camera in the middle rank when it comes to focusing. Sun glare is handled well, but I would like to have seen a bit more definition in some of the more shady areas of the shot.

Outdoor 2 (No Zoom): The second test shot runs along similar lines to the first one. The colours are very strong. This gives a very powerful blue sky. I would say the sky is a darker shade of blue than it was at the time the picture was taken.

Focusing is again about average. The picture is sharper in the centre with the focusing slipping out towards the edges. This is true for many cameras.

Outdoor 3 (Maximum Zoom): I like the way this photo looks. Focusing is softer than with some of the other cameras I have reviewed recently. This should not be a problem if you are planning to print at say 7 x 5 inches, but if you blow the photos up to be larger than this the prints are likely to have a soft feel to them.

Outdoor 4 (Building): This is another decent photo. Again I like the colour and brightness of the shot. Focusing is much better than with the Olympus FE-310 digital camera I reviewed recently.

Portraits

Outdoor Portrait: By using a white balance setting of cloudy the outdoor picture takes on a slight orange colour caste. Without changing the white balance the original picture was rather dull.

Indoor Portrait with Flash: Using the flash has created plenty of light. The MJU 840 does well to ensure that although the photo is bright there is still plenty of colour left in the picture. Many digital cameras blast out the skin tones when flash is quite strong, but here the camera manages to preserve them.

Indoor Portrait without Flash: Without the flash this Olympus digital camera struggles to produce a sharp focus. The lighting I use for this photo is quite good and to be honest I am disappointed the camera is unable to produce a sharper picture considering the conditions. This means that once the light begins to dip you will nearly always have to revert to flash.

Macro, Colours and Noise

My macro test shot is roughly in line with my expectations. It is certainly bright, but it lacks a bit of definition. As with other Olympus digital cameras the MJU 840 gives the photo a small purple tinge in places.

Colours have been strong through my test shots. In places you may feel they are too strong.

At ISO 400 the camera produces another bright photo. Noise levels are quite acceptable and there is still plenty of detail in the shot. When you push ISO up to 1600 the camera really starts to struggle and most of the detail has been lost to noise. I would only use this setting when there is no other way to grab a picture.

Summary

I found the pictures produced by the Olympus MJU 840 digital camera to be colourful and bright. Focusing could be a shade sharper in places, but overall I am happy with the picture quality.

See sample images link arrow

Style

The MJU 840 is just about small enough to slip into a pocket. The front of the camera slopes away giving it a look that is different to so many similar digital cameras. It is available in black, silver, pink and blue.

Shutter Lag Times

Shutter Lag Rating Par

Single Shot
Five Shots

0.3 seconds
8.37 seconds


Shutter Lag Table link arrow

Ease of Use

Ease of Use - Easy This is an unfussy digital camera. Most of the key controls can be found on the back of the camera and you should not have to dip into the menu system too often.

Points I Like

Design - ease of use

Where it Could Improve

Lowlight without flash

Verdict

The Olympus MJU 840 digital camera may not be top drawer, but it does the job it sets out to do well enough.

Product Shots

Front View

Front View

Back View

Back View

Top View

Top View

Sample Menus

shooting guide camera menu

main menu portrait mode

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Related Pages

Olympus MJU 840 Review Olympus MJU 840 Specification Olympus MJU 840 Sample Images Olympus MJU 840 Features

Review Date

March 2008

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