The MJU 1000 is part of the weatherproof range of Olympus digital cameras. With protective seals normal rainfall is unable to breach the camera. Apart from one or two waterproof cameras this is the only range of weatherproof digital cameras available.
Another likely attraction of the MJU 1000 is the fact it has 10 megapixels. Be aware that a high number of megapixels does not necessarily mean excellent picture quality. More megapixels mean you can normally make larger prints and that you should be able to crop or trim photos and still be able to make smaller printer.
When it comes to zoom the camera has a standard 3x optical zoom.
One feature I like is the in camera photography guide. While this guide is unlikely to suddenly turn you into a great photographer it does contain some useful tips. There are thirteen subjects covered. These include shooting at night, reducing blur, brightening a subject, shooting close ups and adjusting the focus area.
Built into the camera are some features that can enhance or repair a photo after it has been taken. For example these allow you to brighten dark photos, fix red eye and alter the saturation levels of the shot. This last feature boosts colour levels. You can also change photos to black and white and sepia.
At just under 23mm wide the camera is small enough to slip into a pocket. At 140g it is fairly lightweight as well. The front of the camera has a sloping design. This helps to make it look a little different to other cameras.
In the box you will find a lithium ion battery and a charger. With 28.5mb of storage built in no memory card is supplied. While this is more than most cameras have this will soon be eaten up with 10 megapixel photos and you will need to consider buying a memory card to go with the MJU 1000. It is compatible with xD memory cards.
The LCD screen is 2.5" in size. This is fast becoming the norm for this type of camera. Olympus have been unable to find room to squeeze in a viewfinder. I found the screen worked better than most digital cameras in lower light. Like many other cameras it had problems with bright sunlight. This made it difficult to see the scene that I was about to photograph.
The MJU 1000 is a point and shoot camera. There are not too many bells and whistles. There is not anything obvious that is missing either from its standard set of features.
On the whole the camera is easy enough to use. I find the menu system a bit messy as it is divided into a number of smaller sections. I think it is easier when everything is in one place and it is just a case of scrolling through to find the item you need to change. Even so it should not be too hard to find what you are looking for.
