Playback Features

Playback mode can be entered by either pressing the Quick View button or by rotating the Mode Dial to Play. The Left/Right arrow buttons are used to skip back/forward to different images. The up arrow button skips back 9 images while the down arrow skips forward 9 images.

 
Image regular view
 
Image magnified 4x
 
9-image thumbnail

An image can be magnified up to 4x in 0.5x increments by using the zoom controller. Additionally, a 4-, 9-, or 16-image thumbnail display can be reached by pressing the left side of the zoom controller. The number of images to show in thumbnail mode can be specified through the Setup tab.

 
Standard info.
 
Detailed info.

The standard playback information includes the file number, recording quality, date, time, and the number of the image. After initially viewing an image, this information is displayed for about 3 seconds before disappearing. The detailed playback information includes the following additional items: resolution, exposure compensation, white balance, and ISO.



Play menu


The major playback operations can be reached via the OK/Menu button. After pressing it, four main options are displayed: Slideshow, Info, Erase, and Mode Menu. To delete an image, just press the down arrow button to select "Erase". The camera then displays a confirmation dialog to prevent accidental deletion. The "Info" option toggles the shooting information from standard to detailed. The "Slideshow" option advances the images/videos automatically. The duration for each image is approximately three seconds.

The final option is "Mode Menu", which is split into the following 4 tabs: Play, Edit, Card, and Setup. Below are the options under the Play tab:

 Play
Protect Off, On
Rotate 0°, -90°, +90°
Print Order Select, All
Audio Commentary Start

The Protect option allows you to mark an image as "protected". This helps to prevent accidental deletion/modification of an image. The Rotate feature can rotate images 90° clockwise or counterclockwise. With the Print Order option, you can specify images for printing as well as the number of copies desired. You can also specify whether or not to stamp the time or date on the printed images. The Audio Commentary option allows you to record a short audio clip. The clips are saved as WAV files with the same file number as the image.



The "Edit" tab offers some options for manipulating images in-camera. A Soft Focus or Fisheye effect can be applied to any image. Additionally, an image can be converted to black and white, or sepia. The final option in the Edit menu is Resize. An image can be resized to either 640x480 or 320x240. When any of these options are applied, the camera saves the manipulated image as a new file. Another interesting option is called "Index". It only appears as an option when a video clip is selected. When Index is selected, the camera will create a JPEG file containing 9 thumbnails from the video clip. This allows you to see an overview of the video clip.

The Card tab only has two options: All Erase and Format. The All Erase option will delete everything on the flash card that is not protected. Format will erase everything on the flash card - even protected files. The Setup tab is almost exactly the same as it is in Record mode. The only difference is the addition of two more options: Screen Setup and an option to change the thumbnail display. With Screen Setup, you can select a previously taken image to be used as the startup screen. The thumbnail option offers 3 more options for the number of images to display in thumbnail mode; these are 4, 9, and 16 images.

Recording Features Battery Performance
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  • shuttleboi - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    When is Anandtech going to review portable storage devices/personal video players?
  • Souka - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    grab a Canon S410 for $275 delievered from a variety of online places...

  • jiulemoigt - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    you'd think after getting acess to fuji's electronics they'd have really nice optic combined with their really nice lenses... only these look cool but have crappy eletronics and crappy lenses!
  • Foxbat121 - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    I bought one for my wife for just $299 (Newegg). It's a nice camera for what it is intended for (point and shoot in a compact design). Overall, it is well worth the money I paid for considering the similar sized cameras are no cheaper either with lower resolution (Canon SD110, 3MP).
  • AtaStrumf - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    Looks like a nice little camera. Its a shame its so expensive.
  • stephencaston - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    WooDaddy, thanks for the comment. I agree, it is shocking to see such jagged edges in the pictures taken by this camera. As for the details of Olympus's image processing, I'm sorry I can't offer any specifics. Since this is a point and shoot camera, we can only assume that Olympus designed the process this way so that users would not need or want to post-process the images at all. Indeed, if these images are printed at the popular 6x4" format, the problem would be hard to see. And it looks like Olympus knows this.
  • WooDaddy - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    Stephen can you comment on this for me?

    As a previous owner of an olympus camera (back in 1999) it just seems that Olympus doesn't get it when it comes to handle aliasing? Looking at the resolving fine lines page, it looks like their aliasing algorithm or low-pass filter is non-existant. Do you see it too? Suggestions?
  • WooDaddy - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    Good article.

    I'm glad a review finally came out for this camera... But I'm disappointed that Olympus feels it's worth $399. There are a PLETHORA of other cameras that perform so much better than this one. I agree that the price is too much. Don't be afraid to say that. Hell, I think it's just plain ridiculous. I'm starting to think the limits have been met for the megapixel squeeze; meaning a 4mp sensor in a camera with a tiny/crappy lens just is a waste of money. Especially when the aperture isn't fast nor slow.

    Maybe a Foveon sensor in the same package... but nope.

    I disagree with #1 though. Viewfinder in compact cameras have always been limiting and inaccurate. I understand the feeling of pressing up a camera against your face just makes you feel good and professional like, but in the digital world where you can take better pictures now, LCD-only is the way to go. Heck I wish I had a big 2.5" screen on mine.
  • goku21 - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    That is one hairy arm =)
  • CasmirRadon - Thursday, November 4, 2004 - link

    Very very pretty.

    You know though, all other negatives aside (did anyone expect it to perform above average?) I got to say that I really don't like the idea of not having a quality viewfinder on these ultracompact cameras. I just plain don't like taking pictures with the LCD screen.

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