Olympus C-2020 Zoom Review

Overall Rating

comparatively fast (up to F2 at 400 ASA); nearly all functions can be overridden to manual

quite expensive (lowest US price $600) many unnecessary features

With most digital still cameras, indoor shooting without flash is seldom possible.
The 2020 has a f2 to f2.8 lens(depending on zoom setting) and is switchable through 100 to 400 ASA, thus being some 3 stops faster than most other cams. Available light photography is finally in sight!
Maximum resolution is 1600 x 1200 pixels, making for an uncompressed (TIFF) file of about 5Mb. At this setting, pic
quality is amazing, and well-printed pics (size A4) are
practically undistinguishable from "conventional" photos.
But there are no free lunches: on the supplied smart card
(8Mb) you can store 1 (ONE!) pic only...
If quality is not imperative, you can get some 38 1024x768
medium-compression pix on one 8Mb card.
Bigger cards are expensive, going at about $2.5 per Mb;
that means getting a 64Mb card will set you back some $140
or so, quite stiff!
Despite its weird shape, camera handles well, except for
possible mixup of release button and function-setting knob.
Because of its high-quality feature, the 2020 is suitable for studio work, where it can be run from a mains adapter,
thus saving the chore of continually changing batteries.
With continuous use, the camera can become quite hot to the
touch, but the manufacturer says not to worry.
An additional feature - recording 15secs video shots - seems
sensational but actually is quite worthless, as the quality at this setting is abominable.
Superfluous, too, are gimmick features such as sepia-toned pics, digital zoom etc, which seem to be targeted at the well-heeled novice, rather than the serious photographer who can do all this and much more through Photoshop or similar.
To resume - a very compact and handy cam that lets you shoot in available light with good resolution.

Members' Comments onpary.'s Review

• Jan Toonen. on 26th May 2001

  The review does not point out enough of the many positive aspects of this camera.
  On a 8Mb indeed fits only 1 TIFF photo, but 8 same resolution JPEG photos.
  Most cameras do not even allow one to shoot TIFF files.
  The interface takes a little getting used to, but offers you all the control one wants, apperture control, speed, manual focus AND automatic. On top there are gimics like quicktime movie etc.