Olympus' water/shockproof Mju Stylus 720SW reviewed

The 7 megapixel Mju Stylus 720SW from Olympus has some pretty steep claims, including waterproofing up to 10 feet deep and shockproofing for up to 5 foot drops, but does seem to live up to its claims and happens to be a pretty good camera to boot. Available in pink, silver, or blue, the camera's metal housing is the main story here, with claims to be the world's only shockproof digital camera. With all this banging around we would hope for some optical image stabilization, but the digital version seems to do a decent job. The pictures are generally low noise, the camera does a good job of focusing, and the small flash manages to light up an indoor scene quite well. The reviewer liked the 2.5-inch screen, though the resolution was a bit low, but found the workings of the camera to quite quick, and the camera body easy to use and comfortable to hold. You could easily find a 7 megapixel shooter for less than the 720SW's $410 asking price, but good luck with dropping one of those in the drink.

[Hunter @ Apr 10th 2006 4:48PM]

I bought one of these the week they came out. Awesome. Not the best picture quality, but for those of us that go tubing, camping, motorcycle riding, etc.. it's perfect.

[Griffon @ Apr 10th 2006 5:35PM]

As a scuba diver I can say *YAWN* get back to me when that is 10 meters or more. Another so so weak ass attempt.

[tim kraemer @ Apr 10th 2006 5:45PM]

The sample pictures in that review look very dissapointing. I'll wait for the review at dpreview.com before passing final judment.

[Ryboy @ Apr 10th 2006 6:29PM]

Sure it would be nice if it went 10 meters, but this is a good start.Hopefully Olympus will start a new trend for other camera makers. With these cameras getting much smaller, with more megapixels, video capability, and nice screens, dropping one or having a drink spill on one is very easy to do. I would willingly pay more for better durability for my digital camera.

[ramos @ Apr 10th 2006 7:26PM]

it's fine. if ya want scuba, there are a bunch of cameras for that. BUt for swiming with friends splashing water anyway but loose, it works excelente.

[Tim @ Apr 10th 2006 8:52PM]

Eww... what's with the copper color?

[Matthew @ Apr 10th 2006 10:14PM]

I got one on my trip to Australia, and I'll have to say I'm fairly impressed. My Sony DSC-P93 broke the day my wife flew into the country, so I picked this one up.

I miss having a dial to switch between different modes (picture modes/movie/view/setup/etc), all functions are changed by going to a menu system and selecting the mode you want to set the camera in.

But the picture quality is decent. It really is waterproof. We took a few pictures under water. If you want to see some of its work, here's some albums of the pictures we took.

http://pictures.familycampground.org/MortonIsland
http://pictures.familycampground.org/AustralianZoo

I do NOT recommend using the digital zoom. Its practically crap. You can do a better job of taking the original and zooming in using a photo editor. It has no view finder, the screen on the back is all you have, which has not been a hinderance to me yet.

The 24 different photo modes and 1 movie mode it can do, I thought were useless, but they turned out to be somewhat useful. For example the sunset mode took this:

http://pictures.familycampground.org/MortonIsland/p3150063

Plus my wife can drop this camera in the water (as she's done with my previous camera) and not freak out.

[candice @ Jul 9th 2008 8:30AM]

Yuor links don''t work? I reallty want to see all your photo's using the shockproof camera (under water, susnet, etc).
Any other way you can show me your photo's?
kind regards,
Candice

[MMODinero @ Apr 11th 2006 10:07AM]

Unless you go scuba diving often, how many times will the average person truly use the "features" of this camera?

[Tucker @ Apr 11th 2006 3:07PM]

There are professional waterproof housings for tons of cameras on the market. These are the products intended for SCUBA enthusiasts. The waterproof features of this camera are not intended for extreme depths, nor are they being marketed as such. Is it so unbelievable to think it might be nice to have a camera with no fear of an accidental drop in water? Or maybe a few cheeky snorkeling photos?

Lighten up, it's a Stylus, made for the average consumer market. This isn't some high-end "OMFG they packed a full digital SLR into a 50-meter submersible housing for $400!" camera.

[Guy @ Apr 12th 2006 5:22AM]

It's all about the beach people, plus not having to carry it in a case, which adds a fair amount of bulk to other small cameras. Well it sold me, picking mine up tomorrow, then will be taking pictures of my friends from inside their pints...

[Victor @ Apr 24th 2006 3:37AM]

A couple of days before my son's first birthday party, my wife dropped our sony in the pool. We needed a replacement quick, so no time to really read reviews. I saw this camera and figured you can't go wrong because it was only about 50 bucks more than the non-waterproof cameras with similar spex. Picture quality and fetures are right in line with other cameras in the price range, and the camera has already seen a couple of falls on the floor and had some pool time. I keep reading reviews slamming this thing because it "only" goes 10 feet deep or because the photo quality pales in comparison to SLR cameras.... It costs $400! Most underwater camera housings cost around $200, and that doesn't include the actual camera! SLRs go for a Grand! FOr $400, I can't find a better camera for someone with kids. I wouldn't take professional wedding pix with it, but I wouldn't take my $1500 SLR to the beach. For everyday use, you can't go wrong with this camera at this price point.