- Conclusion Get the lowdown
- Features How it compares
- Performance Real world benchmarks
- Differences Technical showdown
- Reviews Word on the street
- Competition Others to consider
- Discussion Answers and opinions
Olympus XZ-1
- 10 MP
- 4x f/1.8
- 1/1.6" CCD
- 3" OLED
#2 in Olympus digicams
Released January, 2011
Rated 74% by by DPReview (Jan, 2011)And, while we've rarely been impressed by digital stabilization for stills, the reduced resolution of movies gives greater scope for it working.
Conclusion Check out the Olympus XZ-1
First reviewed December, 2011
Features Key features of the Olympus XZ-1
10 MP
1/1.6"
megapixels
| 0 MP | 20 MP    | 20 MP |
XZ-1 by Thomas--NikonD7000DSLRorg (Nov, 2012)You cannot find a more simple and feature rich camera with PLENTY of quality mega pixels than this one (10 MegaPixels is enough) at such a low price.
XZ-1 by TrustedReviews (Nov, 2011)OK, so more pixels may just deliver more detail - but we're more than happy with what's been produced with 10 megapixels here.
sensor size
XZ-1 by Zachary-Wagner (Apr, 2011)but the size of the sensor in relation to the aperture capability of the lens also allows for some of the nicest bokeh you'll find in a compact.
XZ-1 by Insp.-Clousseau (Jun, 2011)Found out that the sub-compact Sony actually has a 1/1.7 size sensor which is very close in size to the Olympus with its 1/1.63 sensor.
wide angle lens
XZ-1 by Anthony-Pantliano--The-Photo-Guyf/2.5. At 28mm it offers a wide angle view, and is extremely sharp from corner to corner even at maximum aperture and wide angle.
XZ-1 by TrustedReviews (Nov, 2011)A press of the small on/off button nestling next to the shutter release button, itself encircled by the zoom lever, and the lens shoots forward from its storage position to maximum wide angle setting.
aperture size
XZ-1 by HiPo-SteveThe XZ-1 has filled its shoes admirably, letting me take low light photos without flash that amaze my friends due to its incredibly fast lens.
zoom range
| 0x | 5x   | 5x |
XZ-1 by CI (Mar, 2012)I wanted a decent zoom range, a view screen good enough to show if the picture focus AND exposure were right following the shot, ability to shoot full manual when needed, macro lens ability and a decently low-lag shutter release.
XZ-1 by DPReview (Jan, 2011)Of course it's worth remembering that the XZ-1 has the brightest zoom lens on any current compact camera, meaning you can generally keep the ISOs down in many situations.
body size
111 x 65 x 42 mm
117 x 70 x 57 mm
99 x 59 x 27 mm
XZ-1 by Emoya (Jul, 2012)And although the price tage is pretty steep for a p & s, the proof is in the pictures and wide range of shots you can accomplish with this small camera.
XZ-1 by PhotoGraphics (Nov, 2012)But yet I feel restricted with most pocketable point-and-shoot compact cameras.
Performance Real world tests of Olympus XZ-1
battery life
320 photos
200 photos
200 photos
XZ-1 by CI (Mar, 2012)Here, it is somewhere between wide and tele... Battery life is ok for several dozen shots with a flash or who knows how many without.
max continuous shooting
XZ-1 by Jay-A.-Frogel (Feb, 2011)Not concerned overly with burst rate since I'll use my D300 if I need to (ditto for the XA vs. F100 comparison).
XZ-1 by DPReview (Jan, 2011)This rhythm can usually be sustained for around six or seven shots, which is more than enough for grabbing a couple of shots when you didn't think you needed continuous shooting.
DxOMark low light performance
XZ-1 by Coronet-Blue (Sep, 2012)The Sony has a much larger sensor and captures more detail with much less noise; the Fuji can handle highlights without blowing them out (the only compact camera to do so) so it's a good choice for high contrast applications like night photography.
XZ-1 by USA159--AmazonFan (Jul, 2012)It takes great pictures in low light conditions, which is a huge plus for me.
Our analysis How does it stack up against its top 10 competitors
pros
-
HD video -
Generic -
f/1.8 -
10 mm -
Stitches together multiple photos into a single ultra-wide view -
Combines multiple photos together to capture both bright and dark areas
cons
-
34.0 -
1/1.6" -
HD video -
18.8 bits -
10.4 ev -
Jan, 2011 -
6,400 ISO -
614 k dots -
10 MP -
The screen is fixed in place -
117 ISO -
Won't have that film look -
1/2000 s
Reviews Word on the street
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 | Rated by 98 users at amazon.com Rated 100% by by D.-Murphy (Jul, 2012) Rated 100% by by Emoya (Jul, 2012) Rated 100% by by D.-Murphy (Jul, 2012) |
Lens
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 100% by by Emoya (Jul, 2012)The shallow depth of field is excellent for a point and shoot, and it has macro and super macro settings.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 100% by by doraemon (Feb, 2011)the camera is much smaller and the pancake lens is very fast, which is great.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 80% by by Robert-Pawlak--rjpawlak (Jul, 2012)Ergonomics are pretty good, with the exception of the macro function.
Sensor
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 100% by by Thomas--NikonD7000DSLRorg (Nov, 2012)And since I was looking for a serious compact camera that also gives me DSLR capabilities like choosing shutter speed, aperture, ISO or all...or absolutely nothing ... this is the perfect camera.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 100% by by James-M.-Bailey (Dec, 2011)But the cool thing about this baby is the bright lens allows you to shoot at lower ISOs when possible, so there is a trade-off that works.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 100% by by Marvin-C.-Latimer--Mel-sbells (Jul, 2011)The sensor is not as large as my 4/3s Olympus, but I find I am very happy with the quality of the shots.
Image quality
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 100% by by Zachary-Wagner (Apr, 2011)One other caveat is that for some reason the Auto WB seems to have trouble with incandescent lighting, creating overly warm tones and forcing you to manual select the incandescent setting for accurate colors.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 100% by by Middle-age-tech-freak (Sep, 2011)But I'll take the beautiful image quality over the size any day of the week.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 80% by by TrustedReviews (Nov, 2011)OK, the natural lighting here was ideal, but the Olympus has nevertheless excelled, again delivering bags of detail, lovely natural colours and another even exposure.
Video
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 100% by by JMaxx30 (Mar, 2012)I was looking for an alternative to carrying around an SLR for everyday shooting of kids and vacations and what not, but I had three reservations about this camera; focus speed, video quality, and most importantly image/color quality.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 80% by by El-Tombo--NNPS9107 (Feb, 2012)The XZ1 video is good enough for me to use when I HAVE to have a video, but that's about it.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 100% by by JMaxx30 (Mar, 2012)The nice thing is that even though it only records in 720p, it will upscale on the output to 1080i so I can still play it on my HD TV and it looks pretty good as long as I use the mini HD connection.
Screen
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 90% by by Photography Blog (Feb, 2011)In use, we found the large, high-resolution Organic LED screen to be eminently usable, with great detail and simply excellent colour retention even when viewed from the most extreme angles - but there can be times when an eye-level finder could still come in handy, such as when shooting in extremely bright light, or in very low light when pressing the finder against your forehead can provide some extra stabilisation.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 80% by by HiPo-SteveI love the detail, contrast & resolution of its OLED screen; I even find myself using the Art Scene on occasion to good effect.
Olympus XZ-1 | Rated 80% by by Michael-AppelThe viewing screen on the back is beautiful, but in the bright sun you can't see much of anything.
Competition What else you should consider
 | 1 | Sony Cybershot DSC-RX100 Largest sensor Sony Cybershot DSC-RX100 vs Olympus XZ-1 |
 | 2 | Canon PowerShot S110 Fastest to start up Canon PowerShot S110 vs Olympus XZ-1 |
 | 3 | Canon Powershot S100 OK delay taking photos Canon Powershot S100 vs Olympus XZ-1 |
 | 4 | Fujifilm Finepix X10 Has a viewfinder Fujifilm Finepix X10 vs Olympus XZ-1 |
 | 5 | Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7 Fastest lens Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7 vs Olympus XZ-1 |
 | 6 | Olympus XZ-2 iHS Most shots per battery charge XZ-2 iHS vs XZ-1 |
 | 7 | Samsung EX1 2-way tie: Has a flip out screen Samsung EX1 vs Olympus XZ-1 |
 | 8 | Nikon Coolpix P310 Many more contrast-detection focus points Nikon Coolpix P310 vs Olympus XZ-1 |
New duel?
Let the battle continue or dare to compare.
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