Review: Olympus TG-310 Digital Camera
By ALAN CARTWRIGHTThe Olympus TG-310 14 Megapixel camera is a shockproof and waterproof camera that's ideal for outdoor and holiday use. Olympus say the camera is waterproof down to three metres and shockproof when dropped from a height of 1.5 metres. While I've no reason to disbelieve Olympus, for the purposes of this reveiw I should say that I haven't personally tested either claim yet!
The camera certainly feels robust and the camera lens doesn't protrude out of the front even when using the 3.6x zoom as all the movement is confined inside the camera's dimensions.
As you would expect from most digital cameras thesedays, there are various sockets and a memory card slot. However, because the camera is waterproofed, these are all found by opening a catched access hatch on the side of the camera. The sockets for charging the camera and connection to a computer or TV are not all standard. So while the cables and mains power adapter are supplied, you may find it is more costly to replace any that are lost or get damaged.
The same access also leads to the removable, rechargeable battery and SD card. The card supports both the SDHC and SDXC larger capacity memory card standards. This means the TG-310 can be used to quickly capture high definition video at the click of a button rather than having to deal with dials and settings each time.
There's nothing about the camera that is particularly difficult to use and, although there's an automatic mode where the camera chooses the most appropriate set up, there are also plenty of modes to manually choose from to quickly set the camera up for almost any kind of scene or lighting condition.
A good degree of user help is available on the camera screen and there's a handy question mark button that gives fast access to any help required.
The TG-310 can display the histogram feature to help set up the lighting balance for shots along with guide rules to aid the framing of pictures.
There are some fun features on the camera. For example there's a 3D picture facility where users can take two pictures with a little movement between each shot and the camera will automatically combine them to form a 3D image. While this is far from being as good as a two lens camera, it is possible to get some interesting images and impressive results.
Offered in a variety of colours, the camera is generally available on the high street for between £150 and £160 (check eBay) at the time of writing and, at that price, it represents great value for the outdoor type who will want the rugged strength, waterproofing and speed of use the Olympus TG-310 offers.
If the shockproof and waterproof features of the TG-310 aren't required then an alternative to consider is the Canon Powershot A3300 IS. Around a tenner cheaper it takes great quality pictures.
Olympus TG-310 Digital Camera Reviewed
18.09.2011. 18:35
