*Updated: April 5, 2009
I bought this camera as a replacement to my Stylus 1010 which I owned for a year. The Stylus 9000 has pretty much addressed all of the issues I had with the 1010. Here are some comparisons.
Physical features: Put side by side the stylus 9000 is definitely bigger and heavier than the 1010, but that's no deal breaker especially since the 9000 has a sturdy metal body vice the plastic 1010 body. The 9000 is also not as sleek looking as the 1010 but it fits better in your hand and the buttons are raised further so you can find them with your fingers more easily.
Lens: The lens is a big improvement over the 1010 which most professionals will tell you is more important than having higher megapixels. Besides offering extra zoom the 9000 lens is much beefier and offers wide angle shots.
Media Card: It seems that Olympus has finally gotten over their proprietary high horse when it comes to XD media cards. Both the 1010 and 9000 come with adapters to allow the use of Micro SD cards. The problem with the 1010 was that if you wanted to take a panorama picture you had to have an OLYMPUS brand XD card. This is not an issue with the 9000 as it allows you to take panorama shots with any card or even just the internal memory. The 9000 also recognizes the higher write speeds of Class 4 and Class 6 Micro SD cards. Which has solved one of the major head aches associated with VGA videos on the 1010 and its predecessors.
Video: Both Cameras' offer VGA video recording size of 640x480 at 30 frames per second. This feature is normally limited to 10 second clips with regular media cards. The only way around this with the 1010 was to ensure your camera had the 1.1 firmware upgrade and to buy a more expensive XD type M+ card or type H card. But because the 9000 recognizes the higher write speeds of the class 4 and 6 Micro SD's you can now record up to 20:00 min videos without having to purchase one of those high speed XD cards.
Screen: The 9000 comes with the 3rd generation hyper crystal display which is much brighter and gives you a clearer picture than the 1st generation display on the 1010. I was very impressed with the visibility of the screen at high noon on a cloudless race day; I had no real problems taking or reviewing pictures. Though this screen is much better than that 1010 screen it's still not perfect especially considering the lack of a view finder.
Battery life: Both cameras utilize the same LI-50B battery. I do admit that I haven't done any scientific side by side testing, but it seems as though the battery life on the Stylus 9000 is a bit shorter than the 1010. This can be expected with a brighter screen and is kind of a tradeoff I guess. It's hard for me to put an estimate on the battery life here because everyone uses their camera differently, but I would say you could comfortably shoot all day with the 9000 without needing a spare battery. (Unless of course you leave you camera on all the time, take hundreds of pictures ect, ect.)
Operating software: The 9000's menu looks different on the 1010's however the software interface is almost identical. The 9000 does have a built in "beauty" feature, but it takes a lot of time for the camera to process the image, and it's something that is more suitably done on your computer with photo editing software.
A note on camera cases: I had an Olympus brand leather case that I could fit my Stylus 1010, a lens cleaning cloth, and a spare battery in with no issues. Because the Stylus 9000 is bigger only the camera fits in that same case so the $30 camera case had to go the way of the old camera. I also tried the Olympus Premium leather case with the same results. So I am on a hunt for a quality case that I can fit all my accessories in. I'll keep you posted.
Overall: I am very happy with this camera as a basic compact point and shoot. It takes awesome pictures and is small enough to carry around even if you don't know if you'll need a camera. I personally think the price is a little high on it right now, and it would be a great camera if you could get it for under $300.00. Which I'm sure will happen sooner than later. Olympus Stylus 9000 12 MP Digital Camera with 10x Wide Angle Optical Dual Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.7-Inch LCD (Black)
Finally a compact camera with a great zoom. I've had it a few days now and the photos on the automatic settings are wonderful. The camera also lets you adjust most all parameters to "be creative." This camera will be perfect for travel. The LCD is bright and the controls are intuitive. No more carrying my larger Sony with the bulky (10x) lens. The software is just ok, but I generally use third party applications anyway. I am not a pro, just someone who travels a lot and takes photos to share with others. I'll be taking this camera to Europe next month so I'll update the review if I run into any issues.
Love the camera!
Its important to note what I was looking for when I purchased this. I wanted: 1) COMPACT, 2) High Optical Zoom, 3) Shooting Modes, 4) Ease of use 5) CHEAP ( I bought this camera for $300, $175 of it with gift certificates I already had, so I ended up paying like $125 all in all. I wanted an IDIOT-PROOF camera because I am NOT a professional photographer and have neither the time, nor the inclination to learn about aperture or shutter speed and one that I could travel with easily (put in my pocket). I wanted something that would be fast, simple and effective and this little guy hits all the marks. The pictures are clean and good and its super easy to use.
Im gonna make it super easy. Pros and cons . . .
PROS:
Zoom: The zoom is fantastic. It does exactly what I expected it to: The 10x Optical is rocking good! Clarity is awesome and Im very satisfied with the lack of pixillation.
Size: I love the fact that, in accordance with Olympus' other 'pocket-sized cameras,' I can put it in my pocket, no problem.
Panorama and Shooting Modes: Ive had three previous Olympus cameras and Im in total love with the shooting modes. The in-camera panorama is great and I find myself using it a lot. Beauty mode is quite useful, too, I find.
CONS:
Olympus has a few bad marks against it in my mind. First, its customer service sucks - just TRY to get your camera serviced or a question answered and youll see what I mean. Second, these cameras are delicate, to say the least - my first cameras' flash broke irreparably after the first year and a half and the second one ate it when a little water splashed on it. Just handle them carefully. Finally, Olympus compacts are notorious for taking AWESOME pictures in the daylight hours (dawn and dusk included) but you really have to focus on what your doing at night. If your using the flash, no problem, but if you wanna take pics of anything without it at night, youll have to work for it.
Other than that, the only major con that I can come up with is the size. The size IS good for fitting it into your pocket (which is why I listed it above, too) but its a little bulkier than I would have hoped. Its just bigger than Olympus' FE line cameras, for those who are familiar with them.
All in all, Im very satisfied and would recommend this camera for those who have the same photographic purposes as I. You may want to wait for the price to come down, though :) - Olympus Digital Camera - Olympus Stylus 9000 - Olympus - 10x Zoom'
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