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Olympus FE-300
Click photo for more images of the Olympus FE-270, FE-280, FE-290 and FE-300 in various colors. |
Olympus has added three new models to its FE line of affordable, ultracompact point-and-shoots. The 8-megapixel FE-280 and 12-megapixel FE-300 update the line with some of Olympus's recently introduced features and its latest processor, TruePic III.
The 7.1-megapixel FE-290 doesn't offer any of the new features or the processor upgrade, but does provide an f/2.7-5.4, 28mm-112mm (35mm camera equivalent) 4x zoom lens and a 234,000-pixel, 3-inch LCD. The camera offers 17 automatic shooting modes.
Both the FE-280 and the FE-300 have a 3x optical zoom lens and a 230,000-pixel, 2.5-inch LCD. The FE-280 offers an f/3.1-5.9, 36mm-108mm lens (35mm camera equivalent), while the FE-300 provides a slightly wider and faster f/2.8-4.7, 35mm-105mm. The FE-280 provides 21 shooting modes and the FE-300 18 modes. The FE-280's options include three underwater modes, and the camera is compatible with Olympus's PT-038 underwater housing.
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Among the two cameras' more advanced features are face-detection autofocus and autoexposure; built-in help guides; Perfect Shot Preview, which helps users preview the effects of setting changes before taking a photo; and Perfect Fix, which automatically adjusts exposure, sharpens blurry areas, and corrects redeye in playback mode. Their Digital Image Stabilization Edit technology uses gyros to track camera movement when you take a shot, and then uses the data to sharpen blurry images. Unlike some more basic FE cameras, these models allow the photographer to adjust white balance and ISO. Their light-sensitivity settings go up to ISO 3200. Video recording has also been improved over other FE cameras, with 640x480 capture at a smooth 30fps.
The $199.99 FE-280, $249.99 FE-290, and $299.99 FE-300 will be available in August 2007. The FE-280 comes with a silver, red, blue, or black finish, the FE-290 is available in black, and the FE-300 comes in silver.
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