Pentax Optio WP or Olympus SW??

TheRogue · 04-09-2008, 09:31 PM

My daughter managed to nearly shatter my trusty old Canon point/click digital. I want to replace it with something small.......and I'm very intrigued by the waterproof/shockproof variety.

Pentax Optio WP and the Olympus 790SW, same MP and features, Olympus is about 40-60 dollars more.

Anyone have either of these?

TR

Twitchs_Tackle · 04-09-2008, 10:35 PM

I have the optio, so do several of my friends. We love them, threw them in our pockets on 14 day firefighting assignments in the sawtooths of ID a couple years ago, no case or protection, dunked them under water at a couple of our portable pump sites, and snapped cool pics of fish.

This is an Optio macro shot... if you save the pic, then zoom in really close, you can actually see my reflection in the head of the jig , arm up as I snapped the pic!

anglingaddict · 04-09-2008, 11:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheRogue

My daughter managed to nearly shatter my trusty old Canon point/click digital. I want to replace it with something small.......and I'm very intrigued by the waterproof/shockproof variety.

Pentax Optio WP and the Olympus 790SW, same MP and features, Olympus is about 40-60 dollars more.

Anyone have either of these?

TR

I have the Olympus and absolutely love it. I got it to carry with me on my route as well as for any outdoor adventures with the kids or that may involve water. It is waterproof to 10 feet and shockproof up to like a 5-6 foot drop. I got mine from a well known auction site where Olympus runs dozens of auctions for refurbished gear. It came with a 90 day warranty and I had the option to extend it if I chose to for an additional cost. Mine came with all the software and cables a new one would have, yet it only cost me $189!

Picked up a 2GB Olympus card for it from same well known auction site for about a 1/3rd of the retail cost. All I did was wait for it to arrive from Hong Kong which took about 10 days. The only thing that is a bit awkward for me to get used to is that it is so small compared to my Canon S2IS. But it is packed with features though for such a small camera.

Tvfowlhunter · 04-09-2008, 11:48 PM

Go with the Olympus 790SW. I have one and really enjoy it also. Great pictures when the weather is bad. it's nothing like my Nikon SLR, but is a good buy for the money. "waterproof".

Davy · 04-09-2008, 11:58 PM

I have the Optio- going on a year , great camera, has takin a beating , fish slime, rain, vibration in the sled, throwin around in gear bags in the salt too and underwater in Mexico this winter- but both are most likely great products- the WP is such a nice feature- you can forget it's on the bow deck in a shower and not have to buy a new camera

FrogPond · 04-10-2008, 09:57 AM

My Optio died on my honeymoon last year and we replaced it with the Olympus. The Optio died in the hotel pool. I intended to use it while snorkling, but it died on day 1. It had served me very well over the two plus years I had it. Our Olympus is waterproof to 30'. I think it is the 770. I saw it for the first time around the neck of a guy from Austria...while we snorkled.
From my use of the Olympus so far...
The Pentax had better white balance metering
The Olympus has a slide over lens cover, Pentax does not (I always carried the Pentax in a case to prevent damage to the lens)
The Olympus has way more shooting modes, the Pentax has easier controls
The Olympus has better seals with positive position springs, so you know the hatches are closed, the Pentax has a plastic slide to lock the battery/card cover (hence the failure point on mine)
The Pentax is smaller than the Olympus, but neither camera is very large.

Hope this helps...

Don Becker · 04-10-2008, 11:15 AM

If you look here, you'll find the one we have (reconditioned and, I may have a coupon you could use, if you are interested). 'Wife and I ach have one. We've only had them a short time and so far, we're very happy with them. I really liked the underwater capability thought I never intend to use it that way . . . 'just seems better protection for carrying it hunting. My shoulder pack has a little pouch sewn onto the strap at chest-level - - 'perfect location and fit for handy access while hinting.

Don

Jeremy · 04-10-2008, 12:36 PM

I got the olympus on ebay directly from olympus, refurbished with an exteneded one year warranty, sweet camera at a great price, i think they sell as olympusauctions or something similar.

98ramtough · 04-10-2008, 12:44 PM

I have a Pentax Optio and love it! Its so nice not having to worry about it getting wet, plus its cool being able to hang it over the side of the boat and get underwater pics of fish. I used it all winter on steelhead when it was less than 20 degrees out even and the water was COLD. Works perfect! Wish I was better taking underwater pics!

Dullhook · 04-10-2008, 01:03 PM

Quote:

I have the optio, so do several of my friends. We love them,

Gotta agree with twitch. I've got one of those and as one of this worlds worst (and clumsiest) pic takers it has taken great shots and has been really user friendly. I've never used an Olympus but from what I've heard its a great camera too. Not having a lot of money I went for the most economical of the two. Here's a shot that just about any camera can take but not after previously dropping it into the lake.