Olympus E-420 - Expert Reviews

Review summary: Let's get one thing out of the way: Even though it's called the 420, Olympus' latest camera has absolutely nothing to do with illicit drug use. We tried to find a secret compartment for storing your stash: No dice.

Pros: Light weight and small size make it far more portable than most DSLRs. Live view lets you compose on-screen instead of peering through the viewfinder. Speedy autofocus. No discernible shutter lag. Paging all photo geeks: RAW format support.

Cons: Fewer buttons means it takes more menu-surfing to adjust basic settings like ISO and white balance. Face-detection feature can be slow. Four Thirds lens compatibility is largely moot, as no manufacturers beside Olympus and pricey Sigma support the standar

Award: Recommended!

Review summary: It's easy to lose sight of the smaller players in a digital SLR market so heavily dominated by Canon and Nikon, but there's still healthy competition for third place. Olympus has been canny in giving the E-420 (and its predecessor the E-410) a unique sell

Verdict: Enthusiasts probably won't want to use this as their main DSLR, but if you're looking to upgrade from a compact or want a backup camera with character, the Olympus delivers.

Review summary: Since the 1970s and the days of Olympus's classic OM-1 35mm SLR, the company has tended to go in the opposite direction from several other manufacturers, building a lineup that emphasizes smaller and lighter. Fast-forward 30 years and the maker's latest o

Pros: Compact size, light weight, Good image and color quality, Handy, intuitive controls (once you get familiar with the Super Control Panel, 2x sensor crop factor maximizes telephoto lens length

Cons: No image stabilization, Small size may prove problematic for large hands, 2x sensor crop factor detracts from wide angle lens width

Review summary: Olympus E-420 digital SLR camera : Its predecessor has been around for a while so it's high time to introduce a fresh sibling of the Olympus family to the world. Time for a new FourThirds SLR; the Olympus E420. The appearance of this camera is not that mu

Review summary: The Olympus E-420 is an upgraded version of