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[ChumsGum]

Give me a reason not to buy the Olympus C-770.

So I lose my Canon SD100, which I never really like in the first place. I've used an Olympus C series a couple of years ago and have also used a newer Sony digicam but have never really been impressed with anything other than Olympus's C series cams. I'm leaning towards the C-770 because its got MPEG-4 video capturing at 640x480 at 30fps with great compression. Should I pull the trigger or wait for the 2006 models?

 

[demon]

If you want to get a good digicam for its movie capabilities, get the Canon S1-IS. It's the very best digital video recorder you can get on a camera, and unlike the C-770, you can zoom during movie playback because its zoom is unusually quiet. It also has 10x optical zoom, and some kind of anti-shake mechanism in it that's really useful. From reading up on the C-770, it looks almost like an Olympus competitor to the S1-IS.

Canon S1 IS review

C-770 review

I've taken nearly 10 minute videos with my S1 with quality that blows me away for a camera. It's awesome.

-edit-
I just looked and the S1 doesn't take mpeg, it takes avi. I really don't know what the difference is, though. I guess that's up to you.

 

[demon]

Screw all these edits, I'll just reply again...


One thing I like about the S1 is the S1 has the flip-out LCD, which is just infinitely useful.

And I'm still reading up on the 770, heh.....looks like it doesn't have manual focus, where as the S1 does. The only benefits I see in the C770, at least that I'd care about, are the slightly higher MP and the ability to attach a real microphone to the camera (although the one on the S1 is pretty good). And they're both about the same price. The S1 shutter speed goes up to 1/2000 too, compared to the C770's 1/1000. The S1 doesn't have a seperate "macro mode", but it looks like the macro shots are just as good though (look at the macro sample shots for both cameras in those reviews). This just solidifies my satisfaction with my choice. I'd go with the S1 if I were you, but maybe there's something about the C770 that you like better.

Oh yeah, and I did read on some Canon forum that they're coming out with a successor/update of the S1, though. Not sure how reliable that is, when it would come out, and how improved it'll be. Might just be more megapixels for all I know.

 

[ChumsGum]

Thanks for your advice.

The C-770 can zoom during video recording but you have to turn sound off or use an external mic. I also don't like the fact that the S1 doesn't come with Li-On batts. The C-770 probably takes better pics from my past experiences with Canons and Olympus. MPEG-4 also has great compression which can give you up to 50 minutes of 640x480 30fps video with sound on a 1 gig card. You'd probably get maybe 30 minutes of video on that S1 with 640x480 15fps video on a 1 gig card.

 

[PS2 KID]

For long zoom lens digicams I recommend the Panasonic DMC-FZ5. Here's a review.

Or you can wait till Canon brings out the S2 IS this summer. Has better movie mode if you're into that.

If you need more megapixels with that long zoom then I recommend the Olympus C-8080 Wide Zoom.

Edit: The Panasonic DMC-FZ20 is also available but it's noticeably bigger and heavier than the FZ5. The lens is faster though.

 

[demon]

Thanks for your advice.

The C-770 can zoom during video recording but you have to turn sound off or use an external mic. I also don't like the fact that the S1 doesn't come with Li-On batts. The C-770 probably takes better pics from my past experiences with Canons and Olympus. MPEG-4 also has great compression which can give you up to 50 minutes of 640x480 30fps video with sound on a 1 gig card. You'd probably get maybe 30 minutes of video on that S1 with 640x480 15fps video on a 1 gig card.

Ahh ok, I didn't know about the compression thing. It would be nice if the S1 took longer videos, but how does the video quality compare?

Also, li-on batteries aren't regular universal batteries, correct?(I dunno) I like the fact that I can buy regular batteries for the S1 (as opposed to being stuck with the kind that my S200 used) because you can buy them at any store if you need, and these 2500mAh NiMH batts last a helluva long time.

 

[ChumsGum]

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0504/05042201canons2is.asp

That S2 has got me salivating. I still don't know about its optics though compared to the impressive Olympus's that I've used in the past. The price is also $500 compared to the $300 that you can buy the C-770 at.

 

[Jason]

They changed the memory format to SD? Son of a bitch.

 

[ChumsGum]

SDs are simply the way to go; all Canon cams now are either dual format or SD. I'm just thankful those freakin XD cards Olympus use have come down in price significantly.

Here are some sample pics from an Olmpus C series that my friend took his first time out with it. I don't know why but Olympus makes taking great pictures so easy.

 

[Jason]

I already have a 1 gig CF for my S1.