Editorial Review:Product Description:Combining first-rate photo technology with a compact metal body, C-50ZOOM will thrill the design enthusiasts as well as quality-conscious photographers looking for a state-of-the-art digital camera. Incorporating a five-megapixel CCD, bright (f2.8) 3x zoom lens and precision metering systems, it allows effortless shooting and provides sharp, well-exposed, life-like results. More ambitious photographers will appreciate the creative freedom enabled by the manually adjustable features, such as aperture, shutter and white balance. Finally, this model uses the new digital image storage standard xD-Picture card.
Amazon.com Review:Five-megapixel resolution is quickly becoming the new standard for digital cameras. But these cameras are often bulky, heavy things to lug around. Enter the Olympus Camedia C-50, a svelte, lightweight image capturer with a fair amount of features.
The 3x optical zoom lens folds up inside the camera case with the covers sliding shut over it when not in use, making the camera's small metal frame easily pocketable. While the camera also uses the tiny XD media for storage, it only comes with a 32 MB card, barely enough to hold a dozen images at the highest resolution, so you'll want to stock up on storage (which is thankfully getting cheaper by the month).
Although only 1.5 inches in size, the bright LCD provides an accurate and easy to view image of framed shots before capture. The C-50 also offers an optical viewfinder for framing shots and saving on battery life.
Speaking of, the battery recharges quickly (averaging about two hours) and lasts for several hundred shots before needing a recharge. Even with the limited surface area, the well-placed dials and menu buttons are within easy reach when using the camera, making it a snap to utilize one of the camera's six different scene modes or five flash modes.
With its 5.0 megapixels, captured images offer incredible details and bright colors and can be printed at nearly poster size without any loss of resolution. The C-50 also captures short QuickTime movies, albeit without sound, small enough to be e-mailed to friends and family. Users of newer computers (both Windows and Mac) don't even need to install a driver to transfer images and movies to their system via the camera's USB cable.
The sticker price on the C-50 is still a bit hefty for a point-and-click compact camera, but not bad when you consider the potential of all those megapixels.
--J. Curtis Pros: - Very compact
- High-quality images
- Long battery life
Cons: - Only 32 MB memory card
- No sound in movie mode
Amazon.com Product Description:Early Adopters Pick: October 2002. State-of-the-art digital camera that is the first 5-megapixel camera to use the new XD memory format; also has a bright (f2.8) 3x zoom lens and precision metering system.
Combining first-rate photo technology with a compact metal body, the Olympus Camedia C-50 will thrill quality-conscious photographers looking for a state-of-the-art digital camera. Incorporating a 5-megapixel CCD, bright (f2.8) 3x zoom lens, and precision metering systems, the Camedia C-50 offers effortless shooting and provides sharp, well-exposed, lifelike results. More ambitious photographers will appreciate the manually adjustable features, such as aperture, shutter, and white balance. The C-50 is also one of the first digital cameras to use the new XD memory format, and it includes a 32 MB card.
Optics and Resolution Featuring a 5-megapixel CCD sensor, the Camedia C-50 delivers a wide range of detail and color (with images up to 2,560 x 1,960 pixels) and prints up to 11 by 14 inches and beyond to poster size. It boasts a 3x optical zoom lens and 4x digital zoom for a seamless total zoom of 12x.
Storage and Transfer The Camedia C-50 is one of the first Olympus digital cameras to be compatible with the new XD memory card format. Comparable in size to a penny and weighing less than 1/10th of an ounce, the XD memory card is not only the smallest storage medium, it also uses less power for better battery performance and has faster data transfer rates than other memory cards. The included 32 MB card will store approximately 27 images at 2,560 x 1,920 pixels (at HQ setting).
Images can be downloaded to either a Mac or PC via USB connectivity, which means it can be connected to any USB-based Windows Me/2000/XP and Mac OS 8.6 or later computer without installing any software.
Movie Mode In addition to taking still photos, the Camedia C-50 can also record movie clips at 15 frames per second with sound in two formats: HQ (320 x 240 pixels, up to 16 seconds) and SQ (160 x 120 pixels, up to 70 seconds). The QuickTime Motion JPEG format offers a limited resolution, which is great for capturing a short movie that can be e-mailed to friends and family, but is no replacement for a true camcorder.
More Features Like other cameras in its line, the Camedia C-50 features Olympus's TruePic technology, which uses all the pixels captured by the CCD at all resolutions to create an image and 'smoothes' it to get a smoother and clearer image. Unlike other digital-camera designs that throw away pixel information to create smaller file sizes, TruePic uses all the pixel information to create a better and truer photographic image at the lower pixel resolutions.
Other features include:
- Built-in flash with auto mode for backlight, red-eye reduction, fill-in mode, and slow-shutter synchronized flash
- Shutter speeds of 1/1,000 second to 1/2 second
- Six selectable scene programs
- Panoramic ability when combined with Camedia Master software and optional Olympus brand XD memory card
Power, Size, and Contents The camera is powered by a lithium-ion rechargeable battery (included). It measures 3.9 x 2.3 x 1.6 inches and weighs 6.8 ounces. This package includes the Camedia C-50 digital camera, 32 MB XD memory card, lithium-ion battery and charger (model LI-10B), wireless remote control, USB and AV cables, wrist strap, and CD-ROM with Camedia Master imaging software and USB drivers for Windows and Mac.
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
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POOR SHELF LIFE
My husband purchased this camera for me a few years ago. I didn't use the camera very much. As a matter of fact, it still has the original stickers on it. Many add-ons were purchased at the time, some of which I have never used and are still in their factory sealed packages. After the waranty was up I started experiencing problems with the retractable lens; it would not extend out when I opened the sliding door. I have tried to get the sensor part required to fix the problem, from Olypus, but they say the only thing I can buy is a new battery cover. I told them that I was recently advised that poor sensors is a common problem with their retractractable lenses and replacements should be made available. The representative said I could send the camera in to them and they would fix the problem for $125.00 What nerve! I will never buy another Olympus product and I will tell everyone I know about this issue.
Rating: 
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Dying after 3 years of use?
As reported by others, my lens cover is giving up its ghost. The camera does not turn on everytime on first attempt. Opening the cover and general cleaning did not help. The power-down mechanism is still very effective though - sometimes in the middle of composing a shot, it would power down at the slightest provocation.
It was a great camera 3+ years back with a solid feel and a compact size then. Now it is neither here nor there; the superzoom cameras have made a 3x optical lens obsolete (or, "entry" level only) and the really compact cameras have made this look like a tank.
Losing a camera in slightly over 3 years is not good; my Minolta SLR from 1990 is still functional a 100%.
I suppose it is time to buy again and I will buy another Olympus this time , probably the E-500 with dual lens kit. That would allow me to use the current remote - and I have been VERY satisfied with the optics.
Rating: 
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Olympus Camedia C-50 Good Purchase
Everybody's right with their list of pros and cons...but here's the thing...if we all wanted all those extra features we would've bought a different model! Why is this camera good? Small size, great resolution, point & shoot, good battery life, resitant to cold (i dropped it in the snow and it's fine).
I practically take it everywhere and it's still alive. I've had it for almost 4 years, and even though there're other great cameras in the market..i know it still competes, cos its got great features in such a small package. But if you want something more professional, this is not a camera for you. I hope my review is helpful for you!!! =)
Rating: -
Cover, who needs a cover?
I do like this camera, but I would have to agree that the lens cover on this camera isn't very good. The first symptom I noticed was that when the cover was opened the camera would not turn on. Eventually, it got worse and I just took the cover off to see what was broken and decided it wasn't fixable. Now, I just use the camera without the lens cover. It still works just fine and I just flip a little switch to turn the camera on and off.
Rating: -
Olympus C-50
I've been using this camera a lot now that I have a baby.
It works fine even when he runs around, but ONLY if I use the flash.
Without the flash, the pictures get blurry.
The video only lasts 16 seconds without sound. It has NO audio! That sucks big time.
The memory card that comes with it is way way too small. Definely needs to buy a bigger memory card.
My sister got a much cheaper camera and it has audio without the limited recording length time. I'm considering buying another camera, and give this one to my 21 months son!!!
Also, the x-D card are more expensive than other memory card.
