Editorial Review:

Product Description:
Forgive the Stylus 300 Digital but it just can't help being noticed. Try to take a picture and its elegant, all-metal appearance is sure to draw attention. Amazing features like QuickTime movie mode and a powerful lens will keep its audience captivated. And its easy-to-carry size and all-weather reliability will enable it to consistently perform its digital duties with stunning poise and grace. No matter where the Stylus 300 Digital may roam, it's destined to be the star of the show.

Amazon.com Review:
The Olympus Stylus 300 is perhaps the best go-anywhere point-and-shoot digital camera, thanks to its all-metal, weatherproof exterior. Easy on the eyes and comfortable in the hand, the Stylus 300 can also withstand water splashes, driving rain, and windy snowstorms. And though it's not waterproof, you can add the optional PT-016 underwater case for diving photos down to 130 feet underwater.

Weatherproof design and an all-metal exterior allow you to use the Stylus 300 in conditions from driving rain to windy snowstorms.

While not as 'Elph-in' as some other compact digital cameras, the Stylus 300 is easily pocketable for on-the-go photo fun, from sightseeing to impromptu get-togethers. It's also very quick to respond on start-up. Just slide open the clam-shell cover, and the Stylus 300 is ready to snap pics in about 3 seconds.

The Stylus 300 is made for automatic point-and-shoot possibilities, and the camera offers some basic scene modes (landscape, night, portrait, and self-portrait) and white balance settings (daylight, overcast, tungsten, and fluorescent). The menu system accessed through the 1.5-inch LCD continues the Olympus tradition of a well-mapped-out software system.

The Stylus 300 is just the right size--compact enough to carry anywhere, but not so small that it's hard to operate.

We were quite happy with the exterior, providing a lot of area from the right side of the camera to the lens, which helped to eliminate fingers getting in the way of the lens. Additionally, the shutter button at the top of the camera was nicely sizeable for our chunky fingers. We were a bit disappointed, though, with the size and slipperiness of the function buttons on the back of the Stylus--the all-metal exterior was just too smooth and the buttons weren't rubbery enough.

With the 3.2-megapixel resolution, you’ll be able to capture enough image detail to print decent 11 by 14 print enlargements. But the best thing about more pixels is the amount of stored pixel information, which enabled us to crop images on our PC without losing much clarity or sharpness. At the highest quality setting, you'll get 2,048 x 1,536 pixel images, but you can also step down to lower pixel ranges--from 1,600 x 1,200 to 640 x 480.

You can also record small QuickTime videos, though we found the movie mode to be fairly basic compared to some of the other new releases of 2003. Since there's no built-in microphone, your movies will be silent, and you can't utilize the zoom while filming. Choose between 320 x 240 for 16 seconds and 160 x 120 for 40 seconds.

If you're looking for pure point-and-shoot pleasure, the Stylus 300 is the camera for you. It's nicely automated and ready to snap pics in a flash. We were also quite happy with the battery life, though you might want to invest in an additional battery (model LI-12B) as well as a higher-capacity XD card for safety's sake. --Agen G.N. Schmitz

Pros

• All-weather exterior means never having to worry about rain, sleet, or snow
• Great automatic point-and-shoot features
• Fast start-up time

Cons

• No manual controls
• Movie mode doesn't have sound, short video length

Amazon.com Product Description:
Carrying on the heritage of its film predecessor, the Olympus Stylus 300 is an ultracompact, all weather, and easy-to-use camera designed for the digital photography enthusiast looking for the best performance in a stylish and portable body. It features a 3.2-megapixel resolution, 12x total zoom, and a movie mode for short video clips.

Optics and Resolution
Featuring a 3.2-megapixel CCD sensor, the Stylus 300 delivers images up to 2,048 x 1,536 pixels and crystal-clear prints up to 8 by 10 inches (and medium quality up to 11 by 14). A high-quality Olympus 3x optical zoom (and 4x digital zoom for a seamless 12x total) gives you the ability to fill your pictures with sharp detail and vibrant color. It features an Olympus aspherical glass lens with a focal range of 5.8-17.4mm (35-105mm equivalent in 35mm photography).

Storage and Transfer
Images are stored on xD Picture Card memory cards. The card's small size (about the same as a postage stamp) helps reduce the size of the camera. The included 16 MB card will store approximately 20 images at 2,048 x 1,536 pixels (at HQ, JPEG setting). Images can be downloaded to either a Mac or PC via USB storage-class connectivity, which means the camera can be connected to any USB-based computer running Windows 98 Rev2Me/2000/XP or Mac OS 8.6 or later without installing any software.

Movie Mode
In addition to taking still photos, the Stylus 300 can also record movie clips of up to 40 seconds without audio. 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
The Stylus Digital cameras offer basic point-and-shoot simplicity for flawless picture taking. For photographers who want optimum results in a wide variety of settings, the easy-to-use scene modes provide fully automatic exposure adjustments for portrait, self-portrait, and landscape portrait.

Other controls include digital ESP multipattern and spot metering, auto white balance, multiple flash settings, and exposure compensation. The camera comes with a built-in flash that offers four settings to provide the widest range of options.

The lightweight and ergonomic metal body of the Stylus 300 provides all-weather protection from the elements and can even endure a downpour.

Power, Size, and Contents
The camera is powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery. It measures 3.8 by 2.2 by 1.3 inches and weighs 5.8 ounces. This package includes the Stylus 300 digital camera, 16 MB xD Picture Card, rechargeable lithium-ion battery and charger (LI-10B), self-timer remote control (RM-2), USB and AV cables, wrist strap, and CD-ROM with Camedia Master software and USB drivers for Windows and Mac.



Accessories:
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Accessories:

• PhotoImpact 6.0
• Olympus CB-VC1 Digital Camera Video Cable (Item #200529)
• Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 (Mac)
• Corel Painter Essentials 4 (Win/Mac)
• Corel MediaOne Plus

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Related Items:
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Related Items:

• Olympus LI-12B Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery for Select Stylus and C Series Digital Cameras
• Olympus 200843 128 MB xD-Picture Card
• see more

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Rating: - as time have passed i strted liking this camera
in my family we used to have digital nikons and film olimpuses:) when we bought this one no one liked it: slow switch, eats batteries so fast, does not have "memory" for the last selected flash options, need special memory card and so on and on... so this camera was thrown in to big bowl with stuff in the corridor and stayed there for many years occasionally being used to take random photos. Now i looked at photos taken by this camera and i cannot say tat they are bad, no actually they are better then many ones taken with newest cameras. Though, i never will get another olimpus camera, unless it is a film one.

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Rating: - This is my baby!
I've had mine for years. I take it everywhere with me. I've even dropped it a few times. It still works wonderfully. The only problem I have with this camera is that you have to hold it still so it doesn't take blurry photos. (I think it takes a while for the aperture to close.)

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Rating: - You Can Find a Better Camera Than This One.......
I am so mad I purchased this camera. The design is really bad. The slider is a pain, and from reading these reviews...I am just on egg shells every time I slide it open to take a picture. It is not a very simple camera to use. Sometimes it takes good pics but usually you have to hold it perfectly still to get them perfect. I definatley prefer my mother-in-law's Power-Shot by Cannon. I wish I would have spent a bit more and purchased that model! Hind sight is 20/20... Take my advice and tons of others...Skip this one.

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Rating: - I need an update
This is the first digital camera I have owned, and I have used it for 4 years (only one battery!). I always wondered what I was doing wrong when the pix were so blurry with the flash off--but now that I read the other reviews, I see I'm not the only one! And my sliding door has the opposite problem--I can't shut it, and my camera will not turn off. I'm ready for something much better, with a stablizing feature, but this camera was a pretty good basic way to enter the world of digital photos.

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Rating: - Works well for our puposes
We have had this camera for almost two years, possibly longer. This little camera was a good for our workplace to take photos of people for reference. Overall, the quality of the photos can go up to 3.2mpg, good enough for a 11x14 photo, but all we need is 3x5-4x6 maximum, so excellent for this. Also it features a 3x optical (still low end standard zoom today) and a 4 x digital zoom (which relies on megapixels). total zoom 12x, not bad for this little design. The price on this right now is excellent for the features, the software still very similar to the newer stylus models (710,740,750,760,810,and 1000). This does not have a digital image or optical image stabilization, which was not available from olympus at this price range back in 2003. It does featrue the panoramic feature available with type m and type h olympus brand xD cards (a code that comes with the branded card unlocks the code in the master software on your computer). What this feature does is allow you to stitch up to 10 photos together seamlessly for a 360 degree view if wanted. Neat. Check this out as an everyday use, on the go camera. It is weather resistant (sealed to prevent splashes ect, good in rain). Good entry level camera for kids today.