Olympus Stylus 9000 12 MP Digital Camera with 10x Wide Angle Optical Dual Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.7-Inch LCD (Black)

I love this camera. It has a durable feel to it, while still looking sleek and polished. Picture quality is great, and the image stabilizer and sports/action mode is usually solid enough to take good pictures of people/things that are on the move. Panoramic mode is pretty impressive for taking wide angle pictures. Overall I am very impressed with this camera. Great price for a quality camera.

Just took pictures comparing the Olympus 9000 and the Canon SX200is. Hands down the Canon outperformed. Not only was it an easier camera to use and learn but the picture quality was much better. The Olympus in poor lighting didn't focus well and was very grainy. Actually the camera I'm replacing took better pictures. The Canon had better zoom, the colors were crisp and the pictures turned out great even in the low lighting. The Olympus was a little faster in being ready for the next picture. I've been reading reviews and going back and forth for months now on these cameras, finally bought them both and the Canon wins.

This camera is easy to use, great pictures, downloads easily. Batteries hold a long charge, it's small and compact. The only negative so far is that when taking multiple pics in succession there is a lag time and camera will not take the picture.

I used my new Olympus Stylus 9000 digital camera on my recent cruise for the first time, and I was very satified with it's results. It was also very easy to use.

I was also very impressed with how helpful the Olympus Customer Service was when I called them for assistance.

I like the overall look of pictures taken with Olympus cameras, so I looked for a small Olympus camera with a 10-zoom feature to replace my Olympus 750-Ultra Zoom, which was dropped one too many times. I'm used to a view finder, so I'm not sure how well I'll like using the preview window instead. I've had to get reading glasses recently, so I hope I can see the screen well enough to take good pictures. I've tested it locally, but everything is different when you're on vacation and in a rush. Other than that, the 10-zoom feature is perfect and the camera size is amazingly small, so I'm really happy with this purchase.

I bought this camera about 8 months ago to keep in my purse. (Completely protected in a hard case.) We also have a 6MP digital Canon SLR we bought in 2003 that was SO expensive at the time, and this camera is BETTER and 1/4 the price (over $1000 vs $266). The 10x zoom is the equivilant of a 280mm zoom lens. Obviously this camera also has 12MP. I can't believe you can get this kind of MP and zoom in a pocket camera. The color and clarity are excellent, even when using it as a camcorder. It picks up the various hughs of a rainbow better than my naked eye. I have recently used the "sun" (bright) mode taking photos of the snow, and it is an unbelievable difference from using a "regular" mode, which is just all bright white. Our SLR does not have a pre-set "sun" or "bright" mode - you would have to manually configure such a thing.
The camera itself is compact and sturdy. The viewing window is huge and the controls are user-friendly. The on/off, photo snap, and zoom are all convient to the trigger-finger, but not so close that you accidentally bump one while using another. I do dislike that you have to change from "picture taking" mode to "picture viewing" mode to delete a photo you just took if you don't like it, but this isn't a major issue for me.
I only have two complaints. One is, you cannot zoom while you are using it as a camcorder. You need to zoom to the level you want before recording, and if whatever you are recording moves closer or further from you, you are, well, SOL! I don't think it is a limitation of the hardware, I think they just didn't include it in the internal software. Second, the battery doesn't keep a very good charge after just 6 months. And I was NOT using it extensively in either photo or video mode. The battery is not part of the warranty. But you can pick up knock-off batteries (which reviewers say also only have a rechargable life of about 6 months) for $6-$7 apiece, vs the "Canon" brand battery at $40.

Very good image quality with 10X zoom and wide angle lens makes this camera very compelling. Little bit bigger than comparable Canon and other point and shoot cameras.

I am what you would consider a novice as far as cameras go. I did a lot of research to make up for it. With that stated; I love this camera. It is everything I could ever want and much more. It is easy to use, great pictures, and very portable. My one complaint would be that you have to hold the button down for a second or two to take a picture. While this is very annoying, I would definately buy this camera again looking back on it. The price can't be beat for this kind of quality. I would recommend getting the kit with it. It costs roughly $70 more, but it is excellent and also totally worth it.

I was recently coming from a Digital Canon Rebel 8.0 which was an SLR, so It shouldn't be something to compare this Olympus too, so I will try not to be biased. I have owned a lot of "Pocket" Digital cameras, mostly Canons. I bought this one based on the good reviews and a friend of mine had it and said it was great. It feels a little bit bulky, it's a little wide compared to others on the market, but it's still small enough to throw in a bag without taking up "real" space. The panoramic feature is sort of fun, but also a little cheesy and not always accurate, the navigation feels a little tedious and more work than it should be. The colors of the pictures are fairly accurate, overall it's an okay camera. I definitely would recommend other cameras over this one. I am usually hesitant when there are added gimmicks, and it proved to be true in this case, it did not live up to my expectations and I sold it to buy a Canon Powershot.

I was buying my first digital p/s camera. Serious contenders were Nikon 570, Sony and Canon. I have an Olympus Stylus 35mm p/s and like it a lot. This thing is really cool and has a good feature set. I checked out all settings and I'm pleased. The battery life at first was not great, but that was due to learning the camera - now its better as no time is wasted fooling around. Pictures were great on the whole - the few questionable ones were due to not being familiar with the digital photo world. On the whole, I'd recommend this camera to anyone. The software is fun as well.

Enjoy taking pictures with small camera. Self timer very effective. Great having Image Stabilization. I would recommend this camera.

This is a wonderful camera. After I purchased it at Amazon.com, I checked it out at Best Buy. It was almost $100 more expensive.

My last portable camera was a Kodak, which also had a 10" optical zoom. I loved that feature and wanted it again. Unfortunately, I dropped that camera and it stopped working.

This camera is even better than that one. The zoom feature is awesome as it actually zooms out instead of just having a little button as a zoom feature.

Also, it is easy to use and the picture clarity is excellent. So far, I have been 100% satisfied with all of my purchases from Amazon.com; it's truly a trustworthy on-line company.

The picture quality is very good. But the best thing about this camera is the quick response. Cold start to first picture is about 2 seconds, which is pretty good. The "quick sequence" feature is great to have when there's a lot of action going on, but there's no flash so make sure there is lots of ambient light.

This is a great camera, but I can't give it the glowing review I wanted to, because the images seem to be "washed out". Looks like I may need to read the manual and check the settings.

I have had Olympus cameras for many years. I've never had anything go wrong with them and I have always been pleased with the quality of photos. This summer I bought this pocket sized Olympus for a two week cruise and I'm extremely pleased. At 12 MP and 10x Optical Zoom this little thing is a dream! Add in the image stabilizer for those of us with shaky hands and you'll appreciate this camera even more.

This camera has so many features that I'm still learning them three months after having the camera. One feature that I love is that I can record a voice snippit for each photo so that years later I can remember the context of the picture.

Can't go wrong with this one.

Great camera, Very happy with this purchase! Light weight easy to carry and loaded with features. The zoom is incredible for a point & shoot. You won't be sorry with this camera!

I'm extremely pleased with the quality of my photos. AND, with the ease of use -- even for the advanced features. I have fantastic shots from Alaska, without carrying around my larger, heavy SLR!

Well once again I am very very pleased with my new Olympus Stylus 9000 camera. I used their trade up plan and traded in my Olympus Stylus 840 which was a great camera also, but I wanted the better features on the Olympus 9000 such as the 12 megapixels and the 10X optical zoom lens. Also I got a fairly decent price when I traded in the 840 model. My Great Niece got married in an outdoor wedding in Pa. a few days after I got the new camera and I had little time to try out the new features on the new Olympus 9000 camera before I went to the wedding. But I had totally no problems. Olympus cameras are totally user friendly and unlike many cameras they come with a printed hands on instruction manual. I love that feature but truthufully if you know anything about digital cameras you will have little trouble operating the Olympus brands. One thing I was totally surprised about and was amazed at was that we were all seated quite far away from the actual marriage ceremony. The wedding was on a little island on a small lake and the guests were on the shore of the lake. I held my little camera above the seated folks heads, with my arms extended straight up as far as I could reach, and was still able to see the screen and took some really really great pictures at 10X zoom. I was almost certain I would not be able to hold the camera steady at 10X zoom but the double stabilization did great and I didn't get one blurry photo and I am a shaky 64 year old man. I could go on and on about the different features on this camera but trust me, it is loaded down with nice and easy to use features. The price and size of this camera are great too. It is a true shirt pocket sized camera with big camera features and qualities. And remember when it comes to seeing the viewing screen in bright sunlight or any light, Olympus wrote the book on being able to see the screen in all light conditions. The only thing a few folks complain about is that Olympus still uses the XD cards. I don't know why this is a problem to some people as it matters not to me. They are readily available at many places and you really only need one 2 GB size card or at the most 2 cards. The battery life is also senstional and they came out with a new charger without a cord which is great. You will not be disappointed if you decide to buy this camera.

Ok, so let me start out by saying that "no camera is perfect". Believe me I'm exhausted from reading reviews and tech data on many cameras. ........and no camera met all my criteria, specifically, finding a camera that had a wide angle (28mm) and aperture priority at the same time. So I gave up a little creative control for the wide angle. My reasoning was that I bicycle long distance and just wanted a camera that I can pull out quick and shoot a photo op while riding. I have all the old cameras with multiple lens and know what it is like to carry around big bulky equipment and have to pull it all out of a large camera bag.
However there were a few other flaws on this camera that I was willing to overlook also. When using the flash you have to be at least into ISO 200 or you will be severely limited in your range. ...........and ISO 400 if your using the zoom. At ISO 400 you start seeing the noise (grain). Above ISO 400 pictures are not acceptable. Most of my shooting is outdoors. When using the zoom the AF seems to struggle and some pictures come out blurry. So you have to be cognizant of that and sometimes work (in some compositions, not all by any means) to get the picture by playing with or adjusting the composition or possibly changing the AF from "spot" to "ESP" and vice versa. I've read other reviews where many have said that the picture quality is a little soft. Well not sure if I would call it soft but what struck me right away is that most pictures fall short on "contrast". So if I bring the pictures into the image application and edit them by increasing the contrast they really "POP!".
The picture quality, the AF issue, and the ISO/Flash issue are all resolvable issues with "work arounds" and compromises because as I said in the beginning "no camera is perfect", ......and they will all have their own unique issues unless you want to spend big, big, bucks. Otherwise the camera structure, the features, the wide angle, the 10X zoom, the 12 MP. The LCD screen., the size and portability all played a roll in selecting this camera.

I have been a huge Canon Digital camera fan for years and have owned about four cameras. They take great photos, very clear and precise. But they don't handle tough lighting conditions as well as the Olympus cameras.
Olympus has clearly put a lot of effort and technology to creating not only crystal clear photos but keeps the warmth of skin tones and it manages back lighting, sport shots and bright flash much better than the canons do.
You can even shoot through a store window, with flash, and get a good shot.
The prices for these cameras are fantastic. They are a huge value.
Buy it, try it, love it.
Grady

I am a semi-pro photographer - I own a Canon Rebel SLR - I wanted a decent point and shoot camera so that I didn't have to drag my SLR to family outings and such - After many camera reviews - I decided on the Olympus Stylus 9000. I picked it because it had auto settings but it also had settings that I could change and control myself. I got it today and tonight after looking at the images on my computer, I am returning it.

Overall the camera is very easy to use. It's a bit slippery in your hands. I think that it could be easy to drop. There is no viewfinder window - just the LCD monitor. Another thing I don't like is that the memory card you put into it - is a xd card - you have to buy Olympus brand xd card - and the largest size xd card they sell is 2 GB. With the highest picture quality setting set - you won't be fitting that many images on it -

The camera does come with a rechargeable battery and battery charger. It also comes with a microsd converter.

It is very stylish - most of the functions worked well - I noticed when I was taking pictures that the shutter speed was a little sluggish - I am used to my SLR though - I also noticed that the time to record the images was slower than my SLR - Someone used to point and shoot cameras might think it faster than their current camera.

Auto mode - I would stay away from this - the camera doesn't know what to focus on and so you end up with a lot of blurry pictures. Camera shake is not due to this.

The reason I am returning this camera is that when looking at the images on my computer - there is A LOT of noise. Noise is kind of a grainy quality to the pictures - You really don't notice this until you look at the image at 100%. Just looking at the images in the preview mode - because they are not viewed at 100% - you don't notice it as much - but when you look at your image in full size - its horrible. I was so disappointed. I had the camera on the highest quality picture at 12 mp - at higher ISO's the noise gets worse. Night shots and shots that have low lighting are really bad - shots with plenty of light - you don't notice this as much - but it is still there.

I won't put up with this kind of quality. Back to Amazon it goes.

This camera is compact with large zoom and economic price. The quality of picture is pretty good. The only thing not very good is the low power flash, which made indoor pictures dull.

The camera is perfect. My wife is satisfied with that. The camera is at home and now I am at office so I can not load anything. Later I will upload some figures and movies if possible. But I think I can not take a picture of camera itself.

used few times so far, easy to use, good pictures, wide lens, no wow effect though.

I just bought the 9000 and used it at a church wedding. I also brought along my Canon A95. The Stylus-9000 photos were grainy, the colors looked harsh and the background area was dark. By contrast, the Canon photos were very clean and sharp, the colors looked more pleasing and the lighting was even throughout the photo, even in the background. The two cameras were used from the same location, same church lighting. I also tried using the 9000 without flash, and the pictures looked much better (than with flash) except I usually could not hold it steady enough so the photos were either slighty or very blurred, even with the stablizer on.
The photos of the 9000 taken outside in bright sunlight were fine.
I'm returning the Olympus 9000.

Overall: its a good camera.
Pros: good zoom, good display, simplified quite a bit from the Stylus 1010. i like the in camera editing on the beauty setting.

Cons: a little big, kinda fat and heavy (i realize its cause of the zoom and all that) also it did not come with a Micro SD to xD converter card like the S 1010.

Score: 7.5 of 10

Love it:

A beautifully put together, substantial and versatile point and shoot digital camera. And it is so much more with a little forethought about what and where you are going to be shooting. The pictures, so far, have been everything I could possibly want. The zoom is amazing. The clarity and brightness of the image on the screen is unbelievable compared with my old Olympus C5000.

Hate it:

The instruction manual is almost as clear as mud - however, I suspect that to a young person familiar with all kinds of joy stick operations that it might likely be as clear as a fresh mountain stream - and possibly never needed. Also, the physical travel distance between wide angle and telephoto is very short so it is hard to get just the right length for the composition desired.

It's also going to take time for a died-in-the-wool SLR user to get used to no view finder. The physical position required to hold the camera to the eye is a very stabilizing one. It is good for composing as well as for stabilizing the camera. The 9000 takes care of the stabilizing, but waving that heavy little gizmo at arm's length trying to get the composition exactly right - and for long enough to take the shot - is going to take a lot more practice.

Nice camera, & compact too.
The bad: very dissapointing that the zoom does not work in video mode.

Well, I just bought camera. Came quickly with damage. Works great one of the best cameras ever owmed. It takes great picture even when one after another, and does that quite quickly too. Reason for a four instead of five is because they claim it can be hdmi hooked-up to TV by a mini hdmi cable inserted into camera port, which if there is one then I must be blind or something, because I have not found it yet. If anybody knows where at or doesn't exsist let me know, please. Other than that it is an exceptional camera.

I dropped my last Olympus Stylus in water and ruined it. I had bought it about 4 years ago and loved it. I was looking for the same thing, but found that cameras have advanced a lot since then. My old one only had a 3X zoom and 8 MP. The new Olympus Stylus 9000 has a 10X zoom and 12 MP which you can change to many lower MP settings to increase the number of photos the card holds. The battery is slimmer and the recharger is much more compact. I'm still getting used to using this camera, but so far I'm enjoying it even more than my old camera. Nice new and more compact dials. The photos are excellent!!

The camera is wonderful to use. Very easy and takes great pictures. The only reason it doesn't get 5 stars is a little trouble with the delivery. But a few phone calls took care of what turned out to be a little "glitch".