Olympus C-5500

Connectivity
Software (6.0)
The C-5500 comes with Olympus Master Software version 1.1, which is compatible with Macintosh and most Windows interfaces (it does not work with Windows 98). The program took about eight minutes to load; it does require the serial number on the software packaging to load properly. The program opens with a simple non-flashy welcome window that includes the following options: Online Print, Print At Home, Create, Browse Images, Transfer Images, Backup Images, and Upgrade. All of the options are available from each choice; for example, you can still print in the Browse Images section. The software program has user-friendly features such as a Help menu, Find function, Online Lesson link, and direct access to online upgrades to software and cameras (if you have the Internet). The program has an Olympus Ofoto link for printing photos online. Sound a little strange? Well, once I entered the page, the banner said, "Olympus Introduces Digital Photo Services by Kodak EasyShare Gallery." So yeah, that’s strange. Anyway the software has simple editing functions such as Rotate, Crop, Instant Fix, Red-Eye Removal, Color Balance, Cutouts, and a very primitive Clone feature. Once your photos are gorgeous enough to share, the program has a built-in email system.

Jacks, ports, plugs (7.0)
There are several port doors that hide various jacks. Under one, the USB and A/V out jacks can be found. Under another is the DC in jack. A plastic door covers the slot to the xD-Picture Card. On the bottom of the camera is a separate plastic door for the 4 AA batteries. They all seem to be unusually scattered about, but when would all these doors and jacks be used at once anyway? Within the Setup menu, users can choose between NTSC and PAL formats for the A/V out cable.

Direct Print Options (4.0)
To print, users must connect their camera to the printer with the USB cable. Users must then enter the Playback menu and the Play tab. The second icon down represents the Print mode. Users can print one photo or all of them in the memory

Memory (4.0)
The Olympus C-5500 has a slot for an xD-Picture Card and comes with a 16 MB card. This camera can accept cards up to 1GB.

Other features (8.0)
Included accessories — The C-5500 digital camera comes with a wrist strap (which is incredibly difficult to string into the tiny loop on the side), xD-Picture Card, four AA batteries, USB cable, A/V cable, Olympus Master CD-ROM, warranty card, owner’s manual, advanced CD-ROM manual, and a product registration card.

Self-timer — This self-timer takes 3 or 12 seconds before capturing the photograph.

Live Histograms — The live histogram feature can be viewed as a regular chart or in a "display" mode, which fills the LCD viewing screen with small red and blue boxes. The red boxes indicate mainly white areas; the blue boxes indicate mainly black areas. In theory, a perfectly composed and exposed image would have a nice balance of these boxes. The coolest part about this feature is that when the camera moves, the boxes move and change color. This is not available in the panorama mode.

Panorama Mode — This mode can only be accessed within the following modes: Program, My Mode, and the Scene modes. To use this option at all, users must have an Olympus-brand xD-Picture Card and the Olympus Master software, both of which are included with the C-5500. This mode can stitch up to 10 frames together.

Time Lapse — This feature can be found in the Camera recording menu. Users can choose how many pictures are taken and the length of intervals between them.

Pixel Mapping - This feature scans the image sensor to detect the hot or inactive pixels across the CCD. Rather than bringing the camera in for repair (which needs to be done to a digital camera every few years), the C-5500 user can utilize the Pixel Mapping option to rearrange the pixels and maximize the sensor’s sensitivity.