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Olympus XZ-1 $499.99
By Kaitlyn Chantry March 25, 2011
Olympus XZ-1
Review Highlights

Excellent noise performance

Solid resolution performance

Great hardware, smartly designed

Unimpressive video performance

Score Breakdown
5.1
7.6
7.7

Introduction

After spending several years developing its PEN brand of interchangeable lens cameras, it seems Olympus is ready to re-enter the market of high-end point-and-shoot cameras. As it turns out, the company’s first attempt in about ten years is a home run. The Olympus XZ-1 is packed with manual controls, sports a fantastic control ring, gives users a beautiful 3-inch OLED screen, and features a stellar F1.8 Zuiko lens. Oh… and the picture quality is pretty great too.

The ZX-1 is available in black or white for an MSRP of $499.99.

This review is organized into 16 pages
Page 1
Product Tour

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Page 2
Color

There are five picture modes and six art filters, with the most accurate colors rendered in Muted and Natural picture modes.

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Page 3
Noise

The XZ-1 has excellent noise performance and an ISO range of 100–6400 (available in 1/3-EV increments).

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Page 4
Resolution

The XZ-1 has solid resolution performance, plus the ability to shoot in RAW.

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Page 5
Video

The XZ-1 capture 720/30p video with average color accuracy and sharpness.

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Page 6
Sample Photos

A gallery of photos taken with the Olympus XZ-1

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Page 7
Playback

Playback options are relatively standard, though information displays and editing options are unusually robust.

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Page 8
Hardware

The beautiful F1.8 Zuiko lens and 3-inch OLED make a great team.

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Page 9
Controls

The XZ-1 has a wide range of controls, designed with the enthusiast photographer in mind.

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Page 10
Design & Handling

The XZ-1 is the result of a lot of smart design decisions, including excellent buttons and controls.

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Page 11
Panasonic LX5 Comparison
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

We compare the XZ-1 to the DMC-LX5.

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Page 12
Samsung TL500 Comparison
Samsung TL500

We compare the XZ-1 to the TL500.

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Page 13
Canon G11 Comparison
Canon  PowerShot G11

We compare the XZ-1 to the G11.

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Page 14
Conclusion

Read our final conclusion of the Olympus XZ-1.

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Page 15
Photo Gallery

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Part 16
Comments

Read what people are saying about the Olympus XZ-1.

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Olympus XZ-1
Digital Camera Review

This review is organized into 16 pages

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