Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 starsSome weak points
Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2019
I bought this camera because of the great reviews. I used to be a pro photographer and wanted a point and shoot that could handle water situations when my wife and I got our open water diving certification in the Caribbean. Pros out of the gate: 1) the built-in macro functionality is really impressive, 2) if the "tough" specs Olympus touts are true (no reason to believe otherwise), then it is a great point-and-shoot for things like hiking, sandy beaching, watersports and for when general rugged performance is needed. But the image quality is short of what might be expected in an age when phone pics are so great. The colors are a bit more vibrant than reality, which I think accounts for some of the positive reviews for image quality. That will appeal to many users, but many of the pics seemed a little artificial to me. When zoomed, resolution and focus was disappointing. I just wasn't blown away for a camera over $400. The camera performed pretty well for snorkeling, but again, while it worked, images were far from great. For the same price, a Gopro Hero 7 will blow the socks off this camera . Even for snorkeling, my Gopro videos and stills are WAY better. A major annoying point for my situation: this camera is rated to 55 feet. Pretty impressive for a point-and-shoot, granted, but basic Open Water dive certification is 60 feet. Which means you pretty much can't dive with it. I did take it down to 63 feet (with the red warning light flashing the last 15 feet:)...but, really, Olympus, if you spec this camera out another 10 feet, you've got a dive-capable camera. If you want a video/still camera for snorkeling or diving, Gopro is the way to go. If you want a camera you can throw in your backpack and hike or hang out at the beach with, use your phone, or this. The phone will take better pics. If you planning on dropping it, get the Tough.
