Olympus Gets Tough With SD

Olympus announced several cameras at CES, including the Stylus TOUGH-3000 model that is "as smart as it is durable". New to Olympus is the integration of the popular SD card (up to 32 GB) - finally. The TOUGH-3000 will retail for $229.99 and will be available this spring.

Return From Life’s Everyday Adventures With High Definition Proof: The New Olympus STYLUS TOUGH-3000

CENTER VALLEY, Pa., January 7, 2010 – Olympus unveils the STYLUS TOUGH-3000, a shockproof, waterproof and freezeproof compact camera designed to capture all of life’s adventures from the extreme to the everyday. As the first Stylus Tough camera with High-Definition (HD) video, features like Magic Filter that expand your creativity and AF tracking to keep subjects in focus, the STYLUS TOUGH-3000 is as smart as it is durable. It’s also the first of several Stylus Tough cameras to be launched in 2010.

The STYLUS TOUGH-3000 also offers a new graphical user interface (GUI) for intuitive operation and new OLYMPUS [ib] software for rapid downloading and enhanced photo organization with Geotagging and Face Recognition functionality.

"The STYLUS TOUGH-3000 is the latest in the Stylus Tough series, a family of compact cameras designed for the places where families really go, like the pool, the slopes and the great outdoors," said Nadine Clark, product manager, Olympus Imaging America Inc. "With HD video and 12 megapixels of resolution, you’ll relive life’s adventures."

HD Videos and HDMI Control for a Home Theater Experience
The STYLUS TOUGH-3000 shoots gorgeous 720p HD videos using a dedicated one-touch button, so you’ll always capture the scene. Playback is also a breeze. Now, you’ll be the hit of the party or any family function when you proudly display your brilliant images and videos on high-definition televisions. Simply connect the camera to an HDTV with an HDMI™ cable, which can be purchased separately at any consumer electronics store. With HDMI Control, you can use your HDTV’s remote to control playback functions and navigate the camera’s menus from the comfort of your favorite couch.

AF Tracking for Friends and Man’s Best Friend
AF Tracking technology locks your fast-moving subject in focus, and continuously adjusts focus and brightness. This enables you to keep in focus fast-moving and unpredictable subjects like snowboarders on your favorite mountain, tropical fish while snorkeling or children at play anywhere in the great outdoors to capture the perfect shot. There’s even a specially designed AF Tracking "Pet Mode" for animal lovers.

Express Your Inner Artist with Magic Filter


In-camera Art Filters debuted on Olympus E-System DSLR (digital single lens reflex) cameras last year. Similar technology, called Magic Filter, has been developed for the new STYLUS TOUGH-3000. The Magic Filter enables the user to enhance and customize images as they’re being captured. This translates into more fun and flexibility as customization is no longer limited to using expensive and time-consuming computer software.

The new Magic Filter includes:

• Pop Art – Enhance and saturate colors to create vivid, high-impact pictures that express the joyful, lighthearted feeling of the Pop Art style of the 1960s;
  
• Pin Hole – Reduce the peripheral brightness of an image as though it were shot through a pin hole, connecting the viewer intimately with the subject at the center;
  
• Fish-Eye – Emulate the wide-angle of a fish-eye lens by taking extremely wide, hemispherical images and magnifying the center of the frame; and
  
• Drawing – Turn your image into a sketch outline for children to color.

Nothing Can Shock This Tough Camera
Afraid the mountain wind might sweep a camera out of your hands and dash it on the rocks below? Never fear, the STYLUS TOUGH-3000, available in fun and sporty red, pink, blue and green, can withstand a five-foot drop thanks to the Stylus Tough series’ shock-absorbing technology, which minimizes the impact on the lens and circuitry.

Point-Dunk-and-Shoot Cameras
Stylus Tough series cameras perform as well underwater as they do on land because their lightweight, yet durable exteriors are matched with interior rubber gaskets and O-rings to seal out the elements. The STYLUS TOUGH-3000 can be submerged up to 10 feet underwater. The inclusion of four preset underwater scene modes makes this camera perfect for taking photos while swimming, snorkeling or simply having worry-free fun in the pool. It can also capture HD movies underwater. The camera features a water-repellent lens coating to prevent water droplets from forming on the lens and enabling you to get crystal-clear shots no matter how wet the shooting environment.

Freezeproof for Arctic Adventures
Whether you’re in the arctic tundra or building a snowman in your backyard, the STYLUS TOUGH-3000 camera can still perform when the temperature dips well below freezing (14 degrees Fahrenheit; -10 degrees Celsius). Stylus Tough cameras continue to enable you to capture great images in freezing situations where most traditional cameras would fail.

Wide-Angle Optical Zoom Captures It All
The STYLUS TOUGH-3000 features a 3.6x wide-angle optical zoom (28-102mm equivalent in 35mm photography, f3.5-5.0) so that even more of the subject makes it into each shot – perfect for underwater photography. The lens does not protrude from its body so it is further protected from harsh conditions.

Cut Out the Blur with Dual Image Stabilization
Dual Image Stabilization combines two technologies – mechanical Sensor-Shift Image Stabilization and Digital Image Stabilization – to provide one powerful anti-blur solution for capturing great images whether the photographer or the subject is moving. Olympus’ mechanical Sensor-Shift Image Stabilization keeps images sharp by adjusting the internal image sensor to compensate for camera movement, even in low-light conditions when shutter speeds are slower. Additionally, Digital Image Stabilization freezes the action with high ISO sensitivity and fast shutter speeds that prevent blurry images often caused by a moving subject.


Hit Them with Your Best Shot: Tap Control
The Stylus Tough cameras can be controlled with a simple tap on their top, back or sides, which is made possible thanks to their internal 3D accelerometer that detects the direction of the force on the camera’s body. In adverse climates, Tap Control ensures fast adjustment of settings even if you are wearing gloves that make pressing traditional buttons nearly impossible.

12 Megapixels for Superior Image Quality
The STYLUS TOUGH-3000 camera offers a 12-megapixel image sensor enabling consumers to achieve consistently sharp and vivid images when producing large-format prints or cropping/enlarging a portion of an image.

Can’t Hide with Face Detection!
Portrait and group shots make family reunions live beyond the short event, and with Face Detection you’ll capture even the shyest relatives. The STYLUS TOUGH-3000 detects up to 16 faces within the frame and automatically focuses and optimizes exposure to capture sharp, brilliant portraits and group shots. Thanks to the unrivaled durability of the Stylus Tough series, you’ll capture amazing photos even if your next family reunion is at a national park, a water park or a ski slope!

Intelligent Auto Thinks for You
Skating at night? You won’t be the last one on the ice setting your camera. Intelligent Auto Mode automatically identifies what you are shooting (i.e., Portrait, Night + Portrait, Landscape, Macro and Sports) and adjusts the camera’s settings to capture the best quality results. First-time users can jump into this quick and hassle-free feature that does the thinking for them and produces incredible images.

Broaden Your Horizons with In-Camera Panorama
The places you can take Stylus Tough cameras – the rocky terrain of the Grand Canyon, the arctic glaciers of Alaska or the volcanic sand beaches of Hawaii – are locations where you want to capture as much of the scene as you can. In-Camera Panorama mode makes it easy by capturing three images and stitching them together to create one amazing panoramic picture. Simply press the shutter button and slowly pan across a panoramic scene. The second and third images will be captured automatically and stitched together with the first image – resulting in one seamless panorama-size picture. To create the ultimate panoramic picture, consumers can use the OLYMPUS [ib] Software to stitch up to 10 images together.

TruePic™ III Image Processor
Olympus developed its exclusive TruePic III image processor for the demanding performance of digital SLR (single lens reflex) cameras. Olympus’ enhanced TruePic III Image Processor produces crystal-clear photos using all the pixel information for each image to deliver superior picture quality with more accurate colors, true-to-life flesh tones and faster processing speeds. TruePic III also captures crisp, clear images at high ISO settings, which are traditionally associated with increasing image noise or producing grainy photos.

OLYMPUS [ib] Software and In-Camera Manual
All Spring 2010 digital compact cameras, including the Stylus Tough series, will offer the new OLYMPUS [ib] software. The new software includes photography workflow, browsing, editing and unique photo organizing functions. You can organize your photos by person with automatic face recognition technology, by location with a Geotagging function or by event. You can easily view photos on an HDTV or on the camera’s LCD with the Photo Surfing or Slideshow functions. The name [ib] stands for image bridging, image browsing and brighten images. The new software will be available for Windows operating systems only.

The STYLUS TOUGH-3000 will come equipped with the instruction manual saved on the camera’s new internal memory. This translates into easily referencing instructions while shooting on the go. The internal memory also enables in-camera image playback in an organized fashion. Eliminating a paper or CD-Rom instruction manual is part of Olympus’ ongoing environmental commitment to conserve natural resources and reduce its carbon footprint.

SD Compatibility
Olympus’ new Spring 2010 digital compact cameras offer SD capability for up to 32 gigabytes of capacity.

Availability
The STYLUS TOUGH-3000 will be available in February 2010. It includes: wrist strap, camera WIN/Mac USB cable, audio/video cable, Li-Ion rechargeable battery, warranty card and manual and OLYMPUS [ib] Software on the camera.

U.S. Pricing
STYLUS TOUGH-3000 Estimated Street Price: $229.99 (U.S.)