Olympus FE-5030 review

Olympus push the boundaries on the 14MP point-and-shoot market

The Olympus FE-5030 boasts a 14 mega pixel sensor, a wider-than-average 5x optical zoom and a small, attractive chassis available in four eye catching colours. It comes hot on the heels of its previous generation offering, the FE-5020 (a review of which can be found here http://bit.ly/b17tiS), which scored a solid three stars in testing. While it performed well in terms of landscape and macro photography, it was let down by poor low-light and high-speed performance. It was also plagued by usability issues with far too many rolling menus and not enough quick access to important functions.

So what does the FE-5030 do to build on its predecessor? The core of the improvements  include SD card support, a wider ISO range, more reach with a greater 26 – 130mm (35mm equivalent) lens and improved image stabilisation. We're particularly pleased to see Olympus have rolled out official SD card support for their cameras now. While it still features xD Picture Card capability, it's good to see the firm moving away from the dying format. Also, the wider-than-normal lens has got even more reach at the top end which should please the vast majority of you in theory, though the inclusion of the so-called 'dual image stabilisation' to help keep those really long shots steady, sadly works to its detriment. In this price range it would be too much to ask for native optical image stabilisation, so the more affordable digital stabilisation is set to use. Sadly, this kind of stabilisation tends to add noise as a by-product. Since the FE-5030 already suffers from soft focus beyond the centre of the frame (as you'll learn in a moment) the further addition of noise from its secondary IS trick of automatically raising the ISO (thus adding yet more noise) does it a real disservice. This being the case image noise can be evident even among its lowest ISO settings – suffice it to say that shooting at ISO 3200 is far from recommended.

Of course, it's important to bear in mind that the FE-5030 can be bought for as little as £120 online. With its impressive 14MP sensor and particularly wide lens, its capabilities certainly go beyond the average for this price range. Sadly, this sturdy little snapper can't quite handle its new-found capabilities quite as well as it should. Though focus can be pin-sharp in the centre of the frame, image quality isn't at all tight to the corners or outer edges, where focus can significantly drop off, especially when pushing the lens to its upper limit. The softening of focus on the edge of the frame is a problem that affects all low-end cameras to a certain degree - it usually goes unnoticed since users at this end of the market don't tend to be as demanding of their equipment - but the FE-5030 is a particular offender.

Like its predecessor, there are also niggles with usability and, to a lesser degree, shutter response. The latter complaint has certainly been addressed since the FE-5020, though there is still a noticeable lag between finding focus and capturing the frame. That said, the lens barrel is very snappy in terms of zoom response and is happy to catapult from its widest angle to its telephoto end and back again in short order. Again, slow shutter response is a problem native to all camera's at this end of the price spectrum, but usability on the other hand is easily addressed in any price range, so we're particularly sorry to see the FE-5030 still requires half-a-dosen button presses where one should do. There are no assigned shortcuts on the directional pad for ISO or exposure compensation and the user still needs to cycle through menus in a slow and cumbersome fashion. It also lacks the ability to select the focus point from within the frame or view histogram details – even after capturing a frame. Still, for a first camera, perhaps as an upgrade from a camera phone, we must give it credit for working hard to appease the novice. It features live previews of its special effects modes and step-by-step instruction on all its major functions. In this regard it excels.