Review on Olympus SZ-31MR Silver: 16MP CMOS Camera, 24x Wide-Angle Zoom, 3-inch Touch LCD Panel - Old Model by Tarus Clinton

A lot of time was invested in the purchase of this camera and it was worth it. We have a multi-lens DSLR, but it's never available when you need it. It's just too bulky to carry around. The SZ31 is a little bulkier than the base point-and-shoot model, but it's a great size and weight for everyday use. We compared the SZ31 to Canon's base point-and-shoot model with a smaller zoom. Consider that Canon is $50 cheaper and a few years older. photo comparison. All photos taken handheld: Viewfinder: Canon has both a viewfinder and an LCD screen. However, the LCD screen must be turned off to extend the life of the AA battery. There is no built-in charger. Olympus only has an LCD screen, but it has a more powerful battery and a built-in charger. The battery lasted for a day of shooting. Airplane. The Olympus was sharp at medium magnification. Outdoor group photos: Canon had blurry photos. The Olympus was sharper and brighter, although the user was shaking. The flying stink bugs were very clear. Group photos from afar: All Canon shots were blurry. Olympus was much sharper with better color. Beach Pebbles In/Out Of The Water: Canon got a decent shot of beach pebbles, but the pebbles in the water washed out. The Olympus photos looked like looking through Polaroid glasses. The pebbles in the water were very light. Panoramas: Canon was unable to take a panorama. Individual frames had to be assembled in a computer program. Olympus has a counter that shows the migration route. The panoramas were excellent. The photo software that comes with this camera is excellent and relatively easy to use. This is one of the best we've found. Our relatives who use Canon were amazed and enjoyed the features of the SZ31. Now they are converts. There are a few improvements Olympus could make. When shooting with a telephoto lens, a viewfinder would be an advantage. There is only a strap clip on the camera. a second one with a neckband wouldn't hurt. Eventually the full zoom became blurry. We bought some accessories. The Case Logic DCB-302 camera bag fits the camera like a glove and is easy to transport. It offers space for memory cards and additional batteries. There's no room for extra cables or an extra charger. We also bought an accessory kit from Davismax (Revain) which includes 2x Halcyon 1500mah batteries (standard 1000mah battery), an AC/DC charger, an LCD screen protector and a useless tripod. Note that we bought this inexpensive kit because we knew we wouldn't be using a tripod. We also have two HS memory cards. We will update them as we know the camera better. Update: My wife filmed our first video along with a snapshot. Both the video and photos were excellent, along with the sound. She was delighted! I still love this camera.