Review on Olympus TG 610 Digital Camera Optical by Tommy Rao

This camera is a significant improvement over the Tough 6020. The Tough 610 is the third 'hard' Olympus stylus I own. I started with a 720 SW, upgraded to a 6020 and now own a 610. The 610 is the best of them all. First, the on-time has been reset to around a second, around the same time as the 720 SW. . This is important because I photograph a lot of wildlife in the ocean from a kayak. I can afford to leave the camera off, conserve battery power and close the lens cap to keep water out of the lens. In 6020 it lasted for several seconds, which often seemed like an eternity, as a whale or a dolphin jumped in front of me. Second, the camera now remembers the last mode setting. This saves me time when turning on the camera. In the previous two versions, the camera always ran in software mode, which I'm sure the designers felt was the best way to get a good shot at launch. Since I primarily shoot wildlife that doesn't stand still, I find it more comfortable to shoot in Sport mode. With the two previous models, I often had blurry shots because I had to shoot immediately after turning it on and the camera needed time to work with the program while my boat rocked and rolled. Or I would delay resetting to sport mode with one hand while my subject flew or floated away. The main disadvantages are still short battery life (partly offset by faster startup) and weak flash. The previous 2 toughs were good on overcast days. I'll have to refrain from judging the 610's performance in low natural light, it's been sunny since I got it. BTW I didn't get the 810 because the GPS feature certainly cuts the time and other reviews said the 810 took a long time. to determine the position at launch, so turning off the camera to save power turns off the GPS.