When we decided that the Olympus D-395 that we were using just wasn't up to all the jobs we wanted - getting up close without getting too close - and our son, who is coming up 11, said that he would like a digital camera, the obvious answer was for us to get a higher spec model for ourselves, ... Read review
When we decided that the Olympus D-395 that we were using just wasn't up to all the jobs we wanted - getting up close without getting too close - and our son, who is coming up 11, said that he would like a digital camera, the obvious answer was for us to get a higher spec model for ourselves, and pass the D-395 on to him.
We ended up going to Apollo 2000 near Blackpool North station for a vacuum cleaner and noticed they had an Olympus ... ...at prices from £199.99 to £229.99 using online search engines, although a newer higher spec version (the C-765) is available from Amazon at £179.99.
Included in the price is:-
1 - Camera is a 3.0 mega pixel camera with 8x optical zoom and 3x digital zoom.
2 - Software disk containing Camedia software, which is simple to install and use, although limited in its use.
3 - 4 x AA batteries to get you started. more
When we decided that the Olympus D-395 that we were using just wasn't up to all the jobs we wanted - getting up close without getting too close - and our son, who is coming up 11, said that he would like a digital camera, the obvious answer was for us to get a higher spec model for ourselves, and pass the D-395 on to him.
We ended up going to Apollo 2000 near Blackpool North station for a vacuum cleaner and noticed they had an Olympus C-725 Ultra Zoom for £129.99 which I have since found at prices from £199.99 to £229.99 using online search engines, although a newer higher spec version (the C-765) is available from Amazon at £179.99.
Included in the price is:-
1 - Camera is a 3.0 mega pixel camera with 8x optical zoom and 3x digital zoom. 2 - Software disk containing Camedia software, which is simple to install and use, although limited in its use. 3 - 4 x AA batteries to get you started. 4 - 16mb xD picture card. 5 - Safety precautions book, memory card information sheet, Repair and service details, Quick start guide in 4 languages, and Basic Manual. 6 - TV connection lead to allow you to view your pictures through the television. 7 - USB cable
The camera itself is lighter than a traditional zoom camera, but feels well made and comfortable to use. According to the book it weighs in at 315g or 0.7lb in old money without a card or batteries. The approximate dimensions are 107.5mm x 76mm x 77.5mm (or 4.2" x 3.0" x 3.1") when turned off, as the lens automatically extends when the camera is switched on.
The camera is easy to use with the on/off button clearly marked on the rear of the machine, there is a dial on the top of the camera which you turn to the desired setting, depending on the type of picture you are taking. The options are Video, "My mode" which is programmable!, P/A/S/M (Program/Aperture/Shutter/Manual), Portrait, Action, Drive mode, which allows you to use the self timer, and multi shot functions, and Auto mode.
When taking snap shots I tend to use the Action mode, as it shoots quickly with a fast shutter speed, thus eliminating blur, whereas if I am setting up a shot - for example of the kids, I will use portrait mode, as the colour is much better.
One advantage I have found with this camera, is that if you are unable to use flash (for example in a zoo or wildlife sanctuary, it is easy to ensure that it doesn't go off accidentally as you have to "raise" the flash light by pressing a button to activate the function. This also saves batteries, as it means that the flash isn't firing unnecessarily. There are a number of flash modes which are not all available on all the shooting settings, but they include, Auto, Red Eye, Night shooting, and Red Eye Night Shooting.
As mentioned, the camera comes with a 16mb card which is enough for around 27 reasonable quality photos, if you want to take more, there are a number of different capacity cards available. I have a 128mb card which holds 173 high quality (1984x1488 pixel pictures) or 455" of video without sound.
The biggest problem that I had was I wanted to remove some pictures from the card whilst I was on holiday, but they don't have the facilities to read xD cards yet.
The batteries seem to last quite well, with Duracells lasting at least a week with quite heavy use. This would be longer still if you turn off the LCD screen.
All in all, I have used this camera well in the 10 weeks that we have had it, and have found it to be a great buy, with some excellent photos.
Advantages: Easy to use & very light Disadvantages: Poor auto focus & Very heavy battery consumption
I found the Olympus Camedia C 725 a very easy camera to use, also I liked the small compact memory cards ( M-XD256P XD CARD) which are easily installed into the camera just by pushing into the memory card slot.
I did notice that the auto focus mode was very poor and that you had to take 3 or 4 shots of a subject to get a clear crisp image, although having a large memory card did compensate for this problem.
I also found that the camera was unbelievably ... ...change the 4AA battteries before filling 2 thirds of the memory card (with view panel turned off), the only option to solve this problem is to have 8 rechargeable batteries on hand.
The design of the camera is very user friendly although the quality feels cheap, I found the hinges to the panel for the computer cable socket had broken off whithin 2 weeks. I think that this camera is slightly over priced & should be around the £80-100 mark. ...
simez77 09.09.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Olympus CAMEDIA C 725 Ultra Zoom
Advantages: Nice zoom lens, good picture quality, nice controls, looks pretty good Disadvantages: Eats batteries! Not too suitable for action photography.
Back in early 2005 I was looking for a good digital camera with as much 'real' optical zoom as possible (rather than just digital zoom). I didn't have the funds for a DSLR so I went down the compact digital route. After a lot of web searches and price comparisons I chose the C725. Overall, I like the camera and it has served me fairly well over the past 3 years. Plus points:
It has a good feel in the hand and the weight isn't excessive. I think ... ...become second nature and once you have set up your custom settings, it doesn't need much altering. I have taken some lovely photos with this camera. The lens is pretty nice for its size. 8x optical zoom is still a notable feature to this day on a camera of this class. The super HQ is nice, fine pixel quality and correctly exposed shots don't tend to need any adobe photo-shop treatment. Minus points:
Boy, does it eat AA batteries!! (4 at a time)- ...
F3Liney 15.06.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Olympus CAMEDIA C 725 Ultra Zoom
Advantages: good optical zoom, easy controls Disadvantages: no sound on movie
I have used many digital cameras and own 5. This so far is the best one that I have used. I have used this camera for the last 6 months and have had no problems with it. It is a very good camera that is easy to use and gives you full control of the camera in the manual mode. The only draw back is no sound on the movie mode. The optical zoom is very good and you can use the digital zoom for better shots. If you use the digital zoom then it needs to ...
GrumpyOldMan666 04.12.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Olympus CAMEDIA C 725 Ultra Zoom
Advantages: Impressive looking (not that i suppose that matters!) Great interface and good good quality photos for a camera of this price. Disadvantages: Hard to get to grips with, the battery also runs out fairly quickly - although this isnt so much of a problem if you use rechargable batteries
As soon as i got this camera home i started taking photos and quickly realised how hard it was going to be to understand the camera, after a few weeks i realised the camera was not turning itself off but it was going into standby mode (Daft i know - but thats what you get for not reading the intructions carefully) This camera is definatly recommended for anyone wanting a middle-ranged camera and anyone just starting to move into digital photography ...
amessagetoyou 26.10.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Olympus CAMEDIA C 725 Ultra Zoom
Advantages: Auto Flash, easy to use Disadvantages: slow shutter speed
This is an excellent camera, it was the second digital camera i have ever bought and i have found it so easy to use than my old one. I am not that good at taking quality pictures but i found that with this camera i am taking high quality pictures that look like a professional photographer took them. Even my 4 year old son takes quality pictures with it so if it makes him look good then this is a must for any first time digital camera buyer. My favourite ...
scaryellen53 01.06.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Olympus CAMEDIA C 725 Ultra Zoom
Product Information for "Olympus CAMEDIA C 725 Ultra Zoom" »
Connections
Connector Type
1 x USB
1 x composite video output
1 x DC power input
Expansion Slot(s)
1 x xD-Picture Card
Manufacturer's product description
Step into the thrilling world of Ultra Zoom photography. With its 8x zoom power the 3.2 million pixel C-725 Ultra Zoom lets you get closer to the subject. No more will your point of interest be swamped by its surroundings. Instead of dots in a sports field, individual players can be zoomed in on. Birds high in a tree are no longer lost in the branches either. They can be brought in to fill the frame in all their fine-feathered detail and color.
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