Rating: 
Summary: Takes a bit of getting used to
Review: I've had this camera for about four weeks and love it! I can't believe the sharpness of the images througout the entire zoom range (38-380). Macro pictures also come out razor sharp. Its everything I wanted in a digital camera in one small and lightweight package. No need to lug around and change lenses. I had some problems trying to navigate through the menu system at first but got used to it. My wife couldn't believe the pictures I took came from this digital camera. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for a long zoom range camera with advanced features.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Camera!
Review: I've had this camera for about four weeks and love it! I can't believe the sharpness of the images througout the entire zoom range (38-380). Macro pictures also come out razor sharp. Its everything I wanted in a digital camera in one small and lightweight package. No need to lug around and change lenses. I had some problems trying to navigate through the menu system at first but got used to it. My wife couldn't believe the pictures I took came from this digital camera. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for a long zoom range camera with advanced features.
Rating:
Summary: Better than the 720?
Review: In a word, yes. However, I would say after all this time that some other makes are somewhat better at rendering truly faithful colors and that the Olympus autofocus mechanism is slower than newer digicams and therefore will more often yield a slightly blurred image.
That notwithstanding, the 700 was my favorite digital camera for a long time, that is, until the 720 came along. Then along came the 730, which maintained the 3+ megapixel resolution of the 720, while reinserting the 10X (true optical) zoom (the 720 has an 8X).
In point of fact, zooming at 8X or at 10X without a tripod or image stabilization (not present on either the 700 or the 720) is extremely challenging. Anyway, this camera is beautifully made and ergonomically engineered. The aspherical all glass lens system is excellent and the resulting 3 megapixel images are crystal clear at 8" x 10" and quite acceptable at 11" x 14". The zoom of course remains the trump card on the 730, and the smoothness (just the right damping) with which it reaches its 10x limit is awesome. Another nice feature is its ability to take QuickTime movies, which really adds to its versatility.
The news with the 730 is that it is the first Olympus to utilize the new xD memory card format, the "xD-Picture Card". This is a new type of ultra-compact memory media developed jointly by Fuji and Olympus. The main features of the xD-Picture Card are its ultra-compact size (20.0 x 25.0 x 1.7mm), its lower power consumption (the xD Picture-Card users will benefit from the convenience and savings of longer battery life on a single charge) and its faster read/write speeds. Of course, a new card means a new card-reader will be needed, but these are inexpensive and aren't immediately needed, as the camera can be linked by the included USB cable to your PC without too much fuss. Overall, I think the 730 is a winner, especially as prices have fallen steadily over the past year.
Rating:
Summary: Great for distant outdoor shots in daylight
Review: This camera is a very good one for the price, although not for everyone. The menus are complex. Beginning digital photographers might be happier with a cheaper point and shoot camera with 3X optical zoom. People who take zoomed pictures in dimmed light might have a hard time holding the camera stationary to avoid blurring. However, I like the C-730. It can use both SmartMedia and xD cards so you can choose to go cheap with the SM cards now or get the slightly more expensive xD cards that will probably have much greater capacity in the future (I read that this format had a theoretical limit of 8 gigabytes). The camera has a number of programmed modes for moonlight shots, sports shots, portraits, landscapes, etc. It also has manual options on shutter speed and aperture settings. It takes quick-time movies with sound. It's also small enough to stick in a jacket pocket. There are two things that I wish the camera had: (1) a stablized lens like its predecessor, the C-2100UZ, and (2) an infrared focus light for taking pictures in dim light. However, most people just think about megapixels. Maybe Olympus thought a cheaper, non-stabilized lens had a bigger market.
Rating:
Summary: Wow!
Review: This camera's quality of picture is terrific. The zoom is unbelievable. This is the first digital camera that we have owned, but not the first we have used. It's true you need to buy rechargable batteries, and I recommend the 128 Media card. With the 128Mb card, at high quality, you can take 161 pictures, and at standard quality over 900! The quality of picture is fantastic, did I mention that? This camera is well worth the price. One more thing, the camera bag for the Olympus C-series that pops up with this camera is too small for this model.
Rating:
Summary: Fabulous camera, my gradeschooler is using it!
Review: This is my first digital camera after upgrading from a point & shoot. I've never used any kind of manual controls before. However, within an hour of unpacking this camera & browsing the manual, I was taking macro shots of my daughters hermit crab in full manual mode. Cropping & blowing up the picture to 8x10 produced a gorgeous, finely detailed and colorful photo. My 12 year old spent the day playing with this camera and producing "Ranger Rick" quality photos. Great camera, easy to use, light weight, excellent close-up and zoom capability... what more could you want.
Rating:
Summary: Very nice camera!
Review: We've had this camera for about two weeks and took it out for our first real trial this weekend. We went hiking in the mountains and had opportunities for photos in daylight, shade, distance, close-ups, and combinations of the above. In all aspects, the photos were spectacular. The optical zoom was very clear in focusing and resolution when the pictures were taken. We did not use a tripod and had no blurring, even on the highest zoom settings. The camera has efficient battery use (we use Kodak rechargeables). We took over 200 photos and several movies over the last two weeks on one charge. The camera continued to focus and zoom well, even on low battery levels. The LCD was difficult to see in full daylight, but the optical view finder shows most of the same information.
Rating:
Summary: Very nice camera!
Review: We've had this camera for about two weeks and took it out for our first real trial this weekend. We went hiking in the mountains and had opportunities for photos in daylight, shade, distance, close-ups, and combinations of the above. In all aspects, the photos were spectacular. The optical zoom was very clear in focusing and resolution when the pictures were taken. We did not use a tripod and had no blurring, even on the highest zoom settings. The camera has efficient battery use (we use Kodak rechargeables). We took over 200 photos and several movies over the last two weeks on one charge. The camera continued to focus and zoom well, even on low battery levels. The LCD was difficult to see in full daylight, but the optical view finder shows most of the same information.
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