Rating: 
Summary: Great Zoom and Features
Review: I've had this camera for a few months now and I think it's a good one. At the time I purchased it, it was the only 3.2 Mega Pixel camera with a 10X optical zoom in the price range and the only one that was really portable in size.The C-740 has plenty of versatility in its features. It allows a wide range of control and it can be a little intimidating trying to figure it all out. The optical zoom is absolutely amazing and having a glass lens rather than plastic is a real plus. The one area where I am a bit dissapointed with the Olympus C-740 is in low light sensitivity. I've used an old Sony Mavica at work and with that camera I am able to take clear, crisp pictures without a flash - even in extremely low light conditions. Unfortunately, this is not true of the Olympus C-740. Even when there is relatively good lighting levels the C-740 requires a very steady hand or tripod to get a clear picture without a flash. Overall, I think it's a good camera, especially if you are looking for high optical zoom in a compact size.
Rating: 
Summary: great for shallow depth of field photos
Review: If you want to take photos with the foreground in focus and the background nicely blurred, this is your camera. Just set the camera on portrait mode, crank up the optical zoom to the full 10X, move in fairly close to your subject and fire away. So far I've taken several rather stunning (if I may say so myself!) pictures around the yard this way. I have a couple of older 3X optical zoom cameras and can't get nearly as much background blurring on them. The optical zoom operates quickly and smoothly. The photos upload fast to my eMac (using iPhoto there's no extra software to install). There isn't much lag time when taking a photo until you can take the next one (unless you're using TIFF mode). The lens cap can be put on with the lens extended (if you don't want to switch modes before uploading to your computer) and also if you turn the camera on with the lens cap on you won't get a horrible grinding noise of the lens trying to burst through the cap. Also, in play mode the lens doesn't extend. The framing through the viewfinder is accurate (unlike my other two digital cameras). The colors seem very nice and accurate (I don't feel like I need to run iPhoto's enhance feature on the photos). Overall the body of the camera feels a bit on the cheap side (I think I read that the new 750 is all metal?). The battery compartment cover seems flimsy. It's easy to get only halfway between settings on the mode dial. The little rubber navigation arrow keys are a bit small for my thumb. Some of my photos have come out blurry (or the wrong thing was in focus) so I think it takes a bit of practice to consistently hit your mark focus-wise. Maybe good to get an extended warranty on this camera. Overall, the more I use this camera the more I like it. The 10X optical zoom is wonderful. The new XD-type card seems to work great.
Rating: 
Summary: New to Digital
Review: Just purchased the C-740 last week. Its my first digital camera and I can't say enough good things about it. The zoom is fantastic, better than anything else out there for the price. Its easy to use as a "point & shoot" but also has the flexibility to get "creative". XD memory is a little pricey, but I figure its a one time purchase as I will be downloading and converting to CD. The only drawback I have found thus far is the door that covers the battery. I had a difficult time getting the battery in and closing the door. Very flimsy feel. I thought I was going to break it. I considered waiting for the C-750 to be released, but went ahead a bought the C-740. If you want the same camera with 4.0 megapixel, a 4x digital zoom, and a hotshoe, you may want to wait. I believe its being shipped in August.
Rating:
Summary: Zoom Zoom Zoom
Review: Let me say right off the bat that I gave this camera 4 stars because the video does have not sound -- how wack is THAT?? Except for this, it's a really great camera. The zoom is INCREDIBLE for a digital camera, along with the 3.2 mp, producing crisp, detailed images. I know everybody hates to read manuals, but honestly, if you just take the time to read this one (the cd version), you will be to correct all of the complaints I've read about with this camera. So let me just sum it up below: Pros
1. Incredible zoom. And by reading the manual, I was able to prevent the blurriness that normally occurs without a tripod -- at least a great deal of it.
2. XD card -- it's worth it having to start all over with new media. I've had my camera for one week, have taken over 200 pictures and 5 videos, and the batteries are still at full strength. That's because of the XD card. It also downloads to the computer super fast, and again, doesn't drain the batteries.
3. The scene modes -- read about them. They REALLY work.
4. The 2 modes for slow flash -- slow1 and slow2 -- they somehow prevent blurry pictures when zooming (I'm not sure how).
5. The mode scenes -- they do well with what they are supposed to do. Adjusting the flash helps, if you have any problems.
6. The ability to save 4 "my modes" custom settings.
7. The manual mode -- I haven't learned how to use it all yet, but I can tell this is where you can start to get perfect shots if you master this.
8. Shots in the dark -- I mean complete darkness -- UNBELIEVABLY good! Again, use the "night" mode and the slow flash. Cons
1. The viewfinder -- it has an adjustment (diopter?), but it's still sometimes hard to see. However, just using the "automatic" mode or one the of scene modes will help compensate for this.
2. No sound with the videos. Okay, I'm not trying to use it as a camcorder or anything, but it would be helpful to be able to make quick movies with sound to email to family members.
3. The XD card -- I know I also listed this as a positive, and even though it is, it still [is bad] that I have 4 cf memory cards just sitting around now!
4. This is an odd place to put this, but the Olympus C750-- wait for that model. It will have all the features of this one, PLUS a hot-shoe flash, PLUS 4 mp, PLUS sound with the movies. I really think I'm going to return this one and wait for the 750. All that being said -- if you can't wait or can't spring for the extra bucks for the 750, you CAN'T GO WRONG with the 740!
Rating:
Summary: So Far, So Good
Review: Like most people, I've been researching months for a digital camera, trying to find the best one. I was mainly looking for a nice compact one that most people liked. I saw this one in a store, and had a hard time trying to decide between this one and the Nikon CoolPix 4300. The one thing that finally made up my mind (with the help of the salesperson's personal recommendation) is the 10x optical zoom. I read the one-star review someone else posted on this camera. I just got this camera 2 days ago, and I haven't had any problems with it yet. For me, everything works fine and even better. The high quality pictures come out remarkably clear. The only thing I haven't used yet is the manual modes, and I probably won't use those because I just simply don't know what all of it means. The only thing missing that would be nice to have is a remote control for the self-timer, but you can manage without it. I must say that the zoom on this camera is just a few steps beyond incredible. I love being able to get as close to subjects and not having the picture be blurry at all. Of course though, you have to be careful and hold the camera as steady as possible so that it won't come out blurry. All in all, a flaw is just not at all possible with this camera. Basically, everything works just as expected, even better. To me, it's well worth the money to have that 10x optical zoom.
Rating:
Summary: Difficult To Figure Out At First, But Great Pix!
Review: My husband and I purchased this camera and used it at a science-fiction convention recently. The multiple modes were difficult to figure out on the fly. We also had many pictures that were blurry. We figured out that the blurs were caused by pressing the button to take the picture. So, we purchased a monopod, and set the camera to take three pictures at once. After that, the pictures turned out FANTASTIC! From our seats toward the back, we were able to zoom in on the action up front. My advice would be to take several practice photos before you use it for "real".
Rating: 
Summary: Watch out!
Review: No ax to grind other than this case history. Bought an Olympus digi last year; one month past warranty it died; olympus service via web utterly unrepsonsive; many phone calls later they are saying things like "try leaving it overnight and installing new batteries" which i did many many months ago. Upshot: yours may not fold, of course, but mine sure did and the company is miserable with help, and after much pursuit on my part now is sending very high minimal repair fees they charge before even looking to see what's wrong. This is how a company convinces a consumer never ever to buy one of its products again.
Rating:
Summary: One Caveat
Review: Note that this camera does not have a hot shoe for a flash. If you should choose later to add the Olympus wide angle lens, be aware that the lens will block out the flash on the body of the camera. Olympus does make a bracket for a separate flash, but the cost for the flash, bracket, and flash cable is about half the price of this camera. I have a C-700 and have realized that adding a separate flash is too expensive. If you will want to take wide angle indoor shots, buy the C-750 with the hot shoe.
Rating:
Summary: Review of the Reviewers
Review: Thanks to all of you who have written reviews on this and other cameras listed on Amazon. I am not a camera person, so I relied heavily on your reviews as I decided which camera would be best as a gift for my spouse. I decided on the Olympus C-740. I especially thank "jemaer" for his very detailed and easy to follow pros and cons on this and several other cameras that he has reviewed. Helped me to narrow down the choices and to make the final decision. You certainly know cameras! Thanks again to all, I am looking forward to my wife's reaction to her new C-740!
Rating:
Summary: 10x optical zoom, 3MP resolution at a good price
Review: the ultra-zoom c-740 camera is a virtual twin of the c-750 with some notable differences. the biggest differences are a lower resolution (3MP vs 4MP), no hot shoe, no sound recording support, and no remote control support. finally, the c-740 has a body constructed from a mix of metal and plastic while the c-750 has an all metal body. pros:
- 10x optical zoom - this is the main selling point of this camera (make sure you get a tripod or monopod to hold the camera steady at 10x, though).
- 3MP resolution.
- good image quality.
- allows a great deal of manual control, including the ability to fine-tune white balance.
- support for add-on lenses.
- customizable buttons and menus.
- ability to store four sets of individual settings.
- bright 1.5" LCD display (smaller size than competition, though).
- has an electronic view finder allows you to see what the CCD sees.
- adjustable AF area, plus manual and automatic focus modes.
- auto bracketing, sequence, AF sequence, and hi-sequence capture modes.
- allows contrast, saturation, and sharpness image adjustments.
- ability to save low resolution movies directly to the xD card.
- supports TIFF format.
- non-proprietary AA batteries used. this means replacement batteries are as close as the nearest convenience store (i recommend rechargeables though).
- compact for a 10x zoom camera: 4.2 x 2.6 x 2.8", 10.4oz. cons:
- purple fringing noticeable.
- noise levels higher than expected.
- some barrel distortion at wide-angle.
- hair-trigger power button.
- electronic viewfinder difficult to view in low light.
- slowest shutter speeds only available in full manual mode.
- does not support RAW format.
- so-so battery life.
- no AF assist lamp, making autofocus difficult in low ambient light.
- no accessory shoe.
- no sound on video.
- the supplied 16MB xD card is inadequate. be prepared to shell out a few more bucks for more memory.
- add even more to buy more rechargeable batteries; you may also want to invest in a faster charger, the included charger is SLOW. the c-740, like the c-750, is very easy to use and can be used as a point and shoot or as a full manual camera. the noisier than expected images at higher ISO settings, the lack of an AF assist light, and the lack of an accessory shoe are areas for improvement. all in all, a solid camera at a good price. if you have the $$ to spend, i would recommend trading up to the c-750 and get the extra 1MP resolution and hot shoe. i hope this helps you with your buying decision. peace.
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