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  • Introduction

  • Front

  • Back

  • Sides

  • Top

  • Bottom

  • In the Box

  • Lens & Sensor

  • Display(s)

  • Flash

  • Connectivity

  • Battery

  • Memory

  • Durability

  • Photo Gallery

  • Image Quality

  • Sharpness

  • Image Stabilization

  • Color

  • Color Modes

  • White Balance

  • White Balance Options

  • Noise Reduction

  • ISO Options

  • Dynamic Range

  • Low Light Performance

  • Noise Reduction

  • ISO Options

  • Focus Performance

  • Video: Low Light Sensitivity

  • Chromatic Aberration

  • Distortion

  • Motion

  • Video Sharpness

  • Low Light Sensitivity

  • Usability

  • Automatic Features

  • Buttons & Dials

  • Effects, Filters, and Scene Modes

  • Menu

  • Instruction Manual

  • Handling

  • Buttons & Dials

  • Display(s)

  • Image Stabilization

  • Shooting Modes

  • Manual Controls

  • Focus

  • Recording Options

  • Other Controls

  • Speed and Timing

  • Focus Speed

  • Features

  • Effects, Filters, and Scene Modes

  • Other Features

  • Recording Options

  • Video Controls

  • Audio Features

  • Conclusion

  • Introduction
  • Front
  • Back
  • Sides
  • Top
  • Bottom
  • In the Box
  • Lens & Sensor
  • Display(s)
  • Flash
  • Connectivity
  • Battery
  • Memory
  • Durability
  • Photo Gallery
  • Image Quality
  • Sharpness
  • Image Stabilization
  • Color
  • Color Modes
  • White Balance
  • White Balance Options
  • Noise Reduction
  • ISO Options
  • Dynamic Range
  • Low Light Performance
  • Noise Reduction
  • ISO Options
  • Focus Performance
  • Video: Low Light Sensitivity
  • Chromatic Aberration
  • Distortion
  • Motion
  • Video Sharpness
  • Low Light Sensitivity
  • Usability
  • Automatic Features
  • Buttons & Dials
  • Effects, Filters, and Scene Modes
  • Menu
  • Instruction Manual
  • Handling
  • Buttons & Dials
  • Display(s)
  • Image Stabilization
  • Shooting Modes
  • Manual Controls
  • Focus
  • Recording Options
  • Other Controls
  • Speed and Timing
  • Focus Speed
  • Features
  • Effects, Filters, and Scene Modes
  • Other Features
  • Recording Options
  • Video Controls
  • Audio Features
  • Conclusion

Introduction

That's why the Olympus Tough TG-1 arrives with some buzz behind it. It's just as durable as the hardiest adventure-ready cameras, but stuffed with the brightest lens we've seen in the class. The hope is that it'll be the first tough-cam with serious photographic chops.

In practice, the TG-1 is the most versatile camera in its class. It isn't perfect, but most folks in the market for an adventure-ready shooter should take a look.

Check out our 7-camera waterproof shootout to see how the year's best tough-cams compare to each other.

The TG-1 is available now in gray/silver for an MSRP of $399.

Front

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Back

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Sides

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Top

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Bottom

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In the Box

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• Olympus Tough TG-1 digital camera
• wrist strap
• rechargeable lithium-ion battery (LI-90B)
• USB-AC adapter
• USB cable
• AV cable
• software CD-ROM
• manual
• warranty card

Lens & Sensor

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The lens is the TG-1's defining feature. It's an all-internal lens, encased behind a flat piece of glass for protection. The 4x zoom is a bit short by this year's standards, but on the plus side, it's pretty wide, starting at 4.5mm (25mm equivalent) and topping out at 18mm (100mm equivalent).

But the real highlight is the f/2.0-4.9 aperture. It's the brightest lens we've seen on a tough-cam, and has the potential to improve indoor and low-light shooting.

The TG-1 moves slowly through the zoom range, and there's audible noise from the zoom motor. Neither of those issues are serious problems, but it does lead us to believe that it was a struggle to fit a wide zoom lens inside of a compact camera. But hey, they did it, and that's what counts.

The TG-1 is built around a typical point-and-shoot sensor. In this case, it's a 12-megapixel, 1/2.3-inch backside-illuminated CMOS chip. Most of the first-tier tough-cams have similar sensors, and it's great to see that CMOS chips have permeated the ruggedized segment.

Display(s)

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The 3-inch, 610,000-pixel OLED display is yet another hardware highlight on the TG-1. It's brighter, crisper, smoother, more vibrant, and more energy-efficient than even the best tough-cam LCD displays. The improvement is most obvious in bright sunlight and underwater, where regular LCDs struggle.

Flash

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The flash is built into the top-left corner of the front panel. Wandering fingers will inadvertently get in the way of the flash from time to time. It's effective to about 17 feet, which is slightly above average for a tough cam.

The flash emitter pops up from the top of the body via a mechanical release.

Connectivity

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Like most current compacts, the TG-1 comes equipped with a USB/AV port (with a proprietary input) and an HDMI port (mini-HDMI, in this case).

Battery

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The TG-1 runs on the popular LI-90B rechargeable lithium-ion battery. Dozens of compact cameras of all makes and models run on this battery, so you might have a few backup batteries already lying around.

The TG-1 is rated for 350 shots per charge, which is above-average for the tough-cam class. The energy-efficient OLED display is likely to thank for the healthy battery life.

When the in-camera GPS is activated, though, battery life drops considerably. With the GPS logger turned on, the battery will drain itself overnight (this feature pings a satellite every few minutes, even if the camera is otherwise turned off). If you're having battery issues, it's probably because the logger is on.

Memory

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As usual, the TG-1 captures to SD/SDHC/SDXC media cards.

The K2000 accepts inexpensive, easy to find SD cards.

Durability

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This title seems to change constantly, but the TG-1 is actually the toughest of all the tough-cams (at least according to its durability ratings). It ties the class-leading ratings in each ruggedness category.

It's waterproof to 40 feet, the deepest that any current model can dive. Of course, it comes with a long list of caveats. According to Olympus, it can stay submerged for up to one hour. If it's used in saltwater, it needs to be rinsed in fresh water. The manual also warns that "the waterproof feature may be compromised if the camera is subject to substantial or excessive impact," so apparently the confidence in the shockproofing only extends so far. While the manual doesn't specifically mention anything that we found, it's generally a bad idea to use waterproof cameras in hot water or hot springs. And finally, Olympus advises that the rubber seals be replaced one a year to maintain waterproofing.

It's shockproof to 6.6 feet, the farthest that any camera can fall. That's well above the heads of most user's heads, so it should survive any accidental tumbles from chest- or shoulder-height. It's unwise to drop the camera just because you can, as it can cause cosmetic damage, or possibly compromise the waterproofing.

It's freezeproof to 14 degrees Fahrenheit. Just about every tough-cam shares this rating. It basically means you can take it skiing.

It's crushproof under 220 pounds of pressure. Most rugged cameras don't even advertise crushproofing. The average person can stand on top of a WG-2 without any repercussions (though that's probably a bad idea). We're thinking that this will only come in handy if you leave it at the bottom of a loaded rucksack. Don't run it over with your car or bike.

And finally, it's dustproof. All the moving parts are protected by glass, plastic, or rubber, so the lens won't get jammed up by an errant grain of sand.

The TG-1 is durable enough for general underwater and outdoor use. Take it to the beach, the pool, the slopes, the state park, whatever. But serious divers will be better-off buying underwater housing, whether it's for this camera or another more capable compact or DSLR—it'll survive deeper underwater, and take better pictures, too.

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Image Quality

Tough-cams have always been great for outdoor photography, but the TG-1 is the first one we've seen that can actually serve as an all-around snapshooter. It performed pretty well in our lab tests, but the bright lens is the linchpin, allowing for steady, clear shots indoors and in dimmer lighting. The big flaw is color. It's flat by default, with very little user control to punch it up. That's problematic for underwater shooting in particular.

Sharpness

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Image sharpness is generally strong on the Olympus TG-1. The center of the frame is consistently the sharpest at all focal lengths, no surprise. We measured as many as 2400 MTF50s at the wide-angle setting. Edge sharpness is still respectable, averaging about 1500 MTF50s across the focal range. The softest areas are midway between the center and edge, dropping to about an average of 1050 MTF50s. That's still a pretty good result for a compact with an all-internal lens.

As with any point-and-shoot, there's some artificial edge enhancement at work, which boosts the sharpness scores. It's most noticeable at the wide-angle. But in general, it's applied judiciously, and doesn't hurt the overall image quality at regular viewing sizes.

The TG-1 is arguably the sharpest tough-cam right now. It beat all of its competitors in our lab tests aside from the Nikon AW100, but the Nikon has the most egregious artificial edge enhancement we've seen. The TG-1 preserves overall detail much more clearly than the AW100. More on how we test sharpness.

Image Stabilization

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The TG-1 has built-in optical image stabilization. It struggled in our lab test—some cameras just don't do well with the unnatural side-to-side shaking that we apply—but in the real world, it's good for a few extra stops of shutter stability. We could shoot at 1/13s with crisp results.

Color

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The Olympus TG-1 reproduces fairly accurate colors. We measured a minimum color error of 3.14 (under 3.5 is good, under 3.0 is very good), with 93.78% saturation (anything between 90 and 110% is acceptable). Reds and blues are close to their ideal hues, but yellows and greens are noticeably flat. More on how we test color.

So the scores are fine (if a bit below average), but the real-world implications are problematic. For a camera designed to survive in challenging outdoor conditions, it doesn't shoot them particularly well. Under-saturation is the main problem; outdoor scenes look better when colors are punchy. Colors naturally look flat underwater, so a good underwater camera should boost the saturation and compensate for the odd color temperatures.

The TG-1 comes up a bit short in all of those respects, and with almost no user control over the color profile (there's only the one default color mode, with no additional profiles or fine controls), it's stuck with slightly dull shades.

NOTE: Because of the way computer monitors reproduce colors, the images above do not exactly match the originals found on the chart or in the captured images. The chart should be used to judge the relative color shift, not the absolute captured colors.

In terms of straight-up accuracy, the TG-1 falls behind just about every other tough-cam, only slightly beating the Pentax WG-2. But the Pentax has a low score partially because it oversaturates, and that's a much better problem for an outdoor, underwater camera to have. Of course, color is the most subjective aspect of image quality. But even so, we think that the TG-1 is last in its class in this regard.

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Color Modes

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The TG-1 has just one default color mode, and offers basically no control over that mode.

White Balance

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Auto white balance leans warm under all types of lighting, meaning that there's usually a very slight yellow cast on photos. Incandescent light, as always, is the most challenging setting for AWB, but the TG-1 balances it better than many compact cameras.

Custom white balance leans cool, but in general, it's close enough to the true color temperature that you won't notice any slightly blue color casts.

White Balance Options

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White balance presets include Sunny, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent, and Underwater lighting, as well as two custom white balance settings.

Noise Reduction

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The Olympus TG-1 handles noise very well. The 12-megapixel BSI CMOS sensor seems to produce clean images to start with, and the noise reduction algorithm is clever, smoothing out graininess without ripping away much detail. The noise-to-signal ratio stays under 1% through ISO 400, and stays at a reasonable 1.6% at ISO 1600. More on how we test noise.

ISO Options

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Native ISO starts at 100 and extends through 6400, user-adjustable in full stops. There's an Auto ISO mode, which seems to cap sensitivity at ISO 1600, as well as a High ISO auto mode, which opens up the full sensitivity range.

Dynamic Range

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We haven't tested the TG-1's dynamic range performance in our labs yet (we're working on a new test). But anecdotally, it seems to be a bit above average for a point-and-shoot. In landscape shots, it properly exposes the ground and the sky, which has proven to be surprisingly difficult for some tough-cams this year. More on how we test dynamic range.

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Low Light Performance

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The Olympus TG-1 is a champion in low light, at least compared to other tough-cams. The f/2.0 maximum aperture is the linchpin, allowing for quicker shutter speeds than most tough-cams can muster, and in turn, fewer blurry pictures. Shots are clean enough for most sharing and printing through ISO 1600. And the autofocus system is usually quick and accurate, even in dimmer settings.

To be clear, don't expect studio-quality low-light results, but it's quite good by point-and-shoot standards, it's better-equipped for the job than any other tough-cam.

Noise Reduction

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The Olympus TG-1 handles noise very well. The 12-megapixel BSI CMOS sensor seems to produce clean images to start with, and the noise reduction algorithm is clever, smoothing out graininess without ripping away much detail. The noise-to-signal ratio stays under 1% through ISO 400, and stays at a reasonable 1.6% at ISO 1600. More on how we test noise.

ISO Options

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Native ISO starts at 100 and extends through 6400, user-adjustable in full stops. There's an Auto ISO mode, which seems to cap sensitivity at ISO 1600, as well as a High ISO auto mode, which opens up the full sensitivity range.

Focus Performance

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Autofocus is quick and accurate. Olympus claims that they've incorporated the AF system from their PEN series of interchangeable-lens compacts; there's probably some truth to that, but whatever, it's a marketing tactic. In any case, it's right up there with the best point-and-shoots. We occasionally ran into some frustrating focus-hunting problems in Macro and Super Macro modes, but nothing too far out of the ordinary. What struck us the most was the impressive AF speed and accuracy in video mode—a challenge for just about every point-and-shoot we've ever seen.

Video: Low Light Sensitivity

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The TG-1 isn't as sensitive in low light as some of the other tough-cams we've tested. It bottoms out around 30 lux. But you probably don't shoot in such dim conditions very often, and if you do, you don't expect great results.

Chromatic Aberration

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Chromatic aberration is typically a problem with tough-cams. We've seen a few models this year with chronic, obvious color fringing across the board. But the Olympus TG-1 handles chromatic aberration like a pro. In our lab tests, the TG-1 earned the highest chromatic aberration score of all tough-cams this year, beating most regular point-and-shoots, too. Color fringing only starts to appear at the edges of the frame at the wide-angle setting. Otherwise, it's all clear.

Distortion

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Distortion is not a problem on the TG-1. At the wide angle, we measured 0.45% pincushion distortion (which is odd—we expect to see barrel distortion at that end of the lens), but it's barely perceivable. At the middle and telephoto settings, it's even less noticeable. The TG-1 earned the highest score that we award for distortion performance, like about 75% of the cameras that we test these days.

Motion

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The Olympus TG-1 shoots video at 1080/30p, and earned the kind of scores in our video motion test that we'd expect. We noticed a bit of trailing and color bleed, but not enough to be distracting. Motion jumps and stutters a bit more than we'd like to see. Autofocus is very quick and accurate—surprisingly so, in fact. It should really help out video quality in high-action scenes. More on how CamcorderInfo tests motion.

We rank the TG-1 ahead of the Pentax WG-2 and Panasonic TS4 in our motion test, but the Sony TX20 was the clear winner in the group. Sony point-and-shoots usually shoot excellent video, so this is no surprise.

Video Sharpness

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In bright light, sharpness is above average in the tough-cam class. We measured 450 horizontal and 500 vertical lw/ph. More on how CamcorderInfo tests video sharpness.

Sharpness is also above average for tough-cams in low-light. We measured 400 horizontal and vertical lw/ph—a bit of a drop off from bright light, but reasonably close.

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Low Light Sensitivity

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The TG-1 isn't as sensitive in low light as some of the other tough-cams we've tested. It bottoms out around 30 lux. But you probably don't shoot in such dim conditions very often, and if you do, you don't expect great results.

Usability

The TG-1 is designed for automatic usage. That's typical for a tough-cam, though enthusiasts might be put off by the lack of manual exposure control. Handling is comfortable and balanced, and the menu system is easy enough to navigate after a bit of practice. It's a speedy shooter too, with noticeably snappy autofocus and quick burst shooting. Our biggest hangup is occasional bugginess, causing the TG-1 to crash at inconvenient times.

Automatic Features

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Like all tough-cams, the Olympus TG-1 is geared for automatic shooting. The camera takes care of the technical stuff while you’re busy swimming or hiking. iAuto mode controls just about every setting, though it allows a bit of control over the flash, timer, resolution/size, and a few less-important odds and ends. It's a reliable auto mode.

Buttons & Dials

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The TG-1's button layout is pretty typical of a tough-cam (and point-and-shoots in general), though a bit cramped. The mode dial on the rear makes it easy to switch between common shooting modes (iAuto, program, and a few others). The four-way selector is tied directly to the quick-menu system, which is helpful, and there are dedicated buttons for movie mode, playback mode, and the menu. Also typical of the tough-cam class is the two-button, W/T zoom control (as opposed to a zoom tilter).

Effects, Filters, and Scene Modes

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A typical set of scene modes are available, in addition to one of the best collection of in-camera filters and effects we've seen.

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The TG-1 menu system is laid out fairly well. Menus have usually been a sore spot for Olympus cameras, but they've ironed out some of the quirks.

It's legible and not too crowded, which is a good start. The quick menu is layered on the live image preview, accessible at any time by touching the four-way pad. With 8 settings to cycle through, navigation can get a little bit tedious—a direct-access key or two on the four-way pad might be preferable, though that might confuse navigation. But overall, it's a good system, and easy to get used to with a bit of practice.

The full menu system is typical for a compact, with tabbed navigation and a maximum of 7 options per page. The layout is mostly logical, and in total, the whole menu isn't that long anyway.

Instruction Manual

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The multi-language, fold-out quick-start guide is one of the skimpiest printed manuals we've seen with a camera, even if we count the pamphlet about water resistance care. A PDF version of the full manual is included on the CD-ROM (though the English version is bizarrely listen as ELL.pdf, rather than ENG). Pretty egregious cost-cutting here.

Handling

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The TG-1 looks like it might be tough to handle—the finish is slick, the grip is small, the rear panel is crowded. But it's actually comfortable and well-balanced in the hand. It's solid, but light enough for easy one-handed use. You'll need to use two hands if you need to manipulate the controls, but that's typical for a compact.

It's compact enough to fit into a pants pocket, but it won't be comfortable. It'll fit easily into a cargo pocket or jacket pocket. It's sturdy enough to live in the bottom of a backpack, and can survive occasional bumps and bruises if it's hanging from a caribiner. On the whole, it's slightly smaller, lighter, and easier to handle than most tough-cams.

Buttons & Dials

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The TG-1's button layout is pretty typical of a tough-cam (and point-and-shoots in general), though a bit cramped. The mode dial on the rear makes it easy to switch between common shooting modes (iAuto, program, and a few others). The four-way selector is tied directly to the quick-menu system, which is helpful, and there are dedicated buttons for movie mode, playback mode, and the menu. Also typical of the tough-cam class is the two-button, W/T zoom control (as opposed to a zoom tilter).

Display(s)

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The 3-inch, 610,000-pixel OLED display is yet another hardware highlight on the TG-1. It's brighter, crisper, smoother, more vibrant, and more energy-efficient than even the best tough-cam LCD displays. The improvement is most obvious in bright sunlight and underwater, where regular LCDs struggle.

Image Stabilization

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The TG-1 has built-in optical image stabilization. It struggled in our lab test—some cameras just don't do well with the unnatural side-to-side shaking that we apply—but in the real world, it's good for a few extra stops of shutter stability. We could shoot at 1/13s with crisp results.

Shooting Modes

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Shooting modes on the Olympus TG-1 include iAuto, Program, about 25 scene modes, 12 picture effects, and 2 customizable settings.

Manual Controls

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The TG-1 does not offer what we consider to be manual controls—no manual focus, no priority or manual exposure modes. This is typical for a tough-cam, though it's off-putting to some photography enthusiasts who are drawn in by the f/2 lens and excited by the prospect of a more "serious" tough cam. This is not that camera—it's a standard tough-cam with a better lens and screen than any of its competitors.

Focus

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Autofocus is quick and accurate. Olympus claims that they've incorporated the AF system from their PEN series of interchangeable-lens compacts; there's probably some truth to that, but whatever, it's a marketing tactic. In any case, it's right up there with the best point-and-shoots. We occasionally ran into some frustrating focus-hunting problems in Macro and Super Macro modes, but nothing too far out of the ordinary. What struck us the most was the impressive AF speed and accuracy in video mode—a challenge for just about every point-and-shoot we've ever seen.

Recording Options

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Resolution maxes out at about 12 megapixels in a 4:3 aspect ratio. Two quality/compression options are available: Normal and Fine. Aside from the max resolution, 8 more sizes are available in 4:3 and 16:9 ratios, all the way down to VGA-quality shots.

Other Controls

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We ran into glitchy performance with the TG-1, and it even crashed on us a few times. It typically occurred while we were switching between shooting mode and playback mode. The image on the LCD would hang for at least a few seconds, sometimes completely locking up the camera. The easy solution was to remove and re-insert the battery, but that's obviously not an option underwater. Sometimes we were able to hold down the power button to reset the camera, which was OK, but time consuming, and it didn't always work.

The problem may have been tied to a low-quality memory card that we used out in the field one weekend. Once we switched to a faster, brand-name card, the problems stopped for the most part—it crashed one additional time after a long continuous burst while we tried to switch to playback mode.

We've looked at a few forums to see if any other users ran into this problem, but haven't heard anything yet. If this has happened to you, leave a comment. We'll be looking into it with Olympus. For now, it does not seem indicative of a widespread quality-control problem, though it's certainly concerning.

If you do run into any problems, try switching your memory card. Removing and re-inserting the battery will always fix the problem, though if that's not an option (if you're underwater), try holding down the power button for at least 10 seconds—it might reset the power.

Speed and Timing

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Thanks to its backside-illuminated CMOS sensor, the TG-1 offers quick performance, especially in terms of burst shooting.

Aside from single shot mode, there's one full-res drive mode and two reduced-res drive modes. The full-res setting is advertised for 5fps, while the reduced-res settings shoot dozens of frames per second.

True to its word, we clocked the TG-1 a just a hair faster than 5 full-res frames per second. Some cameras hit 10fps or more for one second or less, but the TG-1 can shoot about 12-15 shots (with a class 10 card) before slowing down. The sustained shooting is impressive.

Self-timer options are limited to 2-second and 12-second delays.

Focus Speed

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Autofocus is quick and accurate. Olympus claims that they've incorporated the AF system from their PEN series of interchangeable-lens compacts; there's probably some truth to that, but whatever, it's a marketing tactic. In any case, it's right up there with the best point-and-shoots. We occasionally ran into some frustrating focus-hunting problems in Macro and Super Macro modes, but nothing too far out of the ordinary. What struck us the most was the impressive AF speed and accuracy in video mode—a challenge for just about every point-and-shoot we've ever seen.

Features

Durability is the main feature here—it's $399 because it's built to last under tough conditions. Like most of this year's tough-cams, it also comes with a built-in GPS antenna for geo-tagging photos. It can also accept a trio of lens converters, slated for release later this year.

Effects, Filters, and Scene Modes

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A typical set of scene modes are available, in addition to one of the best collection of in-camera filters and effects we've seen.

Other Features

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Durability

Durability is the main feature on the TG-1. It has class-leading durability ratings across the board. Read our Durability page for more.

GPS

The TG-1 comes with a GPS antenna for geo-tagging photos. For some adventurous photographers, it’s a must-have feature. They can map out their photos and figure out exactly where they took their favorite shots—and share that info with friends and other outdoor enthusiasts.

GPS works best in wide-open areas, but we could get it to sync with the satellite even in relatively dense urban settings. The GPS can be disabled entirely; used only while the camera is turned on; or with the GPS Logger activated, it pings the satellite every few minutes to track its movements. This last setting really kills the battery life, especially if left on overnight.

If GPS is a critical feature for you, the TG-1 works well, but the best in-camera GPS system we’ve seen is in the Panasonic TS4.

Manometer

Manometer is a fancy word for altitude and pressure monitor. It can monitor your depth underwater, so that you don't accidentally dive beneath the maximum level for waterproofing. We didn't test this feature.

Tap Control

Fumbling with buttons can be difficult underwater. If you'd rather control the menus by tapping the top, bottom, and side of the camera, you have that option. Pretty cool.

Converter Lenses

The TG-1 has a removable, plastic lens ring, which opens up a slot for add-on converter lenses. Neither lens (a fish-eye converter, and teleconverter) is available just yet—Olympus estimates a July street date—but this is a very interesting concept for a fixed-lens tough cam, making it a mini-system of sorts. Let's hope that it's as cool in practice as it sounds on paper.

Recording Options

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Video resolution maxes out at 1080/30p in MP4 format. Find out how the product:model/product:model performed in our video image quality test.

Video Controls

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Auto Controls

Most (but not all) scene modes and effects work in video mode.

Zoom

Optical zoom works while filming video, though it zooms even slower than in still-photo mode, and the audible motor noise gets picked up by the microphone.

Focus

Autofocus is surprisingly quick and accurate in video mode. We don't usually see such responsive movie AF in compact cameras.

Exposure Controls

Exposure and ISO can be set prior to filming.

Audio Features

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In addition to cameras and medical imaging equipment, Olympus is also a leading manufacturer of voice recorders. They've included some of their voice-recording tech in the TG-1 (synergy!), and the stereo sound is generally clearer and crisper than we hear out of most camera. Recording and playback levels can be adjusted, and a wind-cut option is available as well.

Conclusion

Tough-cams have come a long way over the past few years, but they've been best used as specialty cameras for the outdoors. Days at the beach, adventures on a mountain, a weekend at the slopes—whatever, as long as it was outside, in bright light.

Plenty of photographers could benefit from a tough-cam that can actually handle dim lighting conditions, though. Families want an all-around snapshot camera that won't break. Divers will take all the help they can get underwater, where light can be hard to come by. And then there are the photo nerds who want a camera with a better lens, just because they want what they want.

The Olympus Tough TG-1 is a big deal because it's the first tough-cam that really tries to tackle low light situations. Whether it's been because of design limitations or cost concerns, nobody has built a tough-cam with a bright lens until the TG-1, which packs a fast f/2 maximum aperture.

For the most part, the TG-1 is a success. Image quality is great, with clean, crisp results through ISO 1600. The sensitivity can go as high as ISO 6400, but it probably won't need to, since the bright lens makes it easy to get stable indoor and low-light shots.

The 3-inch OLED display is bright and vibrant and smooth, easily visible in bright sunlight and underwater. It's the best screen we've seen on a tough-cam, and the most energy-efficient, too. Handling is comfortable, the user experience is straightforward, and it has the coolest, most striking set of effects we've seen in any compact camera.

The big flaw here is color. Outdoor and underwater cameras should err on the side of oversaturation, but the TG-1 consistently undersaturates its photos. Even well-lit outdoor shots look muted, and they'll be particularly flat underwater. And there's absolutely no user control over color—no additional color modes, no fine adjustments available. It's stuck with what Olympus gave it, and it isn't the best.

Our other concern is glitchy performance. The TG-1 crashed on us pretty frequently one afternoon. It seemed to clear up after we swapped memory cards, and we haven't heard reports of other users running into problems. Hopefully it's an isolated incident. It's a particularly bad problem to have in an underwater camera—you can't just pull out the battery while you're snorkeling. Feel free to comment if you've run into similar issues.

We think that the TG-1 is the best tough-cam for all-around usage right now. Anyone shopping for a rugged, waterproof, or otherwise durable camera should give it serious consideration. It isn't quite the ultimate rugged shooter—there are cheaper cameras that provide punchier outdoor photos, like the Canon D20 or Panasonic TS4. So if you want something exclusively for adventuring, those might be better options. But we can confidently recommend the TG-1 as an excellent all-purpose snapshooter.

Update: We've completed our 7-camera waterproof showdown, and the Olympus TG-1 finished firmly in the top spot. Check out the 8-page roundup here.

Meet the tester

Liam F McCabe

Liam F McCabe

Managing Editor, News & Features

@liamfmccabe

Liam manages features and news coverage for Reviewed.com. Formerly the editor of the DigitalAdvisor network, he's covered cameras, TVs, personal electronics, and (recently) appliances. He's a native Bostonian and has played in metal bands you've never heard of.

See all of Liam F McCabe's reviews

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