Buyers Remorse ...

[Greg McCary]

That's some fine shooting. The last firmware update was suppose to improve the IS even more. Be sure you have the latest version. I have never got a good one at 1/2sec. I need to practice.LOL

[Atomic2]

which is the latest? i updated mine about a month ago, anything since then?

also, facebook seems to make the artifacting WAY worse than it really is.

[Justintoxicated]

Darn Facebook

Well it looks like I will just need to return the 420 then, eat my shipping loss. My professional firewire CF card reader will be here any day and my 8GB 266x CF card is already sitting on my desk. Time to play the waiting game for the 520 now... Hopefully it will get here before my CF card is worth 1/2 as much as it is now since I don't really need that much space for my point n shoot.

[Atomic2]

see, i really wouldnt even wait for the 520, its just not worth that extra time and money

[albot976]

see, i really wouldnt even wait for the 520, its just not worth that extra time and money

I'm going to have to tentatively disagree. Now I don't know when the 520 is coming out and I need to wait until I seem some firmware 1 comparisons, but personally, I'd be willing the pay $100+ simply for the tweaked sensor and improved dynamic range and noise (lack of). Narrow DR is by far the most annoying thing I've had to deal with whenever I use my 510, and underexposing is a poor man's solution and in any event, not a real solution. New focusing capability is nice, as well as live view AF (I use live view more than I thought I would). Wireless flash capability is nice, but its importance totally depends on who you are. Every other feature is just a fun bonus even if some are gimmicky.

[Sushigaijin]

I'm going to have to tentatively disagree. Now I don't know when the 520 is coming out and I need to wait until I seem some firmware 1 comparisons, but personally, I'd be willing the pay $100+ simply for the tweaked sensor and improved dynamic range and noise (lack of). Narrow DR is by far the most annoying thing I've had to deal with whenever I use my 510, and underexposing is a poor man's solution and in any event, not a real solution. New focusing capability is nice, as well as live view AF (I use live view more than I thought I would). Wireless flash capability is nice, but its importance totally depends on who you are. Every other feature is just a fun bonus even if some are gimmicky.

Yep, these are all good reasons to wait, if you don't already have an e510. In any case, the E510 will be cheaper in a few weeks regardless. For someone who already owns an E510, the answer is less cut and dried.

The E420 is a fine camera also - perhaps keep it and buy the 14-54. After all, people shot for a hundred years without IS. Beating yourself up over minor details is unnecessary. A camera in hand is worth two in the bush, as you cannot take photos with a card reader and memory card alone.

[Photo-John]

I certainly hope the 520 is going to be better in this area, but with only some sensor tweaks along the lines of the 420 and e3, I'm not expecting anything very significant. Any improvement is welcome I suppose. Maybe an extra 1/3 EV?

A camera with the final firmware should be here in a few days. Then I can do studio tests and we can really compare. But I thought that the dynamic range improvement in the beta camera was pretty impressive. There were a lot of shots with the E-510 that frustrated me. Based on the pre-production camera, I'm not expecting that to be the case with the E-520. And I think those sensor "tweaks" are pretty significant. Increasing the light-sensitive area of each pixel can make a huge difference in image quality.

[Justintoxicated]

A camera with the final firmware should be here in a few days. Then I can do studio tests and we can really compare. But I thought that the dynamic range improvement in the beta camera was pretty impressive. There were a lot of shots with the E-510 that frustrated me. Based on the pre-production camera, I'm not expecting that to be the case with the E-520. And I think those sensor "tweaks" are pretty significant. Increasing the light-sensitive area of each pixel can make a huge difference in image quality.

Fair Enough, I think I will return the 420, and wait for your review of the 520 and HOPE that it starts selling before Aug 10th like amazon says.

[Atomic2]

amazon isnt the only place to buy though, BH might have it before then

[albot976]

Fair Enough, I think I will return the 420, and wait for your review of the 520 and HOPE that it starts selling before Aug 10th like amazon says.

Well, not that this is 100% reliable, but the press release at olympusamerica.com says it will be available in July 2008.

Right now I'm more interested in photo-john's upcoming comparisons. It will put a lot of my own speculation to rest, that's for sure.

[Justintoxicated]

I wonder if I will still even want a camera in 8 weeks. I'll get it from whereever it just needs to come out first...I feel like Cartman in that episode of Southpark where he freezes himself in order to get the Nintendo Wii.

[Justintoxicated]

Have my e420 with 2 lens kit sitting here. Its SOOOOOOO hard not to open the brown box so I can return to sender tomarrow

I want to play now! Maybe I CAN find a way to freeze myself for a few months

[dumpy]

I wonder if I will still even want a camera in 8 weeks. I'll get it from whereever it just needs to come out first...I feel like Cartman in that episode of Southpark where he freezes himself in order to get the Nintendo Wii.

Or Steve Carrel in The Office when hearing how long it takes to adopt a kid, "I'm not even sure I will still want a kid in a year"

[expatCanuck]

The sensor is the main reason I chose the 420 over the 510, although the larger LCD, and improved live view + face detection didn't hurt either. ...

Does the 420 have more dynamic range than the 510?

[Justintoxicated]

I dunno I sold it to a friend. Actualy I would be tempted to buy the canon XSI right now, but Then I couldn't use the $100 8GB 266x CF card I purchased or the Firewire card reader...
Unfortunately it appears I'm now going on vacation for a week or two before the 520 is released...I'll probably take another vacation in a year or two though and hopefuly get some good use out of it then.