Hot? Digital Camera 3.1meg pix Olympus C-3000Z $149.98 off shipped for $387.49

[CoCoKola]

I've been a lurker for some time, thanks to all for the money saved!

I've done quite a bit of research for a 3.x megapixel camera, and after looking around for the least expensive with the best picture quality and features, I'm getting the Olympus c-3000z.

It's a less expensive version of the c-3030: it uses the better c-3020 lens (IMO) with the internals of the c-3030 and less on-board RAM (used to take only a few shots faster than the memory card can save it - ~2.5 FPS vs. ~1.5 on the c-3000z. )

It has video-out (slide show on your tv,) USB auto connect, a movie mode with sound, etc. The main gripe about the camera from users is the lens cap - it needs a tether. Reviews: ZDNET epinion

Ok now for the deal:
Officemax has this camera for $499.98 with free next-day shipping (over $50) Officemax

Use the officemax $60 off $350 coupon that can be found if you look.. The discount is shown after you checkout . After taxes for me it's $468.47

Picematch (fill out form under customer support after ordering) with PCVideoonline.com
they have it for $379.00 plus $40 shipping so you get an additional $80.98 off for a grand total shipped $387.49

I didn't try using ebates which would make this deal even sweeter. Can anyone do better?

 

[olouie]

I am pretty sure office max will not honor both the price match and the 60 off 350, but let us know if this works out.

Also if you have AMEX blue you could PM if OM does not honor the price match and still use the 60 off 350.

 

[Roy2001]

C3000 is an old model, very slow start and pretty long shutter delay (1 sec). No manual white balance, use SM card which means if you want to buy a 256M SM card, you need to update camera's firmware (cost $$). If it is BLUE card involved, why not buy Nikon 995 which is a improvement model of the fantastic 990? My friends get it for $410 with $100 PhotoAlley gift check, which he bought 128M memroy card and some other stuff. $410 include huge memory and batteries!

EDIT: C300oZ doesn't have one-touch manual white balance preset!

128M could be enough for you, but CM slot won't limit the memory card size.

990 is definitely better than C3030, now 995 is better than 990, 3030 is better than C3000.

 

[CoCoKola]

c-3000Z does have both an auto and manual white balance system Olympus :
iESP Multi-pattern auto TTL
Pre-set manual (Daylight, Overcast, Tungsten and Fluorescent)
One-touch manual calibration

I played with the camera in CompUsa and I did not notice a 1 second shutter delay; it felt comfortable well balanced. I realize this is not the top-of-the-line camera, it is quite close and for the price I think it's worth it.

BTW:
a 16MB card can hold:
1: TIFF 2048 X 1536
2: TIFF 1,600 X 1,200
4: TIFF 1,280 X 960
6: TIFF 1,024 X 768
16: TIFF 640 X 480
8 or more: SHQ 2048 X 1536
21 or more: HQ 2048 X 1536
12 or more: SQ 1600 X 1200 (HIGH)
32 or more: SQ 1600 X 1200 (NORMAL)
21 or more: SQ 1,280 X 960 (HIGH)
49 or more: SQ 1,280 X 960 (NORMAL)
26 or more: SQ 1,024 X 768 (HIGH)
76 or more: SQ 1,024 X 768 (NORMAL)
66 or more: SQ 640 X 480 (HIGH)
165 or more: SQ 640 x 480 (NORMAL)

Most users say the HQ mode looks the best so 64 HQ shots on a 128mb card will do just fine for me. (amazon has 128MB cards for $60.) The SM card uses less power than the CF.

olouie: since the price does not go below $350 they have to honor it : they already did for me:
"Hello Robert

Thanks for requesting a pricematch for the Olympus C-3000. I was able to
verify the price of $379.00 + $40.00 delivery fee with
http://www.pcvideoonline.com. Your credit card will be credited $80.98 in
7-10 business days.

Thank You

"
Thanks for your replies!

 

[olouie]

good find then. might just jump on this, but have to decide between a few of them

thanks again

 

[CoCoKola]

I get the camera tomorrow: I kinda got screwed in the shipping: free next day shipping, but I put my order in at 4pm central on Friday. Little did I know that their warehouse is on the east coast, and they wer off until today, so my next day shipping took 5 days!

I tried to argue this for the pricematch (don't include the next day shipping of $40 in the PM since the competiter CAN ship it next day, and OfficeMax Can't!

<grumble> OM also has the 3030 camera and a few others; you will need to search for a PM on p r i c e g r a... or somewhere...

 

[CoCoKola]

roy, the 990 is $100 more than the c3000; the 995 is $639; that's not hot for a 3.x mp. I'mm not sayign one is better than another; just that $387 for VERY NICE 3 mp camera is Hot!

The 3030 is NOT better in all ways than the 3000z, it has a lens that has known issues with chromatic aberations. The c3040 or c4040 cameras have a f1.8 fens!

 

[Fritzo]

<< C3000 is an old model, very slow start and pretty long shutter delay (1 sec). No manual white balance, use SM card which means if you want to buy a 256M SM card, you need to update camera's firmware (cost $$). If it is BLUE card involved, why not buy Nikon 995 which is a improvement model of the fantastic 990? My friends get it for $410 with $100 PhotoAlley gift check, which he bought 128M memroy card and some other stuff. $410 include huge memory and batteries!

EDIT: C300oZ doesn't have one-touch manual white balance preset!

128M could be enough for you, but CM slot won't limit the memory card size.

990 is definitely better than C3030, now 995 is better than 990, 3030 is better than C3000. >>



You're on crack. I've had this camera for two months now. It DOES have manual white balance, mine takes 256M SM cards, and the shutter delay depnds on if you lock the focus (most cameras require you to hold the button half way down to lock the focus, then all the way down to take the picture...if you don't do that, you'll get a delay. Every camera I've had since 1995 has this feature. It's actually great for spot metering). And the 3000z isn't THAT old....it was released in 2001. The quality of this camera is supurb, and that is a great price (I got mine open box (was missing the 8mb SM card...everything else was factory sealed) for $410).

 

[Digdug23]

Roy2001:

Nikon 995 which is a improvement model of the fantastic 990? My friends get it for $410 with $100 PhotoAlley gift check

Where did he find a deal like this? PhotoAlley? Is the deal still on, did he have to PM, etc.?

 

[CoCoKola]

I received the camera yesterday - so far I am quite impressed! The picture quality is amazing; The image's detail is quite extraordinary, and the colors (indoor only so far) are true to life looking on my Samsung 900NF monitor. I will upload a few to the website in a bit. The remote control is quite nice but may be lost easily. The documentation I found to be perfect - the quick reference card is all I needed.

The zoom feature is amazing; the optical window zooms with the digial zoom so you can conserve on LCD power if you don't need digital zoom as well.

Anyone thinking about it I would say go for it!

Cheers all!

 

[randomlinh]

not a bad price indeed. i prefer to wait on the 4040z to come down.. i want that 1.8 lens and pixel remapping

 

[mgravy]

This camera rocks hard! I bought one about 1 year ago when it first came out for $700 and love it. I'd buy it again for the same $$. It has alot of nice features. Two of my favorites are the panoramic mode that automatically stiches your shots together and the remote control.

 

[AlanS]

I'd like to add to the chorus singing this camera's praises. It's a great camera but I'm ebaying my used one. Like Inguyen, I'm after the 4040. Looks incredible and down to about $565 on some fool Yahoo store.

 

[CoCoKola]

I haven't used the Panorama mode yet; I'm confused why only "olympus" memory has this. There is an Article that talks about using a program to reformat an Olympus SM card to use Panorama if it is reformated by another product. Could this be used on other SM cards?

on another note, it looks like newegg has the best deal on SmartMedia 128MB cards for $46 plus $4 fedex saver shipping. Who sells 256MB SmartMedia cards?

 

[CoCoKola]

oops.. forgot to agree with both of you on the 3040 or the 4040; with the F1.8 lens it's hard to pass up! I was presing the spending limit with this purchase..

 

[IgoByte]

This is one fugly camera... hahahaha

 

[fade2black24]

This is a great camera. I bought mine a year ago in Sept for $615 and I love it. The pictures are INCREDIBLE! I recommend this camera to anyone that will listen to me. You got a great deal, enjoy it.

BTW, I take all my pictures in SHQ mode and resize them in photoshop. I get 44 pictures on a 32MB card. So that means I can get 176 SHQ pictures on a 128MB card. If you have to take more than that get another card! I take tons of pictures (ie travel a lot) and have never seen a need for anything bigger than a 128 card.

- Fade

 

[Hivey]

This is a really tempting deal, but i'm holding out for a Sony DSC-P5. It has similar features, video@16fps(as opposed to the 15fps of the olympus), and it's a fraction of the size(i need the smaller camera's otherwise i don't ever take them out with me cause of the hassle). I have a friend that works for sony, so i'm gonna see if he'll snag it for me @ 40% off, if that doesn't work, eDigitalMall.com seems to be the best deal at $489+s/h. The only downsides to the sony that i can come up with are being tied to the sony memory sticks, and the zoom isn't as good as the olympus. I'm not a camera afficianado though, so i'm sure someone will point out large differences. The sony has gotten some rave reviews, and i had a chance to see one in action at the family xmas dinner which sold me on it.

 

[Fritzo]

<< I received the camera yesterday - so far I am quite impressed! The picture quality is amazing; The image's detail is quite extraordinary, and the colors (indoor only so far) are true to life looking on my Samsung 900NF monitor. I will upload a few to the website in a bit. The remote control is quite nice but may be lost easily.... >>



Tip about the remote: put a piece of velcro on the back of the remote, and the other half of the velro on a leather portion of the camera strap. That way, you just stick it to the strap, it doesn't get lost, and it's always handy.

Another tip is to get rid of the poor lens cap, and get a Tiffen lens converter ($10-$15), and a UV filter ($5-$13). Screw it on the camera and it eliminates the need for a lens cap+ protects the lens (and makes the sky a nice blue color on sunny days).

 

[Fritzo]

<< This is a great camera. I bought mine a year ago in Sept for $615 and I love it. The pictures are INCREDIBLE! I recommend this camera to anyone that will listen to me. You got a great deal, enjoy it.

BTW, I take all my pictures in SHQ mode and resize them in photoshop. I get 44 pictures on a 32MB card. So that means I can get 176 SHQ pictures on a 128MB card. If you have to take more than that get another card! I take tons of pictures (ie travel a lot) and have never seen a need for anything bigger than a 128 card.

- Fade >>



I do 1600x1200 (I think that's like 2 megapixles or so) and get 128 pics on a 128MB card. This quality seems to be good for up to 8x10 printouts.

 

[Fritzo]

<< This is a really tempting deal, but i'm holding out for a Sony DSC-P5. It has similar features, video@16fps(as opposed to the 15fps of the olympus), and it's a fraction of the size(i need the smaller camera's otherwise i don't ever take them out with me cause of the hassle). I have a friend that works for sony, so i'm gonna see if he'll snag it for me @ 40% off, if that doesn't work, eDigitalMall.com seems to be the best deal at $489+s/h. The only downsides to the sony that i can come up with are being tied to the sony memory sticks, and the zoom isn't as good as the olympus. I'm not a camera afficianado though, so i'm sure someone will point out large differences. The sony has gotten some rave reviews, and i had a chance to see one in action at the family xmas dinner which sold me on it. >>



Yeah...I can see where you'd hold out for 16fps over 15 fps. 16fps is MUCH better

Seriously, SONY lenses aren't the best, but to each his own.

 

[kindest]

damn officemax sell the canong2!

 

[CoCoKola]

Fritzo - Thanks for the Tips! Excelent ideas.!

Anyone here that has this camera - do you use it with XP? I am and am discovering what auto USB connect vs. USB means. I was looking forward to a drive letter assigned when I connect the camera. The 3040 supports the auto connect.

Then I find out that CaMedia software that comes with the camera (v2.0) is NOT XP compatible (well, it works, but it crashes all the time..) to get the XP comapatible verison, you must shell out another $19.95 for version2.5 and then download a patch - then it's XP compatible.

I can't do a capture thought my graphics package etc. I'm not very happy about it..

Any suggestions / ideas?

 

[Fritzo]

The Camedia software stinks. I've never used it. Get yourself a card reader and you'll get the following benefits:

1) Saves camera batteries.
2) Easier picture transfer (no cables to deal with)
3) XP recognizes card readers as it would a camera, so you get the same options available when you plug the card in (copy to CD, copy to folder, etc).
4) Card readers tend to be up to 4x faster than camera transfers.

My advice. Drop the Camedia software and get a copy of Photoshop (or at very least PhotoDeluxe).

 

[Hivey]

Fritzo,
I'm not holding out because of the added 1fps, i just mentioned that as it was the first difference i saw. I'm holding out because i need something the size of the sony. The olympus is too bulky and big for my needs, as i stated in my post.