Olympus TOUGH TG-310 rugged digital camera

Olympus TOUGH TG-310 review: An affordable waterproof, drop-proof, dust-proof and freeze-proof compact camera

PC World Australia (online)

  • Review
  • Specs
  • Images
  • User Reviews
  • Buy Online

The Olympus TOUGH TG-310 is an entry-level rugged camera that's perfect for the beach and any other general outdoor adventure. It can survive drops from 1.5m and can withstand underwater pressure down to 3m. It's also dust-proof and freeze-proof, but not scratch-proof. It shouldn't be relied on for high-quality images, but its quality is good enough for happy snaps that will be shared online or viewed on a big-screen TV or photo frame.

Pros

  • Rugged
  • Nice art filters
  • Affordable

Cons

  • Not scratch-resistant
  • Image definition isn't great
  • Menu could be better

Bottom Line

The Olympus TOUGH TG-310 has good rugged features and decent ease of use. We like its art filters and the overall image quality is good, but don't expect images to be super-well-defined.

Would you buy this?

  • Price

    $ 299.00 (AUD)

The TG-310 has a nice overall styling and it's reasonably easy to use for a rugged device. Its buttons have a rubber seal on them so that water can't get between them and the camera body. The menu navigation buttons are tactile, but the zoom buttons are very squishy and it can be hard to tell if you've pressed them, especially on a bright day — like most cameras, the TG-310's 2.7in screen can't be seen easily in bright daylight unless you do your best to shield it from the sun.

The shutter button has a distinct two-step feel to it and the camera is comfortable to hold. The location of the lens at the top-left corner of the body means that you have to be a little careful while holding the camera, as you don't want a stray finger to get in the way while you're shooting. The lens has a wide angle of 28mm (with its 3.6x optical zoom, it has a range up to 102mm) and it sits in front of a 14-megapixel sensor.

Image quality is adequate overall, but definition is lost when you view the images at their native size. They are best viewed at up to a Full HD resolution. Any bigger than that and they will look too messy. We shot in iAuto mode for the most part, and the camera did a reasonably good job of exposing our photos, even in trying conditions. On camera such as this one, you won't want to play around with the controls and menu options a lot, especially while you are underwater. Keeping the camera in iAuto mode will produce good enough results for all types of lighting conditions. You will just have to be mindful to disable the flash.

There is also a Program mode that can be used when you want to tweak the ISO, exposure compensation and white balance. It's useful if you want to take photos without the camera selecting a high ISO speed, which will introduce plenty of noticeable noise to most photos. There are also plenty of scene modes and Art modes (they are called Magic Filters in this camera). You do get some fun stuff, such as Pop Art, Pin Hole, Sparkle, Soft Focus and Fish Eye modes. It also has a nifty Panorama scene mode that allows you to take three consecutive pictures simply by lining up a target with a bullseye. The camera pieces all the photos together itself and tends to cut out some information in order to get the picture looking straight, but it's nevertheless quite a fun scene mode to use.

Olympus TOUGH TG-310 iAUTO mode

iAuto mode.

Keep up with the latest tech news, reviews and previews by subscribing to the PC World newsletter.

Be the first to comment.

Post new comment

Users posting comments agree to the PC World comments policy.

Login or register to link comments to your user profile, or you may also post a comment without being logged in.

Most Popular

What's the difference between an Intel Core i3, i5 and i7?
Samsung’s 2013 Smart TVs: everything you need to know
How do I connect my TV to the Internet?
Laser vs. inkjet printers: which is better?
Windows 7 Home Premium vs. Windows 7 Professional

Best Deals on PCWorld

Digital CamerasView all »
Digital VideoView all »
NotebooksView all »
Desktop PCsView all »
TabletsView all »

Compare & Save

« 1 of 14 »
Deals powered by WhistleOut
Use WhistleOut's technology to compare:
Mobile phone plans & deals
Mobile phone models
Mobile phone carriers
Broadband plans & deals
Broadband providers
Deals powered by WhistleOut
Guides and Articles
National Broadband Network NBN 100Mbps Plans
Visualising Mobile Phone Plans
SIM Only Mobile Phone Plans
National Broadband Network NBN 25Mbps Plans
iPhone 5, 4S & iPhone 4 Plans - Compare Deals &...
Deals powered by WhistleOut
WhistleOut

Resources

Digital Cameras Product Finder
Find the product you're looking for with our Digital Cameras search tool.

Latest User Reviews