The small point and shoot cams 3-4 megapixels Ive always wondered
about the difference between it and say a well rated 8 meg especially
with a better lens etc.
Was there a huge difference?
Ive read some good reviews on the 8080 by that firm which shall go
nameless. Its gotten excellent reviews at Dpreview, Imaging Resource
, Megapixel Net and other sites. The one exception being a site Id
never seen before, called luminous landscapes, until I stumbled
across it. One guy recently posted a link to it in a camera users
group site. Id seen it before when I was looking into the cam and the
guy pretty much hates the cam but hes the exception and even he notes
Phil Askey of Dpreview liked the cam.
A lot of people rate the lens on the 8080, as excellent and its 8
megs. So is there a huge difference between pics from it vs say the
Oly 765 4 meg which costs much less? Not that I can see.
Of course Im comparing them on my LCD which isnt the highest res.
Comparing average pics on a sunny day and taking some test pics late
in the afternoon and earlier during the day - havent tested it
extensively this was just a quick 15 shots --- I dont really notice
big differences surprisingly. I think there might be a little more
smoothness in some areas and bit more texture , detail in some
background foliage but there isnt any super night and day difference.
Even the auto exposure --- not really all that different than the 750.
I thought it might be much improved but it seemed like it tended to
darken some shots a bit too much like the 765.
I can see getting a DSLR cause even if you dont notice any huge
differences in quality though obviously you should get a great lens
and the shots should look decent with a Nikon D50-70 or Rebel XT 350
but even if there wasnt a big difference even then , at least it can
shoot at high ISOs with relatively low noise with their big sensors,
has the flexibility of using various lenses which detach, start up
times and times between shots are fast . Which make it worth having.
Maybe a DSLR + simple 765 would have been a better combo.
A new Sony is creating a mild stir now --- Oly seems like Nissan back
in a few decades. After being competitive they suddenly went into cost
cutting mode and ceased being competitive until taken over by Renault
and revived. Oly lost money and is now cutting costs and to save money
ahve really gone conservative with a bland new line up while
competitors are still moving along.
Nikon and Canon of course have their great new budget DSLR models -
the new Oly which they came out with to compete is being severely
discounted - as low as $600 recently with two lenses ! Reviewers note
the kodak sensor they are using is noisy , even at 400 and it gets
unusable at the higher ISOs which is one of the reasons for getting a
DSLR. It also uses a 4/3 lens system which is new which limits the
lenses you can buy for it. Nikon just came out with a really weird cam
a compact 10x optical zoom with a lens that twists into position. If
you want compact and big zoom - I guess thats the cam to get. its
weird yet innovative.
http://www.digitalcamerainfo.com/con...Small-Size.htm
Everyone from Sony, Panasonic, Canon etc all have new great big zooms
that make the former mkt leading Oly mid range big zooms seem old news
now.
And with all of the new cams Oly announced so far which people were
aniticipating --- they seem about as exciting as Ford coming out with
their escort and Taurus , bland city. Theyve discontinued the 8080
so unless they come out with a replacement their line up seems dead.
Meanwhile Sony just came out with a 10 megapixel Point and Shoot
which uses a huge sensor the type used in DSLRs which probably means
high ISOs with low noise.
http://www.digitalcamerainfo.com/con...OS-Sensor-.htm
For people curious about 4 meg vs 8 meg cams 
Linear Mode
