Photos: Olympus mju 1030 SW telly tough guy

You've probably seen the telly advert with the kid and the dog and the tap and the Olympus mju 790. The waterproof, shockproof 790 has been succeeded by the even tougher Olympus mju 1030 SW, which parachuted into Crave this week and crashed through the window with a cigar in its mouth, liberally spraying bullets and wisecracks. We've seen these tough cameras on TV, but how tough are they in the flesh?

The waterproof ability of the tough Olympus cameras is shown off in this Singaporean ad. The 10.1-megapixel 1030 is waterproof to 10m, perfect for the pool and snorkelling. It's also shockproof to 2m, and crushproof up to 100kg. We could stand on it if we wanted to -- or rather we could if if we went on a diet.

When photographing huge landscape vistas, the 28mm wide angle lens should come in handy. A 3.6x optical zoom lets you go in for a closer look. Face detection is also in there. You get a whopping 24 scene modes, including two underwater wide options, a watery snapshot option and fish-spotting macro. Just don't let the dog eat it.

If you thought the little boy in the UK ad was mischievous, just wait until you see these chuckleheads, featuring in an ad that plays like the Eastern European version of Skins. Style-obsessed teens will be pleased to know the 1030 is available in a selection of colours, including silver, black or military-style olive green. It's supposedly scratch-proof to keep it looking pristine, but we fancy smacking it on rocks and doing some impromptu plumbing work might take the shine off it.

We'll be putting the £200 Olympus mju 1030 though its paces in an in-depth review to see if its a real-life hardnut or if it just plays one on TV. Click through for more -- if you think you're hard enough. -Rich Trenholm

• Previous
• Continue

• Share:
• 
• 
• 

• Tags:
• Olympus,
• Olympus u [mju:] 1030 SW,
• diet,
• metal,
• scene modes