Olympus Tough TG-320 Digital Compact Camera Review

Features
Handling
Performance
Verdict
Specification



The TG-320 was announced in February 2012 as one of three new cameras in the updated Olympus Tough range, with this model being the cheapest. It is available in red and blue, priced at £139.00.

Olympus Tough TG-320 Features

The Olympus Tough TG-620 has a 14 megapixel sensor and a 3.4x optical zoom lens, which is a 35mm equivalent of 28 - 102mm. Of course, the TG-320 isn't called Tough for nothing. It’s waterproof to 3m, shockproof to 1.5m and freezeproof to -10°C. To help make picture taking easy, the camera has Intelligent Auto mode, as well as a range of scene modes, 3D shooting, magic filters and panorama mode.

The TG-320 can also record videos at 720p HD. During recording you can use Magic Filters and optical zoom with stabilisation available to ensure steady videos.

Key Features

• Waterproof to 3m
• Shockproof to 1.5m
• Freezeproof to -10°C
• 3.6x optical zoom lens (35mm equiv: 28-102mm)
• 14 megapixel sensor
• 720p HD movie recording and HDMI Control
• 2.7 inch 230,000 dot colour LCD screen
• Dual Image Stabilisation
• Magic Filter Movie and/or Stills
• iAuto and AF Tracking
• Face Detection and SAT
• 3D Photo Shooting Mode
• Beauty Mode
• Pet Detection Mode
• In-Camera Panorama
• Scene Modes
• Eye-Fi Card compatibility
• USB-Battery Charge

Olympus Tough TG-320 Handling

The more expensive models in the Tough range look like they are really well built to survive extreme conditions, with the TG-320 being much lighter and feels more like a typical compact camera. It has a plastic body with a solid clip to hold the battery and memory card cover firmly in place. The TG-320 lacks the chunky OK button, used for changing the camera setting, with a standard d-pad instead. There is also a metal plate which helps grip and is also used to attach a strap and the playback button allows viewing of your pictures and videos even when the camera is switched off. The rear of the camera also hosts a 2.7 inch, 230,000 dot LCD screen which is easy to view in all lighting conditions.

Olympus haven't provided a CIPA rating for the camera's battery but it was charged before testing and was not needed to be recharged. We tested the camera's performance at focusing, shutter response, shot-to-shot time, continuous shooting etc. and have posted the results below. To test this we took 6 or more shots and calculated the average.

Shutter Response		0.2 seconds
Wide - Focus / Shutter Response		0.75 seconds
Full zoom - Focus / Shutter Response		0.8 seconds
Switch on Time to Taking a Photo		2.25 seconds
Shot to Shot (without flash)		1.9 seconds
Shot to Shot with Flash		2.7 seconds
Sequential shooting		0.6 fps
High-speed		3.1 fps

Sequential shooting records at full-sized 14 megapixel resolution, with high-speed shooting at 3 megapixels.

Olympus Tough TG-320 Performance

The Olympus Tough TG-320 produces images which are really well exposed with very pleasing colour reproduction. Detail is good at both ends of the lens, soft in the corners and with some purple fringing in high contrast areas. In super macro mode the camera has a minimum focusing distance of 2cm, allowing decent close-up shots to be taken.

Olympus Tough TG-320 Lens test images

Noise is minimal at the two lowest settings of ISO 80 and 100, with noise increasing steadily at ISO 200 and 400. Noise causes images to become soft at ISO 800, with ISO 1600 producing images with lots of noise, not ideal for large prints, but colour reproductions is still good, even at the higher ISO settings.

Olympus Tough TG-320 ISO test images

Below are example images taken using some of the scene modes, as well as underwater. Portraits have good skin tones, there is some red-eye when using the flash.

Olympus Tough TG-320 Sample Photos

The auto white-balance (AWB) setting takes an image with an orange cast under the incandescent lighting, with the respective preset taking a better picture. Under the fluorescent lighting, the AWB setting has a very slight magenta cast, with the fluorescent preset giving a much stronger magenta cast.

Olympus Tough TG-320 White-balance test images

There are a range of magic filters available to add creativity to both images and videos, although not all of them can be used for video recording.

Olympus Tough TG-320 Digital filters

Video Mode

Below is a video shot at full 720p HD, the camera also allows the use of optical zoom during recording, an example of which can be seen on the ePHOTOzine YouTube Channel.

Value For Money

The Olympus Tough TG-320 is currently priced at £139.00 and is at the bottom of the Olympus Tough range which includes the TG-820 and TG-620. If you want the most waterproof and shockproof camera, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FT4 ticks the box.

Camera	Waterproof	Shockproof	Freezeproof	Price
Kodak Easyshare Sport C123	3m	-	-	£50.00
Olympus Tough TG-320	3m	1.5m	-10°C	£139.00
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FT10	3m	1.5m	-10°C	£144.00
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FT20	5m	1.5m	-10°C	£169.00
Fujifilm FinePix XP50	5m	1.5m	-10°C	£189.00
Pentax Optio WG-1 / (GPS)	10m	1.5m	-10°C	£204.00 / (219.00)
Olympus Tough TG-620	5m	1.5m	-10°C	£214.00
Canon PowerShot D10	10m	1.2m	-10°C	£214.99
Fujifilm FinePix XP150 GPS	10m	2m	-10°C	£219.00
Olympus Tough TG-820	10m	2m	-10°C	£252.00
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FT3	12m	2m	-10°C	£259.00
Sony Cyber-shot TX10	5m	1.5m	-10°C	£269.00
Nikon Coolpix AW100	10m	1.5m	-10°C	£294.95
Pentax Optio WG-2 / (GPS)	12m	1.5m	-10°C	£299.00 / (£339.00)
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FT4	12m	2m	-10°C	£329.00
Canon PowerShot D20	10m	1.5m	-10°C	£349.00
Ricoh G700	5m	2m	-10°C	£449.00

Olympus Tough TG-320 Verdict

With a limited set of features and fairly decent performance, the Olympus Tough TG-320 is a worthy option if you are looking for a waterproof camera, but have a limited budget. If you have more money to spend, Olympus offer the TG-620 and TG-820, which have scored higher in our reviews.

Olympus Tough TG-320 Pros

One of the lowest price waterproof cameras
Freezeproof and shockproof
Magic filters

Olympus Tough TG-320 Cons

Limited features
Only one lock on battery and card cover

FEATURES
HANDLING
PERFORMANCE
VALUE FOR MONEY
OVERALL

Olympus Tough TG-320 Specifications

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