Evaluation:  
Conclusion: Great camera - few shortcomings
Review: I upgraded from Olympus C-750UZ (4 MP, 10X zoom) to SP-570UZ. Features I wanted were longer zoom, higher MP, zoom ring (selectable as manual focus ring), and continued full manual control. I immediately installed an Olympus website firmware update to smooth the zoom ring operation. I'm using 2 GB M+ xD card which saves large photo files quickly enough. With added experience, the many control buttons/switches/rings seem logical enough.
I was surprised at the difference in the widest zoom settings - the SP-570 takes in much more width for landscapes. It also has a fantastic panorama stitch option I've used in landscape shots.
I'm also impressed with the image stabilization which has allowed hand-held 20X zoom photos of the full moon that were surprisingly clear. I bought the CLA-10 extension tube so I could use the 55mm polarizing filter I used on the C-750. This has resulted in severe vignetting when trying to shoot at the widest zoom setting.
Since most of my photos are taken with at least some manual control, I have not yet sampled all of the scene settings. There are a lot to choose from.
I expected the battery life before recharging to be longer, so I'm hoping some new more powerful rechargables will provide a remedy. I have not yet been able to find a way to change the brightness intensity of the electronic viewfinder which consistently displays the subjects much brighter than the resulting photos. I've learned to compensate for this, but a brightness setting would be better.
All in all, this camera provides great flexibility and user control in a wide variety of photo taking opportunities. I'd definitely recommend it if you want something more than an automatic point and shoot but don't want to carry all the lenses required in a DSLR.
Evaluation:
Conclusion: Great camera with some limitations
Review: I was a big Olympus fan back in the days of film, but switched to other brands when digital came along. I bought my 570UZ for a photo safari to Kenya. I no longer care to haul all the lenses that are necessary to shoot a wide range of sujects with an SLR.
My 570 performed well under most conditions, but fell short in low-light scenarios (too much noise), and resulted in some shots being too soft. In one instance, the camera couldn't focus at all on a patch of flowers with sunlight on them. Still, I got excellent results with most shots, and with 10 megapixel quality, was able to enlarge them to 16X20 without pixelation.
Start-up time is good, response time is good (better with an H card), and the scene modes make it very easy to get the right exposure for a specific condition, such as sunsets, etc. There is even a mode for shooting through glass, which works great at the zoo. For serious photographers, the camera has a hot shoe for attaching an external flash.
All things considered, I would recommend this camera to anyone who doesn't want the expense or hassle of buying or carrying an SRL.
Evaluation:
Conclusion: xD card, please?
Review: I was tempted to buy this camera until I saw it takes an Olympus xD card...limited to 1GB or 2GB...please, why would I do this? My Pentax K100D digital SLR has a 32GB SDHC card. C'mon Olympus, get with it already. xD cards at 1GB or 2GB are a real deal-breaker.
Evaluation:
Conclusion: Jumped from Olympus C-750...
Review: I have had the C-750 for a few years, and have taken some great shots with it. I do a lot of landscape and wild critter shoots.
Got the Olympus SP-570UZ as a gift last week, and have taken all kinds of shots, LOVE the macro and super macro, great portraits, and zoomed in on Elk across the valley like a charm.
The only thing keeping me from giving this camera a 5 star rate, is the fact that I had a hard time zipping from subject to subject in the small manual, and would dearly love to have the manual on disk that the Olympus C-750 had.
What I ended up doing is just getting the camera out, and pressing buttons, and looking at menus, (when I finally figured out how to get to them) and taking pix 'til I got the hang of it. I feel that there are SO MANY things I am still going to find out from this camera, and I have to say I do LOVE it!Olympus SP-570UZ 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Optical Dual Image Stabilized Zoom
Evaluation:
Conclusion: My spouse keeps taking it
Review: I've used an Olympus for several years but haven't found one until now that could compete with my original 5 megapixel in the C700 series --of which I've worn out four.
It seems clear that Olympus engineers have killed themselves to make every possible improvement to this lovely camera: the feel, the extended power lens, the careful amount of indoor flash, the many options for scenes, all with the clarity Olympus is famous for. As usual, the camera takes better photos than I even think I'm getting. The big problem is that my spouse, who carries a big bazooka Canon lens, can't keep his hands off this new camera of mine--which actually can take longer telephoto shots than his. Only one design problem remains: the lens cap still won't stay on. Also, my old C-765 can take a great shot of the moon without a tripod, but so far I haven't been able to point and shoot at the moon with this one.
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