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Olympus TG-4 Review

The Good: Water and shock proof design, interchangeable lenses, abundance of features. 

The Bad: Overcompensating built-in noise reduction, proprietary charging cable, lower image quality. 

The Verdict: TG-4 is a camera meant for adventurous users that sacrifices some performance for extra protection. If this is something you need, you will hardly find a better choice. 

 

  • Full Review

Overview

Olympus is proud of their flagship TG series of compact digital cameras, and its last addition is by far the best one yet. Even though the differences between the original TG-1 and the new TG-4 are not dramatic, it has become an overall better camera. It is one of the rare products in this segment of the market that offers waterproof design and some kind of general protection. 

Features

The new Olympus TG-4 sports a 16MP sensor with a limited zoom lens. This limitation is due to the waterproof design which prevents the use of external zoom lens, and completely relies on the internal one. The lens is essentially the same one found on the TG-1, with the ability to exchange lenses for aftermarket ones. Olympus TG-4 comes with a 3-inch rear display which is fixed and cannot be tilted. This display sports a 460k-dot resolution, which makes it sub-par to most other cameras in this price range. The camera comes with an integrated Wi-Fi and GPS. 

Olympus TG-4 allows you to shoot in RAW format, thus completely eliminating the camera's noise reduction features, which are typically overdoing the corrections and leaving you with an unbalanced image. Using RAW format, you can do all of this on your own. Video is recorded in 1080p resolution, and comes in a QuickTime format.

Build Quality

Olympus states that TG-4 can go 50 feet underwater and still function without a problem, and if the previous versions of this camera are any kind of indication, there is no reason not to trust them. The housing of the camera also protects it from being dropped, crushed, and exposed to freezing temperatures, which all makes TG-4 one of the most durable cameras on the market. 

Specifications: 

  • 4X wide-angle optical zoom
  • f2.0 high speed lens
  • Waterproof to depths of 50 feet
  • Freeze proof to 14 degrees F
  • Shockproof to 7 feet
  • Crushproof to 220 lb
  • Integrated Wi-Fi and GPS 
  • 1080P HD video

Conclusion

Olympus TG-4 is a great choice for users who need an extra layer of protection, and don't mind the lower megapixel count. It has a lot of features that make a very flexible camera, and the fact that you can change the lens is praise worthy. It also has its flaws such as the overcompensating built-in noise correction, but it makes up for its shortcomings with great performance. 

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Olympus TG-4