Recently, reader had asked me if I could suggest which one is better — Nikon P90 or Olympus SP590UZ.
On paper, the SP590UZ seems to be winning over the P90. It loses out only in the continuous shots department — although the SP590 is still fast at 6fps, it is no match to P90′s 15fps.
The SP590 also has RAW capture, longer zoom, but also more expensive, although not too expensive.
Point and shoot, side by side comparison
| Olympus SP590UZ | Nikon P90 | Canon SX1 IS | Pentax X70 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resolution | 12 megapixels | 12.1 megapixels | 10 megapixels | 12 megapixels |
| RAW | No | Yes (via firmware update) | No | |
| HD video | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Lens | 26x (26-676mm) | 24x (26-624mm) | 20x (28-560mm) | 24x (26-624mm) |
| Digital zoom | 5x | 4x | 2x | 6.25x |
| Conversion lens | Yes | No | No | No |
| ISO sensitivity | Auto, High Auto, 64, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400 | 64, 100, 200, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400 | 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 3200 | 50 - 6400 |
| Image stabilisation | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Aperture | f2.8 - f5.0 | f2.8 - f5.0 | f2.8 - f5.7 | f2.8 - f5.0 |
| Continuous shot | 6fps (5MP), 10fps (3MP) | 15fps | 4fps | To be updated |
| HDMI connectivity | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Self timer | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Hotshoe | No | No | Yes | No |
| AF assist lamp | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Shutter speed | 1/2 - 1/2000 | To be updated | 15-1/3200 | 1/4 - 1/1000 |
| Bulb | Yes (8min) | No | No | No |
| Shooting modes | Auto, P, Tv, Av, M, My mode, 19 scene modes | Auto, P, S, A, M, 2 Custom | Auto, P, Tv, Av, M, Custom | Auto, P, Tv Av, M |
| Power | 4 x AA batteries | Li-Ion rechargables | 4 x AA batteries | Li-Ion rechargables |
| Macro | Up to 1cm | Up to 1cm | Up to 0cm | Up to 1cm |
| Tilt & swivel LCD screen | No | Vari-angle | Yes | No |
| Price | $450 | $399.95 | $600 | $399.95 |
If I were to decide which, I would find it difficult to choose. But if I chose Nikon, it would be because of brand recognition and not anything else.
Olympus has some image quality issue a couple of years back when it introduced the first ever 18x optical zoom camera, the SP-550UZ but things have been improving with its newer cameras.
One of Olympus most recent cameras, the SP565UZ received a good review over at Steve’s Digicams, with image quality described as “excellent.”
So, I guess image quality is no longer an issue with Olympus ultrazoom cameras.
So, how would I choose my camera? To me, image quality is paramount. If both cameras are able to give me excellent image quality, then I will go for the one which offer more features, and that will be Olympus SP590UZ.
By the way, the table above is meant to compare the SP590UZ and P90 side by side but since there are still spaces available, I decided to throw in two other cameras, the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS and Pentax X70, just for fun.
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Thank you for the valuable information. this has helped me able to decide on which one to choose.
Oh, Olympus had image quality problems but the Nikon P80 (the previous version of this camera) didn’t? It was pretty bad. Compare images of P80 of anything over 200 ISO vs SX10 here…
http://www.imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP/COMPS01.HTM
Nikon has brand name recognition in DSLRs, but their P&S cameras are worse than the competition. If HD video (and RAW) is not a must requirement, SX10 is cheaper than all the ones listed above. There is also Panasonic FZ28K with 18x zoom that has HD video + raw but the recorded audio is not as good as SX10, which has stereo audio recording.
ya even i heard it. i also personally like nikon brand. but also seen the image quality of olympus sp 570uz…its improved. will have to check out. is the sp 590 uz launched?? and the reviews for nikon p90 are not so encouraging. ya sx10 is very good. but i want RAW and HD also. sx 1 is also better i think.
SX10 does even better than SX 1 on higher ISOs and it costs half the price. For now, among ultra-zooms, SX10 is the best choice.
See: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canonsx1is/page7.asp
AK, Vishwa, I won’t recommend the SX1 IS. I have the SX1 IS with me since the past three months but I find it difficult to love the camera despite all the features. It has all the things I need but fails when it matter most — image quality.
The image quality is not bad but at $600 and being a Canon, I expect more.
I heard the SX10 IS is better in terms of image quality.
normally how much memory card size does nikonp90/olympussp590uz/canon sx10 support. dothey support 8GBmicro sd
I am not sure if there is any limit. Why would there be a limit? I have a 16 GB SDHC card and it works fine.
even i was planning totake 16GB card.but the dealer told me the performance will be slow with large memory size card depending upon the megapixels. so i just wanted to clarify.
It won’t. 16 GB class 6 card would be faster than 2 GB class 2 card. Class 6 card can write 6 MB per second. Class 2 card can write 2 MB per second. Size is irrelevant. Get class 6 card.
are there any officialreviews for olympus sp590 uz?
thanks a lot. class 6 card..is it available in sandisk?
as the olympus customer care people told the camera is compatable only with 2GB card i wanted to clarify
http://www.olympus.co.jp/en/support/imsg/digicamera/compati/microsd.cfm#s-3
It says 2 GB PER MOVIE clip. You can start a second movie clip with a new file name.
compare is good nikon p90 best low price
OBSERVE!
SP-590UZ does NOT have the RAW format, like its predecessor SP-570UZ did have. Olympus has not released any firmware update that corrects this. ISO range in the table above is faulty as well. I suggest you check Olympus homepage before taking the table above seriously.
Robert, thank you for pointing that out. Around the time when the camera was announced there were a lot of buzz about its RAW capabilities and some, included top camera review sites like DPReview, were “misled” into thinking this camera supports RAW format.
Also, thank you for pointing the faulty ISO range in the table; it should be 64, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400 instead and not below 6400 as stated previously.
Apologise for the fault…