Olympus E-450

Upside

The brand new Olympus dSLR is to replace the miniature E-420. That model was the world's smallest and lightest dSLR and the (oddly numbered) E-450 follows suit.

This is the camera that will appeal to travellers and nomads looking for a bit of portability and shooting flexibility whilst on the road. Paired with the 25mm pancake Zuiko lens that came with the E-420, the E-450 will be a similarly sized compact package.

Though the E-450 boasts the same Art Filters that were first introduced on the E-30 and then the E-620, only three of the settings actually make their way over — Pop Art, Soft Focus and Pinhole.

Inside, high speed imager AF is present which allows for auto focus in live view. The image sensor appears to be the same as the E-420, at 10 megapixels, and style-wise it's also strikingly similar on the outside. Burst shooting speed has been upped to 3.5 frames per second which is relatively impressive for an entry-level camera. Just like the E-620, wireless flash support is also present, with the E-450 being able to control up to three external speedlights from the main body.

Downside

The E-450 still has no image stabilisation inside the camera body which is a shame, and we can only imagine that Olympus has done this in order to keep the price and weight down. Don't expect a larger LCD screen either as it remains the same size as its predecessor's, at 2.7 inches.

There's also little in the way of additional features to sway someone to buy the E-450 rather than the E-620, apart from the lightness of the camera body itself. It's also lacking a host of additional options found in the E-620 (which was just announced last month) in order to avoid eating into that camera's market share. Video mode is still, sadly, some way off.

Outlook

How do you make a camera as entry level as the E-450 interesting, while still keeping its price low and maintaining its stronghold on the "world's smallest and lightest dSLR" mantle? Well, it seems Olympus hasn't come up with the answer to that one with this iteration, though the incremental updates are welcomed. We would have liked to see some class leading features here, at least something that can set it apart from others like Pentax's K-m (which is also, funnily enough, claiming to be the world's lightest dSLR). At 380g without the battery, the E-450 definitely takes the cake here.

The Olympus E-450 will be available from September for AU$999 with a 14-42mm lens.