eho
Registered
I bought an SP-350 ($212 w/ shipping) from Olympus off eBay (a refurbished model). I know Costco is also selling this but it was slightly cheaper to get it from Olympus (Costco shipping was more + there was sales tax). Shipping was very prompt, the packaging wasn't that robust but the camera came in fine shape and works well.
Good thing I had the xD that came with my (now flooded) C-5050 so I could check it out because you don't get any media when you buy the SP-350.
I put some slightly used AA's in the camera and the camera didn't like them at all. So I installed the "Olympus Master" software and discovered they ship the old version of this software. I installed it from the CD and it prompted me to update (nice touch). However, it took forever to upgrade to the most recent version. I probably wouldn't recommend doing that if all you want to do is update the camera firmware. When I finally did the firmware check, the camera did have the original firmware. So when Olympus refurbishes the camera (at least this one) they did not update the firmware, which is a slight disappointment.
After the firmware update, the camera really likes AA's and I'm sure my 2500 mAH Duracell lithium ions will work well in the camera. Slightly more convenient than the CR-V3 battery.
Overall, I'm very satisfied with this purchase from Olympus America. Now I plan to use this (with a PT-030) as a backup / supplement to my Ikelite/C-5050 rig.
Good thing I had the xD that came with my (now flooded) C-5050 so I could check it out because you don't get any media when you buy the SP-350.
I put some slightly used AA's in the camera and the camera didn't like them at all. So I installed the "Olympus Master" software and discovered they ship the old version of this software. I installed it from the CD and it prompted me to update (nice touch). However, it took forever to upgrade to the most recent version. I probably wouldn't recommend doing that if all you want to do is update the camera firmware. When I finally did the firmware check, the camera did have the original firmware. So when Olympus refurbishes the camera (at least this one) they did not update the firmware, which is a slight disappointment.
After the firmware update, the camera really likes AA's and I'm sure my 2500 mAH Duracell lithium ions will work well in the camera. Slightly more convenient than the CR-V3 battery.
Overall, I'm very satisfied with this purchase from Olympus America. Now I plan to use this (with a PT-030) as a backup / supplement to my Ikelite/C-5050 rig.
