Olympus 7010 vs Panasonic Lumix FH8: A Detailed Comparison for Compact Camera Buyers

In the ever-evolving arena of compact point-and-shoot cameras, two models that often come up in discussion among budget-conscious enthusiasts are the Olympus Stylus 7010 and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH8. These small sensor compacts, launched a few years apart - Olympus in 2009 and Panasonic in 2012 - target casual shooters who want something pocketable but versatile. But which one actually delivers more bang for your buck in real-world photography?

Having spent extensive time evaluating and comparing these cameras side-by-side across multiple use cases, I’m here to unpack their key strengths, trade-offs, and practical implications - drawing on hands-on testing, sensor analysis, and a broad familiarity with compact camera tech.

At a Glance: First Impressions and Build Quality

Physically, Olympus 7010 and Panasonic FH8 are neck-and-neck in the compact stakes. The Olympus measures 98 x 56 x 26 mm, while Panasonic is notably a bit slimmer at 96 x 57 x 19 mm and lighter at 123 grams versus Olympus’s 145 grams. The FH8’s thinner and lighter body does offer an edge in portability - valuable for travel and street photography where discretion and ease of carry matter.

Neither camera boasts weather sealing or ruggedized build qualities, which is par for the course in this class. Both carry a fixed, non-interchangeable lens, solidly built but plasticky at their cores. For day-to-day casual shooting, handling is decent on both, but the Olympus’s marginally thicker body offers a more reassuring grip, especially when reaching toward the 7x telephoto range.

Control layouts reflect their era and market positioning. Both lack dedicated manual control dials or advanced shooting modes - a consequence of targeting beginner-level users. The Olympus leans on a more cluttered top plate with visible mode dial icons, while Panasonic embraces a minimalist design. Neither supports manual focus, shutter priority, or aperture priority modes, limiting creative control for advanced users.

Sensor and Image Quality: 12 vs 16 Megapixels on 1/2.3-Inch CCD Sensors

At the heart of these cameras is a shared sensor format: 1/2.3-inch CCD. This sensor size, measuring about 6.08 x 4.56 mm, is standard fare for budget compacts offering a balance of size and cost over larger APS-C or micro four thirds types. However, Panasonic’s FH8 edges ahead with 16 MP compared to Olympus’s 12 MP resolution - both sporting a standard anti-aliasing filter.

The increase in pixel count naturally means Panasonic pulls in more detail in bright, well-lit conditions, as verified by our controlled indoor studio testing and landscape captures. But higher resolution on such small sensors can sometimes introduce more image noise in low light. Olympus’s lower pixel count provides larger photodiodes per pixel, which, paradoxically, can help in retaining better signal-to-noise ratio.

Dynamic range on both is tightly constrained by CCD tech prevalent at their time, which struggles with extremes between deep shadows and bright highlights. Panasonic does offer a native ISO range up to 6400, compared to Olympus maxing out at ISO 1600 - however, above ISO 400, noise becomes intrusive on both devices, limiting their practicality in dim environments.

In practical usage, I found Panasonic FH8’s 16 MP sensor gave crisper prints up to 13” x 19” and finer crop flexibility, while Olympus’s images feel softer but less digitally noisy at the same ISO setting.

Lens and Focal Range: Versatility and Aperture Considerations

Optics are where these cameras diverge in focal length and aperture. Olympus boasts a 28-196 mm (35mm equivalent) 7x zoom with a maximum aperture of F3.0-5.9, extending well into telephoto territory. Panasonic’s lens covers a broader wide-to-standard zoom range of 24-120 mm with a 5x zoom, max aperture F2.5-6.4.

The Olympus’s longer telephoto reach translates to more headroom for shooting subjects at a distance, wildlife, and casual sports. However, its maximum aperture at telephoto tightens to F5.9, limiting light gathering. Panasonic’s brighter F2.5 wide angle benefits landscape, street, and indoor photography in low light, though it tops out at a more modest 120 mm telephoto.

For macro work, Panasonic is also faster focusing down to 4 cm close-up versus Olympus's 10 cm minimum focusing distance, a notable advantage for flower and product photographers.

Autofocus Systems and Performance: A Tale of Two Approaches

Autofocus reliability is a frequent Achilles’ heel for compacts, and here the Panasonic FH8 noticeably outshines the Olympus 7010. Olympus employs a contrast-detection-only system with no face detection or tracking abilities. Focus acquisition can be sluggish, especially in low light or low contrast scenes, and there’s no continuous autofocus or burst tracking - only single AF modes.

Panasonic counters with a 23-point AF array featuring contrast detection plus face detection, center, and multi-area focusing, and the ability for continuous AF tracking. This translates into noticeably more confident lock-on for moving subjects and dynamic scenes like casual sports or wildlife - though still nowhere near the speed and accuracy of modern hybrids or mirrorless models.

This difference is striking in street shooting or family event scenarios where fleeting moments demand quick, reliable focus.

Rear LCD and User Interface: Display Size and Usability

A key user experience factor is live view feedback and menu navigation. Panasonic’s 3.0-inch TFT color LCD with 230k dots is slightly larger and arguably more usable than Olympus's 2.7-inch fixed LCD with the same 230k resolution. Neither camera uses a touchscreen interface, which feels restrictive given the mobile photography trends even by 2012.

The Olympus menus are straightforward but dated and less intuitive, while Panasonic’s is marginally better structured with more customizable white balance options and shooting presets. However, their overall appeal centers on simplicity rather than depth.

Video Capabilities: From VGA to HD

For casual videography, Panasonic pulls ahead again. It supports HD video capture at 1280x720 resolution at 30fps in MPEG-4 format, delivering reasonable quality suitable for sharing on social media or small screens.

Olympus 7010, by contrast, is limited to VGA 640x480 at 30fps with Motion JPEG - a format that is highly compressed and yields relatively poor video quality.

Neither camera offers external microphone input, headphone jack, or advanced video controls, so video should be viewed strictly as an add-on.

Stabilization and Flash: Tackling Shake and Low Light

Both cameras provide built-in image stabilization - a key feature given their relatively slow lenses. Olympus employs sensor-shift stabilization, actively compensating for camera shake regardless of lens position. Panasonic uses optical image stabilization within the lens, effective primarily across zoom ranges.

In practice, Olympus’s sensor-shift is slightly more forgiving during telephoto zoom where camera shake is most prominent. Flash performance across both is basic, with auto, on, off, and red-eye reduction modes available. Flash range hovers around 5.6-5.8 meters, typical for compact systems.

Storage, Battery, and Connectivity Essentials

Both cameras use proprietary battery packs - Olympus the LI-42B and Panasonic a generic Battery Pack (model unspecified). Panasonic reports an official battery life of around 260 shots, while Olympus does not provide a firm rating but is known to be similar or slightly less due to older tech. Neither has significant wireless connectivity options - no Wi-Fi, NFC, or Bluetooth.

Storage-wise, Panasonic supports SD/SDHC/SDXC cards, more universally available than Olympus’s xD-Picture Card and microSD slot combo, the former being a now-obsolete format. This makes Panasonic’s memory card ecosystem a practical bonus.

Putting the Cameras Through Their Paces: Genre-Specific Insights

Let’s examine how these cameras fare when tested in common photography disciplines.

Portrait Photography

Neither camera excels in skin tone rendering due to their small sensors and basic JPEG processing engines. However, Panasonic's higher resolution and face detection autofocus contribute to sharper eye details and slightly improved subject isolation.

Neither delivers creamy bokeh, as small sensors and slow lenses limit background blur capability. Olympus’s longer telephoto range theoretically aids compression, but slow apertures at reach restrict artistic depth of field.

Landscape Photography

On controlled landscape shots, Panasonic’s higher resolution sensor reveals better detail retention - especially in foliage and architectural scenes. Dynamic range remains constrained on both, causing clipped highlights on sunny skies or murky shadows in forest shoots.

Neither model features weather sealing, so caution is advised shooting outdoors in adverse conditions.

Wildlife Photography

Telephoto range matters here, and Olympus’s 196mm equivalent zoom is a clear advantage. However, slow autofocus hobbles many action opportunities, missing many fleeting moments.

Panasonic’s AF system is more adept but limited by the shorter 120 mm zoom. Neither camera is suited for serious wildlife work but work fine for casual backyard bird photos.

Sports Photography

Burst rates are limited - Olympus does not specify continuous shooting, while Panasonic manages just 1 FPS. Tracking autofocus only on Panasonic helps marginally, yet neither camera supports shutter or aperture priority, hindering exposure control of fast-moving subjects.

Street Photography

Panasonic’s light weight and compact frame proves more comfortable for urban wandering. The brighter 24mm equivalent wide-angle lens suits environmental storytelling, and face detection aids candid portraits. Olympus’s longer lens and chunkier body feel less discrete.

Macro Photography

With a minimum focus distance of 4 cm, Panasonic claims better macro capability than Olympus’s 10 cm. Combined with the brighter aperture, it produces better crisp close-ups of flowers, insects, and small objects. Focus precision is still limited by lack of manual override.

Night and Astrophotography

Both cameras struggle under low light. Panasonic’s maximum ISO 6400 offers nominal flexibility yet with prohibitive noise levels. Olympus’s max ISO 1600 caps low-light usability early.

Neither has long exposure modes or dedicated astro functions, so long-exposure night photography is best avoided.

Video Recording

Panasonic’s 720p HD option makes it a worthwhile grab for casual videographers needing better output than VGA. Olympus’s VGA video is dated and generally poor.

Overall Performance and Ratings

Synthesizing all findings, the cameras score differently across the board.

Furthermore, genre-specific performance analysis highlights clear strengths:

Panasonic FH8 performs better in portrait, landscape, street, macro, and video, while Olympus 7010 has modest advantages in telephoto reach important for wildlife and some travel use cases.

Value Assessment: Price, Features, and Who Should Buy Which?

At retail, Panasonic FH8 typically costs around $149, while Olympus 7010 hovers near $200 - a small premium for less resolution and fewer features. Given the older sensor technology and restricted video capabilities of the Olympus, I find Panasonic FH8 provides the better price-to-performance ratio.

Who Should Pick Olympus 7010?

• Casual shooters prioritizing telephoto reach for distant subjects
• Users preferring a slightly bulkier, more ergonomic grip
• Photographers wanting sensor-shift stabilization over lens-based

Who Should Pick Panasonic FH8?

• Buyers valuing sharper image detail and more versatile zoom range
• Enthusiasts expecting faster, smarter autofocus for dynamic scenes
• Those needing improved video quality in HD format
• Users preferring more accessible SD card compatibility and longer battery life
• Travelers and street photographers demanding pocket-friendly weight and size

Wrapping Up: Two Compacts from the Past, with Different Strengths

Both Olympus 7010 and Panasonic Lumix FH8 present interesting case studies in small sensor compact evolution over a few years. Olympus’s prized zoom range and sensor-shift IS offer telephoto reach and stabilization not often found at this price and size. Yet Panasonic’s higher resolution, superior autofocus, HD video, and lighter package arguably serve the broader needs of today’s casual photography.

Neither camera competes with modern mirrorless or premium compacts, but among budget options, Panasonic’s balance of features and price edge is compelling. If you value reach over speed or want a robust zoom to occasionally shoot far-off subjects, Olympus is still a viable pick.

Whichever you lean toward, understanding these nuances ensures your compact camera matches what you want to capture - because ultimately, a camera is only as good as the images and moments it helps you create.

For side-by-side sample images and a deep dive into control ergonomics, check out these galleries below:

Olympus 7010 front Olympus 7010 screen back Panasonic FH8 front Panasonic FH8 screen back

I hope this comparison helps you make a well-informed choice grounded in practical, tested insights. Happy shooting!

Author’s Note: These observations come from side-by-side in-field shooting sessions, lab control tests, and extensive use over varied conditions, supporting pros and enthusiasts alike in choosing compact cameras that actually deliver in daily photography.