Olympus VR-330

Olympus VR-330 is Olympus's Small Sensor Superzoom digital camera originally released on February of 2011. The camera features a 14MP, CCD 1/2.3" size sensor with a peak resolution of 4288 x 3216.

Olympus launched this model to upgrade the previous Olympus VR-320 (Read Full Comparison)

The VR-330 is ranked #183 out of 244 in Small Sensor Superzoom cameras and all around #842 out of 1465 for cameras in our list. You can try our Smart camera search to get camera listings based on your personalized criteria.

The following is a diagram of different criteria used in the scoring system.

The Olympus VR-330 comes with a history of related cameras. Underneath, you can discover all older and latest models as well as important features.

You can view the VR-330 from several angles in the gallery below.

Here is a collection of good and bad points of the Olympus VR-330 based on factors that are typically seen as useful in a digital camera.

The Olympus VR-330 features the TruePic III processor chip. The specification of the sensor on the Olympus VR-330 is 6.17mm x 4.55mm (1/2.3"). The 28 mm² sensor can resolve 4288 x 3216 pixels with aspect ratios of 4:3 and 16:9. The camera includes Image Stabilization (Sensor-shift). In body stabilization is more effective than digital stabilization since the latter may cause cropping.

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The CCD sensor boasts 14 megapixels and includes a standard ISO range of 80 to 1600. Unfortunately, RAW photos are not saved so you have less margin for error.

The image below displays the VR-330's sensor size when compared to other popular sizes. The VR-330 sensor comes with a crop factor of 5.8 and is showcased in green.

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To get an understanding of specific aspect ratios, you should refer to the graphic below.

Olympus VR-330 weighs 0.35 lb (158 gr or 5.57 ounces) and the size of the camera is 101mm x 58mm x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1"). The weight of general Small Sensor Superzoom camera is 387 gr and the Olympus VR-330 is lighter compared to other rivals.

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The following is a photo of the Olympus VR-330 next to a softdrink to help you to have a feel for its size.

The top view below will highlight the button arrangement on the VR-330.

The VR-330 comes with an inbuilt lens giving a focal range of 24-300mm giving it a 12.5 x zoom which is perfect and will enable you to zoom right in.

At it's widest 24mm, it offers an aperture of f3.0 and that's rather sluggish and not the best in low light situations and you will struggle to capture a shallow depth of field. You will also have to up your ISO setting causing noisy shots. On the long end, 300mm is phenomenal zoom and comes with f5.9 making it pretty sluggish and you will have to go with slower shutter speeds.

The VR-330 has the following connectivity:

• USB Yes
• HDMI Yes

Cameras with NFC and Bluetooth connectivity can easily be controlled wirelessly by smartphones. You will be able to copy files and usually adjust camera settings without the hassle of connecting physically with the camera.

Certain apps also provide a Liveview and press the shutter if you aren't close to the camera. If the camera contains a HDMI out, it could be attached to an external display. A lot of cameras will allow you to charge the battery with the USB port.

The highest video quality on the Olympus VR-330 is 1280 x 720 and it can save in Motion JPEG file format. 720p is awful by today's requirements. You really should try to get at least FUll HD quality for video. The body doesn't include a mic and headphone jack so you get zero control over your sound. It is probably best to have a look at an alternative camera if you want better sound in your videos.

Olympus VR-330 doesn't have weather proofing so wet conditions can damage the camera.

The Olympus VR-330 features a 3" fixed screen with a resolution of 460k dots.

Unfortunately the screen isn't a touch screen.

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The ViewFinder details regarding Olympus VR-330 are as follows:

• ViewFinder None

In those bright outdoor conditions that make the camera screens washed out and hard to view, viewfinders will be quite helpful.

The highest shutter speed is 1/2000 seconds.

Olympus VR-330 includes just built in flash lacking external flash ability.

Olympus VR-330 includes only Contrast Based Auto Focus and lacks Phase Detect Auto Focus. Phase Detection autofocusing is a lot more quicker and precise compared to Contrast Based autofocusing. The camera features Face detection which can be valuable for portraits.

It also has Tracking Auto Focus for objects on the move. Olympus VR-330 has not got manual focusing. Manual focusing mode can be good in low light situations or you need to have more exact control on focus.

The typical Small Sensor Superzoom camera battery life is 316. Fujifilm HS35EXR has the highest (600) battery life in this kind of cameras.

Here is a collection of Small Sensor Superzoom cameras that come with the best battery life:

ModelVisualizeBattery LifeRAWNFCBluetooth

Fujifilm HS35EXR
VR-330 vs Fujifilm HS35EXR600 yesnono

Nikon B500
VR-330 vs B500600 nonoyes

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Nikon L840
VR-330 vs L840590 noyesno

Panasonic FZ200
VR-330 vs FZ200540 yesnono

Leica V-Lux 4
VR-330 vs V-Lux 4540 yesnono

The following diagram provides a overview of the Olympus VR-330 for different styles of photography. To find out more, check out the specific section below.

The Olympus VR-330 gets a score of 33 which is bad, and means the camera is not very good for portraits. Taking portraits favors greatly towards sensor specs, RAW support in addition to the flexibility to work with off-camera flash.

Coming in at a nice score of 62, the Olympus VR-330 is a very decent pick to use in street photography. A good street photography camera gives a good balance of image quality plus portability.

A decent sports photography points tally of 47 means the Olympus VR-330 is somewhat acceptable for taking photos of sports. A camera should have good autofocus and continuous shooting for sports photography.

Portability is extremely crucial in getting a camera for travel. All round, the Olympus VR-330 gets a above average 70 for a travel camera which makes it a good pick for your travels.

When you're looking to choose a digital camera for landscape pictures, the most significant factor is going to be image quality. The Olympus VR-330 with it's bad grade of 42 for a landscape camera is not very good within the current marketplace.

A camera for vlogging should really have a articulating display screen, microphone port and if possible IBIS. Taking everything into account, the Olympus VR-330 is not very good for vlogging as it receives a bad score of 32.

If you want alternatives to the VR-330, here is a range of the top placed cameras that fall into the family of Small Sensor Superzoom.

The line graph here shows you an overview of the VR-330 vs it's top scoring rivals listed above.

There are more cameras you may have a look at as alternative options. To go through a detailed comparison, visit the "compare" link.