Olympus E-420

First of all, this is a compact and lightweight DSLR, even in combination with 25mm f/2.8 lens, comfortable and the most important thing, it is a good value for money. If you want a truly pocketable camera without losing DSLR image quality the E-420 should be right at the top of your shortlist. This is true, that Olympus claims this camera is the smallest and lightest DSLR on the market.
Amazingly, the spec sheet looks more like something we'd expect from a mid-range SLR. Apart from live view you get bracketing, customizable mirror lock-up, wireless flash control, a dust reduction system, control over high ISO noise reduction and a highly customizable user interface - an awful lot of camera for your money. But, even more so when considering its price point. You won't find live view and the E-420's level of customization on other manufacturers' entry level offerings (at least not if they're in the same price bracket).
The camera's TruePic III processor does a good job and the E-420's performance is snappy and responsive in most situations. The shutter lag is short and focus is quick, only the start-up time could be a little faster (the SSWF system cleans the sensor first each time you switch the camera on) and - as mentioned above - contrast detect AF is pretty slow.
Unfortunately the first thing that springs to mind here is image quality. The E-420 appears to use a stronger anti-alias filter than its predecessor, and while this results in admirably 'clean' images, it also robs the resultant images of fine detail. Other cameras in this class will no doubt produce output with more per pixel detail. And since this softness is created by the E-420's hardware and not by in-camera software, reverting to raw-shooting won't improve the issue. Of course this comment has to be taken in context; you need to be regularly printing at large sizes or zooming in to a pixel level to see the difference once you've added a bit of sharpening.
High ISO performance is far from class-leading, but for most users producing normal prints it won't be an issue. Dynamic range, however, is worth mentioning. The E-420's DR is not quite up to par with the competition which can offer up to a whole stop more highlight range. So you'll find a washed out sky or unattractively blown highlights in your images a little more often when shooting with the Olympus. Admittedly when talking about the E-420's image quality issues we are - to a certain degree - nitpicking. The camera's output is not bad at all (in fact contrast and colors in the default settings are very appealing), but it's not quite up at the same level as some of the competitors.
Overall, the Olympus E-420 is an ideal walkaround camera with a great feature set and unrivalled customizability. The image quality issues described above very slightly tarnish the positive overall picture but if compact dimensions and pocketability are high up on your list of buying criteria the E-420 should still be one of your favorites.

Body material
Plastic
Sensor
• 4/3 type Live MOS sensor
• Fixed low pass filter (anti-alias filter)
Image processor
TruePic III
Lenses
• 4/3 standard lens mount
• Range of ZUIKO DIGITAL lenses available
Auto focus
• 3-point TTL phase difference detection
• Contrast detection system (selectable in Live View)
• Detection range: 0 to 19 EV (ISO 100)
Sensitivity
• Auto (ISO 100 - 1600)
Metering modes
• Digital ESP
• Center-Weighted Average
• Spot
• Highlight based spot
• Shadow based spot
Shutter speed
• 60 - 1/4000 sec
• Bulb: up to 8 min. with limiter
Drive modes
• Single
• Continuous
External flash
Hot shoe
Viewfinder
• Eye-level optical single-lens
• Field of view 95%
• Magnification 0.92x with a 50mm lens and -1 dioptre
• Eye point 14 mm at -1 dioptre
• Dioptre adjustment -3 to +1 dioptre
• Focusing screen: Fixed type (Neo Lumi-Micron Mat Screen)
LCD monitor
• 2.7" TFT LCD monitor (wide viewing angle)
• 230,000 pixels
• Live View available
Storage
• Compact Flash (Type I and II)
• xD Picture card
Connectivity
• USB 2.0 (Hi Speed)
• Video Out (NTSC / PAL)
Power
BLS-1 Li-ion battery (rechargeable)
Dimensions
129.5 x 91 x 53 mm (5.1 x 3.6 x 2.1 in)
Weight (inc batt)
445 g (15.7 oz)