You aren't likely to find a 4T in excellent condition for $450. That's more
like "roughed up" territory. Like my old 4T body. Perfectly functional,
mind you, but it looks like it went through a war. And it has!
I just picked up another 4Ti body from B&H a couple weeks ago. It was rated
in 9+ condition and they wanted (and got) eight bills for it. That's more
like the going rate. Now I trusted B&H would send me a camera in very good
condition and I was not disappointed. It shows nary a mark--obviously no
one used it much, a gift to dad who either lost interest or died. Should I
ever trade in my old 4T on, say, a new 4Ti I'd expect to be allowed three
bills or so. Why? Because the store could then turn it around as a
"bargain" for $450 or $575 or whatever.
But the good-looking gear will cost you more.
Tris
At 12:46 PM 7/17/01 -0500, you wrote:
Dan,
They're all great, so you need at least one of each. All the color options
too.
Well, now that the enabling is out of the way.
I've owned pretty much all of the bodies and have personal likes and
dislikes. You will too, probably different than mine. To me, a lot of the
question comes down to how much you want to spend.
Here's my order, from most expensive to least expensive. I'll give my
choices at the end. I've focused on a 'one-body' solution, which, to me,
throws out the 1 and 3 bodies. Prices are a range, bargain to excellent
quality. Just a rough guide.
OM-4T or OM-4Ti (same thing)
$350-475
Best all around camera. Multi-spot metering. Latest and greatest. Just a
great camera.
OM-4
$280-350
Earlier version. Older, so more prone to problems. Tends to eat batteries
more. One with a new circuit can be a good deal though. To see which circuit
it has, turn it on battery test. If the beep goes off in 30 seconds or so,
it is the new circuit.
OM-2S
$180-250
Excellent all-around camera. Personally, I find them more reliable than an
OM-4 (limited sample size). The big difference is that you can replace the
OM-4 circuit but you can't the 2S. Problem is replacing the circuit is
really expensive. Program mode is nice, especially if you have someone else
in the family that is more comfortable with a Point and Shoot.
OM-2 or OM-2n
$140-190
A great all around camera. Nice feel, better than any of the above (IMHO).
Make sure you get the proper shoe (4 for an n, 3 for a 2 -- confusing, huh)
OM-G
$50-75
The best bargain out there. A much better camera than the price indicates.
Built-in manual shutter speeds, so no more weird manual adapter.
Surprisingly rugged, given its plastic body. I carry one often for a backup
body. My daughters each have one and if an 8 and 9 year-old can't destroy
one....
Now, having said all that, if it was me, I'd buy a bargain quality 4T. I'm
not fussy about looks. The 4T will be newer and, in theory, more reliable.
Also has the most features.
If I wasn't going to spend that much, I'd buy a 2S. In my mind, either go
up to a 4T or down to a 2S. Skip the 4.
If you're going down in price, go to a 2n or a 2. 2n will be newer.
However, personally, I might skip the 2 and go down to he OM-G. For $50-60
(if you're patient), they are almost throw away.
Anything you buy, budget for a CLA (Clean, lube and adjust) in the next year
or so; at least $100-130. It's worth the investment. The only exception
would be if you go for a G. If it dies, replace it.
Oh yes, one more comment. I skipped the OM-PC. Great camera, lot of
features, but the failure rate in my experience is very high. When they
work, they're great, but...... (flame suit on).
Hope this helps.
Tom
> So (see other thread) my old OM-10 seems to have finally got sticky enough
> that it's beyond my abilities to repair, and it sounds like a sufficiently
> complex repair that the cost of that is getting up to where I may as well
> just buy another on. (sigh)
>
> What would people recommend as a replacement? It's easy enough to find
> other used OM-10 bodies around here, but while I'm replacing things I'm
> tempted to look at upgrading it to something newer/improved.
>
> What's the advantages of an OM1/2(n/s/etc)/3/4 over the OM-10? I've
looked
> at spec sheets/the stuff on zuiko.com, and it's all starting to get a bit
> confusing, to be completely honest. I've got the manual adapter for my
> OM-10, so I don't think there's any obvious basic functional improvements,
> though I could well be missing something.. How would a new OM-2000
compare?
>
> any advice will be very gratefully received..
>
> -- dan
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