Olympus puts 10X optical zoom in a pocket cam

It's no 26x optical zoom behemoth like its just-announced SP-590 UZ, but Olympus put yet another feather in its zoom cap with the Olympus Stylus-9000. The company announced the slim 10X -optical-zoom digital camera in a press release as part of its 2009 offerings at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The 12-megapixel pocket camera offers a 10X optical zoom in a slick, ultracompact frame. The zoom ranges from 28mm on the wide-angle end to 280mm on the telephoto end. Rounding out the specs are a 2.7-inch-diagonal anti-glare LCD, dual optical/digital image stabilization, face detection and a smile-trigger shutter, automatic shadow and backlight correction, and 19 shooting modes. The Stylus-9000 will be available in February for US$350 in black and champagne.

Also announced in the high-zoom ultracompact realm is the 12-megapixel Olympus Stylus-7000, which offers a 7X optical zoom (37mm to 260mm) and a larger, 3-inch-diagonal LCD screen. The Stylus-7000 will be priced at $300, available in February in black, silver, and navy blue.