Micro 4/3 olympus xz-2: the 'shouldn't be forgotten' premium compact

zensu, imo, the omd and the xz series are really two different animals. though it was not for me personally, the omd is i think viewed as one's 'good' camera--an interchangeable lens cam with a 'good' sensor that yields 'go to' IQ in good and bad light.

the xz series is to me an adjunct to one's 'good' or 'go to' camera; something to take with you to knock around or when small size is important, or as one's 'go to' street camera because of the unobtrusive touch screen. it's a useful tool in someones box, but not really ones main tool.

having said that, i think the upgrade from the xz-1 to xz-2 if most definitely worth it, because it improves upon almost every aspect of what that particular tool can be used for. if you have an omd, i'm not sure i'd rush out and pay full price for it though unless youre really in need or a more portable alternative.
 
^ well, I used my Samsung EX1 as my main camera for almost 2 years, and I've gotten very satisfying results in the vast majority of situations - although high-ISO performance isn't spectacular, it's still good enough for most purposes, and the fast lens and very good image stabilisation mean I rarely needed to go above ISO 800 - and even that was in seriously low light, mostly 400 max.

All that didn't stop me from getting a Fuji X100, but still, I'm a big, big fan of these serious small-sensor compacts, and I was quite pleased using one as my main camera!
 
bart i didnt mean to convey these small sensored cams do not deliver good results. i authored this thread for just the opposite reason. and i am sure given eachpersons opinion of what they want from their equipment and how they want to allocate their resources, many may decide the xz-2 is their 'go to' camera.

but i was addressing a different situation, where another poster already allocated his resources on a larger sensored, interchangeable lens 'go to' cam and was thinking about adding an xz-2 to his repertiore.
 
my bad, I didn't read the post preceding yours (d'oh!) and got a bit more defensive than I should've! must be the ridiculously clammy air that's getting to me...
 
Thanks Rbelyell, I was thinking of adding the XZ-2 as a "snapshot" camera. A casual 'jpg' camera that's strickly for web related posting. There are times when I don't want to carry even a small kit bag of OM-D and a couple of zooms but would just like a 'point-n-shoot' that would be quickly ready and just as quickly put away. I appreciate the small size of the OM-D and small m43 lenses but as I'm getting older I'm also wanting a no fuss snapshot camera.
Bobby
 
. . . and don't forget the touchscreen. Something I thought I might never use, and now I really like it. I even forget to use my EVF !
 
. . . and don't forget the touchscreen. Something I thought I might never use, and now I really like it. I even forget to use my EVF !

Is there any way to set a minimum shutter speed or maximum auto ISO with this camera? Also does it do decent face detection like the u4/3 Olympus cameras?
 
Yes, you can set the ISO at an auto maximum. Face detection is also possible and this works nice. Minimum shutter speed, besides in the S mode, I don't know. Must confess that I mostly use the Auto or P or the aperture mode . . .
 
I can relate to all this. I had an XZ1 that died, and I replaced it with a used Stylus 1. Very similar to the XZ results but the lens makes it more useful to me. In good light the results are very good, so it's a great saddle bag camera.
 
Every once in a while, I'm tempted to pick up a refurbished XZ-2 from Olympus when they have their sales. What holds me back is the fact that I've got both a Stylus 1, Ricoh GR and Fuji XF1. And if I want more-better in size small, there's the Sony RX100 III and its one-inch sensor competition. But there's no getting around the fact that the XZ-2 is a fine little camera.
 
I've posted these in other threads, but I thought I'd give the XZ-2 a boost. It's cheap now. Got mine new for $200 just recently. It was priced too high at $600, but at $200 it's a steal. Here's a couple of shots, in good light and bad.

Here's a couple at iso 100
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one at 1600
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and one at 400
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