While the Olympus Stylus Epic Zoom 80 is one of the smallest zoom cameras available, it is heavy on styling and great features. Its miniature version of Olympus's signature clamshell sliding case makes it easy to turn the camera on and off, while offering protection against lens scratches. It comes in a good-looking and durable brushed stainless steel case that is splash-proof, so you can shoot pictures in all kinds of weather. The 35 to 80mm zoom lens is perfect for framing portraits, getting in on the action, and capturing faraway subjects.

The Olympus Stylus Epic Zoom 80 offers the advanced features of Olympus's larger camera lines, including quartz date and time imprinting, a self timer, and a handy panorama switch. The panorama switch lets you take panoramic photos on a roll of regular film. (You can take an entire panoramic roll as well.) The Olympus Stylus Epic also has a whopping six flash modes, including automatic, red-eye reduction, and night scene. It also has a useful Infinity mode, which sets the focus to let you take shots of distant landscapes and other subjects.

The Olympus Stylus Epic is a pleasure to use--it is as small or smaller than many of the new Advanced Photo System (APS) cameras, but still uses standard 35mm film.

Its tapered design made it easy to slip in a pocket, and since it is little larger than a deck of cards, we found ourselves carrying it everywhere. It's especially nice to have the zoom in such a compact camera.

Pros:

• Extremely lightweight and compact
• Durable construction
• Wide range of flash options
• Panorama switch
• Includes zoom

Cons:

• Battery compartment is hard to open