Are all digital cameras now compatible with iPhoto?

[jimdad]

I'm buying a digital camera for my daughter's birthday and have noticed a great deal on an Olympus Camedia C-460 / D-580 4 megpixel here in the Uk (£89). However, it doesn't appear on Apple's iPhoto compatible page.

I'd be grateful for some advice.

1. Does anyone have this camera or can confirm whether or not it does work with iPhoto?

2. Is it a reasonable choice for a 15 yr old girl who likes taking pics but isn't fussy about quality?

Thanks in advance.

[BlueRabbit]

I don't have any experience with that camera in particular. However, pretty much every camera I've tried has worked with iPhoto. However, if there's any problem, you could use a flash media reader to get the photos directly off of the card.

[Mac+]

You could also burn them to CD at a local photo lab and then import them to iPhoto. :)

... which is what I am currently doing for my parents' holiday photos of China while they continue on their merry way elsewhere. (lucky so-and-so's :grumble: ... ;))

[chucker]

OS X 10.1-10.3 driver (http://www.olympus.co.jp/en/support/imsg/digicamera/download/software/patch/CM42_MAC_ENU_0SX.sit) (should work with 10.4) from Olympus's driver page (http://www.olympus.co.jp/en/support/imsg/digicamera/download/software/)

Requires a "Camedia" software; I presume it's included with the camera. I cannot confirm first-hand.

Update: Never mind, see below post from FFL.

[FFL]

^^^
Please ignore the above - you do NOT want to download and install any software from Olympus. :no:

Any camera from Olympus that connects with a USB cable will work fine. It should be a simple plug-n-play operation. It's been quite a while since I saw ANY camera that had problems with iPhoto (it was a brand-x POS), and I've never seen a single Olympus have any trouble.

[chucker]

Like I said, I don't have first-hand experience. Apple's list of cameras lists neither model (http://www.apple.com/macosx/upgrade/cameras.html), which is why I decided to investigate straight from the source.

No harm intended!

[FFL]

Understood.

Two things to be aware of, though -

1. Olympus' drivers for their Camedia software have *nothing* to do with iPhoto.

2. Camedia software is sooo crappy, it's one of the reasons iPhoto was created in the first place. Thus, you do not want to install it for any reason.


No offense intended. ;)

[GSpotter]

However, if there's any problem, you could use a flash media reader to get the photos directly off of the card.Depending on the specification of your Mac, this might be advisable, anyway.
The Olympus D580 (http://www.steves-digicams.com/2004_reviews/d580.html) seems only to have an USB1.1 port. If your Mac has a USB 2.0 port, a compatible XD-Picture Card reader would speed up the import noticeably.

[atomicbartbeans]

My $.02...

Why do the best hardware companies make the shittiest software for their products?

Thank God for iPhoto. :)

[Jason]

I've been wondering about this recently too. I'm thinking of getting a Panasonic Lumix shortly but there are no Panasonic cameras listed on Apple's iPhoto Update Page.
I'm assuming we are not talking about some manufacturers being locked out for whatever reason. Anyone use a Lumix with iPhoto?

The model I am looking at is here (http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/panasonic/dmc_fx9-review/index.shtml)

[rasmits]

Like I said, I don't have first-hand experience. Apple's list of cameras lists neither model (http://www.apple.com/macosx/upgrade/cameras.html), which is why I decided to investigate straight from the source.

No harm intended!
My camera isn't listed there either, and it works perfectly. As long as the computer mounts the camera's memory card on the desktop, like any USB camera will, iPhoto will detect all the pictures and import them.

[chucker]

As long as the computer mounts the camera's memory card on the desktop, like any USB camera will, iPhoto will detect all the pictures and import them.

This is definitely not true. *Most* USB cameras will work, but not even nearly all of them.

[switchr92]

as for your second question, yes, it is a great choice for a fifteen-yr-old girl who just wants snapshots of her friends. As for iPoto, it should work flawlessly, but if it doesn't, like my canon didn't, I just got a compactflash reader, and it works perfectly.

[rasmits]

This is definitely not true. *Most* USB cameras will work, but not even nearly all of them.
I meant to say should. If it doesn't, it's a crappy camera.

[Res]

Most cameras I've tried will work with iPhoto (including my sister's Olympus), but I've noticed that iPhoto will not download large movies taken with my Canon sd300.

[jimdad]

Thanks for the replies,all. I'm going to get it and give it a whirl. I wasn't intending to use the proprietory software - if iPhoto works it's the simplest and best IMO.

[-m2-]

Jason: I have an older Lumix (DMC LC33) and it worked fine with iPhoto right out of the box.