Olympus E-30 Review,

The E-30 is the long-awaited high-end enthusiast model that fills the gap in the Olympus E-Series lineup between the E-520 and the ostensibly professional level E-3. Such is the pace of change in the digital camera market that the new model leapfrogs the E-3 by offering a higher pixel count (12MP), larger screen and improved contrast detect AF system - as well as introducing several novel features including a digital spirit level, multi exposures, aspect ratio options and a handful of built-in special image effects ('Art Filters' as Olympus calls them). It loses the E-3's class-leading weather sealing and has a slightly smaller optical viewfinder, but otherwise offers almost exactly the same features and performance in a slightly lighter, very slightly smaller and - at launch - similarly priced body.
Since this review was started Olympus has fleshed out the middle of its DSLR range even more with the announcement of the E-620. The E-620 takes a slightly cut-down version of the E-30's feature set and squeezes it into an incredibly compact body that isn't considerably bigger than the E-420. The E-30, in turn has seen hints of a coming price 'realignment' to a level more consistent with its market position.
The E-30 goes head to head with the Nikon D300, Canon EOS 40D/50D, Sony Alpha 700 and Pentax K20D, and - on paper at least - offers a compelling feature mix in the most attractive Olympus body for a long time. But does it have what it takes to do battle with the big beasts of the digital SLR jungle, and does it really offer a viable alternative to the E-3? Let's find out.
Compared to E-3 - key differences
Although designed to sit between the E-520 / E-620 and E-3 in the E-Series lineup the E-30 is far nearer to the latter than it is to the consumer level models - with the added beneft of a year or so of development, meaning the E-30 gets all the new toys introduced since the E-3 (most important being contrast-detect AF). The biggest differences are the body material and weatherproofing (where the E-3 wins hands down), the viewfinder (the E-3 is again the winner, though anyone moving from one of the consumer level four-thirds SLRs is going to see a huge improvement in both size and brightness) and the sensor - up from 10 to 12 megapixels. There are also a handful of new features and spec changes.
Glass fiber reinforced plastic vs weatherproof magnesium alloy body shell
Slightly (8mm) shorter and around 115g lighter
Slightly smaller viewfinder with reduced frame coverage
New 12MP LiveMOS sensor (E-3: 10.1 MP)
Brighter and larger LCD screen
E-30 has a mode dial
Art Filters, multiple exposures, aspect ratio options and lots of scene modes
No card door lock, no eyepiece shutter
AF fine tuning for up to 20 lenses (and per AF point!)
Built-in digital level guage
Contrast detect (Imager) AF with face detection
Slightly reduced raw buffer size (12 frames)
Adds vertical panning mode to stabilizer (IS3)