Olympus µ

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The Olympus µ[mju:] (US: ∞ Stylus) was a fully automatic 35mm compact camera introduced by Olympus in 1991. The Stylus was the first model in the hugely successful Olympus mju/Stylus series, selling 5 million on its own[1].

Evolved by camera designer Maitani Yoshihisa[2] from his Olympus XA design, the µ[mju:] was very small and curvy, with an integrated lens cover. It is switched on by shifting the lens cover to one side. The original mju/Stylus was generally available in black, but a LIMITED edition model (50,000 examples) with a metallic silver finish was also released. 1992 saw the release of the Olympus µ[mju:] PANORAMA. This utilized tiny magnets to move a mask in front of the film in the middle of the roll, while keeping the body and basic spec unchanged.

Some versions of the mju actually say µ[mju:]-1 on the front.[3]

The technological specifications of this camera formed the basis of a retro-styled limited edition "concept" camera called the Ecru.

Specifications

  • Lens: 35mm, f/3.5 (3 elements in 3 groups).
  • Active multi-beam autofocus with 100-steps for a huge range of distances. Pre-focus lock enabled.
  • Film format: 35mm DX-coded film, ISO 50-3200.
  • Automatic exposure with shutter speeds of 1/15-1/500s.
  • Self-timer.
  • Film advance: Autowind and rewind.
  • Integrated flash with four modes: Auto, red eye reduction, fill-in, disabled.
  • LCD with battery check and frame counter.
  • Tripod Mount.
  • Power: 3V lithium CR123A.

Notes

  1. Sales claimed by Olympus. (archived)
  2. The name is given in the Japanese order, with family name followed by the given name.
  3. An example from Alf Sigaro on Flickr.

Links

Olympus Classic Cameras
Semi | Semi II | Six | Chrome Six | Flex | Standard | 35 | Ace | Pen | Pen F | FTL | OM-1/2/3/4 | OM-10/20/30/40 | Trip | µ (mju:) | XA