Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Strengths: Takes good high quality images for a 12 MP compact. Pictures are bright and performance in lowlight is very good. Macro is exceptional and underwater photos are very strong (easily the best among other compact UW cameras). Dynamic range is very good and shadows are often properly exposed (unlike most other UW cameras that consistently underexpose shadows). Despite this camera having only 12 MP, it frequently provides cleaner and more detailed images than its 16 and 20 MP competitors. The custom settings are awesome...everything from the ability to shoot raw, the ability to set and stick 1 second shake reduction timers, to the custom saturation/gradation/contrast/sharpness/nr settings, and much more. White balance tends to be good especially in indoor/macro/uw settings. Reds perform well with this camera. Scenes modes (like beach mode) tend to work well. Weaknesses: Video stabilization is a bit below average but decent and low light videos are brighter than the competition. This cameras is a low floor, high ceiling camera...you will need to learn how to use it to gets best benefits. At times the produced jpgs are too saturated or undersaturated. I find a good work around is program mode > i-enhance (low) with NR (low) which works well in most cases. If you edit raw, you don't have to worry about that. Blues and greens are a bit weak in distant landscape shots. Minor Quips: A wrist strap is included...good for divers, but for paddlers, skiers, and hikers a neck strap would have been preferred. 4x zoom is a bit below average compared to other UW compacts...but zoom quality isn't bad and you can always purchased a telephoto addon to double the range. There is no 4k 60p (just 4k 30p or 1080 60p), but few competitors for this class of camera off this. The battery door and tripod mount are located next to each other...so if you need to switch batteries, you'll also need to remove your quick release mount which is a bit annoying. TG-5 vs TG-6: On paper, the TG-6 hasn't improved much, but there are subtle but important improvements. New internal filters have been added to reduce chromatic aberration and the purple orb issues. White balance appears slightly improved in the TG-6 and images are much less like to be overexposed (an issues with the TG-5). The LCD on the TG-6 is much approved which is very handy when doing things like exposure compensation. Minimum shutter speed controls, super-macro video, and the ability to use microscope focus in aperture priority are significant changes as well. Purple Orb: All TG cameras (and many non-Olympus cameras) occasionally show a small purple orb in the middle of the image. This is likely light reflecting off of the sensor onto an internal lens element. No reviewer brings it up, but it does exist. Honestly I wouldn't panic if you see this. I've shot 1000's of TG-6 outdoor images and maybe only 1-2 show this. It is more apt to show indoors and in macro situations. But...it only appears in select contexts. Usually if you have max zoom, have a dark subject at the very center, are using a high iso, and there is a strong off-axis light source (or flat surface nearby like a wall that reflects a lot of light). The new LCD screen makes it easy to see the orb and react accordingly...use the flash (the flash cures this in my experience), zoom out, or recompose the camera so the very center isn't on something very dark. While many TG-5 users complained of this, I believe this has been significantly reduced in the TG-6, but it will occasionally happen...it's normal! Accessories: The FD-1 is highly recommended for macro and acts as a lens hood to protect the lens. Screen protectors are recommended too (a two pack for $7 is available if you search Amazon "screen protectors olympus tough". An external charger and backup batteries are recommend. Li92 are better quality...but Li90 are a significantly better value. Search Amazon "bm Batteries and Charger for Olympus Tough" for a nice charger/battery pack combo.