Olympus's 2010 budget 14MP compact — 36-180mm equiv 5x zoom, SD cards, AA power; sold as FE-48.
The Olympus X-44 is the regional name of the Olympus FE-48, a 14-megapixel budget compact from 2010 near the end of the FE/X line's life. The official Olympus Europe manual is titled FE-48/X-44, and UK stock commonly carries the X-44 badge in black, silver, red or blue finishes.
A 1/2.3-inch CCD of about 14.5 million gross pixels delivers stills up to 4288x3216 through a 5x zoom of 6.3-31.5mm f/3.5-5.6, equivalent to 36-180mm. The LCD is 2.7 inches, shutter speeds run 4 to 1/2000 second, and features include iAuto, face detection with AF tracking, digital image stabilisation and Magic Filters. Unlike earlier xD-based FE models it stores to SD/SDHC cards, and runs on two AA batteries.
As a late, cheap CCD compact it offers a usefully long 36-180mm range, an easy fully automatic interface and the twin conveniences of SD cards and AA power — a low-cost carry-anywhere or first camera. Stabilisation is digital rather than optical, so long-end shots need light or a steady hand.
Used examples are among the easiest old compacts to live with: SD/SDHC cards and AA cells are still sold everywhere. Verify the zoom extends through its full 5x travel, the screen is unmarked, files show no CCD lines or hot-pixel clusters, and the menu's battery-type setting matches the cells fitted.