I’d been wanting a replacement for my dive camera and while investigating alternatives, came across this new generation of underwater cameras that work equally well out of the water. Even better is that they’re still compact and lightweight enough to make sense as a replacement for my land use only digital camera. Better still is unlike their predecessors, they can be had at a much more reasonable price.

Used to be the only way of making waterproof cameras was to enclose a regular camera in a housing. Of course these special-purpose underwater housings usually cost more than the camera they protected, but scuba divers and underwater photographers didn’t have much choice. Those of us only wanting protection from rain and mud were mostly out of luck.

The reality is that the places most of us want to take pictures are while on holiday or vacation which usually means outdoors, at the beach, on the water, in the mountains, on the trails, or involved in some recreational activity or sport that has some “rough and tumble” aspect to it. Often times the camera just doesn’t survive these environments.

Of course we could leave it behind but that sort of misses the point. What we really need is a waterproof camera that can take a beating as well. A digital camera that’s tough enough to be kid-proof would certainly be able to survive a few bumps and scrapes.

Whereas it used to be that dive cameras were bulky, cumbersome affairs, requiring huge waterproof housings, things are different now. Today there are dive cameras that will easily fit in the palm of your hand or super-small versions that easily slide into a pocket.

Depending on make and model, they are waterproof to various depths, shockproof even when dropped fromseveral feet up, plus crushproof when subjected to the pressure of heavy weights. In fact one torture test shows a certain model being run over by a car and surviving to take perfect pictures.

There are two enterprising producers, Olympus and SeaLife, offering the best of these ultimate sports cameras. SeaLife makes the Mini (130 feet), and the ECOshot (75 feet). Both are 6 megapixel, compact, and rugged with a rubber-armored, polycarbonate housing to protect them.

Olympus makes four Stylus SW (shockproof-waterproof) models, the 770SW, 790SW, 850SW, and 1030SW, which are waterproof to 10 or 33 feet and have image resolution ranging from 7 to 10 megapixels. The Stylus SW are suspended within a crushproof, sub-compact metal case.

While the SeaLife’s are “dive ready”, an external housing is available for the Olympus cameras, allowing divers to take them to 130’. Stand-alone, they are perfect for snorkeling and other watery endeavors.

The real decision point is determining to what extent you require the camera to be waterproof. If you’re a scuba diver, the SeaLife may be more appealing since it’s already rated to recreational depths with no additional housing. There are a few less features but you could get by with a single camera for everything. On the other hand the Olympus has more features but isn’t rated as deep. Of course an external housing would easily solve that limitation.

Any of these dive cameras mentioned here are great options for an all-purpose sports camera. Features are similar with variations mostly in image resolution, depth rating, size, and price, so just choose the one that fits you best.