It was honestly bound to happen: and now it has. According to a report from the Wall St Journal found by Imaging Resource, Olympus will kill off their V series of cameras. The V series were always the more affordable options, but the problem is that those camera sales are being eroded away by mobile phones. There isn’t any word on the other point and shoot cameras like the XZ-2 and XZ-10, but when one thinks about Olympus these days, we often think about the Micro Four Thirds line of cameras. With the arrival of the EP5, the lineup has full mobile connection though it is also possible with Transcend Air cards for the rest of the pen lineup.
These cameras are designed to offer users something that they can’t get from their phones: better quality. The images are then easily ported over to the devices and then shared to the web. However, someone will soon need to put apps like Instagram and Facebook in the cameras without the use of the Android system.
Despite this news, the company had a tremendous stock rise today. According to the Wall St Journal report though, other manufactures such as Canon are even struggling with point and shoot sales. And for years, Canon Powershots were the absolute best that one could get. But with the recent competition from Fujifilm’s X series and Sony’s RX series with significantly larger sensors, we’re not very sure that the small sensor camera market can survive.
Together with the Japan-exclusive E-PL6, a slightly modified version of the E-PL5 for the Japanese market only, Olympus yesterday also announced three new colors for the BCL-1580 “body cap lens” that has been available for a couple months now. The new color choices are white, silver and red and fit the color scheme of the E-PL6 camera. While this certainly makes for a very sexy package, it is doubtful that these will be available on overseas markets as well. DC Watch reports that the new color versions of the BCL-1580 will be available from August for a retail price of JPY 6,825.
Today, Olympus is announcing the brand new EP5 that has been highly rumored for a while. It’s been quite some time since the flagship Pen camera received an update but that update was well worth the wait. First off the camera has the same sensor as the OMD EM5 but boasts a couple of differences that in some ways make it better than the OMD. The focusing is faster, it sports focus peaking for manual focus users, and has Wifi built in for starters. But otherwise, it has an aluminum body, no weather sealing, a flip up LCD screen with barely any external screws to the entire build, and an interesting new design layout.
Tech Specs and more images are after the jump. But also be sure to check out our first impressions and our comparison to the Olympus OMD EM5.
Editor’s Note: The EP5 is available body only for $999.99 in black, silver and white or with the 17mm f1.8 and new VF-4 viewfinder for $1,449.00 in black or silver.
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Today, Olympus is announcing their EP5 Micro Four Thirds camera. It is now the top tier of the Pen family of cameras under the Olympus brand and in some ways challenges the flagship from Olympus–the OMD EM5. Everyday, we see and hear about new people purchasing the OMD EM5, but if you want to go with the Micro Four Thirds system you’ll be able to now take a look at another very good option within the Olympus world (though Panasonic does offer some good selections as well).
At the moment of publishing this article, we’ve reviewed the OMD EM5 and have tested it in the long run. Additionally, some of our former staffers have sold everything they own to convert over to it. The EP5 hasn’t been reviewed yet, but there is more than enough to compare the two.
Editor’s Note: The EP5 is available body only for $999.99 in black, silver and white or with the 17mm f1.8 and new VF-4 viewfinder for $1,449.00 in black or silver.
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It’s been rumored for a while now, and guess what–it appears that the rumors were true. When I walked into my meeting with Olympus and saw the fabled EP5, I immediately asked them to take my credit card away from me. Today’s announcement marks the upgrade to the top tier of the Olympus Pen line of cameras. And in some ways it is outdoing its bigger brother, the Olympus OMD EM5. This is very typical of Olympus, though, as they often tend to cannibalize their own products very quickly and in different ways.
With that said though, there are some differentiating factors between this and the current king: the OMD.
Editor’s Note: The EP5 is available body only for $999.99 in black, silver and white or with the 17mm f1.8 and new VF-4 viewfinder for $1,449.00 in black or silver.
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Think Tank previously had the Retrospective 7 designed for mirrorless camera lovers, but now they’re showing off a brand new line designed specifically for that crowd: the Mirrorless Mover. Available in a 5, 10, 20, and 30i series,the bags are designed for different sizes of mirrorless cameras moving from the Nikon 1 series all the way up to Leica Ms accordingly. As for prices, they’ll range from the mid $30-$70 range.
Besides dividers (which are very close to the Retrospective series in design) the bags sport a Flip-Top style lid with magnetic closure, a rear slot for your belt and to therefore prevent theft, side pockets, mesh pockets, and is made from ballistic nylon. It also includes a rain cover. It’s quite interesting that the company has chosen not to make the bags from canvas.
They aren’t available yet, but then they launch we’ll be sure to have them in for review.
