Bad news folks! There will be no new m43 camera or lens from Olympus for the CP+ show which starts on February 9th in Yokohama. Like Panasonic, Olympus choose to introduce the next wave of new m43 products time after the CP+ show!
UPDATE: There will be two compact cameras from Olympus. One os the TG810. It is the successor of the mju 8010 with GPS and 10m waterproof with 5 times optical zoom. The second camera is a ultrazoom camera with 26x times optical zoom beginning at 24mm with backlighted CMOS Sensor.
We found a reference of that camera inside the Henry store (via google cache). Talking with my trusted sources it looks like Panasonic and Olympus are waiting to see what’s coming next from Pentax and Nikon (in March/April).
Meanwhile notice that the E-P2 price is slowly dropping closer to the E-PL2 price suggesting that the E-P2 will be the next camera to be replaced! Amazon (Click here) and Adorama (Click here) are selling the E-P2 for less than $650. And the new E-PL2 sells for $600 at Amazon US, Adorama and BHphoto.
49 Responses
Well that was some bad news. It also got me thinking…
It doesnt make sense for Olympus to wait for Pentax and Nikon. If they wait will they start developing a new model to counter the Nikon and Pentax? They wont have time for that.
If they have something PRO up thier sleeve Id introduce it right now! Its not likely it would get any big changes to it even after the Nikon model anyway or am I wrong?
Probably due to marketing reasons, not because the new camera is not ready to be shown. Maybe they expected such a major announcement from Nikon, Canon or Pentax that could have cast a shadow over the new m4/3 model…
Admin, anything about the forthcoming lenses?
Thought the same. Maybe waiting for the dust from big fellows to settle down first in a few month and make their announcement in the media all for themselves without having Canon or Nikon news nearby.
Not that I understand marketing strategy like those releasing before Photokina either.
But in related to what panasonic mentioned (below)… how significant is CP+ ? Hasn’t been into camera gadgets until recently so never really heard about that event, even the name.
So many manufacturer no release new products at cp+ why not just cancelled this cp+ 😀 wasting time for everyone.
yeah, by now we are already used to Olympus’s slow introductions, aren’t we?
hehehe … Oly just announced/launched its 4th camera m43 in 2 years! Its Panasonic who can’t get their announcement onto the shelves in good time, or supply enough (doesn’t look like high demand, looks like low supply)
Olympus is simply no longer a viable camera company for a photographer. Their releases are slow, the potential innovations don’t materialize, and the rumors of 4/3 are invariably better than the reality of it.
Look, I like my E-30, I really do, but at some point we have to put a fork in it and say that all of the advantages of 4/3 never materialized and the companies involved are doing their own things, not responding to market demands, and being thoroughly slow about any kind of innovation.
Micro 4/3 is a neat idea, but the potential of the system is much greater than the reality as well- although the bodies from olympus have greater features, they are limited to one form factor and EVF that’s goofily positioned to deny you the flash hot shoe. A mic adapter that denies you EVF OR flash… The list goes on and on. It’s designed by morons who do not pay attention to the market, are completely insulated from customer feedback, and work slowly. How very Japanese it is to build what you want to build instead of what your customers ask you for.
Looks more like that potential and knowledge is there but someone in adminisphere just doesn’t know what the hell to do with it.
I’m pretty much in same situation as you with E-30 bought last year (because of advanced mirrorless being MIA) and have to wonder why they’re waiting for others to get all the free PR instead of having released E-30 level MFT body in last year considering whole Micro Four Thirds concept was published so many years ago. From market situation/PR point of view it doesn’t matter much anything even if they have weather sealed body if others already have their advanced mirrorless bodies out by then or released at the same time. (and Nikon might just go for that advanced weather sealed body at first try instead of toying around)
well, there’s the GH1/GH2. the good thing about m4/3 is that you dont have to rely on a single manufacturer, you get the best of both worlds.
I love the Panasonics and would use them because of their SLR type form factor, except that I prefer in-body stabilization and have become quite addicted to wireless multigroup TTL flash control.
I don’t think the GH1/GH2 are designed for advanced photographers either. They have plastic non-weather sealed bodies, very slow flash sync speed, no built in wireless flash system to speak of, they have a mode dial with scene modes on them (I don’t want to see a smiley face icon on my camera thanks), and while the IQ is decent, they still aren’t in the league of even a consumer level DSLR like the Sony A55. To me the only two things the GH2 has going for it are fast AF and a nice EVF…Panasonic still has a ways to go to make a camera that can replace something like a Pentax K-5.
I’m sure that you have never ever tried a GH2. I sold my Canon 5D2 + tons of lenses and moved to m4/3. And didn’t regret it.
BTW, 5D2 has no weather isolation, has a smiley mode dial and has no wireless flash controll. So what?
I don’t see why advanced photographers shouldn’t get a GH2. IMO being an “advanced photographer” doesn’t mean that you need rugged equipment or do sports or other action types of photography were GH2 obvious aren’t suited.
I agree though that Pansonic and Olympus has a long way to go before MFT can compete with mid level “do everything” bodies like 60D/7D, D7000/D300s and K5. GH2 is pretty good for an entry level body, and the video mode beat all dSLRs on usability.
I agree with Nathan/Eric here, the GH2 as an option for big43 just doesn’t look right, its a lens adaptor option on a camera too small to match the handling of the 43 lenses. Yep = compatible. But really its a cobbled together solution.
GH1/2 are plain marketroid designs at level of cheap entry level DSLRs.
Fake mirror box “analog era” layout and generic entry level DSLR ergonomy make them just get in the way of photography.
Only worser place for EVF would be pointing downwards from bottom of body (or maybe to left or right) and oversize travel TV on its arse eats all space and makes getting just half adequate grip even harder than in most entry level DSLRs… whose ergonomy I consider as masochistic.
Only parts I would want from Panasonic is their approach to video, 1080p with modern efficient codec, and maybe some more Leica designed quality lenses instead of those relying to overly heavy software correction. (though 7-14mm’s resolution doesn’t seem to suffer as heavily from distortion corrections as that of 14-140mm)
i don’t get it people!!! if you post your pictures, i think 99% can go in the trash. the quality will be terrible. and i don’t mean about image quality. i bet that image is be very good but not composition, subject, exposure, lightning.
from what i’ve seen so far, everyone wants to have a Ferarri but never want to learn how to drive it.
conclusion : i don’t need a new body, you need to learn photography.
Very well, I shall put my money where my mouth is.
Some of my photos are here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/NathanBonsal
All are taken with 4/3rds equipment.
I should point out that this “never complain about a piece of equipment, it’s always your technique” post is the most tired, often-posted, useless, nonconstructive, idiotic and trite thing ever to exist.
There are other forums for technique and general photography not specific to four thirds. Here is where we comment on EQUIPMENT.
Take control of your gears, don’t let your gears control the outcome of your photos. I don’t mean one should never complain about gears and technique is the panacea to everything…, but learning some technique can make an okay photo excellent. 4/3 has dynamic range problem, but knowing how light works can give you the best 4/3 can offer without suffering from its shortcoming. Besides, shots done in proper exposure means you can turn down noise reduction level, and that in turn will make the photo even sharper (not that 4/3 lenses are not sharp already).
Totaly agree with you ,but most of the people expect new camera can make them good photographers
There are for certain some gearheads who think buying a 5D MkII will suddenly make them qualified to be in business as a professional photographer. That doesn’t mean that some griping over the difference between system potential and actualized potential is invalidated.
4/3 really is perfectly adequate for a large variety of photographic styles. I chose it deliberately for its depth of field, (more is better for me), wireless TTL flash, and in-body stabilization. Those tools serve me very well. This weekend, for example, I was leaning halfway out of a car at over 80 mph taking longish (1/100th s) exposures of moving cars. IBIS worked magic. I won’t give it up and buy stabilized lenses all over again, since that approach is unnecessary and costly.
Nevertheless, the potential of the system is greater than what’s been built, and Olympus has taken the odd approach of dedicating very little resources to the project and then being surprised at slow adoption and poor performance parity vs other manufacturers. This is odd and schizoid.
The entirety of the disparity between 4/3 and full frame can be erased with faster glass. Full frame has about a stop or two better sensitivity, make the glass a stop or two faster and the disparity is fully compensated out.
50mm at F2 on a full frame will look much the same to 25mm F1.4 on a 4/3 camera. Make the standard zoom an F2.5 to F3 instead of F3.5-5.6 and you can completely eradicate the full frame advantage. Goodness knows Olympus can grind lenses sharp enough to do it.
PS – there is nothing wrong with my E-30, I love it. I’m just gutted that the E-5 is quoted as being the last camera in the system. It makes no difference at all how good/bad we shoot with the gear. If you have a body and a bundle of lenses and Oly dumps out of the system the kit is worthless! At least in Canon/Nikon land you get to see new bodies come along and grab one every 2-3 years as a refreshing change, or to grab a new function.
I’m complaining about the best camera Oly have ever made: the E-5 … I don’t have one, I want one, can afford one – but I’m stunned that Oly think people will put their hard earned cash on something they do not intend to continue!
I wouldn’t let E-5 being the last swan song to stop you. In fact, I kind of wish Olympus would publicly announce that so all existing 4/3 gear’s price would plumage and I could grab them for cheap. Just because it is the last in line doesn’t make it any worse. E-5’s shutter is rated 150k shots, and that can last a long time, even if you shoot as much as me (I shoot about 5k a year, and that’s like what? 30 years of life span?). Olympus gear rarely breaks, so I’m not worried there is no replacement model either. There probably would be a major break through in technology once your Olympus breaks anyways.
I’m with you here … and have the same camera (E-30)
but, try finding a lens as sharp as the 14-54/2.8-3.5 II in another make! The 24-70/2.8 from Canon/Nikon are what: 4x the price, bigger, and not as sharp
Here Olympus have delivered. And I’ve not even seen the f2 zooms, which for light gathering are unmatched by any other maker! Again, they have delivered.
The slow move from E-3 to E-5 hurt Oly a lot. But not as much as discontinuing all the other cameras on the day of the E-5 launch and saying “that’s all folks”
How do we know if there will be an E-6 or E-7, wait another 3 years? Meanwhile I wonder what other lens options Canon/Nikon make. On paper, taking an E-5 now with the current Pro/TopPro lenses available is still a smart deal in terms of spec, but its buying into a potentially dead system. Oly have stated that they are not designing any new lenses! But maybe that is the truth on that day or ever. The 43 system needs an affordable 25/1.4 and that is about it (oh, and some other cameras to move up to the E-5 from!)
A list of the interesting innovations that never happened:
Maitani modular SLR
0.5x SWD AF OM adapter
built in EVF
Sensible design for u4/3 for actual cameras including telephoto
additional manufacturer participation
fast lenses
competitive noise performance
usefulness comparable to an SLR but in micro four thirds from Olympus
fast autofocus in micro 4/3
“Olympus lens quality” in micro 4/3. (Have you seen how much aberration and distortion is being ‘fixed’ by the camera??)
they just released the E-PL2 and is available now, not just an announcement then wait for months for it to come. anyway the rumor is really around March, admin just speculated they might release it at CP+. not Oly’s fault.
Oops sorry this is a reply to Nathan
That is correct. CP+ was my speculation! And I always said that. Maybe I should not speculate anymore 🙂
Rumors are rumors and little more until they actually SHIP!
Are you still upset there’s no Santy Claus? 😉
Judging from your Xmas list, it looks like Panasonic has much what you want in the GH2: fast autofocus, built-in EVF, SLR usefulness… Leica partnership!
The dearth of fast lenses is a problem. But I think neither Oly or Panasonic are really catering to the photographer crowd. That’s why there are few fast primes, so many zooms and silly lens like fisheye and 3D. That’s why the Voightländer Nokton 25mm f.95 caused such a huge stir and is harder to find than a GH2.
For me, the REAL question is why can’t camera manufacturers make a FULL FRAME DSLR that isn’t the size of 3 or 4 stacked bricks, doesn’t weight 5 pounds and requires a PhD to use. Something simple and pure like the old Nikon FM2 (my last film camera)?
Sounds like I’m waiting for reindeer on my roof, too! 😉
Yes, I wish m4/3 would catch up with 4/3 in lens quality. I wouldn’t jump into m4/3 camp unless there is one that matches HG lens at least. Lots of your list are agreed upon and I think it has to do with resource and Olympus exited the market too early. Panny already exited 4/3 market, which makes Olympus the king of the hill, so why exit at this time? Instead, they crowd themselves with Panny, copy what lens Panny made, when they can have their very own corner. Fuji is smarter, they made a niche for themselves and eat the whole pie. A big pie shared with many people is not necessarily bigger than a small whole pie.
I hope this rumor is wrong. I need a camera before April, and was hoping for the EP3!
Agreed. I’m traveling for a couple months in April.. I can’t wait to buy the E-PL2 to find the EP3 released when I return.. woot.
Just want to make some points before people start throwing the word “marketing/pr” without knowing anything about it.
First: Clearly marketing reasons. Those who purchased E-pl1 for Christmas are going through buyer’s remorse when the E-pl2 was released. If they did announce a new body during this event, those who purchased E-pl2 would go through buyer’s remorse. Those who blame the companies for not releasing bodys more frequently are just ignorant on the kind of effect this has on consumers.
Second: Of course they are in the works for all those wonderful built-in evf, etc…, but the reason it hasn’t shown up is because of price. The reason for m4/3 is their compactness, they targeted casual users first, who don’t want to lug around DSLRs.
Those in the R&D department are not idiots. They are just like you and I, they want built-in evf, weather-sealed titanium bodies, swivel LCD, etc… But guess what? Marketing comes in and does something called a Spec lock. They stop development because price is getting too high for their target segment.
And once in a while Marketing wants to take some of those techies and shoot them in the backyard because they keep developing and rising the prices through the roof that are not possible for their target (or anyone). Let me ask you, when flexible LCDs were announced, was there really a target for those who want to pay $2000 for 5 inches of screen? This is what happens when R&D does not get checked.
> “they targeted casual users first, who don’t want to lug around DSLRs.”
Casual users use P&S already, because they do not see how they can justify spending more than $100 on a camera.
> “And once in a while Marketing wants to take some of those techies and shoot them in the backyard because they keep developing and rising the prices through the roof that are not possible for their target (or anyone).”
You talk like another generic short-sighted marketroid.
Ever heard of economies of scale? First batch always costs too much, but the costs go down as the consequent batches are produced.
One invests into technologies now heavily, hopping to recap the costs tomorrow, after making the technology cheaper to manufacture on large scale. And yes, that always bears risk.
> “Let me ask you, when flexible LCDs were announced, was there really a target for those who want to pay $2000 for 5 inches of screen?”
Probably very few. But it would have helped improving the brand recognition. Something Oly could have used now: after the 43 cancellation and losses to Sony/Pannay in the ILC segment.
> “They stop development because price is getting too high for their target segment.”
Following that, company fades into oblivion because all their products look like me-too.
And in the me-too market, only cheapest ware wins. And profits are only those from the stickers.
The only solution I am aware of is to grow company: larger revenue, less the risk implied by the (disruptive) innovations.
Tell us honestly: do you work for the Oly marketing? The fallacies you exposed are matching pretty well.
To me, Olympus is loosing credibility with each month they fail to announce, where the successor of 4/3 is going to and how their new m4/3 cameras and strategy will look like. On one hand disclosing at Photokina that 4/3 is more or less a dead end, while not providing any replacement for it at m4/3, then being officially surprised about the “success” of the E-5 (what is defined as “success” here: a few positive reviews or sales numbers?), and rumoring that 4/3 might not be discontinued, leaves everybody completely in the dark, while the consumers buy the competition.
The whole m4/3 product strategy of Olympus looks like that they have no real clue where they should head to, and how diverse their future camera system line will be. Boring the market with small incremental updates of the same single product, is not gonna help. Potentially the next step of Sony will blow a good portion of the mirrorless market away from Olympus.
On no! I hope that’s enough of bad news for today. Any good news?
Come on you whiners – you can’t have champagne on a beer budget!
I really doubt Panasonic is waiting for Pentax and Nikon to show their hands. The GF2 is off and running, the GH2 almost so, and both cater to significant and definable market segments – Panasonic is in business to make money. I am sure they do hear the whines and wants of the “prosumer” and probably have a well advanced “pro” design, but the business case for developing it may be a hard sell internally. For me, the G1 was brilliant at the time (October 2008), and the GH2 is very appealing now for video, but as I’m mostly interested in stills I do want higher IQ and am frustrated that Panasonic have not been able to deliver a better sensor. Is the real estate too small to ever achieve the kind of DX0 score I want? So, the real question around a G3 announcement is the sensor. The G series body build is adequate for the prosumer price point, but a better build (stronger frame) would reel in more buyers intent on loading the camera up with big lenses, video monitors etc. I am going to wait and see if the G3 meets my expectations, and I will give it a miss if it doesn’t. By now, I have such a collection of legacy glass I can use any camera with a flange-back (registration) distance of less than 28mm and any sensor smaller than full-frame. I don’t see this delay in product announcements as “bad news”, but as prudence from a manufacturer determined to continue to succeed. As for Olympus and Pentax … I stopped buying their gear a long time ago. As for Nikon – I’m really anticipating something exciting for the professional and the enthusiast. As for Canon … haven’t owned one since I dumped my F-1 system for Nikon F2s 40 years ago. So bring it on. The “shootout” at the OK corral starts in March – it will be fun.
I am still waiting on Oly. I probably am not a great photographer, and have no desire to be a professional. I just take pictures for my own enjoyment.
I really do not care for the ergonomics of the smaller u4/3 cameras now available, and I would prefer 1080p video. The GH2 comes the closest to a feature set in u4/3 that I would consider. Lugging around photo equipment on my vacation travels and to sporting events is fine with me.
If I had to replace my E-30 today, I would go towards something like an expected upcoming 5D mk III. If the 5D mk III has 1080p 30 fps, fast autofocus, fast still frame rates, and an articulating LCD, I just do not see any room for Oly to compete for my money going forward. I will still use my $8,000 USD worth of Oly E-30 equipment and gradually migrate to other systems.
I am a little concerned with the costs to begin getting enough Canon or Nikon lenses to cover wide angle landscape travel pictures to telephoto zoom of sporting events. However, I’ll just have to look at the overall system price to see if Oly is still in the ballpark.
Longer post Alert!
No PRO camera???:
I agree that engineers at Olympus and Panasonic would like to do more and better but someone inside would not allow them to. Someone is another word for business case.
E-PLx gives back a lot of money. E-PL1 big market was Japan, guess what, Olympus makes 43% of its revenue in… Japan = Europe + USA.
Reality check: If you are a camera company that saw better days, you need desperately money, have two cameras to launch – one PRO and another similar to your major hit in your major market – which camera board members you think would push to launch first and bet everything? And board members are Japanese. And they are 15.
(source: http://www.olympus-global.com/en/corc/ir/summary/ 2009 data, 43% market is Japan and sales were decreasing for 3 years, http://www.olympus-global.com/en/corc/ir/brief/pdf/n101112aE_n.pdf: camera business is loosing money)
You may argue that if they stop PRO they will loose on the long term. True. But they need money _today_. I think, at least because they are Japanese and proud as Japanese they want to build again the PRO camera. Eve the digital Maitani-san modular.
But they had to go first with E-PL2.
. and because they pack a lot more stuff in it than E-PL1 (remote control and wireless flash control don’t look entry level to me, it was more a smile to PRO 4/3 users i think)
. and because they wanted to start with similar MSRP they upgraded lens with features downgrading glass quality (less one ED element) to keep/improve margins… and reviewers complained about flare with direct sunlight on an entry level camera with kit lens! What they wanted PRO level quality?
Regarding fast glass Nathan:
you are right they could make it, but they would sell mostly to PRO market and they are not there yet.
And fast glass is big and Olympus said already: small system means small lenses too
But they need to start selling more of PRO material. The rule is: entry level makes money but high end attracts _all_ customers.
Regarding the wait for Nikon mirrorless:
This is common. Hp waited for Ipad launch and when noticed that Apple Ipad was so much better than what they had developed they went back
But in my opinion is stupid if you can make many cameras fast, i.e. before Nikon launch. If you can not make it available in enough numbers before Nikon launch than they (Olympus an Panasonic) they are right: they will just loose money. They better see Nikon’s flaws and retune their product to be better than Nikon. Remember that they already have a “old” product. Nikon will launch its first iteration.
Regarding sensor:
Olympus would be better picking a Sony sensor, less noise floor is better for a smaller sensor. But Panasonic makes sensors and is a partner. Olympus may have believed that Panasonic could make a Canon/Sony quality sensor. It didn’t (see Luminous Landscape DXO report). They could use Kodak CCD sensor and pay less attention to movie (or forget it) but they would lose entry-level market that want 1080P. They could pick Foveon sensor and eliminate anti-aliasing (my preference – i studied imaging processing). Or they could do all sensors for different cameras. This last is very difficult because they master JPEG and Color. A new sensor means to start a learning process: it means time and money. And money is not what they have more.
Let’s hope they use another sensor provider to be more competitive. It’s the only thing they chose not to do in digital imaging and now they are somehow suffering with it.
The real issue is that PROs go away and reviewers say bad things, but its “bad” sensor can make better pictures than typical 35mm film, go figure.
Future:
But not all are bad news for Olympus. Olympus bought 5 mi shares in december (3.5 Mi UD). and share price in December was not its anual minimum. There are few reasons to buy back shares: you want to drive share price up because of results announcement, or.. because you need money for R&D and you know share price will increase when current under development products will be available (do you now Apple?).
I reminded you it was a longer post,
greyhat
The only thing that can save Olympus is if they ditch Panasonic as their sensor supplier, buy Sony sensors (the great 16 Mpx ones in Pentax and Nikon cameras) and just pretend the outer areas of the 3:2 crop do not exist.
There, they have 12 Megapixels all over again, but with a vastly better sensor.
This year is “make it or break it” for Olympus. If they give no indication about the future and don’t start experimenting with better options, the system truly is dead. This also includes bringing back lower-level DSLR bodies. The E-5 isn’t going to cut it. What, they’ve maybe sold 4-5.000 so far? Oooh. Canon sells millions.
They can’t solve the PDAF issues on m4/3 with their current (lack of) budget, no way, so all the pro lenses are going to be completely useless on those cameras.
If by the end of this year there isn’t an E-7, E-50 and E-650 with an APS-C sensor inside, it’s game over.
If you crop a 16MP sensor from 3:2 to 4:3, you lose 30% of area…. You end up with ~12MP but no light sensitivity gain. What’s the point? The great thing about 4:3 aspect ratio is you don’t lose a lot of space when you print 11×14 or 8×10 standard sizes. You lose very little of your 12MP.
The point is to get a vastly better sensor that has much better high ISO performance, better colour registration and greater dynamic range – things that are missing from Oly’s current camera(s).
Oly’s color is fine. This is highly subjective though.
High ISO is not good. But I don’t use high ISO because I don’t shoot a lot of handheld in dark places. Yes, it could use some improvement, but to me it’s not a big issue, but I can understand why someone would want it.
Dynamic range…, if that’s what you want, then go get a larger sensor. Unless there is a major technology break through, you won’t see this happening. But then when that technology break through happens, it’ll be apply to larger sensors as well, so if DR is what you want, go with a larger sensor.
When you bought a 4/3, you accept its limitations. It has advantage on other things, but what you asked for seems to me you’re on the wrong platform.
Agree with most of your analysis. Cash is king, so Olympus needs money now. In fantasy world one can always bet on long-term gain, but in survival mode, you need cash. Olympus doesn’t need to operate its camera division, it’s only carry on its traditional torch. If it’s not making money, they can simply cut it off, and it would be a shame. Those of us who are fortunate enough to use high quality Olympus lenses know how good they are, but good product does not always generate profit.
Olympus stated very specifically that their mission is the make quality small cameras. They’ve been doing this since the original PEN half-frame in 1950’s. They never intended to be in the “pro” market, but they often make products that rival Canon and Nikon, so go figure… (costly strategy, you don’t need this much quality to position yourself in lower segment, but they do…). 4/3 has the quality part pinned down, but it failed to deliver smallness. So I guess they switched to portable-priority mode and see if it generates profit better than initial strategy. m4/3 costs a lot less money to make because glasses are smaller.
I don’t agree on one of your stock buy back reason. If you go by American model, the reason to buy back stock is 1) drive up stock price (because you believe your stock price is under-appreciated, 2) strengthen ownership (anti-dilute). If you need R&D money, you actually issue bonds first. If that fails to generate enough money, you issue secondary offering stock (bond is cheaper to issue and you don’t lose ownership). Most of the time when company buy back their own stock it is because they believe its stock is temporarily oversold and below its intrinsic value. You don’t use up your cash when it has better usage.
Why wait and see instead of issue the product first? Well, this is the conservative approach. We all know Olympus is extremely conservative by now. Never issue anything before it’s ready (which is perceived as slow…), and never do anything uncertain. And in this case, it is very uncertain what Nikon has in its sleeve. If you issue first you could either put Nikon in check, or you could fail miserably and lose a lot of money. If you’re in Olympus’s position, you can’t afford to lose. Because to lose in this case is worse than not winning (notice my very specific verbiage).
This posts is a reply to greyhat, btw.
No news is a FT5 rumor? You really have found a way to fill low rumor days there.
E5 with brand new sensor, modular camera, new M43 models, release dates that become false… that’s what the rumors are and no one should take decisions of camera equipment based on that, but in the current availability.
A rumor is a rumor is a rumor is a rumor…
Look at Apple. Next to zero in terms of rumors or leaks.
When Apple announces a new product, it either is available THAT DAY or a FIRM ship date is announced. Of course, they have economy of scale in their favor.
Remember… NOTHING is real until it ships!
Whoopie, GPS on the Tough 8010 replacement =(
I spend a lot of time in the water and like the waterproof Stylus cameras, but I’d take PASM and flash output controls before a GPS module.