Toshiyuki Terada from Olympus gave a new interview on fourthirds-user.com.
Key points:
– “it’s not difficult to work out that much of this work would be focused on the higher end of the E-System product line”
– “Many technological developments are common to both” (FourThirds and MicroFourThirds)
– There is “a difference in the expectations of Micro Four Thirds by Olympus compared to Panasonic”
– “future Olympus DSLRs would feature HD video, and he understands the aspiration for higher resolution LCD screens and improved autofocus performance”
Thanks FourThirdfs-user.com for publishing such an interesting Interview!
8 Responses
YEEEEEEEEEES!!!!!
Higher resolution LCD… I was soooo hoping for that. This news made my day happy ^.^
you might be interested in my forum post on wishlist/ideas for GH2 features http://www.fourthirds-user.com/forum/showthread.php?s=cae97f1c27a63bd21120ac9142e73af5&t=6244
Well, the last 4/3 body was introduced a year ago (disregarding the E-450 and E-600). I certainly trust Olympus to deliver, but this long intermission can’t be good for their business. Thinking about it, a complete reshuffle in the 4/3 line can be expected. Updated E-6XX, E-XX and E-X cameras must be coming, while E-4/5XX are dead.
I actually prefer a pause in Oly body roll-outs. Sometimes they get out of hand, and the value of your new body drops $200 the day you buy it, because there’s a new one 4 months away.
“Like Panasonic, we want to attract compact camera users to upgrade to our Pen cameras. But we also hope that later they will upgrade to an E-System DSLR once they have learned about the real beauty of photography through a Micro Four Thirds camera.”
Sounds like micro four thirds is not taking a step toward more professional bodies in few years :/
I’m not bothered by a year between new bodies either. I’d rather have them keep the lineup fairly simple and only make releases when they have a real update, instead of just churning the product line. I admit that it does contribute to a perception that Olympus isn’t doing anything, but I’d rather not have them inflate the line just so they can keep in the news.
And this bit – “… was surprised that he’d been quoted online as indicating that an E-3 replacement was in the pipeline and that it would have a conventional optical viewfinder. He said to me that he could not remember being that specific…” – just reinforces my belief that you shouldn’t listen to rumors and speculation; the next model will be out when it’s out and you’ll find out the specs then (_pace_ 43rumors.com)!
Interesting to see the AF speed comment at the end. He indicated the 9-18 will be a faster focusing lens. However, the throw in a wide angle lens tends to be much shorter, so that may not be hard! It’ll be more interesting to see the AF in the 14-150. If they improve there over (say) the kit lens, then they’ve got something.
I want the E-5 available yesterday. I know that is unreasonable. I would however like to see an new upper end camera by fall. In 2 years Olympus can create and perfect a new revolutionary design and I may be interested in that also. But for now, let me upgrade my entry level e-520 without having to wait another 2 years.