[shoplink 35471 ebay]
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Two anonymous sources told me that Olympus plans to launch a “TRIP-D” fixed lens camera with large sensor. The sources didn’t unveil sensor size or lens specs (they only said it’s a fast prime). For those (few) of you that don’t know where the name “TRIP” comes from just look at the great [shoplink 35471 ebay]Olympus Trip 35 cameras on auction here on eBay[/shoplink].
A bit of history: What’s so special on the Olympus Trip 35mm?
First of all that Olympus sold ten million(!) of these cameras from the ’60’s to the early ’80’s. It has a super sharp 40mm f/2.8 lens. And Olympus managed to give you Automatic Exposure while the Trip 35mm uses no battery! How is it possible? It used a solar-powered selenium light meter.
It is a very compact camera with a rangefinder. I suggest you to watch this youtube review video to get an idea of the size and superb build quality of the camera. This was the perfect holiday camera of the time but also pro photographers used like the British photographer David Bailey.
That is simply put one of the most popular Olympus camera ever made.
I would certainly be happy to see a camera ike that! But I fear that the market for these kind of cameras is already full with great cameras like…
– The [shoplink 41706 eBay]Fuji X100S (here one Bay)[/shoplink] with the superb hybrid viewfinder and unique sensor.
– The [shoplink 41707 eBay]Ricoh GR (here one Bay)[/shoplink] which is the smallest and also the cheapest
– The [shoplink 41708 eBay]Nikon Coolpix A (here one Bay)[/shoplink] fixed prime lens.
– The [shoplink 41709 eBay]Canon PowerShot G1 X (here one Bay)[/shoplink] fixed zoom lens.
So what the heck can/should Olympus do to sell the TRIP-D???
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110 Responses
Make it a fast 50mm equivalent of course.
Exactly this. A 25mm f/1.4 would set it apart as a serious fixed lens camera for a specific demographic. Who needs another too-wide 35mm?
35mm isn’t too wide. Ricoh’s and Nikon’s 28mm are the ones being too wide.
28mm perfect for take-along on horseback ride!
Differ it from what’s already on the market: Leicax2, Ricoh GR, Fujix100s, Nikon A and Canon G1x have all an APS-C sensor. The original Trip was a 35mm camera, so I would put a 35mm sensor à l Sony RX1, coupled with a sharp, nice 28 or 50mm Zuiko lens. (I won’t consider price range, simply because there will always be someone complaining about it.)
40mm 😀
35mm and it’s a collision course against x100. 28mm and it’s against Ricoh GR.
Better look for safe water.
For funny feature, how about a “portrait crop” like the half-frame PEN
m43 sensor -> even more compact than X100s et al.
50mm equivalent prime -> more useful/versatile than 28/35mm (IMHO)
Compact folded 20/1.7 + GM1 = best trip-d
Make it like EP5 with 5axis stabilisation and a super sharp fast 50mm eq. fixed prime.
If possible borrow hybride OVF EVF from fuji. Im in
m4/3 sensor, weather sealed and with 12-40 2.8 lens instead of prime. All the tech is already developed in omd and 12-40 lens, all they need is to implement it in a new format. It would be the ideal camera for a lot of people. I own a trip 35 and it’s a great little thing. One of the reasons why I moved to the x100 was the simplicity of having just one lens. I usually carry a lot of stuff with me, and having less choices is actually better. That said, the X100 focus slow. I’d rather have a fast focusing camera, if it had Ibis and a small fast zoom it would be even better!
I think it would be very surprising if Olympus used anything other then a four thirds sensor. Based on that I would like to see a 20mm lens (40mm equivalent, the same as the original Trip 35). In terms of aperture, the faster the better (at least f1.4 would be nice). A viewfinder (EVF or OVF) is a must IMHO, but in line with the PEN range unlikely to be present.
Let’s remember the f1 lens patents for m43 and 1 inch sensor and this becomes an intriguing proposition.
“…Trip 35mm uses no battery! How is it possible? It used a solar-powered selenium light meter.”
— which means it works well only in bright light, just like all the other selenium-metered compact cameras of the day.
“It is a very compact camera with a rangefinder.”
— It does NOT have a rangefinder. Instead you had to guess-focus via zone symbols marked on the ring. This worked okay in bright light (see above) thanks to the limited maximum aperture of the lens.
“…superb build quality…”
— Come on, this was a budget camera with plastic winding gears and a partly plastic chassis. It was a nice inexpensive camera, that’s all.
The camera pictureded at the top of this page CLEARLY has a rangefinder. Why so angry?
Do you really know what is a Range Finder? You are CLEARLY not informed!
Actually it does not have a rangefinder. I own two of the cameras. Yes it has a plastic gears but it does have a metal top, bottom, back and front plate and a metal chassis.
It clearly doesn’t have one. It has is a viewfinder, but it is not coupled to the focusing mechanism in any way.
For a range finder it would have a second window set off to the far right (left in the picture). As others wrote, it had a 4 step zone focus.
In its days, it was a popular camera, more affordable than interchangeable lens camera’s that would cost at least half a month income (and up a month or more for the better brands like canikon or olympus). Only after the arrival of electronics in camera’s, the SLR’s really took over (canon AE anyone?).
Its light meter was as good as it would get at the time. Yes, it needed light, but not more light than the -back in the sixties- most used 15 and 18 din films (ISO 25/50). Only in the seventies 21 and 27 din (ISO 125/400) became norm. Its 2.8 lens was relatively fast in a time when many fixed lenses were 3.5, 4 or 5.6.
All in all the Pen was one of the predecessor of camera’s like the Rollei 35, the Olympus XA and others. And those in turn grew into the high end compacts of today. A return of the name would fit nice.
Ranger 9=Angry Panny Fanbois 🙂
C’mon guys…see the little lug on the side of the body…the one with the hole in it?…the Trip-D included a piece of string with 1-foot markings (meters in Europe &Asia), that attached to that lug. You simply extend the string to your subject to get the “range”…what’s the problem?
I’d love this! I love the Trips I’ve got and still use: this camera is practically indestructible!
I’d love it to have a fast 28 or 40mm lens, and FF sensor.
It needs to be fast 40mm or 50mm eq to be more useful than the competition. Of course it will be M43 sensor. But will this look right with EVF? or will we see a hybrid?
to make this work i think olympus should make it smaller, and cheaper than the competition, EVF/OVF would be nice, m43 sensor is still a excelent trade between APS-C and 1″ and will help to mantain a low price compared with APS-C cameras.
Don’t forget the Sigma fixed-lens cameras. I’d count them as competitors more than the G1X line. Price, size, and style are where Olympus could set itself apart. The X100s is a great camera that looks very nice, but it is the most expensive. If Olympus came in with a retro-style rangefinder with good controls and priced it around the same as a Ricoh GR I think they’d have a winner. Even if they used a 4/3 sensor while everyone else used a APS-C.
I could also see them going full frame, though it seems less likely. But since they aren’t well positioned to make a FF ILC then it is possible. In that case their only real competition is Sony. A 40mm 1.8 retro FF rangefinder priced around $2000 could outsell the RX1.
An FF RX is rumoured to be released at Photokina, btw.
Let s hope it has the good idea of keeping the 40mm focal length ( hopefully in a 2.0 max aperture). That would make it the only camera in the list above with a 40mm focal length and a 4/3 ratio
40-50mm equivalent f/2.0 lens. Small (GM1-sized) Quiet leaf-shutter. Anything else = NO BUY.
My father had this camera. But what a silly idea to make a digital version. Digital needs completely other controls than an analog Camera. Are olympus designers not capable of making a new design anymore?
“Digital needs completely other controls than an analog camera”?
Actually, no.
Brilliant! Puny sensor, prime lens, no manual controls, silly price. Shall we bet?
What about some zoom, really ripe manual controls (a la Canon), sensible price? Wait, that could murder M43. Ouch.
Very true, a well-made camera with a good zoom, a good sensor and small size could pose a serious threat for M43. The Sony RX100 is a toy, but the new Canon G1X Mark2 might do that.
Admin, you forgot the GM1.
Two things Oly needs:
– Bump up the specs of E-PMx
– Build a pancake 2.8/20mm m43 lens.
I was wondering when/if they would revive the Trip camera. I could definitely be interested in this.
To actually sell it should be a true rangefinder, full frame. Only way to distinguish between the APSC and FF (RX1,RX1R) models available.
There used to be tons of them back in the day. Fixed lens rangefinders. Some are still fantastic.
Alas, I don’t think Olymous is that adventurous.
The main attraction of the Trip 35 was its price. If Olympus manages to sell a digital version for $500 or less it may become very popular. Especially if it features state of the art connectivity with sharing options straight from the camera (just like a smartphone). It should be very simple to use, but equipped with a robust processor.
I can imagine many would jump on an affordable smartphone-like instrument dedicated to high quality photography.
Agreed completely. If they dropped a TRIP-D with a fixed 25 2.0, M4/3 sensor and a bunch of smart connectivity features for $499? Definite buy.
This is just going to be another Overpriced Olympus camera. Even if it’s a 43 sensor, with Ibis, I’d wager it’ll cost more than the Fuji X100s by at least $200.
I also doubt the fixed lens will be better than the one on the X100s.
Then again, i just see this camera as a knock off to the E-M1. Olympus can’t afford to do a fixed lens camera that won’t sell. My guess is that they’ll do a small OMD-shaped camera.
Please crawl back under your rock, Mr. Allcraps….
There would be little point in a 4/3 sensor in a camera without interchangeable lenses. Also, there already is a “small OMD camera”: the Stylus.
Use your head, man.
I did. OBVIOUSLY they can’t sell a Pen boy anymore. And everything selling for them is in a OMD shape. I’m sure the next camera from them, whatever it is will be OMD in shape.
Hi Admin, it’s fun to see my photo being used in this post! 🙂
Wake me up when they announce a XA-D 😉
– Fast, sharp compact prime lens
– Actual rangefinder, manual focus. Maybe PDAF, LCD-only. Show some balls, Oly. Make Maitani proud.
looooove it. one day digital FF cameras will have this size 🙂
Wake me up when they produce a Mju II with a 4/3 sensor (or 1.5x crop or 35mm sensor).
http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g451/Olympusom1/IMG_0020-1_zps4466ee24.jpg
Size! Måske it truly pocketable with m4/3 sensor and sharp prime made for sensor and I’m in
Make a Canon G1 X Mk II competitor, with a similar or a bit faster 🙂 lens, the E-M5 sensor and processing, proper grip, and EVF in the corner. That’s all I need :).
It’s going to be a full frame 40mm 2.8 and look exactly like the trip. And magically it won’t need a battery just like the original film version…
If only that was possible…*sigh
If its an x100s competitor that would be awesome. Hope its in the $800 price range
Short, super-fast zoom or f/1.8 prime between 38-42mm equivalent; ibis (that’s something to differentiate it from the other prime cams); 180-degree flip screen, E-M5 4/3 sensor or better; Keep price and size down by ditching EVF and rangefinder; AF with MF ring for the manual focus purists; pop-up flash; Ricoh GR size but $100 cheaper. I’ll buy two!
there’s barely a hand full of such cameras! so no I absolutely don’t think that the market is full. otherwise what would you call the market for slrs? (and there you can even change the lens)
what I want is a 35mm eqivalent ricoh or something a bit bigger or smaller sensor that is waterproof and rugged.
Hopefully they make it f1.0 to silence the equivalence crowd…
But even bad buzz iz good buzz for sales i guess.
Well fine for nostalgists. I rather take the Powershot G1X Mk 2.
…but that Canon thing is HUGE!
http://camerasize.com/compare/#382,534
This is a commemorative model: celebrating the famous “Olympus trip” ..to the Caymen Islands to pay some people some money!
Sorry all retroistas- this is not a rangefinder! Admin lacks knowledge in hos a RF works: There must be two Windows on the front to enable a RF mechanism.
(Funny, There is a dedicated “FF mirrorless” site that covers Sony and Leica. Bit a rangefinder Mechanism actually requires TWO mirrors……)
It’s “rangefinder” styling.
I really thought (hoped?) that all the “THIS ISN’T A RANGEFINDER!!11!” jerk0ffs disappeared 3 years ago, when this comment appeared on every post of every Fuji list.
The original post said rangefinder—not rangefinder styling you wanker.
I’d love to see something along the lines of a Fuji x100s, but with a constant aperture zoom from 35mm to 50mm equivalent (no add-ons necessary).
X20 would be great if the sensor was bigger
Odd to change sensor size. Seems like a marketing minefield. How can they say that a bigger sensor matters and not lose all cred with the m43 community? Unless it is FF, most people (me included) seem convinced that M43 and APSC are close enough in IQ to opt for the size advantage of M43. But a true rangefinder experience would make this really interesting to me. Outside of Leica, that dies not exist. Fuji’s hybrid OVF/EVF is fun and innovative, but manual focus in OVF isn’t there, and to me, the OVF rangefinder style begs for a full manual experience. Okay. Full frame or bigger, not APSC. True rangefinder. Hardcore weather sealing. Distance and hyperfocal markings and real manual focus or the best ever fly by wire in manual. Aperture ring on the lens. Tilt screen (to best the X100s). Leaf shutter and flash sync to 8000 or better.
I suspect that when Olympus says “large sensor” they mean a 4/3 sensor. As you said, they would have a lot of marketing exposure if they built one around a sensor that is bigger than 4/3. And since this camera will serve a relatively small niche market, it makes the most sense if they can use an existing sensor and lens from their parts bin. And what I would expect is that it’s going to be a 4/3 sensor with a 17mm f1.8 lens, which can basically be built around existing parts.
Yeah, m43 sensor sounds right. But a Pen and the 17 mm is a pretty great combo already: very small, light, affordable. Many of these fixed lens cameras opt to slow the max aperture to keep smaller lenses, so f/2 or f/2.8 is common. Supposedly being able to marry lens and sensor has benefits, but that’s hard to quantify. And leaf shutters are nice! But this camera will need to do some special things to justify its existence. I’m hoping that size, viewfinder and build/sealing are those things. But agree with you that an X20 style stepped zoom would also be cool. Fuji should put the bigger sensor in that camera. That would be pretty sensational. I suspect Oly will go for the upper end of the market with this too, so pricy. That’s okay with me if it can deliver on experience and IQ. And smart to reintroduce another classic legacy brand name. Maybe this is why they won’t give the Pen any VF love
hope it will be m43 sensor
bought a trip35 year ago …did couple of bw & color films with it …like the camera form …such 40mm fix lens is ok to use …can do nice full body portraits & also landscapes, street photo ….but the viewfinder is horibly tiny…hope the tripD will have fix bright lens … and superb viewfinder!
About time. 4/3 sensor size deserves a great fixed lens compact.
IMO, the Olympus RC 35 was a much better camera. But if Olympus really wants to do justice to its past triumphs, it should come up with an XZ-3 styled like the original SP model, complete with fast lens and big, bright optical viewfinder. My recollection of the Trip is that it was all automatic and only automatic, not so hot in low light situations or for brightly lit subjects dressed in white.
Maybe a FF with the A7 sensor coupled an Olympus truepic sensor with a builtin EVF. Could be an RX1 on steroids. Actually… that would be awesome to have another rx1 like option if… they could keep under 2,000
For all Olympus fans who are oblivious to Oly’s current difficulties.
Olympus is in such a quandary trying to navigate the current market doldrums, that they really don’t need to launch any more cameras of the Pen or Trip style. A highly refined E-M5 is overdue, but a half baked “rangefinder” style or another $1000+ Pen is a risky proposition which might fall flat and set Oly back even more.
Meanwhile the Lumix GX7 already occupies that category very nicely, and of course all of Oly’s current lenses are compatible with the GX7.
How well is the GX7 selling? How much does Olympus stand to gain by siphoning off some GX7 sales? How much might it cost Oly to design & develop another me-too GX7? Is there to be no cross-sales between Panasonic and Olympus “BrandBoys”?
I personally do not care what someone does with their money. I don’t even care if Olympus survives. But if YOU do care about Olympus’ survival, perhaps it’s not wise to encourage Oly to pursue such risky ventures, during such troubled times to compete for a very limited niche already occupied by the Panasonic GX7.
GX7 is not fixed lens. Trip would be smaller and lighter. Make it Olympus! I’ll buy two or three! Just keep it simple to keep the price down, and it’ll sell like hotcakes.
Perhaps it will be a technology demonstrator for a full frame 35mm sensor camera. But I agree that this is not the time for Oly to venture out. Stick with OM-D and refine that 1 segment. Improving USA service would help a lot too.
Remember guys, they have Sony as a huge investor of money and technology. Who knows what the new technology is, but Sony and Olympus never disappoint in innovation. I’m excited no matter where this goes.
We have had no real innovation for many years, because the multinationals scrimp on R&D. You go on being excited, why does that make me think of something wet?
The Trip isn’t that great looking.
I had a Konica Auto S2. THAT was a great looking camera!
Plus a 45mm f1.8 lens.
http://52rangefinders.blogspot.com.au/
I think many here would be amazed to find that every man and his dog made rangefinders. Some very good ones at that. My first was the Minolta AL, but my mother nicked it and I bought the first of several Minolta SR cameras I owned.
The above site has a listing and samples from many 35mm RFs.
The Konica is a very cool Japanese design…cameras should look so good today.
That was a fun camera I used for almost 10 years. I gave it to my brother and now I’m trying to find out where it is! Probably long lost. 🙁
Here is an example of the risk Olympus takes by pursuing such a camera.
http://www.mirrorlessrumors.com/end-of-production-for-the-first-digital-rangefinder-camera-the-epson-rd-1
That’s a totally different, high dollar, limited function specialty camera. OTOH, if that’s the risk, Oly would be glad to take it. Name another digital camera that’s been in production for over 8 years!
Olympus could produce a Trip-D . . . but what for?
If the purpose is to unseat the Panasonic GX7 good luck, but that’s low hanging fruit. By the time Olympus could “market” a me-too GX7 the Lumix GX7 will probably be selling for around $650. – reducing margins and profits.
If Olympus desires to branch into the APSc format, they would have to challenge the venerable X100s which would invariably lead to failure for Oly, because the X100s is not challengeable. There is also a certain risk of encouraging defections from m4/3 . . . altogether a HUGE gamble.
If Olympus launches yet another $1000 Pen, it will have to compete with the Panasonic GM1 and it’s excellent lens which is currently selling for $650. Smart-Phones, of course are yet another factor in reducing the market value of such small cameras.
Finally, Olympus could, (wisely), invest in a substantial upgrade to the HUGELY successful E-M5. This strategy is a no-brainer because there already exists a loyal, enthusiastic user base – begging for improved video and other mods in a updated E-M5. Olympus should re-make the E-M5 as their flag-ship small DSLR because it would be a guaranteed success.
No, this would be fixed lens camera and compete against the Sony RX cameras. Using a 4/3 sensor wou;d give it am edge over something like the RX100 and could be priced about the same.
It’s hard to believe that Olympus would desire to build new cameras in the sub-$650 price range as Olympus already has dozens of cameras in that price range.
Although, if that’s what Olympus fans really want maybe Oly can recoup their investment. As a regular reader of most posts on this forum, I have never seen or heard anyone demanding such a product until today. It seems more like a G.A.S. attack.
Read carefully the posts below and see if any 2 people have the same expectations from this Trip-D. Oly runs the risk of spending a lot of money and still having unhappy campers in the tent and yet another cheapie camera cluttering their line-up.
I am not an Olympus camera owner so it doesn’t really matter to me if Oly’s users drive the Company over the cliff. I would be a lot more interested in a sub-$1500 – E-M6 that would harken back to the glory days of the OM1 – rather than re-live the imaginary “glory” of the Olympus Trip.
Olympus has nothing like this camera would be. Name another fixed lens 4/3 sensor camera. There is none. There are several people who have posted here, and previously asking for just such a camera. This could be a replacement for the XZ line, offering a camera with a larger and more capable sensor. Based on the success of the Sony RX line, it would make sense to actually compete in that segment.
I am interested in a potential E-M6 and hope it is worthwhile. I also have room and need for a high quality fixed lens camera. So both appeal to me and to others.
While not 4/3 but DX, how could you forget the fixed 28mm f2.8 (equiv) focal length Nikon Coolpix A? Oh yes, everyone else has forgotten too. Just another unique feature grossly overpriced offering introduced by Nikon around a years ago and still a ‘current’ model gathering dust on dealer’s shelves. Of course, the viewfinder, while optical, is optional and priced at what the camera should have been priced at. http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product/Compact-Digital-Cameras/26423/COOLPIX-A.html
That is the risk that Olympus would take. A yawner with a very limited audience. The Coolpix A is more like a EPL-5 with a permanent fixed prime lens, which adding a viewfinder within the body itself rather than a slide on attachment, would be the modernized digital version of the TRIP 35.
There are a few items you fail to consider.
Marketing. Nikon has spent over 10 years telling people that anything les than FF was not worth the cost for serious photography. Then they plop this $1100 camera on the market and wonder why it failed.
Portability. The camera market has changed substantially in the past 5 years. More and more, people are looking for portablity. The smaller sensor would allow more portability.
Sony RX. You ignore the cirrent success of the Sony RX line. There are multiple cameras in this line, all of which are selling well.
At this point, you can say the Nikon is a failure and that will happen to Olympus. One could also say the Sony is a major success and that will happen to Olympus as well. So, sure, if you ignore the current success and sales trends and favor a single past failure, you could be right.
Have to agree with a simple thought. If this was a 35mm sensor, had the Olympus IBIS and a solid Zuiko lens on the front it may sell very very well.
However I have to agree an EM5 with better video would be on my credit card before shipping. The IBIS in the Olympus cameras make for an unbelievable video shooting experience, with any lens you like.
But, with a solid GH4, and all the bells and whistles, maybe a TRIP is the way to go, if they sold 10 million of these things, and they can make a simple solid product nostalgia sell cameras, and so does retro it seems. The question is, what would the USP of this product be?
Fixed lens cameras with fixed focal length lenses have very limited appeal these days. Maybe within the enthusiastic photography crowd, but anywhere else, it’s really doubtful.
A couple of years ago I was showing my 20-something nephew my GH2 with a prime lens on it. His first question: How does it zoom?
There are only so many hipsters aching for über-retro cameras so they can shoot pictures like their granddaddy did. 😉 Especially when you can get a used 35mm camera dirt cheap. Of course, you’ve got to remind them to load film into their new “necklace”. 😉
Having said that, “limited appeal” doesnt mean unprofitable. Depending on projected sales and their pricepoint short runs of interesting products can both draw attention to the Olympus brand as well as stir up some interest.
On you last point deriding “hipsters who want to shoot like their grandaddy”, what is wrong with that? What is wrong with a modern device that pays homage to history? And more than that, what is wrong with younger generations being attracted to such a device? How different is it than all the plebs running off and buying a DSLR because they think it takes better pictures or makes them look like a pro?
Deriding one group for its buying rationalization is just showing an odd form of prejudice, pleasure of ownership drives the purchase of a lot of products in todays market and I think it is high time people here recognize that.
JOKE ALERT!
“Fixed lens cameras with fixed focal length lenses have very limited appeal these days.”
Haven’t heard of the smartphone, have you?
If they implement a proper manual focus then there is no other camera that can match it.
A fast 28/70 mm equivalent dual focal length lens would be great. There have been dual focal length lenses in the past.
The Olympus Trip 35 has no rangefinder, you focus manually using symbols. The selenium cell has one problem, it has terrible low light sensibility. The Trip 35 is a version improved of the Olympus Pen-EES, The Pen is smaller but is a half-frame camera. Bith cameras are very simple to use and made very good pictures.
The Trip 35 was a cheap camera, I can not imagine a digital version to be cheap…
Oh look…the viewfinder is NOT in the center. I wonder if that Oly executive realizes that he effectively said Olympus did it wrong with his corporate BS like “our research indicated that the viewfinder should be in the center plane with the lens.” He was probably totally oblivious to that reality. Now that I think about it, he effectively said Leica has been doing it wrong all these decades as their viewfinder has always been off to the side.
I prefer the VF to be in the center. It’s more natural to me to lookdirectly from above the lens (especially when doing macros.
Leica has a rangefinder it’s a different way to look into a “window”. There are frame lines inside of it, on latest models they automatically change place to match the framing of the lens. Focusing with a 28mm at a close distance will shift these lines toward the lens (down-right).
And you need a second window next to the rangefinder to gather the light you need to see through it
My point was related to rangfinders only, like the Trip 35 and others originating in the film era. Technically, nothing prevented them from being centered as they only needed to be above the film line, almost universally they were situated just inside of the rewind post. That was consistent from the Kodak Instamatic on up to the high end rangefinders. SLR is a whole different issue where virtually always centered due more to the mirror path than some design philosophy, even today in the DSLR style mirrorless it remains centered where by definition, there is no mirror path.
Zooms created issues with rangefinder viewfinders and virtually all rangefinder cameras with optical viewfinders were non-zoom, with interchangeable primes having their set framing markings inside the viewfinder. Even Leica’s Vario zooms were notched primes corresponding with the viewfinder markings rather than a smooth zoom. EVF changes all that and can technically be placed anywhere on a rangefinder style back not monopolized by the LCD panel. – which usually is centered.
My point is, how dumb it was for the Oly executive to even make that statement which is nothing more than corporated doublespeak based on self serving research that is contrary to even their own corporate history.
The Trip 35 is a viewfinder camera, there is no rangefinder.
The X90s?
How about “X50s”? . . . for a price around $2k. Like a dream come true.
Maybe it’ll be the first real fruit of the partnership with Sony? Imagine a FF fixed lens camera like the Sony RX1 but with the EVF from Oly’s EM1 and 5-axis IBIS. Add a nice small 40mm F2 with coupled, fully mechanical MF and a price around $2k.
Sony has the tech, Oly has the skills. That could be a game changer and leave other fixed lens/large sensor in the dust. I never owned a Oly before and I love my X100s to death, but would be first in line for this!
Olympus “Trip” – A Freudian Slip or just another Oly FacePlant?
Imagine . . . a new Olympus camera . . . with a “fixed” manual focus lens, (like the Fuji X100s) and a “leaf shutter”, (like the Fuji X100s), and a rangefinder “look”, (like the Fuji X100s), but unlike the X100s it would say – Olympus “Trip” – right on the front, and feature a new SONY m4/3 ~ FF sensor and would be loaded up with all the conflicting wet-dreams of Olympus fans everywhere. This camera really really would be a “game changer” and easily destroy Panasonic!
Imagine Me – first in line with my $2000 . . Tripping out with the Olympus Trip.
I really, really don’t understand what you’re on about.
Trip was for the masses (they sold millions, remember? Don’t expect a $2,000 RX1-competitor.
I hope you are right, a fixed lens micro4/3 sized sensor, doesn’t add anything to my tool kit. However a FF with a fixed bright lens with OLY IBIS, could be a low light monster. It doesn’t make My EM5 irrelevant, when I travel I could see myself often taking both. As an investment for OLY it makes sense the good thing about fixed lens cameras is you don’t have your lens collection to consider when you make the purchase, its a strategy to win enthusiasts to your brand.
My surprise (concern) would be why would Sony allow Olympus to make a direct competitor to the RX1. If they sacrifice on size and allow for the rangefinder viewfinder, maybe going brighter than the f2.0 it might be sufficiently different, but any dreams of this being cheaper than an RX1 will remain dreams. Making a camera less capable than the RX1, makes it an irrelevant product. The smart phone owns the market for fixed lens digital photography for the masses. For these manufacturers all that’s left is the enthusiasts and professionals. Its got to be something amazing or its a waist of time.
During a lifetime of working for a major automobile manufacturer, I became aware of the enormous price of designing and launching of new products. At the time, it cost 1/2 Billion $$ – from the napkin sketch to the first car rolling out of the assembly plant. Even the D.O.A. Pontiac Aztek cost GM 1/2 Billion dollars to produce. The public rejected the hideous Aztek and losses of capital and prestige were huge. Even the junior execs driving a company car did not want the ugly Aztek parked in their driveways. GM . . . clueless.
Moral to story? New products are extremely expensive. Without careful, market analysis, public opinion surveys, product testing etc. . . . . imprudent investments in new products can break any company.
American auto execs aren’t exactly models of intelligence and good judgment.
What? As ugly and unwanted as it was it wasn’t what ‘broke’ GM… anyway WTF does that have to do with Olympus and the rumor of a Trip D?
Interesting idea here – in a similar way that the Trip 35 was a cheaper, cut down version of their more expensive rangefinders, perhaps this aims to undercut the PEN series.
If people are prepared to accept the fixed lens, there could be a nice little niche for people who want something better than a phone but still pocketable and cheap. If it came in at about 2/3rds of the cost of an E-PM2 I’d certainly have one
Methinks Oly had better concentrate their R&D-effort on improving the OM-D line.
What would be interesting is if they decided to make the sensor vertical. The Trip I have is a vertical viewfinder with icons (like a Holga). It’s a half-frame so I can fit 72 shots per roll in a portrait orientation that I don’t have to twist my wrist to get. But then this is a rumor site…
If they do make a Trip D, and if it’s even half as good as the Trip 35 (of which i have 2, a pre 78 and post 78) then I for one will be having one. I have had a few olympus cameras and they’ve all been great, with fantastic optics and great build quality.
Love to see a digital trip D with touch screen and easy upload to the web, email, and facebook.