From time to time you can read on forums comments from people being concerned about the MFT future. I guess it’s a normal reaction when you read all these financial news about the electronics market (stagnating sales, losses in companies and so on). But there is one simple image I can show you to prove how future proof the Micro Four Thirds system is. With the most recent addition of JVC this is now the list of companies officially supporting the MFT standard (Image source: four-thirds.org). Quite amazing what Olympus-Panasonic achieved in these few years!
Funny note: Didn’t know that our Panasonic Fool’s days joke did upset Hitler too 🙂
52 Responses
Yeah, I hope you can see what a silly thing it was to do.
I think you should skip Tamron 🙂 …also would like to learn what Fuji do for m43 ?
Tamron is a supporting member. The list isn’t invented by admin, it’s the official list of supporting companies. Fuji were a tech partner of Olympus on the Four Thirds standard, but hasn’t been actively involved since the Micro Four Thirds standard was introduced.
“Tech partner” = put your name on a list, but never follow up with any product, choosing instead to go in a completely different direction.
Let’s get real. Very few of these actually support the system.
They all support the system. Only Olympus, Panasonic and JK Imaging make stills cameras, though. Some companies make lenses, others make video or cinema cameras, and quite a few companies make industrial cameras with m43 mounts.
Eastman Kodak, Fujifilm and Sanyo became members in the early days, when Olympus created the Four Thirds standard, and they provided tech for Olympus’ cameras. They probably have nothing to do with the Micro Four Thirds standard.
Finally. Leica made a 4/3 DSLR, but they probaby arent involved in m43, other than lending their name to some of Panasonic’s lenses.
Kodak makes a camera for micro four thirds now. Not sure about Sanyo.
That is not Kodak Eastman – that is JK Imaging using the licensed Kodak trademark. Eastman Kodak do not make cameras, they are essentially a specialised high volume print company.
Actually Leica does more than just stamp their name on certain Panny lenses. Those Panny lenses have to meet some pretty strict guidelines by Leica to have their name on them. Its more collaborative than you may think.
So there are really only two camera companies. It’s just another proprietary format but shared by two camera companies rather than just one.
In the early days they tried so very hard to sign up other manufacturers, and even lined up some famous marques. But at the end of the day, there are really only two makers of cameras. (Hint: nobody buys the “Kodak” and nobody has ever bought a JVC mickey four-three)
Yeah, one could make another adaptation of Hitler video with comments on what company from the list actually brought something useful to the system. If Tamron, Sigma, Tokina and Zeiss made 10% of various lenses they produce for DSLRs with m4/3 mount, m4/3 would be the leading system now. They didn’t even bother to make native m4/3 versions of their top lenses, let alone make them in equivalent focal lengths. Fuji is also the one just making up the numbers.
Btw, the video is excellent.
Yes these Tamron-Spaghettis, they don’t fight, they collaborate with our enemies, these cowards,…we don’t need them, leave us alone
M4/3 IS the leading format (in terms of 3rd party support). I don’t see any other mirroless format doing any better, how many companies does NEX or X trans currently have designing lenses for them ? or cameras ? how many total lenses do they have compared to m4/3 ? As I said earlier, only Canon and Nikon can claim to have larger lens catalogs as well as wider 3rd party support and they had decades to build that reputation…m4/3 has achieved almost as much in just 6 years, so as far as mirrorless is concerned, m4/3 is the one closest to becoming the standard.
Samyang likely belongs on this list.
No, this is the official list from the Four Thirds website. Samyang is not a member, which meand that they reverse engineer the mount.
Good point.
Yes, but those lenses are sold under three different brands.
Samyang, Rokinon and Bower.
So who really makes them? 😉
Samyang
Voigtlander?!
Cosina makes the Voigtländer-branded lenses.
oh yes exactly I have forgot that
So, even Hitler supports M4/3! Ja? 😉
Very funny video, Admin!
That clip from “Downfall” has been appropriated over and over again, but whoever did this one wrote very smart and funny dialogue.
and SLR Magic (noktor) ?!
and Nanoha 5x macro too?
All makers of m43 lenses aren’t members of the m43 standard group. Samyang, SLR Magic and some others have to reverse engineer the lens mount, because they aren’t official supporting companies.
No Samyang on thr list? No Sony which makes m43 sensors?
No, neither Samyang nor Sony are members of the group. Sony doesn’t need access to the mount specifications to make sensors, even though Kodak became a member in the old days, when they provided the sensors for Olympus.
Define “success story”.
No need, the rest of us reading this aren’t fools
US education? M43 shooter?
Hey man, do yourself a favor and stop coming here, you have a serious problem and I dearly hope it doesn’t extend into real life (if you actually have any). Are you a grown man or an actual 12 year old ? Do you even pay any bills ? Do you even have a job ? Do you have children (oh gosh I hope not) ? I hope you’re just an immature teen with no life because if you’re really an ¨adult¨ then you’re carrying one bitter and sorry excuse of a life dude. Are you even into photography or is this all you do, troll people 24/7 using different accounts (how obviously pathetic) ? If you have any shred of self-respect then do yourself a favor and stop coming here, get out of your mom’s basement, take some sunlight and get an actual life, a GF or a dog , go out, learn a new hobby (I don’t know, photography maybe ?), have fun…because, my man, you have a serious pathological disorder.
A real brain would be awesome, loser…
How does Fuji support M4/3rds?
Schneider has been threatening lenses for 4 years but nuthin yet.
Sigma 2 lenses in 4 years, no updates.
This list is a bit fluffy.
Five lenses actually. 19 and 30 f/2.8 EX DN and then the 19, 30 and 60 f/2.8 ART lenses.
you just listed 3 lenses not 5l
I didn’t know about the 60 Art, is that new or available?
There are five different lenses, three are currently available, two are earlier versions of two of the newer ones. I agree, somewhat lackluster, although the 60 is one of the better lenses for the system.
http://www.dxomark.com/Lenses/Sigma/Sigma-60mm-F28-DN-A-Mount-43
It would be nice to see them release something more interesting, like a f/1.8 zoom or something. We’ll have to see what the coming years bring.
3 lenses over the span of 2 years since joining isn’t bad at all, it’s not too different from their DSLR record, to compare them to 1st party releases is a bit unfair, what Oly and Pany have done in these few years is remarkably amazing. M4/3 has amassed an impressively large gallery of lenses in just a few years, the only other systems that are larger than m4/3 are Canon and Nikon’s, and that took them decades. M4/3 has achieved in 6 years what took the canikon duopoly more than double that time, to ask a 3rd party manufacturer like Sigma to even come close to Oly and Pany’s effort is unfair to say the least.
As far as I know from previous rumors, Fuji and Panasonic are working together on organic sensors.
just because they companies are working on sensor tech does not mean it’s for M/4/3rds or that Fuji has ANY plans to produce that format. Should probably REMOVE Fuji from that list.
Why does it disturb you so much? 🙂 relax, Fuji is not going to put a small sensor inside its ICL cameras, and maybe, maybe, soon you’ll have bigger and heavier lenses to match a biiig “full frame” x-trans sensor. You asked what is Fuji doing, and developping a new sensor technology is the answer. Fuji will use it on its products as well as Panasonic. It’s called collaboration, something that photographers, amaterus and not, too often don’t understand.
It’s less disturbing and more disappointing. When I first saw their name on there, I wondered: Will Fuji start making m4/3 cameras and lenses? That would be great! But obviously they aren’t and therefore, there is really no reason for them to be on that list. Also Zeiss does not make any m4/3 lenses either. Not sure why they are on that list.
Oh but they do, quite a few in fact, all native :
http://www.adorama.com/l/Lenses/Zeiss~Mirrorless-Lenses?sel=Lens-Mount_Micro-Four-Thirds
Also, why would anyone need to be limited to just either cameras or lenses to be on the list ? If a company is actively developing technology that will eventually be incorporated into either Oly, Pany or Kodak’s cameras or lenses then I think it’s fair game. Any contribution to the standard is of benefit to us, I’m actually surprised Sony is not in the list at all since they do most of today’s m4/3 sensors.
Good to see Zeiss does make cinema glass for this system. Would be nice to see them delve into making a slightly less astronomical priced option but that’s still cool.
In regards to technology that is eventually incorporated I have to ask… where do we draw the line? There is technology in every digital camera that was assimilated from something else. Should those companies be on that list? Agreed that Sony should be there as they do actually make some m4/3s sensors for other manufacturers.
Yes, but that’s not why Fuji is a member. They joined the old Four Thirds group even before Panasonic did. Like Kodak and Sanyo, they cooperated with Olympus on the first Four Thirds DSLRs. Then Panasonic joined, followed by Leica and Sigma. All the other companies joined the group after the switch to Micro Four Thirds.
Whensly asked how Fuji is supporting m43 system, and I gave him the answer (based on rumors read here). I don’t know, nor I’m interested, in those kind of economical aspects, I find more interesting how some people keep considering different Companies and systems as they were enemy tribes. Come on guys, it’s Photography, enjoy it. 😉
Most of the brands in that list i don’t know. Would be nice to see more mainstream third-party lens-makers in their – if they actually offer interesting lenses.
What do you mean ? Brand-wise, Kodak (JK), Voighlander (Cosina), Zeiss, Schneider, Sigma, Tamron, Tokina are as mainstream as it gets in the photography world, there’s hardly anyone left out of that list, any more mainstream and you would need to have both Canon and Nikon making lenses for m4/3 because that’s pretty much the entirety of the industry right there (most relevant manufacturers anyway). If you can’t recognize most of those names then I’m guessing you started not long ago ? have a look at some of their lenses (and cameras), you’ll find some pretty awesome gems of photographic history (good thing we can adapt most of them to m4/3) * wink
What about LEGO?
A lego m4/3 camera would actually be awesome
A real brain would be awesome…
I know how Hitler feels. I said almost the same exact things when you fooled me!!!
This just official list. I could bet some companies on that list contributes less than some companies that not on the list to m43 format.