Olympus today made their expected announcement of new m4/3 cameras and accessories. We have three new cameras, the entry level E-PM1, the E-PL3, and the E-P3. The last two cameras are updates to existing Olympus cameras, the first is an entirely new model. All three models have Olympus' new focus system and utilize the same new 12mp sensor (more on that in a bit) and TruePic VI image processor. Here's how things stack up:
- E-PM1 (Pen Mini): the new basic, entry-level camera with a simplified user interface, 3" 460k dot LCD, comes in six colors, price and availability to be announced.
- E-PL3 (Pen Lite): adds a tilting LCD and extra controls to the E-PM1. Considerably modified from the E-PL2, including a slimming down despite the tiltable LCD. But it loses the flash in the process. Comes in four colors. Price and availability to be announced.
- E-P3: adds a pop-up flash and 3" 614k dot touch-sensitive OLED LCD to the E-P2. Supports 1080i/60 video. While the camera looks like an E-P2, it's a complete rework from bottom to top. Also, the front finger grip comes in a couple of different sizes, for different sized hands. US$899 includes new kit lens or 17mm pancake. Comes in white, silver, or black. Available in August.
There's surprisingly little differentiation in key features of the three cameras. They all use the same sensor, have basically the same core feature set. The LCD varies between the three, the flash sync (and internal flash) varies, and the frame rate is different (5.5 fps for the lower models with IS off, 4.1 with it on, 3 for the higher end E-P3!). How you control the cameras is basically the same in the menu system, but each model up the line has more external controls and user-customization capability.
Olympus' press releases and Web sites aren't much help in differentiating the models, and I found a couple of mistakes on them, as well. Worse still, OlympusUSA is now in the confusing position of marketing six different Pen models (three incoming, three outgoing), and the best different at or they really provide on their site is simply price. Of course, none of the three new models are available yet and apparently won't be for a couple of months, further confusing customers. Olympus, like most of the camera companies, seems to be of the "keep the customer confused" mentality in terms of marketing (yes, there's really a type of marketing that utilizes customer confusion). Either that, or they're just confused themselves.
I like the way one person put it: Olympus has released the same camera in three different bodies. Basically true, and the body differentiation, other than the flash and LCD on the top-end model, isn't particularly big.
Three new lenses were announced, all supporting the new FAST autofocus system (again, more on that further down):
- 12mm f/2 MSC (24mm equivalent) at US$799. Metal construction. 11 elements in 8 groups, one ED element, one aspherical. First Olympus m4/3 lens with focus and DOF markings (when pulled out to MF position), minimum focus is 20cm.
- 45mm f/1.8 MSC (90mm equivalent) at US$399. 9 elements in 8 groups. Metal construction.
- 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 (28-84mm equivalent).
The big news, though, is that Olympus has taken the Panasonic Live MOS sensor and modified it. The exact modifications are still unknown. One person I trust who apparently has an E-P3 under test says he sees a one-stop improvement.
The new autofocus system is called FAST. FAST stands for Frequency Acceleration Sensor Technology, an awkward nomenclature to get the marketing buzzy acronym. The name doesn't exactly describe what's going on in the technology. Someone in marketing got their back slapped by management this week. Olympus touts FAST as the "World's Fastest AF," which of course is followed by an asterisk. Like Olympus' last claim in this respect (E-5), they're talking about Single Servo focus, not continuous autofocus. And they're talking about "with new lenses." Plus the speed claims do not extend to low light performance. The first distinction is important, because Olympus also hasn't provided sensor blackout times (even mirrorless systems have blackouts due to their double-shutter). They did provide a shutter lag speed of 60ms, which is about the same as a D7000. Noticeably absent in the Olympus announcement information are technical details on any of the sensor and focusing changes.
Do these new cameras acquire focus quickly, much like a DSLR? Yes. Do they retain focus on moving subjects like a high-end DSLR? Unknown, but unlikely. Are they better than previous mirrorless models? Absolutely.
I'm sure we'll hear more about the new Olympus models in the coming months as early units trickle into reviewer hands and the company releases more technical information.
Overall I judge this to be a nice set of products from Olympus. Focus is improved, lots of small things have been addressed, fixed, or improved, the two new lenses fill in some gaps for enthusiasts, and I'm excited to try them out. As many of you know, I've been using a Pen for some of my work since my Africa trip in 2009. I'm sure that will continue, given the new models' features.