If you are a friend of mirrorless digital cameras it probably means that compactness is high on your priority list. Though much info has been coming in on the autofocus speed and high-ISO performance of the newly announced Olympus OM-D E-M5 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) camera, we haven’t really tackled its size compared to other mirrorless camera.
continue reading
We can’t deny that the Olympus OM-D E-M5 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) digital camera stole our hearts. However the big question in our minds has been on how the camera would perform at low light and/or high ISO. Typically, Micro Four Thirds cameras have lagged other mirrorless cameras with larger sensors, like Sony’s NEX series, in this regard.
We’re still far off from the April ship date of the Olympus E-M5, so we can’t yet test the low light and high ISO performance on a production unit, however a number of high ISO shots taken with a pre-production model have been doing the rounds.
continue reading
We needn’t say much on the state of the competition in the compact mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILCs) space. In the short period of a few months we’ve seen the release of some pretty amazing high-end mirrorless shooters with very distinct design and engineering decisions and featuring a number of innovations.
The latest entrant is the Olympus OM-D E-M5 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) digital camera that has claimed a number of firsts. It’s the first MFT rangefinder-style camera with a built-in EVF and the first with a weather-sealed body, it is also the first ever camera with 5-axis image stabilization, while Olympus is claiming that the camera has the fastest autofocus of any interchangeable lens camera.
continue reading
One of the biggest criticisms for Sony’s NEX line of mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras (MILCs) is the relatively small selection of native E-mount lenses. After Sony released a trio of excellent NEX camera bodies last year, including the NEX-7 and NEX-5N, the company seems set to tackle the lens selection issue.
continue reading
After weeks of speculation, the new Olympus E-M5 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) digital camera has been announced today as part of the company’s new OM-D line. If you’ve been following our coverage so far, then you’re pretty much already briefed on what you can expect from the new Olympus E-M5.
First off, Olympus considered the E-M5 too good for the existing PEN series, so it has created the new OM-D line, borrowing a bit of nostalgia from its original 35mm film OM system. The OM-D line still belongs to the Micro Four Thirds system of digital mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras (MILCs), and a large part of the appeal of the E-M5 is the large selection of MFT lenses.
continue reading
So we finally have full images of the Olympus OM-D E-M5 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) camera. You can enjoy the camera in its entire front and back glory, together with a detachable grip and optional battery grip. Each of the grips comes its unique shutter button.
One can see the articulated rear 3-inch OLED display, integrated EVF and the large bulge at the top, which we would guess hosts a pop-up flash. Olympus is truly pushing the pro camera theme with the detachable grip, which gives the camera an SLR-style format. Panasonic has the G and GH MFT series cameras with SLR-style grips while Olympus is only producing rangefinder-style bodies.
continue reading
The Pentax K-01 mirrorless camera surely has a unique design, it’s small but thick, as a brick. There’s a reason for that though, as it can accept the huge number of K-mount lenses, designers had to maintain the format’s 45.46 mm flange back distance (the distance from the lens mount to the sensor). To compare, Micro Four Thirds has a 20mm flange back, Sony’s E-mount 18mm and Fujifilm’s new X-mount just 17.7mm.
Love it or hate it, it’s got some pretty tasty internals, including the same excellent 16.28-megapixel APS-C sensor as the Pentax K-5, of course compatibility with excellent Pentax APS-C SLR glass, 1080p video capabilities and even an HDR mode directly selectable on the mode dial — you can find a full list of specs and pictures in our initial coverage here.
continue reading
Finally here is the invitation for an Olympus press conference on February 8th. Olympus OM-D EM-5 anyone?
If someone would oblige with a translation, we’d be very grateful.
It’s been a teaser campaign alright. We first caught wind of the rumored Olympus OM-D mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILC) when the company registered it as a trademark with the US Patent and Office at the beginning of the year together with the start of the “OH MY GOODNESS!” campaign.
Ever since, we’ve been getting little, tiny, bite-sized pieces of information, such as the first rumored specs and the first leaked pictures. It’s been a long road however, up to rumored February 8th announcement for the CP+ 2012 camera show in Yokohama, Japan.
continue reading
We were the first to report that today was going to be a Pentax day. The camera maker, has just announced a the K-01 (pronounced kay- zero-one), a mirrorless APS-C camera that features a standard Pentax K-mount.
Together with the camera, Pentax has also cheered on the accomplishment of creating the world’s thinnest interchangeable lens, the 9.2mm (0.36 inch) thick DA 40mm f/2.8 XS lens. While we’ve seen a number of small pancakes in the past, particularly for MILC systems with smaller sensors, like Micro Four Thirds, this is truly tiny compared to other APS-C lenses. Pentax is no stranger to thin lenses, as it already has a 15mm thick 40mm f/2.8 Limited pancake lens.
continue reading
We already more or less know that the Pentax K-01 mirrorless camera, designed in collaboration with Marc Newson, will be announced tomorrow. We now have the first images of the K-01 camera and the new DA 40mm f/2.8 XS lens.
The camera has the rounded lines that we would expect from a Marc Newson design, and below you can also see the K-01 in all three colors, including a really bright yellow — we know that Pentax has a thing for bright colors if the K-r is any indication.
We can’t say we are too enamored with the design, as we are with the design of the Fujifilm X-Pro1 let’s say, but if this camera is priced competitively, as most Pentax cameras are, it will be great value for money. After all, image quality is expected to be top-notch, as this camera is rumored to have the same 16-megapixel sensor as the excellent Pentax K-5. Another big selling point of this MILC (mirrorless interchangeable lens camera) is that it will be compatible with a huge selection of current Pentax K-mount lenses; that’s a big advantage for anyone already invested in the system, as well as over other mirrorless systems with more limited lens choice.
continue reading
Undoubtedly Fujifilm has created quite a stir in the digital camera world with its retro looking X-series cameras putting image quality and full manual controls as priorities. The Fujifilm X100 was one of our favorite pieces of tech for 2011, and the company recently announced the X-Pro1 interchangeable camera, improving on already amazing X100.
You can find more information on the X-Pro1 in our initial coverage here, check-out over forty minutes of hands-on videos and have a look at a comparison against other high-end mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras (MILCs).
continue reading
We’ll file this into ironic. We were day-dreaming during the weekend over the old Asahi Pentax, and today we received the above invitation for a new product launch event by Pentax in London on February 2nd. The new camera has been designed in collaboration with Sydney-born industrial designer Marc Newson, famous for combining smooth organic lines and bright vivid colors into his products.
The timing matches previous rumors for a new K-mount camera announcement from Pentax, just in time for the CP+ camera show in Yokohama. All rumors point to a new mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILC) to be named Pentax K-01. Again quoting previous rumors, the K-01 will have the same 16-megapixel sensor as the K-5, it will support K-mount lenses but will come with its own new DA 40mm f2.8 lens that is less than 1cm thick.
continue reading
Last year we were pretty excited with the new Sony OLED electronic viewfinder (EVF), which we tested on the Sony A65 camera, and can also be found in the Sony A77 and NEX-7.
The 0.5-inch ECX331A XGA (1024×768 RGB) 2,400k dot Sony OLED panel found in the above cameras, had at the time the highest resolution and pixel density of any commercial microdisplay. The benefit is that it provides an incredibly clear image, finally challenging optical viewfinders.
We’ve been championing electronic viewfinders as the future replacement to optical viewfinders in cameras, for some time now, because they offer certain clear advantages. First of all you can do away with the typical reflex mirror used to reflect part of the oncoming light from your lens to the pentaprism in optical viewfinders; as a result, you get more light onto your sensor and a more compact camera – see mirrorless cameras.
An EVF can also be more informative and customizable, with overlay information, and because you are effectively always looking at what the camera CMOS sensor is seeing, you have an exact live preview of what you will be shooting when you press the shutter button.
Until recently however, EVFs generally sucked, you had a pixelated image with a lot of lag and usually bad color reproduction and poor contrast.
continue reading
Fujifilm X100S camera announced with fast AF and new 16.3MP X-Trans II sensor (hands-on video)January 6, 2013
Supposed Sony Nexus X images leakOctober 15, 2012
Asus 4.7-inch Padfone 2 demoed in video with new slimmer tablet dockOctober 14, 2012
Upcoming Google Nexus 4 smartphone by LG poses for camera in leaked picsOctober 11, 2012
Skype for Android with video chat official for some, unofficially for Galaxy S II, HTC Evo 3D, Thunderbolt, Sensation and othersJuly 1, 2011
Stuff-Review giveaway: win a B&N Nook Color, leather case and 4GB microSD cardOctober 12, 2011
Stuff-Review giveaway: win a PowerSkin silicon case with built-in batteryAugust 21, 2011
Connecting the Galaxy Nexus to your computer via MTP and the lack of USB Mass StorageDecember 10, 2011
