Olympus Expands “Olympus E-System” Lineup With the development of New Digital SLR Cameras, And Interchangeable Lenses
Olympus Outlines the Next Chapter of its Professional DSLR and Family of Lenses
Olympus Imaging Corporation (President: Masaharu Okubo) is pleased to
announce the plans to significantly expand the Olympus E-System, its
industry-leading lineup of interchangeable-lens digital SLRs compliant
with the Four Thirds System standard. Two new cameras are being
announced today — the E-410, an ultra-compact, ultra-lightweight
go-anywhere camera, and the E-510, a versatile, high-performance camera
with advanced functions including new Mechanical Image sensor shift
image stabilization A third, the eagerly anticipated successor to the
revolutionary E-1 designed for professional use and destined to take
over as flagship of the Olympus lineup, will make its debut this year.
All three models incorporate the Fulltime Live View function, an
enhanced rear panel LCD monitor that can be used to compose images
while shooting, making these cameras suitable for both newcomers and
professionals. These same capabilities, together with a wealth of
professional level features and functions, will form the basis of the
forthcoming successor to the E-1. As befitting a camera that will serve
as the flagship of the Olympus lineup, the E-1’s successor will boast
tremendous improvements in both performance and functionality, taking
the excellent picture quality, mobility and reliability of the E-1 to
new and unprecedented levels.
To support the new cameras, Olympus is also developing four
interchangeable lenses. All will be fully compliant with the Four
Thirds System standard, and three will incorporate the newly developed
SWD (Supersonic Wave Drive) autofocusing system. Olympus also announces
that it would be introducing a 2x teleconverter. These lens products
are expected to be available from this year.
The products under development will be exhibited as reference products
at the PMA 2007 International Convention and Trade Show in Las Vegas,
USA from March 8 to 11, and at Photo-Imaging Expo 2007 (PIE2007) from
March 22 to 25 at the Tokyo Big Site, Japan.
The first chapter in the Olympus E-System story began in the fall of
2003 with the launch of the award-winning E-1. This not only marked
Olympus's entry into the digital SLR camera market, it heralded the
arrival of the world's first fully digital SLR camera system based on
the Four Thirds System standard. Since then, the “designed for digital”
Olympus E-System has continued to set new benchmarks for professional
image quality, performance, mobility, and reliability thanks to
compact, lightweight designs supported by innovative features like our
advanced Dust Reduction System.
Today, the Olympus E-System has grown to include 17 ZUIKO DIGITAL
lenses, and a wide range of accessories including a teleconverter lens
and an extension tube, with sales of more than one million units
worldwide.
In Cologne, Germany in the fall of 2006 — three years after the E-1
made its debut — Olympus boldly proclaimed at Photokina 2006 that,
“Chapter Two (in the history of Olympus E-System) will begin in 2007,
we will continue to develop revolutionary features that extend the
frontiers of DSLR photography, and to strengthen the Olympus E-System
body, lens, and accessory lineup. A successor to our current E-1
flagship will also be introduced in 2007. We will continue to develop
Olympus E-System bodies, lenses, and accessories for a wide range of
genres, so that even more people are able to take photographs that
could never be taken before.”
One of the main elements distinguishing the products in Chapter Two
from those in Chapter One is the incorporation of the Fulltime Live
View function, In combination with the 100% Dedicated Digital Design
and the Dust Reduction System that form the foundation of the Olympus
E-System, the Fulltime Live View function brings a new level of
usability to digital SLR photography. With the introduction of the
ultra-compact, ultra-light E-410 for go-anywhere mobility, the
versatile E-510 with enhanced features such as Mechanical Image sensor
shift image stabilization and the in-development successor to the E-1
which will offer the high reliability required for professional use,
Olympus hopes to offer a comprehensive camera lineup that will appeal
to a wide range of uses and unlock the full potential of digital SLR
photography. The excellent visibility and shooting versatility made
possible by the "Live View" LCD screen not only make shooting as easy
and simple as with a compact camera, they facilitate the creation of
dramatically new photographic art with images shot from new and unique
angles.
At the core of the lineup in Chapter Two will be the successor to the
E-1, scheduled for release this year. Inheriting all the superb
features that made the E-1 the reference point for digital SLR cameras,
the new camera's performance has been enhanced with the addition of
powerful new functions, a rugged design to withstand heavy-duty
professional use, improved specifications and greater system
extendibility.
In addition, the interchangeable lenses announced today also
incorporate advanced new features such as the revolutionary SWD
(Supersonic Wave Drive) which makes possible the world's fastest-class
auto focusing, the enhanced super telescopic zoom capability that is
one of the biggest advantages of the Four Thirds System standard.
Olympus will continue to develop new products that will help users ”to
take photographs that could never be taken before” the Olympus E-System.
Main Features of Individual Products
Flagship of interchangeable-lens DSLR camera - E-1 successor model
(Name undecided)
An interchangeable-lens, Four Thirds System Standard-compliant DSLR
camera designed for professional use, incorporating the Fulltime Live
View function. Detailed specifications for this product will be
announced this year.
Three new lenses with high-speed SWD (Supersonic Wave Drive) AF
The newly developed, original SWD system enables automatic focusing at
ultra-high speed with ultra-high precision and silence. When combined
with the forthcoming E-1 successor model, these lenses will achieve the
world's fastest-class autofocusing. A mechanical manual focusing
mechanism is also provided for comfortable manual focusing with
accurate response.
ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 12-60mm (24-120mm) F2.8-4.0 SWD
An HG (High-Grade) series 5x telephoto zoom lens with wide angle
equivalent to a 24 mm lens on 35 mm film camera. With a maximum
aperture of F2.8 at the widest angle of 12 mm, this lens boasts
brightness that's at the top of the class among zoom lenses covering
such a wide angle.
ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 50-200mm (100-400mm) F2.8-3.5 SWD
An advanced, high-performance 4x telephoto zoom lens also belonging to
the HG series. While improving the color blur property of the current
ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 50-200mm F2.8-3.5 lens and incorporating the new SWD
mechanism in the AF drive, this new lens maintains the same high image
quality with excellent resolution and contrast throughout the zoom
range.
ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14-35mm (28-70mm)F2.0 SWD
The world's first standard zoom lens to feature a wide aperture of F2.0
throughout the zoom range, this lens also boasts the top-level image
quality and operability unique to the SHG (Super High Grade) series.
This lens completes the series of Zuiko Digital zoom lenses with fixed
F-stop that cover ultra wide-angle to super-telephoto photographing
together with the ED 7-14mm F4.0, ED 35-100mm F2.0 and ED 90-250mm
F2.8.
Telephoto zoom lens - ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 70-300mm (140-600mm) F4.0-5.6
A 4.3x telephoto zoom lens that covers the super-telephoto area
equivalent to a 600 mm lens for 35 mm film cameras. Boasting excellent
cost efficiency, this lens will be released as part of the Standard
series.
2x teleconverter - ZUIKO DIGITAL 2.0x Teleconverter EC-20
A teleconverter that doubles the focal length of the master lens
* Figures inside parentheses ( ) indicate the equivalent focal length of a 35 mm film camera
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