E-M5 and XZ-2 win IFA designer award. E-M5 deal reminder.
The E-M5 collects one award after another. Now it even earned the prize for the best camera design at IFA AWARD (Source: Olympus UK). And also the XZ-2 won an award for the best compact camera design.
P.S.: Don’t forget that you can save up to $100 on Olympus Digital Cameras including the E-M5 (Check the amazon deal description). In Europe thirteen ref. E-M5 in Stock at Olympusmarket.
Erik Aaseth
5 months ago |Oly is doing well p.t!
Nice to see that they are not only innovative tech-wise, but know a thing or two about design and ergonomics as well!
Olympan
5 months ago |+1
Looking forward to see the OMD pro camera and a micro 4/3 version of the 50-200mm f2.8-4 Oly lens.
jytop
5 months ago |Oly is doing great as long as you don’t look at the finances of the imaging division lol .Truth be told if any company other than Olympus had a division that has been failing for at least a decade it would be gone sold or closed down.
Abraham
5 months ago |Dont be silly. There are tonnes of companies who run a deficit for years. Apple springs to mind as being on life support for nearly a decade (90s), Pentax has spent years skirting with losses, Facebook has never really had a profit for all its hype…
Companies exist that dont make a profit for years, product lines withing companies make losses regularly etc. Olympus doesnt have very many consumer lines… It has some audio recorders and the camera division. Keeping its product name around while keeping alive products that are historically important to the company (Cameras) is reason enough.
Combine that with some real efforts, the 43rds lens linup, and now the m43rds bodies and lens sets show a real commitment to compete.
johnytr
5 months ago |@Abraham , you are right about other companies that do not make a profit but keep on going .However Olympus have been involved in a massive financial fraud , and it is bad business to keep a failing division as it invariably drags down the overall company. Perhaps that is what the poster meant by any company other than OLympus , meaning that the imaging division is a core part of their tradition and they are therefore more likely to support a failing departments than some of the other companies.
I am a very happy mFT user but I honestly think that it is only a matter of time till either Canon or Nikon release a proper larger sensor mirrorless and mFT ill not dominate the space. Look how we’ll the relatively poor offerings from NIkon and in particular Canon capturing a decent share of the market .I don’t care if mFT is top dog as long as it keeps going. But considering the supposed success of mFT in the market place the numbers coming from Panasonic and OLympus financial statements regarding imaging divisions have been pretty poor , with essentially no real competition.
balthier bunansa
5 months ago |Olympus’ core bussiness is medical instruments
Abraham
5 months ago |The fraud and the business activities are unrelated. To be honest it would be worse for them to start folding divisions of their company after such a disaster.
One thing people need to remember is that while mirrorless is a division as far as the companies are concerned and enthusiasts, for the buying public they are cameras… good ones, pro ones, etc. But just cameras. Someone looking to buy a T4i would be well served with an EPL5 or the like, many are choosing it.
Personally others have asked my advice, and my advice has steered 7 people in the last 6 months to mirrorless… they in turn will advise or educate others in their social circles etc. This is exponential, and change is gradual. To undo 20 years of Canon and Nikon will take more than a few successful cameras.
As for Nikon and Canon, either Nikon will abandon the 1 series, or will introduce another mount?? SO they will have the 1 series, APSC mirrorless, DX and FX? Considering DX lenses still have holes, and 1 series needs a lot of work… I doubt the prediction. Canon? They have the APSC body, however elements such as AF are right back with the EP1, body styling is with the EPM2 and lenses need a lot of work… Sony has great bodies but still needs lenses and Fuji is not targeting any mainstream users, and Pentax is not in a financially great place.
So given time, and there is some, and given momentum, and we have it, m43rds will continue to grow. The support coming from third party lensmakers is growing, and the lens suite from Olympus and Panasonic will be hard to keep up with for any singular competitor.
bart
5 months ago |There is more then a little bit of overlap with regards to technology and research between the medical and imaging divisions, especially when it comes to optical engineering, sensors and image processing. As a consequence, there might very well be a ‘hidden cost’ to the medical division if the imaging division is no longer around.
Abraham
5 months ago |You obviously haven’t been following the profitability of Starbucks in the UK. Apparently they haven’t made a profit for many years so they have plans to expand and employ several thousand people over the next few years so they can lose even more.
The Real Stig
5 months ago |Actually, that reply was from me.
johnytr
5 months ago |Starbucks is in a tax evasion scenario very different from Olympus where the imaging division is losing money and has been doing so for a long time , perhaps the hundreds of millions of dollars fraud slipped your mind.
The Real Stig
5 months ago |Tongue was firmly in cheek.
Kudo
5 months ago |There are a lot of things that are good about the EM-5.
The design is not among them.
lnqo-M
5 months ago |Yes need also a white vertion off E-M5.
Anonymous
5 months ago |I like the look of the OMD, but slavishly sticking to an outmoded film camera design forced them to compromise the ergonomics. Hopefully the OMD v.2 will rectify that.
W. C.
5 months ago |The stupid tilt screen with the dumb border eats up too much space. Tilt screen needs a redesign. Then there will be more room for some decent sized buttons on the right side. That, or increase the body width a little.
Dannecus
5 months ago |Yes, the E-M5 looks lovely, but a triumph of style over substance. The hump in the middle really isn’t necessary, a flatter bump would have been adequate and the buttons on the back are too small. The ergonomics of the control wheels look good though.
I’m hopeful they will feel less restraint with the new Pen (E-P5) and let usability decide the shape. But Oly products are known for their good looks so I am still a little afraid the retro good looks requirement will cause some compromises. The E series is butt ugly, but users seem to like the way they handle, I guess that is the cost of designing for use rather than beauty.
The Real Stig
5 months ago |Isn’t it?
http://fourthirds-user.com/galleries/data/550/9180001.jpg
Ross
5 months ago |I hope you’ve looked at the photo (from 4/3′s User) & noticed the so called hump could not have been made any smaller. The EVF is immediately above the screen followed by the accessories port & topped by the hot shoe. Do you want a smaller display? No, I don’t think so! That story was started by the likes of the Canikon trolls way back at the start & is now history. Now Canon users are ditching their 5D’s & 7D’s etc., for the smaller M4/3′s outfits (& mostly for the OM-D). http://www.mu-43.com/f35/i-am-now-100-m4-3rds-sold-off-my-canon-39464/
Bob
5 months ago |It’s a great camera, hoser.
tomm
5 months ago |+100
espiacially concerning the desogn of ALL Olympus cameras except the old SLR series OM (1, 2, 3 and 4) are urgly compared with the state of the art industrial design..
i think it is only because no toher company has made it better, so the german industrial design award could not be given to another competitor..
test
5 months ago |test
W. C.
5 months ago |XZ-2 is overpriced. $399 at most. $599? No thanks.
lnqo-M
5 months ago |Yes, realy why not a E-PM2 by 14-42mm?
bossyhy
5 months ago |damn straight you can pick up a Panasonic G3 with kit lens built in EVF etc for $399
Anonymous
5 months ago |It´s the iF award. IFA = Internationale Funkaustellung.
Bob
5 months ago |Please don’t post this info over at DPReview…the poor bloggers will have a cow.
test5
5 months ago |test5
test8
5 months ago |test8
Litchao
5 months ago |I find this rather odd, as a serious photographer, since I don’t have or want either of those cameras. The market must be for beginners.
Ross
5 months ago |You might think it odd but other serious & professional ex Canon users are going Micro 4/3′s (with a lot going for the Em5). See my posting further up with the link to a forum thread on this subject.
Anonymous
5 months ago |i think Panasonic win the award too,..the fastest discontinued mirror less camera on GF5
avds
5 months ago |The EM5 is sure cool. XZ2 looks kind of crass next to it.
milez
5 months ago |The very reason why E-M5 and XZ-2 won design awards is because, Olympus never copied others’ design. Unlike the rest, RX100, RX1, EOS M, Nikon V1, J2, X100, XF1, XE-1, Pentax MX1 … all of them resemble the Leica M more or less.
E-M5 resembles their very own OM1
XZ-2 resemble their own E-PM1 PEN Mini.
Mitchell
5 months ago |dont care…cause I dont see any pros using m43 let alone sony.