Image courtesy: CameraSize.

The last couple of weeks I got feedback from store owners saying the E-PM2 is now discontinued. Some of them also said the E-P5 has been discontinued too. They have been told by Olympus reps new model are on the horizon. It is likely that Olympus will announce them in a timeframe set between May and June. There are no info yet about possible specs. All we know for certain is that the PEN line isn’t as successful as the OMD line and Olympus needs to reinvent the wheel to make it very attractive! It’s likely the E-PL has been discontinued too (although store owners didn’t confirm yet).

You tell me what you expect from these new models! And sources may tell me what we can expect for real :)

P.S.: In US the E-Pm2 with double lens kit sell for less than $400 at Amazon (Click here).

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For sources: Sources can send me anonymous info at 43rumors@gmail.com (create a fake gmail account) or via contact form you see on the right sidebar. Thanks!
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Rumors classification explained (FT= FourThirds):
FT1=1-20% chance the rumor is correct
FT2=21-40% chance the rumor is correct
FT3=41-60% chance the rumor is correct
FT4=61-80% chance the rumor is correct
FT5=81-99% chance the rumor is correct

Our reader “U-photo” made this useful size comparison between the 12-40mm PRO lens and the next PRO 40-150mm f/2.8 zoom. Big, but still less huge than f/2.8 tele zooms like the [shoplink 44875 ebay]Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 (FF) lens[/shoplink].

P.S.: A new E-M1 review has been posted at Danielkcheung.com.

With the GH4 buzz some of the important Olympus news may have been missed. Here is a roundup!

OMD rules:
Olympus financial results got better thanks to the OMD line. And that’s why Olympus claimed in their latest report that they want to focus their resources on new OMD camera development and OMD marketing. But what should be done to compete against the competition?

No rangefinder designed PEN:
Mr Terada from Olympus made it clear that the optimal position for an EVF is on the lens axis. This basically kills the rumor from a Japanese Magazine saying there would be soon a new PEN with integrated EVF in the corners.

The lens strategy:
The 40-150mm f/2.8 and 300mm f/4.0 PRO zoom will be released in 2015. But Olympus is also developing some prime lenses with big “WOW” effect. A 12 or 14mm f/1.0 for example!

New firmware coming:
OMD cameras will get a new firmware update that enhances the EVF capability. It’s not clear what the new features will be. Maybe a split screen just like the Fuji X-T1?

That’s it for now. Let’s see if trusted sources can soon tell us more about the Olympus 2014-2015 strategy!

Images via DC.watch.

During the GH4 presentation in Tokyo Panasonic showed again their MFT lens roadmap which includes the 15mm f/1.7 Leica and 35-100mm compact zoom. Still no news about the exact release date and pricing. But you can see two more pictures of preproduction version here:

Source: DC.watch.

A Japanese magazine is speculating about a soon to be released new PEN camera with integrated viewfinder. Well it’s possible this will happen and Olympus certainly needs to create some buzz on the PEN system after the OMD system did “steal the show”.

As you know for the latest Olympus financial reports (Click here) PEN sales were lower as expected and they need to clear the confusing PEN strategy. E-Pl, E-PM, E-P, are three small different PEN lines really necessary?

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A source just told me the following:

Olympus is preparing a small firmware update to the 3 OM-D cameras as well as the E-P5. To be clear, this update will not bring focus-peaking to the E-M5. However, it will add several new features when shooting through the viewfinder (VF-4 only for the E-P5). These features will…. surprise.

And as I reported on Saturday a new E-M1 firmware update is planned to improve audio recording levels of 3 steps up to 21 steps.

—
For sources: Sources can send me anonymous info at 43rumors@gmail.com (create a fake gmail account) or via contact form you see on the right sidebar. Thanks!
For readers: Don’t miss any news. Join our group on facebook and follow our tweets.

Rumors classification explained (FT= FourThirds):
FT1=1-20% chance the rumor is correct
FT2=21-40% chance the rumor is correct
FT3=41-60% chance the rumor is correct
FT4=61-80% chance the rumor is correct
FT5=81-99% chance the rumor is correct

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I really like Samyang because they make some great and cheap (in terms of price) lenses. So it’s good to hear that they will soon make autofocus lenses too! According to Photorumors they will also launch their new company logo the coming days (image on top).

The real one thing they still have to fix are the many different brand names they use to sell their lenses! eBay links to all different branded Samyang lenses:
[shoplink 20647 ebay]Samyang [/shoplink], [shoplink 20684 ebay]Walimex [/shoplink], [shoplink 20649 ebay]Rokinon [/shoplink], [shoplink 20650 ebay]Opteka [/shoplink], [shoplink 20651 ebay]Falcon [/shoplink], [shoplink 20653 ebay]Vivitar [/shoplink] and[shoplink 20652 ebay]Bower [/shoplink].

Damn confusing :)