Olympus E-P2

[chris-p]

Taken from DP Review

Olympus has announced the E-P2 just five months after the launch of its first Micro Four-Thirds camera, the E-P1. It's a minor upgrade with the addition of a port for a new high resolution electronic viewfinder (or external microphone), two new Art filters and a pearlescent black finish. It also gains AF tracking and includes a new i-Enhance 'colour boosting' function. Available from January 2010, the E-P2 with VF-2 electronic viewfinder and either 17mm pancake or 14-42mm zoom lens will sell for a suggested retail price of $1099.99. The company has also said it will launch the M.Zuiko Digital ED 9-18mm F4.0-5.6 wideangle and M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-150mm F4.0-5.6 superzoom Micro Four Thirds lenses in the first half of 2010.
The E-P2 represents almost as subtle an enhancement as the company's E-450 does, compared to the remarkably similar E-420. The two models will sell alongside each other, with all E-P2 kits including the plug-in viewfinder. The launch of the E-P2 so soon after E-P1 might prompt the more cynically inclined to wonder whether this is the product Olympus originally planned to create - though its similarity should mean early adopters of the E-P1 don't feel stung for having excercised their credit cards so readily.

Olympus E-P2

[Rachael DCruze]

What do you think of it Chris? You can read my thoughts in my PhotoRadar blog here.

[chris-p]

I'm not sure what to make of it reall. It's obvious that Olympus have been pushed into it thanks to the extra toys of the Panasonic GF-1 and it makes you ask the same questions that we asked when the GF-1 first came out, mainly why didn't Olympus do it in the first place?

I've not used a hybrid camera myself but I read with interest the back to back comparison of the E-P1 and GF-1 in Amateur Photographer last week. This new model seems to bring the Olympus more in line with the Panasonic but I don't think it's really a fair comparison. Ultimately they are always going to be compared with eachother but I don't think they are really aimed at the same markets.