Hasta La Gadget!

There’s a brand new compact digital camera here in the Olympus camp and it’s aiming for greatness with Stylus XZ-2 iHS on its name tag and high-performance point-and-shoot action on its list of checkmarks. This device has the lovely 4x optical / 4x Digital zoom iZUIKO DIGITAL f1.8-2.5 large-diameter lens favored by the predecessor to this device from Olympus and adds a hybrid control ring, a touch-sensitive tilt screen, and a TruePic VI image processor. You’ll be rocking with Full HD movie recording as well as FlashAir compatibility to rock and roll with your smartphone or mobile-connected tablets instantly – social time!

Inside you’ve got a 12-megapixel 1/1.7″ high-sensitivity back-lit CMOS sensor teamed up with the same processor you’ll find in the impressive Olympus OM-D E-M5 we reviewed earlier this year. That’s the TruePic VI processor and with it combined with the lens, you’ll have faster recovery time as well as shutter releases on a regular basis. You’ve got up to ISO 12,800 with the device’s speedy f1.8 lens for full-resolution photos that look excellent even in dim conditions.

The hybrid control ring is what Olympus lets us know is the world’s first of its kind. Here you’ve got function settings able to be assigned with ease and switches between digital operations and analog with little effort. You’ve also got touch controls, of course, with the XZ-2′s touch screen on the back with Live Guide and a user interface quite similar to the OM-D we’ve reviewed and the PEN shooters also just revealed today.

This camera will be available in November of 2012, just in time for the holiday season, and will be appearing with a USB cable, video cable, Lithium-ion battery pack, battery charger, shoulder strap, Olympus ib software CD, manuals, registration card, and a healthy dose of love from Olympus. This unit will be available for an estimated street price of $599.99 USD and will be available in any color just so long as its black. This unit has an accessory port – as you may have noticed – so you’ll be able to be compatible with what Olympus notes is a “growing range of Micro Four Thirds accessories” – fun stuff!

Olympus Stylus XZ-2 iHS revealed with flagship aspirations is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Olympus has just announced two new cameras at Photokina: the PEN E-PL5 ($650 body or $700 with kit lens) and PEN E-PM2 ($550 body or $600 with kit lens). Both models share a number of features, like the 16 Megapixel sensor and the TruePic VI dual-core image processor. For low-light conditions, both can extend their ISO range to 25600 and have an AF illuminator to help the camera focus as fast as possible. Olympus claims to have the world’s fastest auto-focus for this category of camera. We haven’t been able to measure it, but if it is like the Olympus EM5, then yes, it is certainly very fast. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Olympus Stylus XZ-2 Announced at Photokina, Olympus OM-D E-M5, Officially Announced,

Looking to boost your compact capabilities, but don’t want to deal with the hassle of swapping lenses? You might take interest with the Stylus XZ-2 — Olympus’ most powerful point-and-shoot model. Admittedly, we’re having a bit of difficultly working through the appeal of this latest fixed-lens snapper, given the $600 price tag and a body that’s comparable in size to the PEN E-PL5 and even larger than the E-PM2. In the model’s defense, it does include an impressive f/1.8-2.5, 28-112mm 4x optical zoom lens, though its 12-megapixel 1/1.7-inch CMOS sensor is smaller than what’s included with its interchangeable-lens cousins, and the camera’s sensitivity tops out at ISO 12,800. It does, however, offer 1080p shooting and a higher-res swivel 3-inch 920k-dot LCD with Touch AF Shutter control. Still, we would have liked to see these features included with the company’s latest Micro Four Thirds cameras, rather than on a model with a smaller sensor and no interchangeable lens.

If you’re set on the XZ-2, you’ll be plenty pleased with the design — it’s quite similar to the E-PL5, and therefore quite capable. There’s an option to swap in red, beige and purple grips (the camera body itself is only available in black), and you can add a body jacket and an underwater housing. There’s also a built-in flash, which pops up from the top left corner, and you’ll find PEN-like controls, to boot. We spent a few minutes with the XZ-2, though the battery was dead during our demo, unfortunately, so we weren’t able to shoot. Still, the design felt practical, and the camera seemed solid overall. The hybrid control ring is a “world’s first,” according to Olympus, and offers the same functionality in both a click mode, which provides feedback, and a smoother silent mode, which won’t produce any noise or vibration when shooting videos. The Stylus XZ-2 will ship a bit after the new PEN models, in November, but you can take a peek now in our gallery just below.

Continue reading Olympus Stylus XZ-2 is a digital compact stuck in a mirrorless camera’s body, we go hands-on

Filed under: Cameras

Olympus Stylus XZ-2 is a digital compact stuck in a mirrorless camera’s body, we go hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Sep 2012 05:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve been very impressed with Olympus’ first OM-D camera, the EM-5. That model’s 5-axis image stabilization and super-fast autofocus won us over, while the retro design appeased nostalgics as well. Now, it’s time for that speedy shooting to make its way to the company’s other Micro Four Thirds models — the E-PL5 and E-PM2. Both models, announced today, offer nearly identical specifications, with notable differences on the form-factor front. The E-PL5 is the premium model of this bunch, coming in at $700 with a 12-42mm f/3.5-5.6 lens or $650 for the body only, while the E-PM2 will run you 100 bucks less for both configurations. Both cameras include 16.1-megapixel Live MOS sensors, top ISO of 25,600, 3-inch 460k-dot touch-enabled LCDs, 1080i video and an 8fps continuous shooting mode. The EM-5’s five-axis stabilization is absent here, though a three-axis version should suffice in low light. Each model also includes an external flash and a rebate offer for a free Toshiba FlashAir 802.11b/g/n card, which enables connectivity with the OI Share apps for Android and iOS.

We had a chance to check both cameras out just before Photokina, and were quite pleased with the design, along with that OM-D-like focusing performance, which really is as speedy as Olympus claims. The camera focused instantaneously with almost all of the lenses we tried, though it was a bit sluggish, understandably, when paired with the 60mm f/2.8 macro. The displays were equally sharp, though the PL5 packs a nifty articulating version, which can tilt up, down or face forward for self-portraits. We also enjoyed shooting with the super-slim 15mm f/8 body cap lens, which features a tiny front element with a slide-over cover — while it’s limited on the aperture front and includes fixed focus, it’s arguably more useful than a traditional cap (Olympus hasn’t confirmed pricing for that optic, though it’ll likely come in below the $100 mark). That aforementioned dust-and-splash-proof macro will retail for $500 in early October, while a new 12mm f/2 lens will ship during the same time for $1,100. The “Mini” E-PM2 will be available in silver, black, white and red, while the E-PL5 will ship in silver, black and white — both versions will be available in October. You can take a closer look at each of the offerings in the gallery below, then jump past the break for the full rundown from Olympus.

Continue reading Olympus E-PL5 and E-PM2: Micro Four Thirds cameras with OM-D-like focusing, performance boosts (hands-on)

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Olympus E-PL5 and E-PM2: Micro Four Thirds cameras with OM-D-like focusing, performance boosts (hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Sep 2012 05:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Canon’s wireless-toting EOS 6D isn’t the company’s only new model of the morning; there’s also a trio of PowerShots, the G15, SX50 HS and S110, set to hit store shelves even sooner. The Canon PowerShot G15 packs a 12.1-megapixel redesigned sensor, refashioned for improved low-light performance, paired with a 28mm wide-angle f/1.8-2.8 5x optical zoom lens and DIGIC 5 image processor, and is capable of 1080p Full HD video recording.

There’s also an integrated stereo microphone and a 10-frame burst photo mode capturing full-resolution shots, while the accessory shoe can be used for a flash or an optical viewfinder. Otherwise, you’ll be using the 3-inch 922k dot LCD. A waterproof housing is also available.

The Canon PowerSHot SX50 HS, meanwhile, brings a massive zoom to the party, slotting together a 12.1-megapixel sensor and a whopping 50x optical zoom (24-1200mm) with 24mm wide-angle lens, something Canon claims is an industry first. It unsurprisingly has optical image stabilization, and supports up to ISO 6400 and a 10-shot burst mode at full resolution.

A 2.8-inch, 461k dot multi-position LCD is on the back, together with an electronic viewfinder, and there’s a Zoom Framing Assist feature which locks onto a close-up subject, zooms back out to show you its context in the overall frame, and then zooms right back in on it again when you lift your finger off the button. 12-bit RAW + JPEG capture is an option too.

Finally, the Canon PowerShot S110 packs WiFi and the same sensor as the G15, here matched up to a 24mm wide-angle lens, 5x optical zoom, and f/2.0 aperture. It can offload photos to a computer remotely, or indeed be remotely controlled via the Canon CameraWindow app for iOS and Android.

Like the other two models, it can grab up to 10 shots in rapid succession, at full 12.1-megapixel resolution, and there’s ISO up to 12800 and Full HD 1080p video recording with stereo sound (and an HDMI output to watch it). On the back there’s a 3-inch capacitive touchscreen.

The Canon PowerShot G15, PowerShot SX50 HS and PowerShot S110 will all go on sale in October 2012, priced at  $499.99, $479.99, and $449.99 respectively.

Canon PowerShot G15, 50x optical zoom SX50 HS, and WiFi S110 debut is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.