Olympus

My Korean isn't even good enough to call appalling, but fortunately for me, some Web site pictures of what sure looks like a new Olympus E-3 SLR speak louder than the surrounding words.

A variety of shots posted at one Web site and another show some interesting new features of an SLR higher up the line than the E-510 and E-410 introduced earlier this year.

The pictures label the camera as the E-3. That's a different name from an anonymously posted document that used the name E-P1, but it's unclear what the naming implications are. Olympus said … Read more

Earlier this year, we reviewed the Olympus SP-550UZ. That EVF camera packed the biggest lens (28 to 504mm-equivalent) we ever saw on a non-SLR camera. Unfortunately, extremely slow performance and soft images held the otherwise impressive device back. Now Olympus is trying again with the SP-560UZ, a new 18x EVF camera that will hopefully fix the SP-550UZ's flaws.

The SP-560UZ keeps its predecessor's 28 to 504mm-equivalent 18x lens and mechanical image stabilization, but includes a new sensor, a new image processor, and offers some new features over the SP-550. The new camera uses an 8-megapixel sensor and Olympus' … Read more

Olympus is updating its entire weatherproof, fashion-minded Stylus line of digital cameras with four new models: the Stylus 790 SW, 820, 830, and 1200. These different cameras run the gamut from super-durable to high-resolution, with a few stops in between.

The Olympus Stylus 790 SW replaces the 770 SW as the company's go-anywhere, super-sturdy snapshot camera. Like its older brother, the 790 SW can handle the horrors of water, extreme temperatures, and clumsy people. It can handle getting submerged in up to ten feet of water, frozen in temperatures as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit, and dropped from heights … Read more

'Tis the season for new camera announcements, it seems. Olympus has joined Canon, Nikon, and Sony in picking this week to announce its fall camera lineup. Olympus announced several new camera models today, including three additions to the company's FE-series of simple point-and-shoots.

At 12 megapixels, the FE-300 breaks the company's FE-series' resolution record. With a 50% increase over the last generation's high-resolution model, the FE-250, the FE-300 offers some of the largest photos available from Olympus' snapshot line. According to Olympus, the FE-300 will be the slimmest 12-megapixel camera on the market, measuring just 0.9 … Read more

Under normal circumstances we wouldn't get too worked up over a voice recorder, but we can't resist anything that even remotely looks like a puzzle. Olympus' "Voice Trek V-41," which goes for about $140 in Japan, reveals its USB plug when pulled apart. But it's got only 512MB of memory, which SlashGear notes isn't much for the price. If you're really that bored at work, you might be better off buying a recorder with more storage and bringing your Transformer toys to the office separately.

Olympus publicly showed prototypes of its new top-end digital SLR in March, but a leaked document indicates the real thing could be announced in October and on sale in November.

An anonymous person posted a 27-page presentation at the FourThirds Photo discussion site that appears to be from an Olympus marketing presentation in June in Europe on the new camera, called the E-P1. Olympus didn't comment on the presentation Thursday, but the company did request another site, 4-3system.com, remove the file.

The presentation includes numerous details about the camera--including its 10-megapixel sensor, improved viewfinder, sealing against dust and … Read more

Tomorrow's Independence Day, and practically the whole country has the day off. For once, you get to have your cookout on a Wednesday. How will you document your midweek antics? You'll want photographic evidence of how cute the nieces and nephews were when they made that pyramid in the kiddie pool. You need pictures to explain that funny thing that happened with the mustard squeezer. And even if you just enjoy some epic lounging in the shade, you'll want pictures to remind yourself of ease and leisure when you're cranking through 400 e-mails back at work … Read more

Olympus announced a $400 70-300mm telephoto zoom lens Tuesday for digital SLR camera owners who like to do more than just squint at distant wildlife.

Because of the properties of the Four Thirds system lens mount and image sensor Olympus helped develop, the lens behaves somewhat like a 140-600mm lens on a traditional film SLR (single-lens reflex) camera. It also means the lens will work on SLRs from Panasonic and Leica, which build Four Thirds cameras.

The Zuiko ED 70-300mm supertelephoto lens, whose aperture ranges from F/4.0 to F/5.6, will be available in September, Olympus said. … Read more

Olympus has begun offering new teases about a new SLR (single-lens reflex) camera model, likely a successor to its top-end E-1 introduced in 2003.

Olympus' European Web site offers a cloaked view doubtless intended to agitate prospective buyers into a lather of anticipation.

Having just released new low-end models, Olympus no doubt is preparing to refresh its high end. Olympus showed off a prototype high-end SLR at the Photo Marketing Association trade show in March but said only it would be rugged, weatherproof, and shipping this year.

You shouldn't believe everything you see on the Internet, though. For example, … Read more