Ad: Manage updates with the Download App
ie8 fix

Olympus

NTT DoCoMo carves out wooden cell phone

If you don't think plastic is fantastic, here's some good news: Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo has created a new prototype cell phone made from cypress wood.

The Touch Wood handset is crafted from surplus wood culled during forest maintenance work.

DoCoMo teamed up with Sharp and Olympus to create the prototype (seen bottom right, with an ergonomic mockup above). More Trees, a reforestation group supported by musician and actor Ryuichi Sakamoto, was also involved.

Olympus contributed "three-dimensional compression molding" that made the wood usable for phones, according to DoCoMo. The molding also made the cypress shiny … Read more

Make your E-P1 even more retro

As we know, the Olympus Micro Four Thirds camera, the E-P1, is based on a retro design sported by the original Pen shooters. But now you can make it even more retro by getting these skins from Kindai International.

The Japanese company is selling body stickers that are carefully calibrated to the dimensions of the E-P1, right down to the space for the leather grip, the button to unlock the lens, and the Micro Four Thirds badge which sits at the bottom right corner.

There are three colors available and each is limited in quantity--green (500), black and gray (1,… Read more

Olympus improves E-P1 AF with firmware update

Olympus released firmware updates on Tuesday, September 15, 2009, for the Olympus E-P1 camera and two lenses, the Zuiko ED 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 as well as the Zuiko 17mm f2.8 lens. The firmware update, version 1.1 for both the camera and lenses, improves the camera's continuous auto-focus (C-AF) operation. The lenses will benefit from the v1.1 firmware with enhanced auto-focus performance. The Olympus Master software updates each lens' firmware individually and will update the camera firmware.

We generally recommend installing the latest firmware updates for your camera, so you can get the most out of … Read more

Adobe ropes in raw support for Panasonic GF1

Adobe Systems on Monday released Lightroom 2.5 and the Camera Raw 5.5 Photoshop plug-in, software updates that add support for two high-profile Nikon SLRs, Olympus' ambitious but expensive E-P1 compact camera, and in a minor surprise, the Panasonic's GF1 competitor to the E-P1.

As expected from the beta test, the new version adds support for the Nikon's high-end D300s and entry-level D3000. Also on the list is Panasonic's ultrazoom, the DMC-FZ35.

The downloads are available at Adobe's Web site.

Dealing with the raw formats from higher-end cameras gives photographers more flexibility and quality than … Read more

Olympus to offer budget E-600 dSLR for holiday shoppers

Shipping in November, just in time for your holiday purchasing fun, Olympus' E-600 dSLR will offer a slightly stripped-down version of the E-620 for consumers whose price elasticity is stretched to the breaking point. At $599.99 with the 14-42mm kit lens (28-84mm equivalent), by dropping down $100 Olympus will be taking on the Nikon D3000 (and whatever new model Canon finally decides to ship--its entry-level model is overdue) in a very competitive price segment.… Read more

Adobe tests raw support for Olympus E-P1, new Nikons

Adobe Systems has released a test version of its Camera Raw 5.5 plug-in so Photoshop can handle raw images from the Olympus E-P1 high-end compact camera, Nikon's new D3000 entry-level SLR, mid-range D300s SLR, and Panasonic's DMC-FZ35 ultrazoom.

Raw images are made of data taken directly from cameras' image sensors without in-camera processing, and they offer more flexibility and higher quality to those willing to put up with the hassle of converting them to JPEG or other more universal formats with software such as Adobe's Photoshop and Lightroom, Apple's Aperture and iPhoto, or Google's … Read more

Roundup: Latest cameras from Fujifilm, Olympus

Fujifilm and Olympus have separately announced several new cameras. All of the new models are previewed below.

Fujifilm brings EXR sensor to its megazoom line The replacement for the FinePix S100FS has the same lens but incorporates Fujifilm's latest version of its Super CCD. (Posted in Crave by Lori Grunin) July 21, 2009 9:01 PM PDT

Fujifilm FinePix F70EXR: Souped-up pocket megazoom is mode-alicious The 10x zoom FinePix F70EXR gets new shooting features thanks to its Super CCD EXR sensor. (Posted in Crave by Joshua Goldman) July 21, 2009 9:01 PM PDT

Fujifilm rolls out four tiny cameras with tiny prices … Read more