Olympus offers PEN update

Posted on 16 Apr 2010 at 11:18

If you're a proud owner of one of Olympus's innovative PEN cameras but wish it could be a little quicker off the mark, good news: a firmware update is due which will make snapping shots significantly speedier.

Announced by the company yesterday, the firmware update - which covers all three PEN-series cameras currently in the market, including the latest E-PL1 - brings as its main enhancement an update to the auto-focus performance, promising a 15 percent improvement in lock time when shooting still pictures. While the company hasn't offered any firm figures, a similar improvement in performance while in video mode is also expected.

The update also brings support for a pair of new lenses - the M. Zuiko Digital ED 14–150mm F4.0–5.6 and the Digital ED 9–18mm F4.0–5.6, both designed for use in high-definition video recording mode. The main feature of both lenses - and the reason they're so suited to video mode - is an allegedly totally silent auto-focus system that ensures your video will be free from annoying motor noise.

Finally, the firmware will allow the LCD screen and the optional VF-2 electronic viewfinder to be used simultaneously: previously the display was deactivated when the viewfinder was in use. Unfortunately, the update still doesn't allow the VF-2 to be used with the original E-P1 PEN camera.

The update is due to roll out on the 22nd of April, and can be easily installed using Olympus's digital camera update package.

Author: Gareth Halfacree

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