A sneak peak should rarely be turned down.
Last week Media Profile, which represents Olympus here in Canada, called and asked if I wanted to take a look at a new camera long rumoured to be a game-changer in the digital shooter space.
Curiosity sufficiently piqued, and considering the Media Profile officer are a 15-minute walk from the Globe, I went over and took a look at the Olympus E-P1, a retro-looking "micro four-thirds," basically a digital SLR that's disguised as a point-and-shoot.
Media Profile's offices are in an old mattress factory and the gorgeous wood floors creak with every step. I followed the Olympus reps into a small room with a couple of chairs, a couch and a low wooden table and sat down, glancing at walls covered with brightly painted landscapes. Once I'd signed the confidentiality agreement not to discuss anything about the camera until today's launch, another rep brought the camera in and sat it down on the table.
On first glance I quite liked it. My first thought (and Olympus will probably love this considering the launch coincides with Father's Day) was that my dad would like it because I imagined he'd probably had something like it back in college. But I had trouble seeing it as a digital SLR as the metal body looked way too small - and too big for a point and shoot- and it has no internal viewfinder, which I discovered after smoothly picking it up and putting it to my face only to realize that no, the big window on the back is not to peer through.
However, once I had it in my hands I found it had a nice weight to it and didn't feel much like a point-and-shoot after all. Also, the reps said Olympus will have a removable viewfinder available as an add-on accessory if you really want one. You can get more at the Olympus site.
One thing that threw me a bit was the lens on the camera. You can see from the pictures on this post that the camera can wear different lenses - in fact in can wear a number of different attachments, from Olympus flashes, lenses and a view finder. The model the PR folks showed me had the black 14-42mm lens on it, which they said was what will come in the basic kit when it lands in the stores. I thought that odd because, though they didn't have one there, the pictures in the info package of the camera wearing the similarly-retro 17mm pancake lens makes the camera really appealing.
While I recognize the greater flexibility and functionality of the 14-42mm lens, it looks like 2009 attached to 1959; the smaller lens is more visually appealing as part of the package. So I'll be curious about user feedback when the time comes, whether camera buffs chose what I suspect is the better lends over an authentically retro look.
I also found the camera controls and buttons unfamiliar having owned Canons most of my life. Picking up a camera is sort of like borrowing your friends car that's made by a different manufacturer. You know there's a radio somewhere and wiper blades that can be activated by flicking something but it takes a little while to get oriented.
The camera's core market is digitally savvy consumers looking to spend a little more than a couple hundred on a camera that looks great actually does a lot. Olympus bills the E-P1 as the world's smallest 12.3 megapixel interchangeable lens camera that also shoots HD video. I snapped a few images in the briefing room, but lighting wasn't optimal and I much prefer to move around snapping pics. One feature I really liked - and will write more about next week after I get my hands on an E-P1 for a full review - are the new Art Filters, which alter the way your images and video look. There are six in all, including soft focus, pin hole and, my favourite, grainy film.
Video appeared crisp and smooth on the display, but I suppose the real test is how the 720p HD looks on a 42-inch LCD.
While details were still being sussed out by Olympus (such as what kits will be available to consumers and when it goes on sale) I'm told the device body will sell for $849 here in Canada, though as of yet I've not heard how much accessories will cost. I imagine the basic kid will still retail around $999, which is pretty inexpensive for a new DSLR line.
Olympus is unveiling the E-P1 today in New York and the Globe will have one to play with by the end of this week (and a review early next with some video and picture samples).
Follow me on Twitter: @sniderm