Olympus E-P1 available to those willing to pay a little premium

If you've been lusting over the latest Micro Four Thirds entrant from Olympus just like we have since we first saw the E-P1, you'll be happy to know that it has finally entered that special time in its life when it's not available through mainstream retailers just yet, but it is available -- if you're willing to pay a bit more than Amazon's (still unshipped) pre-order asking price of $749. Kit prices of the body with the 14 - 42mm kit lens we tested are right now ranging between $799 (MSRP) and $899 (a Benjamin premium) at various Amazon affiliates, and while anyone willing to refrain from clicking the "Buy" button for a week or three will surely save quite a bit, waiting is such a bother.

[Thanks, Ron M.]

[Newone @ Jul 14th 2009 9:58AM]

Nothing to do with this camera, some search engine optimatisation spam.

And talk about company name repetition... every sentence there starts with the company name.

[Poo_and_Wee @ Jul 14th 2009 7:17AM]

I really dig how 70s it looks. It's groovy.

[SONYEDDIE @ Jul 14th 2009 8:27AM]

the classic look is a turn-off imo

[xValentine @ Jul 14th 2009 10:38AM]

It has an Austin Powers' Seal of Approval

[John from Buffalo @ Jul 14th 2009 7:22AM]

Seriously ... waiting is SOOOOOOOOOO over-rated. I just wished I'd not splurged on the Hasselblad EL/M (mint with everything working on it!!!) this past week.

Grrrrr...

[TomServo @ Jul 14th 2009 6:22PM]

So is bragging about purchasing a camera in no way, whatsoever, related to the article.

[KIFF @ Jul 14th 2009 8:30AM]

And the UK gets an almost 1:1 rip-off conversion, again...

http://tinyurl.com/nnq8oy

[John from Buffalo @ Jul 14th 2009 8:41AM]

YA! But you get free shipping!!!! hehe. damn that's expensive, there.

[Leo @ Jul 14th 2009 7:48AM]

at my local camera-shop its already sitting in the showcase. i even played around with it a little.
i am located in germany but well yea its there, actually. ;)

[Shansion @ Jul 14th 2009 7:34AM]

Will it blend?

[LondonConsultant @ Jul 14th 2009 10:52AM]

It unblends: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FWv21EgRZU

[Fonebox.com @ Jul 14th 2009 7:53AM]

Shocking! Here in rip off Britain, the E-P1 is already available and shipping from a certain well known camera retailer for almost the same price in UK £ pounds sterling as the $ us dollar price. IE $799 or £699 here. To those the other side of the pond where despite all the economic woes, please be assured, your ability to express outrage at being ripped off is why your economy will bounce back before it does here in the UK where people are being screwed left right and centre, from parking / low speed speeding fines to just about all else. This is not Olympus, this is the UK!

[Fonebox.com @ Jul 14th 2009 8:18AM]

BTW, having had a lengthy hands on with an E-P1, it is a delight to use - the only amusing issue being that as soon as you pick it up, you put it to your eye - forgetting it doesn't have a viewfinder! The handling is perfect for middle sized hands and it looks fantastic, a retro contemporary mashup.

[LondonConsultant @ Jul 14th 2009 8:21AM]

Yes, and I've also got to contribute towards refinancing our banks, the Iraq war, MPs expenses, and vaccinating all of us against swine flu. Nothing left for an Olympus EP-1...

[spyker @ Jul 14th 2009 10:17AM]

The first day I used mine, I was repeatedly sticking the screen to my face... But hey, it's not that bad to get used to, but I do love built in viewfinders.

[Phil Knall @ Jul 14th 2009 10:30AM]

Getting mine from Akihabara tomorrow :) Can't wait!!

[Carl @ Jul 14th 2009 8:45AM]

FYI, if you're willing to do a little searching, it's available at retail at a few places in the northeast (ie, NJ and NYC). I picked mine up at Electronics Expo while passing through NJ over the weekend. They also had an employee discount pricing special so the $799 MSRP kit was going for $749. J and R, 17th Street Photo and Cameraland all get it in from time to time too. I've heard Cameraland has the 17MM pancake lens also.

BTW, love the camera. But can't wait to hear all the complaints about the slow shutter lag. It's not an SLR so no phase detect autofocus so it's kinda slow for action shots unless you decouple autofocus from the shutter release.

And now you know...

[rafa @ Jul 14th 2009 9:27AM]

When will Canon make me a body like this one? I've already got my Canon lenses and don't want to switch to Olympus.

[Newone @ Jul 14th 2009 9:55AM]

There's a adapter for manual canon lenses for this camera.

And if canon ever makes a similar camera you will have to buy new lenses for it or it will get big. E-P1 can take standard fourthirds lenses but then it losses its portability factor, same as if canon made tiny camera and added huuuge lenses to it.

[bigcow05 @ Jul 15th 2009 5:41AM]

Canon will need to make a new lens system to accommodate the short register distance design like that of the micro 4/3 system.

[tkuhe @ Jul 14th 2009 9:28AM]

Camera is available in boston at Hunts. Has been for two weeks.

[Speed @ Jul 14th 2009 10:01AM]

My local Dodd's Camera (Cleveland, Ohio area) had one in stock (w/ 17mm lens) at list price on Saturday.

[spyker @ Jul 14th 2009 10:15AM]

I LOVE my E-P1. I ordered the zoom kit and got it last week. I don't think the 17mm kit is shipping yet, or at least not on Amazon. The adaptors aren't shipping either. I ordered the MMF-1 four thirds adaptor.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/spyker3292/sets/72157621273577451/

[rita hainsworth @ Jul 14th 2009 11:09AM]

Just bought the white one at JandR here in Manhattan.

[iKurt 7 @ Jul 14th 2009 3:26PM]

Why would anyone buy this? For a little amount of more money you can get the Canon Rebel T1i or the EOS 500D which has full-HD recording, and the access to a full array of Canon's professional "L" lenses. In addition, the Canon has a large CMOS sensor in a compact body which helps you get images with lower noise levels. This microfourthirds standard is doomed for failure due to its limited selection of lenses, and slow contrast-based AF (which is way slower than the dedicated AF system in the T1i). My uncle is a professional photographer (sports and weddings) and he loves his Canon system, which is why I got the 5D Mark II myself... and I have to agree with him.

[zorg @ Jul 14th 2009 8:03PM]

So, what you're trying to say is "Why purchase a smaller camera when a larger one is available?" and "My uncle has a job so my opinion is valid." Cool. Prolly saves on medical bills to go to the doctor's nephew too.

[Plothole @ Jul 14th 2009 10:53PM]

Micro four third's lens selection is only limited because the system is so NEW. Do you honestly believe Canon offered all the lenses they do now when the EOS system was first released??

And as for contrast detection being slow, that fact is greatly exaggerated. The EP1 and 14-42mm lens is the slowest combination, and it's still usable. The GH1 with most of the Panasonic lenses can rival dSLRs in many cases.

[bigcow05 @ Jul 15th 2009 5:45AM]

This camera is better suited for candid/reportage photography, where big cameras are not preferred due to their bulk and weight. Subjects also react better to small cameras; they aren't as intimidating.

And Canon L lenses are no match for Oly lenses, especially at the wide end. Many pros use Canon due to sponsorship deals rather than preference.

[LKW @ Jul 18th 2009 12:35PM]

Every type of camera has its place. It would be unfair to ask such a question. A pro photographer would most likely have 2-3 different systems i.e. 135mm for sports and fast action ... medium format for studio, portraits & landscape ... rangefinder for street photography.

Micro 4/3 has the advantage of being compact and yet giving you the SLR features. If you are talking about using only ONE system, then Olympus Pen E-P1 is most likely not the best to go with. But it is a excellent alternative / backup to whatever system you have right now. I uses 135mm Nikon and Hasseblad but this little wonder gives be the flexibility of occasions where I do not wish to lug half a ton of equipment around ... i.e. street photography.

As for lenses, there are adaptors available in the market place to fit major brand of lenses onto this camera. I currently uses my old Nikkor lenses on it and it works just fine. In fact, it is a trend in Japan now to fit Leica lenses on this camera and it produces wonderful results.

If you really are into low noise and high sharpness, then you should be looking into medium or large format ... not s DSLR.

To me, this little thing has its place in camera bag and so far after using it ... it truly has earned that place.