New Olympus PEN E-PL7 Mirrorless

2014.08.28

Olympus right now just took the wraps off their latest PEN mirrorless. The new Olympus PEN E-PL7 is a refined version of the E-PL5 with a number of technologies inherited from the flagship OM-D E-M1. It is built around a 16 megapixels Four-Thirds Live-MOS sensor with an ultra-fast read-out and 81-area Contrast-Detect autofocus.

The new sensor and revised shutter mechanism together can sustain continuous shooting at 8 FPS. A fast processor and deep buffer lets the E-PL7 shoot up to 20 RAW files or an unlimited number of JPEG images. A shutter-speed range of 1/4000s to 60s is possible, plus Bulb exposures up to 30 minutes. Olympus has also improved the Live-Bulb and Live-Time features to show better exposure-progression and reduce blown-out areas.

The design of this mirrorless has also been refined since its predecessor. The most notable change is a tilting LCD hinged at the bottom of the camera to improve hand-held self-portraits. The camera intelligently changes its user interface when the LCD is fully extended with some useful self-portrait features such as a 1s self-timer.

Keeping inline with the PEN family, the compact body of the E-PL7 features a hot-shoe with accessory port. The latter supports the small flash unit which is bundled with the camera, a high-resolution EVF or other Olympus accessory. Obviously, only one such device is usable at one time. This camera includes built-in WiFi and is being launched with a new remote control application which can access most camera controls, save for changing exposure modes.

The Olympus PEN E-PL7 is scheduled to ship next month for a price of $599 USD.

• Digital Camera