It looks like the 4/3 system is going ahead. There was an article in a UK publication about a month ago about this. There's also another thread somewhere that talks about it.
I think Fuji and Olympus have teamed up already on the XD picture card, the smallest on the market I they claim. Personally, I'd like to see more digital SLR standards such as full frame interchangeable CCD and CMOS chips, third party firmware, and of course lenses.
Isn't that the point of 4/3rds pretty much? Without the full frame thing.
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Forgive me, I'm not really familiar with Four Thirds standard. But I did look it up and here it is: //www.four-thirds.com/index_01.htm I don't see anything about interchangeable image sensors or third party firmware. Don't you think those could be equally beneficial?
4/3rds system is a scheme came up by Olympus to try to get some users to join them for the digital products.
1. Nikon isn't using it. And I don't think NIkon will license its camera functions (3d matrxi metering,etc.). Nikon is interested in getting people to KEEP and BUY more Nikon glass.
2. Canon isn't using it. Canon has its in-house fab for sensors. Canon, like Nikon, wants a user base on their lenses.
The existing film SLR people from Nikon or Canon probably won't sell their camera gear which may be worth thousands, to buy smaller lenses (which equal to smaller control over DOF). The only thing this does is for Olympus to get some new users to the SLR world, to buy into a system that probably will end up dead :-) Soon enough, the full frame sensors will be cheap and it'll make the discussion and use of the 4/3 to be pointless, as 35 mm films can be used with the SAME glass as Nikon/Canon glasses, but not 4/3 glass and once the cost is low enough, it really doesn't matter for small sensors.
I thought there was an issue with light distribution over a sensor as opposed to film through a lens - primarily due to the fact that a sensor is threedimensional, whereas the emulsion on film isn't, which makes existing 'analogue' SLR designs fundamentally limited for digi-SLR? There's stuff about this on the 4/3rds site somewhere.
Whatever. If they bring out quality SLRs with a price tag under £1000, or $, they'll make a killing. Not exactly struggling at the moment, either.
