Olympus to announce the OM-D E-M10 Mark IV and 100-400mm lens – shipping in September

July 15, 2020 by John Aldred 9 Comments

While the Olympus name is maybe going away, it’s not gone yet and it’s been said that they still have another camera and lens to release this year. Now it looks like we know what they both are, how much they’ll cost and when they’re expected to be released.

Both of them are expected to be announced this year and to start shipping a couple of months from now. The camera will be the Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IV, following up to 2017’s OM-D E-M10 Mark III, while the lens will be the M.Zuiko Digital ED 100-400mm f/5.0-6.3 IS, for which there was a development announcement last November.

According to PhotoRumors, the new Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IV will come in two colours – either black or silver – and will be available as a body-only package or with the M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 EZ kit lens. They say that the body-only and kit lens packages will cost $699 and $799 respectively and that they will begin shipping on September 25th.

It will be interesting to see how much of a factor video is in the E-M10 Mark IV. Olympus has alluded to videographers in a previous announcement, so I’m curious to see if the new camera actually does start to cater more to the video side of things.

The lens to be announced is the M.Zuiko Digital ED 100-400mm f/5.0-6.3 IS. We already knew this lens was on the way at some point because there was a development announcement last November and Olympus put it on their roadmap back in April. Photo Rumors says that it won’t cost “more than $10,000“, though, but a much more reasonable $1,499. On the 2x crop of the Micro Four Thirds sensor, that gives a field of view equivalent to 200-800mm on a full-frame body, which will be fantastic for sports and wildlife shooters.

The 100-400mm lens, too, is also expected to start shipping in September, but a little earlier than the camera, on September 8th. This means we can possibly expect the announcement for the lens to come a little ahead of the camera, too.

Also, it appears that Olympus has updated their roadmap. You can see that there’s a slight difference between the one above from November 2019 and their current roadmap. Yes, they’ve swapped out the generic “Wide Zoom Lens” for a more specific “ED 8-25mm f/4.0 Pro”. I’d be curious to see if the Panasonic shooters pick this one up as a constant aperture vlogging lens, despite the apparent lack of stabilisation.

You might have also spotted that they’ve added a Macro Lens around the 100mm region to the list as well. So, perhaps there are yet more lenses to come before the transition to JIP is completed. Or, perhaps these are the lenses that JIP hopes to re-launch with once the full acquisition is done.

[via PhotoRumors]

About John Aldred

John Aldred is based in Scotland and photographs people in the wild and animals in the studio.

You can find out more about John on his website and follow his adventures on YouTube and Facebook.

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Michael Ferrara

I thought Olympus was out of the digital camera game?
- Basia Kowalska
  
  Michael Ferrara I encourage you to read the article. Here is the first sentence: “While the Olympus name is maybe going away, it’s not gone yet and it’s been said that they still have another camera and lens to release this year.”
- Michael Ferrara
  
  No. I will not read!
  
  No jk, but still what’s the point in announcing then if you continue to release a camera line? If I were an Olympus shooter I would have abandoned them for another brand, sell high while I still can and invest in a company that isn’t about to shutter. Seems like they’re undercutting their final couple of camera models.
- Viggo Næss
  
  Exactly, I wouldn’t buy something you know you’re not getting repaired under warranty or can be repaired at all after that. You wouldn’t board a sinking ship…
- BB
  
  So much panic over some rumors. It’s not like every Olympus camera will suddenly stop working. I will still kepp on buying their gear – because why not? My E-M5 has worked fine for 8 years and I feel confident I can shoot with my new E-M5III at least 5 years. And there will be plenty of 2nd hand gear available for YEARS even IF Olympus quit making them right now.
  - Juha
    
    And its just rumors that Olympus is selling their business.. Other sources say that they are doing partnership with Jip. And Olympys released just info that they have made agreement (just paper which would be ok to jip and olympus if they gonna take stpes to partnership/sell etc..) And usually these will mean that if somebody is interested from some brand – they will most likely keep using it for few years (depends from agreement) But remember: Nokia -> Microsoft -> HMD – still Nokia phone brand exist because it has brand value which is usually the reason for selling. When somebody buy something it will be usually bought because of brand (or because buyer belevies that there is future) but sometimes rarely investors buy company and split it into piecies and sell them separately (thats usually not profitable – it would be more profitable to olympus split their camera division and facotrs and sell them separately than try to sell them in one piece and make some agreeement which will most likely include option to buy their business/brand back if everything start to go well.. just like the foundry and maxon cinema 4d software companies – they have been sold to invest companies many times before and still these software companies excist). So it might be that maybe Olympus wont sell their camera divison after all – its one possibilitie in many possible scenarious.
Carter Tune

So sad Olympus has called it quits. They filled a good nitch.
Juha

its all just rumors that Olympus is selling their business.. Other sources say that they are doing partnership with Jip. And Olympys released just info that they have made agreement (just paper which is agreement from that “what would be ok” to jip and olympus if they gonna take stpes to partnership/sell etc..) And usually these will mean that if somebody is interested from some brand – they will most likely keep using it for few years (depends from agreement) But remember: Nokia -> Microsoft -> HMD – still Nokia phone brand exist because it has brand value which is usually the reason for selling. When somebody buy something it will be usually bought because of brand (or because buyer belevies that there is future) but sometimes rarely investors buy company and split it into piecies and sell them separately (thats usually not profitable – it would be more profitable to olympus split their camera division and facotrs and sell them separately than try to sell them in one piece and make some agreeement which will most likely include option to buy their business/brand back if everything start to go well.. just like the foundry and maxon cinema 4d software companies – they have been sold to invest companies many times before and still these software companies excist). So it might be that maybe Olympus wont sell their camera divison after all – its one possibilitie in many possible scenarious.

https://www.olympus-global.com/ir/data/announcement/2020/contents/ir00013.pdf oh it was japanese industrial partners.. but still: “Signing of Memorandum of Understanding for Divestiture of Imaging Business” … ” Olympus’s Imaging business will be transferred to the NewCo by way of
company split or otherwise, and then, (ii) shares in the NewCo will be
transferred to a new company to be established by JIP” … “Scheduled to be signed by September 30, 2020” .. that might also change.. “Prior to the closing of the Transaction, Olympus plans to implement structuring reforms to the Imaging
business aiming to change the business structure of Imaging business to be more profitable and sustainable.
We are currently investigating costs and other impacts of the structuring reform. If any future event which
requires disclosure arises, Olympus will announce it promptly.”
Chuck Diesel

Which is it? An EM10 or Em1?