The Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II is the new speed king

Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II

Olympus teased its next generation flagship camera, the OM-D E-M1 Mark II.

The Japanese camera company claims the new camera will outpace the image quality of APS-C crop sensor cameras with a 20.4MP Live MOS sensor, as seen in the Olympus Pen-F. Meanwhile, TruePick VIII image processor consists of two quad-core chips.

Olympus claims this setup delivers dynamic range and noise performance that's improved by a full stop, and enables 4K video capture at 30p and 50MP high-resolution composite shots.

Continuous shooting is also a big focus, and Olympus promises users will be able achieve 18fps continuous shooting with continuous AF and exposure monitoring. This burst rate can be further boosted to 60fps using AF and AE lock.

Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II

This is largely thanks to a much an expanded autofocus system that covers a great portion of the frame. In total there are 121 cross-type AF points that combine on-chip phase detection with contrast AF.

To help users keep up with the camera's high-speed operation, the 1.48x magnification EVF has also been improved with a maximum frame rate of 120fps and a minimum six-millisecond display time lag during shooting.

Olympus has designed the OM-D E-M1 Mark II in such a way that it can capture 14 full-resolution raw frames as soon as you start half pressing the shutter, to ensure you capture that decisive moment.

The improved 5-axis in body image stabilization system affords it an extra 1.5EV steps of camera shake correction.

The body of the camera has also been redesigned to accommodate a deeper grip, dual SD card slots (both of which are UHS II compliant) and a 37% greater capacity battery. As ever the OM-D E-M1 Mark II is weathersealed to be dustproof, splashproof, and freezeproof (down to 14°F / -10°C).

Olympus has yet to set pricing or availability, but stay tuned for our hands on review of the camera.

  • There have been a ton of cameras announced in just the first day of Photokina 2016
Kevin Lee

Kevin Lee was a former computing reporter at TechRadar. Kevin is now the SEO Updates Editor at IGN based in New York. He handles all of the best of tech buying guides while also dipping his hand in the entertainment and games evergreen content. Kevin has over eight years of experience in the tech and games publications with previous bylines at Polygon, PC World, and more. Outside of work, Kevin is major movie buff of cult and bad films. He also regularly plays flight & space sim and racing games. IRL he's a fan of archery, axe throwing, and board games.