The spanish website DSLRmagazine announced via twitter (Click here /via noisyc) that Leica is working on two new models (one low end and one high end camera). In a second tweet they added that while the models will be shown at Photokina in September they will probably not be ready for the mass production. The may will go the Fuj marketing route that usually displays a model months before it’s ready.

Leica already said many times that they will make a mirrorless camera without the rangefinder optical system. And that it would be a high quality product (of course).

Our friends over at Digiaminfo got the first (exciting!) specs about the possible new Pentax mirrorless camera:

Photorumors got this photo of the upcoming “Retro” styled Samsung NX200 RS. It will be announced on Saturday and has exactly the same specs of the current NX200. I guess that silver top is the only thing “new” coming with the camera. And I don’t believe that alone justifies the “retro” definition.

P.S.: While the camera might be not soo exiting their lens roadmap is much better than the Sony NEX roadmap.

You want let the glory to Fuji alone? Olympus is also going to make a super quality old-styled body but unlike Fuji they will take the inspiration form their own OM camera history (). I will give you all the specs and than you can start to discuss if that camera is really going to be the first “serious” or “pro” Micro Four Thirds camera.

Olympus OM-D specs:
16 Megapixel m43 sensor optimized for High Dynamic Range
ISO 200-25.800
Built-in 1.44 Million dot electronic viewfinder (placed in the middle of the body)
Five-axis image stabilizer in body.
packed with an GN10 flash.
FAST AF and 3D tracking
610.000 dots 3 inch OLED swivel screen
Weather sealed magnesium body in classic
two kinds of leather style. black ones is more artificial, and silver ones is more natural.
Two dial button left and right beside central penta part,and another dial button side at release button.there have other one small button in left of release button.
Grip curve looks like Olympus E-P3,but this one continues to the bottom of camera,paste with leather.Leather has also paste at both side of lens mount.
Width 121mm, weighs 425g
Price: $1100
Worldwide shipment in late March

At a first glance it looks like the Olympus OM advantage over the X PRO 1 lies in: Built-in IS, weather sealed body, cheaper price, swivel screen, probably faster AF.
Fuji X PRO 1 advantages: Image quality, hybrid viewfinder.

Hot times!

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Fuji X PRO 1 preorders: Expansys USA (Click here), Expansys Canada (Click here), Henrys Canda (Click here) and Expansys UK (Click here). You can get notification at Amazon US (Click here) and BHphoto (Click here).

There is some good news for those of you that would love to join the X-mount system but without to have to pay $1.700 for the X PRO 1. Dpreview (Click here) has been told by Fuji that one more less expensive X mount camera will come in future. Would be nice to know if that “future” is somewhere near but Fuji didn’t give any details about that yet.

The good news is that the M to X mount adapter is coming very soon! Photographyblog (Click here) reports that Fuji will release it in April.

You remember the lady that talked about a possible 14mm f/1.4 lens? Her name is Kayce Baker and she got interviewed by Imaging Resource (Click here). She confirms that she saw on the roadmap that the 14mm lens was f/1.4! And she tells us something unknown about the mysterious organic sensor: “The organic sensor has nothing to do with our imaging technology. It has to do more with the industrial side of our business.

P.S.: Dpreview also heard from Fuji that the new X10 firmware will be released in February to fix the ‘white-orb’ issue. And Fujifilm Digital Imaging director Adrian Clarke said that when launching the X100 they didn’t know who was going to buy the X100: “but twice as many people bought them as we expected.“

I was really wondering what happened with the Samsung NX20. The camera name has been leaked multiple times on Samsungs website but the REAL camera never appeared. Today Amateur Photographer had a chat with Sunhong Lim, Samsung’s newly recruited Digital Imaging sales and marketing vice president. Samsung unveiled that they will launch a PRO mirrorless camera that will rival against current DSRL cameras…in several years! No joke :(

Other interesting info:
1) Samsung will “democratise CSC by establishing a wider range of models for both consumers and enthusiasts and making them mroe affordable.
2) Amateur Photographer writes: “The move is an indication that sales of Samsung cameras have not met company expectations, in the face of stiff competition from other CSC manufacturers, such as Panasonic and Sony.“
3) Samsung says that by 2015 there will be more mirrorless than DSLR camera sales.
4) There will be a new NX camera body this year at Photokina (in Spetember) with new functions such as Wi-Fi.
5) Samsung switched the production to China to lower the costs.
6) There will be new NX lenses this year and they will be made in the new Chinese factory

My interpretation: Samsung didn’t sell as many NX cameras as expected and that’s why the NX20 announcement has been put on hold. I think they are working on a complete new product strategy. This means there will be no new NX camera for a long time now. Bad news because I really liked some of the prototypes they showed a coupel of months ago (See image on top).

P.S:: Thanks TED for sending this!

Our friends over at Dpreview picked up our rumor posted yesterday to ask Fuji if the leaked lens roadmap is real. The answer was that yes, it’s real but not final. The maximum aperture of some of the lenses can still change and in total there will be nine lenses within the next two years. Of course there will be more X cameras too.

You can see more new X-PRO 1 fullsize images on Flickr (Click here), Fujifilm (Click here) and DCfever (Click here).  What I really would like to see is an image comparison with other current cameras. I want to see if that new Fuji sensors is really a visible step forward comapred to the competition!