New Pen not yet on the drawing board, says OM System

OM System's Director of Product Planning, Hiroki Koyama and VP for Brand Strategy and Product Planning, Kazuhiro Togashi, at CP+ 2025 Photo: Dale Baskin

"We are considering the new Pen concept as OM System brand," says OM System's Kazuhiro Togashi, VP for Brand Strategy and Product Planning.

We spoke at the CP+ trade show in Yokohama, Japan, and he reassured us that the arrival of the OM-3 with a Pen-F style 'creative dial' on the front doesn't close the door on the rangefinder-style series.

"There's a different concept between OM-3 and Pen-F series," he explains: "basically the Pen-F series is about ultimate beauty and the ultimate craftsmanship. Whereas OM-3's core concept is to take authentic and great creative photos."

But, he says, it's too soon to know what a future Pen might look like. "We think the camera's design must realize the concept of the product, so we don't start to decide the camera design before deciding the camera's concept: the product concept must come first."

"Therefore, we haven't yet decided if the product design for a new Pen will look like the Pen-F or similar to the E-P7 because we haven't decided on the product concept."

But what's clear is that OM System does plan to continue the Pen line.

The continued appeal of dedicated cameras

We asked Togashi what he thought makes shooting with a dedicated camera special, in a time when smartphone image quality has got so good.

"Experience is very important," he says: "There's a different kind of experience between smartphones and a camera. For example, I personally love to use a smartphone, but just to record; without any emotional feeling."

"When a user decides the moment with their camera, maybe their feelings are being moved by such an attempt: they're not just recording, there's more to it."

"It's like with professional sportsmen. They have to prepare to give their best performance during the game. They are always training before the game."

"When you get a perfect photo, you feel a win"

"In the case of photos, photo enthusiasts always think or calculate before taking a photograph. Before you take something, you consider the place, or you think about which position is better, or what sort of atmosphere or angle: you calculate before you take the photo."

"This is like a serious game, just as it is for football or baseball player. And when you get a perfect photo, you feel a win. 'I win, by myself' I don't know if many people can get that similar experience by taking photos with a smartphone."

And he thinks this difference should remain, even as the image quality gap narrows. "Smartphone's development speed is very high, and in the future, the difference between smartphones and camera might become very small," he says: "however the difference in experience, is a bit bigger."

We're not the company to make an enthusiast compact

Despite this, and in spite of rising sales of compacts, Togashi says we shouldn't expect an enthusiast compact.

"As for the current popularity of compact digital cameras, lower-priced models seem to be selling very well worldwide, but we feel that this is a temporary trend." he says: "We are continuing to study the development of a successor to the TG series, but currently we don't have any plans to introduce other compact camera concepts."

"We don't have any plans to introduce other compact camera concepts"

“As for high-end compact digital cameras, we recognize that there is a dedicated user base that remains a valued segment of the market, however, at OM System, we are focused on developing products that align with the evolving needs of photographers, ensuring we deliver the best possible innovation and performance across our lineup."

“When we were Olympus, our brand was known for high-end compact cameras like the XZ series and Stylus 1. However, since becoming OM System, we no longer carry high-end compact cameras. Instead, we focus on cameras that align with broader market needs, including those of younger generation photographers. Given the significant investment required – not only in research and development but also in reestablishing a high-end compact brand image – such a product would be challenging to make profitable.”

The TG series endures...

The TG series of rugged, waterproof cameras continues to have an audience, the company says. Image: OM System

But the TG series definitely has a future, says Togashi, because it has a dedicated user base.

"TG still survives and is well received by the market," he says: "Outdoor enthusiasts want to capture their activities and adventures. Also families look for ways to preserve special memories---whether it’s their children playing in the pool or on vacations and situations like that."

"On the other hand, professional scuba divers or climbers continue to rely on the TG series. For them, safety is very important during these extreme activities, and the TG series remains a trusted tool in these challenging environments. "

"Both types of users continue to use the TG series, setting it apart from other high-end compact cameras. Their main priorities are mobility and ease of operation, rather than smartphone connectivity. They love the operation and mobility."

...but a high-end TG would be challenging

These specific requirements might rule out a higher-end TG, he suggests

"We're always talking about the successor of the TG series and whether to add a new, higher TG line, maybe using a bigger sensor, or perhaps a TG-DSLR."

"We're always thinking about the possibilities. However, as of today we don't have any best answer to realize this concept because the requirement for TG series is very hard. For example, making a large or removable lens drop resistant is very difficult."

Also, he says, keeping the size down is important: "if we adopted a bigger sensor and we maintain the same optical zoom range, the body would need to be very big. That means such a TG would lose the mobility concept."

Togashi didn't seem enthused by our suggestion of a prime lens: "A lot of TG users' photographic needs are different from enthusiasts', so they like to use a zoom lens. They like to enlarge subjects in their photos, therefore they always use tele-zoom."

Director of Product Planning, Hiroki Koyama raises another concern: " We also give priority for close-up capability. TG can be used very close to the subject. If we choose a bigger sensor size, the close-up capability will be reduced. The current sensor size is the best balance, but we'll try to study the concept."

The OM System lens range

On the subject of lenses, we asked whether they believe the current Micro Four Thirds lens lineup includes all the options an OM-3 user might want.

"Still not yet," says Togashi: "We are also trying to develop small and light and bright lenses or something like that. We have space to make new lenses in the future. I can't disclose [the details], but yes."

Choosing the right lenses to add isn't always easy, he suggests: "People always ask 'will you make a pancake lens?'," he says: "but then the pancake lens sales are not so good in general. But still, we'll continue to consider it."

Interview conducted by Dale Baskin and Richard Butler, answers edited for flow.