As I was scouring the official product page of OM System PEN (click here), I found some interesting details which I have missed in my reviews. I blamed it to poor communication between OM Digital Solutions and myself, and also, I take some of the responsibilities, I should have pushed harder for more information before I finalized my reviews. There were two important details that I have missed out in my initial review 1) the body material of OM System PEN camera construction consists of magnesium allow frame with outer shell of glass reinforced polycarbonate, and 2) In addition to splash & dustproof, the camera is also freezeproof. I attach all the relevant screenshots for your reference below.
Why does this matter?
Most people complain about the construction material of the camera body being plastic, which does not inspire confidence, and the camera feels cheap because of that. Many people expected stronger material, with perhaps metal construction. However, having magnesium alloy frame with glass reinforced polycarbonate as outer shell does not sound as bad as full plastic. Unfortunately, I was not informed about this detail in the information pack I was provided. I acknowledge some people may still be unhappy with the glass reinforced outer shell, but this was definitely a huge step up from fully plastic. Hey, internally, the camera has a robust magnesium alloy frame, that changes things!
Another big fuss was made over the weather-sealing of the OM System PEN. Many questioned the reliability of IPX1 rating, which was absurd, because Olympus/OM System has always had strong weather-sealing capabilities, since early DSLR days like the E-1, from 20 years ago! No one ever questioned them about their dustproof or splashproof, now suddenly it is an issue? I guess the fact that all reviewers did not mention the OM System PEN being freezeproof (it was not stated in my info pack, only splash and dustproof) also did not help things, considering all the recent OM System cameras like OM-3 and OM-5 Mark II are freezeproof. Imagine my surprise finding freezeproofing in OM System PEN's product specification page!
Freezeproofing matters. Many people live in colder regions and having some freeze protection allows the camera to continue to function on subzero temperatures. Instead of the camera dying out immediately, you can still get some meaningful shots! I am very happy to see that just because the PEN was a lower-level camera, they did not abandon the freezeproofing, and that says a lot about the weather-sealing capabilities of it.
I know these two items may not sway the public opinion in a drastic measure, I feel the details are important. I wish I have had this full information ready before making my reviews. I admit my own mistake, and I promise to do better in the future.
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