I have just updated the firmware of my E-P1 and 14-42 zoom lens. There is a definite improvement but autofocus still isn't anything exceptional. I have only tried average indoor night lighting and poor indoor lighting. This is how it fares...
C-AF now works indoors in average indoor night lighting at both ends of the zoom. Previously I couldn't get C-AF to work indoors in average lighting at all. It is quite klutzy compared to my old Sony DSC-V3 so won't be using it (whereas I used C-AF from the hybrid AF system in the Sony most of the time). Not really an issue for me. The C-AF is quite crude and you could not use C-AF for tracking or in the movie mode.
S-AF seems to be around 1/3rd faster. Still not lightening fast but the improvement is noticeable. I tested the focus times in average indoor lighting to be around 1.1 to 1.3 seconds before upgrade and around 0.7 to 0.8s after upgrade. Considering the light level, this is adequate for me. The camera will now focus in average indoor lighting levels at the f/5.6 end of the zoom. It did not do this before.
In poor lighting (meter ISO400, 1/2.5s to 1/3s and f/3.5) can now achieve focus in around 1s in S-AF. I could not focus with this level of light before. C-AF will even work in this mode but you wouldn't want to use it.
This is a big improvement and you would have to wonder why they shipped the camera as it was before.
I haven’t tried it in normal lighting levels but my guess is there wouldn’t be much improvement. I think the bottom line is that the AF motors in the Olympus lenses are not the speediest.
I also tried it with my Panasonic 45-200 zoom at the wide end (f/4) and while I didn’t test this before, it may be marginally faster but there isn’t much in it. I can focus in both average indoor lighting and the poor lighting level as described above. In the higher lighting level, I can also focus at the f/5.6 end of the zoom which I could not do before. It is quite weird using the Panasonic zoom which is silent as I also use the noise of the Olympus lens as my focus confirmation.
It is a worthwhile upgrade and I recommend you do it for both camera and the Olympus lenses.
C-AF now works indoors in average indoor night lighting at both ends of the zoom. Previously I couldn't get C-AF to work indoors in average lighting at all. It is quite klutzy compared to my old Sony DSC-V3 so won't be using it (whereas I used C-AF from the hybrid AF system in the Sony most of the time). Not really an issue for me. The C-AF is quite crude and you could not use C-AF for tracking or in the movie mode.
S-AF seems to be around 1/3rd faster. Still not lightening fast but the improvement is noticeable. I tested the focus times in average indoor lighting to be around 1.1 to 1.3 seconds before upgrade and around 0.7 to 0.8s after upgrade. Considering the light level, this is adequate for me. The camera will now focus in average indoor lighting levels at the f/5.6 end of the zoom. It did not do this before.
In poor lighting (meter ISO400, 1/2.5s to 1/3s and f/3.5) can now achieve focus in around 1s in S-AF. I could not focus with this level of light before. C-AF will even work in this mode but you wouldn't want to use it.
This is a big improvement and you would have to wonder why they shipped the camera as it was before.
I haven’t tried it in normal lighting levels but my guess is there wouldn’t be much improvement. I think the bottom line is that the AF motors in the Olympus lenses are not the speediest.
I also tried it with my Panasonic 45-200 zoom at the wide end (f/4) and while I didn’t test this before, it may be marginally faster but there isn’t much in it. I can focus in both average indoor lighting and the poor lighting level as described above. In the higher lighting level, I can also focus at the f/5.6 end of the zoom which I could not do before. It is quite weird using the Panasonic zoom which is silent as I also use the noise of the Olympus lens as my focus confirmation.
It is a worthwhile upgrade and I recommend you do it for both camera and the Olympus lenses.