Olympus has launched a new promotion in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. Offering a free VF-4 electronic viewfinder with every E-P5 14-42mm kit or E-P5 body purchased, the promotion runs from today until 5th January. Customers will have until 2 February 2014 to claim their free VF-4. To learn more, read the terms and conditions of the promotion.

Want to see exactly what the new Fujifilm X-E2 compact system camera looks like in the flesh?

Check out our extensive hands-on gallery of photos of the Fujifilm X-E2.

The Fujifilm X-E2 is a new compact system camera that boasts the world’s fastest AF speed of 0.08 seconds in its class. The X-E2 also delivers even more beautiful colour reproduction and higher definition image capture than the original X-E1 model. Available in solid Black or two-tone Black and Silver, the Fujifilm X-E2 will cost £749.00 body only.

Fujifilm are releasing a free, dedicated firmware update for the original X100 camera which will offer a number of significant improvements. The new firmware will drastically improve the performance of the autofocus and manual focus functions and offer additional convenience. The Fujifilm X100 Firmware Version 2.00 is available for download today.

Want to see exactly what the new Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM1 compact system camera looks like in the flesh?

Check out our extensive hands-on gallery of photos of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM1 compact system camera, including the black and orange versions, the new 12-32mm collapsible lens, and the optional hand grip.

Panasonic have today unveiled three lenses for their new GM-series mirrorless cameras.

In addition to the 12-32mm lens announced alongside the GM1 camera, Panasonic are also developing the Leica DG Summilux 15mm f/1.7 ASPH. and an as yet unnamed 35-100mm lens.

There are no details yet on pricing or availability of either the 15mm or 35-100mm lenses.

The Panasonic GM1 is a tiny Micro Four Thirds camera with a 16-megapixel sensor, 1036K-dot touchscreen and Wi-Fi connectivity. Other highlights include a completely silent electronic shutter with a maximum shutter speed of 1/16000s, focus peaking, pop-up flash and Full HD video recording capabilities. The Panasonic Lumix GM1 comes bundled with the new Lumix G VARIO12-32mm (24-64mm equivalent) f/3.5-5.6 Asph. MEG O.I.S. pancake zoom lens. The kit will be available from December, priced at around £629 / $750. The lens will also be sold separately for $350. An auxiliary grip for the Panasonic GM1 will be available for £89 / $100.

Want to see exactly what the new Sony A7R compact system camera looks like in the flesh?

Check out our extensive hands-on gallery of photos of the Sony A7R compact system camera, which has a 35mm full-frame sensor with 36.4 effective megapixels and no low-pass filter.

Want to see exactly what the new Sony A7 compact system camera looks like in the flesh?

Check out our extensive hands-on gallery of photos of the Sony A7 compact system camera, which has a 35mm full-frame sensor with 24.3 effective megapixels.

Want to see exactly what the new Sony FE compact system camera lenses and A7/A7R battery grip look like in the flesh?

Check out our extensive hands-on gallery of photos of four of the new lenses - the Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* FE 35mm f/2.8 ZA, the Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* FE 55mm f/1.8 ZA, the Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar T* FE 24-70mm f/4 ZA OSS, and the Sony FE 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS - and the battery grip.

We've directly compared the new Sony A7 full-frame compact system camera with the Olympus OM-D E-M1 and the Canon EOS 5D Mark III.

As you'll see in the gallery, the Sony A7 is much smaller than Canon's full-frame DSLR, as you'd expect, but it's actually about the same size as Olympus' new mirrorless offering, which uses a comparatively tiny Micro Four Thirds sensor!

Obviously you then have to factor in the lenses, which are bigger on Sony's new FE full-frame system, but it's clear to see that Sony have put a lot of effort into making their new A7/A7R bodies as petitie as possible

Sony have announced that a new mid to high-end Alpha mount camera body is currently under development. Due to be released in 2014, the new body confirms that Sony are still committed to the A-mount system. No further details about the new body have been released at today's London press briefing.

Meanwhile, it seems that the company's NEX branding is to be officially ended, as Sony focuses on promoting the Alpha naming convention for all of its mirrorless cameras. So expect to see future E-Mount cameras without that familiar NEX nomenclature...

Sony have unveiled the roadmap for their new range of FE branded, 35mm full-frame E-Mount lenses. Having announced 5 new lenses today, Sony have promised to release 5 more in 2014, with 15 lenses in total due to be available by the end of 2015. These will include an f/4 ultra-wide-angle zoom, large aperture prime, and macro lens.

The new LA-EA4 A-mount Adapter has also been announced today, which will provide compatibility with 54 lenses in total from day one (including A/E Mount and the new lenses).

Carl Zeiss will release a new 50mm f/2.8 Touit lens at the beginning of 2014. The Carl Zeiss Touit 50mm f/2.8 will have a magnification ration of 1:1. Expect to see Sony E-Mount and Fujifilm versions, as with the previous two Touit lenses.

A spokesman for Carl Zeiss also revealed that one more Touit lens will be released in 2014, although no more details were forthcoming.

The Sony A7R (α7R) is a compact system camera with a 35mm full-frame sensor offering 36.4 effective megapixels and no optical low-pass filter. The sensor emplys a new ‘gapless’ on-chip microlens design which eliminates gaps between adjacent pixels. These advances increase light collection efficiency, achieving outstanding resolution, sensitivity and low noise while circumventing the challenge of decreased pixel size due to the extremely high pixel count. Other highlights include a Sony E bayonet mount (designed to be used primarily with the company's new full-frame E-mount lenses), a dust/moisture-resistant magnesium alloy body, newly-developed fast intelligent auto focus, an improved XGA OLED electronic viewfinder, NFC and Wi-Fi capabilities, Full HD movie recording and 4K photo output for viewing on Ultra HD displays and TVs. Priced at £1600 / $2299 and available for pre-order, the Sony α7R will go on general sale in UK from mid-late November.

The new Sony A7 (α7) is a compact system camera with a 35mm full-frame sensor. Headline specifications include a 24x36mm CMOS imager with a resolution of 24.3 megapixels, a Sony E lens mount (to be used primarily with the company's new full-frame E-mount lenses), an improved XGA OLED "Tru-Finder," tiltable LCD screen, enhanced Fast Hybrid auto focus, a dust/moisture-resistant magnesium alloy body, Full HD video recording and 4K Ultra HD photo output. With both Wi-Fi with NFC, the Sony α7 offers effortless one-touch wireless connections with your NFC-compliant Android smartphone or tablet. PlayMemories Camera Apps further enhance your photo experience with a growing range of free and paid apps. In addition to E-mount lenses, the Sony A7 can also take A-mount optics via a new-generation mount adapter. Now available to pre-order for £1300 / $1699 - or £1500 / $1999 with a 28-70mm lens -, the Sony A7 will go on general sale in UK from mid-late November.

Nikon UK is launching a bumper Christmas promotion, offering cashback on a huge amount of products including selected digital SLR cameras, selected lenses and speedlights and selected Nikon 1 cameras. The promotion is limited to one claim per person per product and will run from today until 26th January 2014 (inclusive) and all claims must be received by 28th February 2014. Click through / read on for the details.

We've just got the Olympus OM-D E-M1 in for testing, and thought it would be a Fun Friday thing to do to compare its size directly alongside the full-frame Canon EOS 5D Mk III.

The Canon EOS 5D Mk III is fitted with the excellent Sigma 35mm f/1.4 lens, and the Olympus OM-D has the original version of the Panasonic 20mm f/1.7 mounted, so they offer a similar angle of view - the Olympus/Panasonic pairing actually provides a slightly longer focal length of 40mm, in 35mm full-frame terms.

David and Goliath, eat your heart out...

The Samsung NX300M is a modified version of the Samsung NX300, featuring a rear screen that tilts upwards by 180 degrees. In all other respects, the NX300M is identical to the NX300, with features like a 20-megapixel imager with on-sensor phase detection AF sensors, an articulated OLED touchscreen and Wi-Fi connectivity. As of this writing, the Samsung NX300M is available in South Korea only.

Want to see exactly what the new Nikon 1 AW1 compact system camera looks like in the flesh?

Check out our extensive hands-on gallery of photos of the Nikon 1 AW1, the world’s first waterproof and shockproof interchangeable lens camera, and including the new water/shock/freeze-proof 11-27.5mm f/3.5–5.6 and 10mm f/2.8 lenses.