Olympus WCON-P01 - $59 Factory Demos, $69 New

[dougjgreen]

The prices are at Cameta, with free shipping in the U.S.

I got interested in this because Olympus sent me a mailing promoting it with test shots that indicated it converts the 14-42 II or IIR kit lens into a rectilinear 11mm lens - which I had not realized - I had previously thought this was a fisheye-type adapter, which didn't really interest me.

I also just got my quarterly ebay bucks certificate this morning, which was for $55 dollars that I needed to spend in the next 2 weeks, so by applying it to this purchase at Cameta's ebay store, I basically paid $4 out of pocket for it.

I have no idea just what sort of quality this produces, but for that price, I certainly will give it a try and report back. If the results are decent, then this will certainly serve a VERY useful purpose in providing an economical 11mm wide option, when every other means of getting 12mm or wider costs several hundred dollars more.

 

[madogvelkor]

I wish the Panasonic version was priced that nice.

 

[tjdean01]

I just bought the Panasonic one for $103 shipped and my 14mm 2.5 is waiting to accept it! I could have gone the Olympus route but something tells me the 14mm will do a better 11mm. No zoom, but sharper and smaller.

 

[sfmurph]

Where'd you get the Panasonic one for that? All the online places are either sold out or $150 imported from Japan!

 

[tjdean01]

Where'd you get the Panasonic one for that? All the online places are either sold out or $150 imported from Japan!

Just on Panasonic's website: Panasonic DMW-GWC1 - Wide Conversion LensDMW-GWC1 for G Series Cameras - Overview

Yes, it's back-ordered but it let me buy it.

 

[dougjgreen]

FYI, my WCON-P01 arrived today. While it's soft at the corners, especially wide open on the 14-42 II kit zoom, and there is a bit of barrel distortion, it's certainly acceptable enough to be a useful tool.

Incidentally, I believe that I have engineered a very straightforward and cost-effective means of attaching this WCON onto the 14mm f2.5 prime, Basically, what I did is put a small rubber band around the base of the WCON, and around that, I slid a 52mm filter ring with the glass removed onto that base, where it fits snugly over the rubber-band. With this 52mm filter ring attached properly, the lens still can mount onto the 14-42 II zoom via the bayonet. But now, with the addition of a 46-52mm step-up ring, it can simply screw onto the Panny 14mm lens' 46mm threads.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to test this WCON on the 14mm prime until the 46-52mm step-up ring that I just ordered for $3 arrives in the mail. Meanwhile, it still works fine on the 14-42 kit lens - although it won't be able to mount on it if the 46-52 step up ring is attached to the WCON - so that step-up ring should be left on the 14mm lens.

Basically, the cost of this solution in addition to the WCON, is simply the $3 step-up ring, a crappy old 52mm filter I happened to have lying around, and a small rubber band, worth around a nickel.