The price is most likely a placeholder... a guess. The price hasn’t been announced yet. But the lens is probably going to be in that ballpark. The R5 and A9II are excellent, I’m sure, but I don’t at all agree with the FF comparisons and complaining here.
Paired with a X, especially after bird AI tracking comes in an update and improves the hit rate even more (AF is already good enough to not be a problem), this could be an extremely compelling system for birders. It will have massive range and flexibility and be extremely weather resistant — more so than anything else out there. It will (I’m sure) be sharp as a tack and very bright yet with deeper DoF (which is a good thing for bird photography), leveling the IQ playing field (if not surpassing ) against FF setups relying on slower and shorter lenses, teleconverters and cropping. It will be compatible with Oly’s excellent and leading features such as Pro Capture and Sync IS. It wont be the lightest or cheapest rig possible, but it will still be hand-holdable, which along with everything else will put it among the best (even heavier and more expensive) options, and unique in its possibilities.
It won’t have the dynamic range of FF, but this is something I rarely have to deal with and can usually overcome with technique. Also, it will be less capable of low light action than some FF pairs out there, but at that aperture and range it will only lose to heavier and more expensive rigs.
There are smaller, cheaper m4/3 lens options out there, and more announced as on the way. This one will be special. Such a lens is meant for very few buyers, but that’s true for all systems. It’s a statement about the brand’s full potential. It may very well be too late, and concern about Olympus’ future will hurt its sales, but we should know more about the future of the brand by the time this lens comes out.
