Will Fujifilm make a Micro Four Thirds camera?

The Micro Four Thirds camera war has, until now, been a two-horse race between Panasonic and Olympus. There are now whispers that Fujifilm might throw its hat into the ring to compete with the two original developers of the format.

Fujifilm's FinePix F70EXR features the company's EXR sensor. (Credit: Fujifilm)

Rumour site Photo Rumors reports that Fujifilm may be developing a Micro Four Thirds camera with an EXR sensor, to be announced before next year's PMA expo in January.

Provisionally named Micro-S10EXR (MS10), the new camera will feature the company's EXR sensor but in the Four Thirds size, with 12 megapixels, and will house many of the features commonly found on Fujifilm's current compact range. The LCD will apparently be a tilting design and the camera may have an in-built electronic viewfinder (EVF), differentiating it from the current Micro Four Thirds offerings from Panasonic and Olympus; the Panasonic GF1 features an EVF that attaches separately to the body, and the Olympus E-P1 has an optional optical viewfinder.

The big difference between these cameras is that the Fujifilm's form factor will sit somewhere between the E-P1 and GH1. So it won't quite be in a compact or mini-SLR size. We're already confused enough with the difference between an SLR and an interchangeable lens Micro Four Thirds camera, and it looks like Fujifilm will just add more question marks to the equation.