News and Rumour Thursday: Micro43s, Nik and Sony

In this week's summary:

• Micro43s: A body and lens expected from Panasonic next week.
• Nik Software: Now free, but is it still supported?
• Sony: New lenses and RX 10 mk3.

Meanwhile, you'd think major photography websites would know the difference between a selfie and a photo. C'mon guys, you know better!

Micro43s

Seems Panasonic will be releasing a new entry level camera next week with an integrated viewfinder. I think it would make sense to be the Panasonic GM5 replacement. As for the lens, it is rumoured to be a Leica badged 12mm prime. If true, but interesting to see if it offers anything over the existing 12mm f/2.0 from Olympus.

A new firmware for the GH4 has been released as well.

43Rumors: Entry level GX (or GM?) MFT camera to be announced next week
43Rumors: Panasonic to launch a new Leica 12mm lens next week
43Rumors: Panasonic releases new GH4 2.5 firmware update: Adds Post Focus, new 4k photo modes and more!

Nik Software

The Nik Software Collection is now free. That's the good news. The bad news is that it seems Google will be dropping support, concentrating only on mobile platforms. If that was the case, I really wish they could have spun it off. I hope their developers will be able to keep it running as a passion project.

Their software I still use often is Define and Silver FX. Define is handy, but I probably get better results from Topaz DeNoise 6 (but it's much slower). Still, it's sad to think Silver FX won't get any more updates - definitely my favourite B&W conversion software.

If Google wants to concentrate on mobile platforms, why not do mobile versions of the Nik Collection? I'd love to have Define and Silver FX on a mobile or tablet - and their control points are prefect for touch screens!

DPReview: Google offering Nik Collection photo editing applications for free

Sony

Seems Sony is getting better at keep secrets close to their chest. Two new FE mount lenses were announced, as well as a new edition of the video-centric RX10. Alpha mount users continue to wait for some love.

Although I have the Zeiss 55 f/1.8, I think adding a nifty 50 to their collection is a very good move. One less differentiation from Canikon.

DPReview: Sony announces 50mm F1.8 and 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 full-frame lenses
DPReview: Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III puts emphasis on lens reach and video capabilities