olddigiman
01-10-2009, 01:30 PM
I have bought and tested some of the Chinese wired shutter releases for the E-400/410/510/420/520. One of them also has a radio wireless function. They are also available with a different connector for the E-1/3. They all provide the 2-step release as the Oly release (half press for focus/exposure, full press to release shutter).
Here’s what they look like on the outside:
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<O:p>http://www.nolonemo.com/files/remotes/outsides.jpg</O:p>
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Here’s what they look like on the inside:
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<O:phttp://www.nolonemo.com/files/remotes/insides.jpg</O:p
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Here’s what I think about them:
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JJC (far left)
Seller treekoala, $16.99 shipped.
This is the better made of the two wired releases, though it is not up to the finish or inside quality of the Oly release, which has thinner and more flexible copper reeds (I used to have the Oly release for my E-20, but I couldn’t find a photo of it’s inside.) It has a sliding shutter lock like the Oly release, and is clearly patterned after it, though it is physically larger. One cool thing about the JJC is that it has a jack on the side for a 3/32” miniplug (red line in picture points to jack), the picture below shows the miniplug connections.
http://www.nolonemo.com/files/schematic.jpg
<O:p</O:p
Jianisi (center)
Seller d-slr-a, $11.99 shipped.
This one works just as well as the JJC, but the construction is not as good (see the filing on the top reed and the misaligned reeds). It does work just as well as the JJC, though. The two things made me like this release less than the JJC: (a) a concave release button that required me to push my fingertip down into the hole to get a full release and (b) the button being at the end of the release where the wire comes in. The shutter lock on this works by sliding the panel surrounding the release button.
Wired/wireless release (far right)
Seller jinfinance, $28.95 shipped.
The receiver has a shoe plate on the bottom so you can put it out of the way on the camera’s hot shoe. Both the receiver and fob transmitter have on/off switches to conserve battery life. The wireless codes are set with a 4-dipswitch panel. The receiver also can be used as a manual trigger – but it must be turned on to work, so you’re SOL if the battery dies. The release is OK to use manually, but the connecting cord is on the short side (8" or so) for manual use. The receiver and fob use microswitches (red lines in photos) instead of reeds to close the circuits. Neither has a shutter lock. I could get about 60-70 feet of distance, line of sight, reliabily with the thing. I did trigger the camera from about 45 feet through the outside wall of a stuccoed wood frame house. The build and electronics of these are on a par with the cheap eBay flash triggers, so while I think they are fine for casual use, I would not use them on a mission-critical job.
So on balance, I think the JJC unless you want the distance the wireless solution provides. And please, no comments about how I could have picked up the Oly release for the same amount of dough I spent on all of this stuff! :D
Here’s what they look like on the outside:
<O:p</O:p
<O:p>http://www.nolonemo.com/files/remotes/outsides.jpg</O:p>
<O:p</O:p
Here’s what they look like on the inside:
<O:p</O:p
<O:phttp://www.nolonemo.com/files/remotes/insides.jpg</O:p
<O:p</O:p
Here’s what I think about them:
<O:p</O:p
JJC (far left)
Seller treekoala, $16.99 shipped.
This is the better made of the two wired releases, though it is not up to the finish or inside quality of the Oly release, which has thinner and more flexible copper reeds (I used to have the Oly release for my E-20, but I couldn’t find a photo of it’s inside.) It has a sliding shutter lock like the Oly release, and is clearly patterned after it, though it is physically larger. One cool thing about the JJC is that it has a jack on the side for a 3/32” miniplug (red line in picture points to jack), the picture below shows the miniplug connections.
http://www.nolonemo.com/files/schematic.jpg
<O:p</O:p
Jianisi (center)
Seller d-slr-a, $11.99 shipped.
This one works just as well as the JJC, but the construction is not as good (see the filing on the top reed and the misaligned reeds). It does work just as well as the JJC, though. The two things made me like this release less than the JJC: (a) a concave release button that required me to push my fingertip down into the hole to get a full release and (b) the button being at the end of the release where the wire comes in. The shutter lock on this works by sliding the panel surrounding the release button.
Wired/wireless release (far right)
Seller jinfinance, $28.95 shipped.
The receiver has a shoe plate on the bottom so you can put it out of the way on the camera’s hot shoe. Both the receiver and fob transmitter have on/off switches to conserve battery life. The wireless codes are set with a 4-dipswitch panel. The receiver also can be used as a manual trigger – but it must be turned on to work, so you’re SOL if the battery dies. The release is OK to use manually, but the connecting cord is on the short side (8" or so) for manual use. The receiver and fob use microswitches (red lines in photos) instead of reeds to close the circuits. Neither has a shutter lock. I could get about 60-70 feet of distance, line of sight, reliabily with the thing. I did trigger the camera from about 45 feet through the outside wall of a stuccoed wood frame house. The build and electronics of these are on a par with the cheap eBay flash triggers, so while I think they are fine for casual use, I would not use them on a mission-critical job.
So on balance, I think the JJC unless you want the distance the wireless solution provides. And please, no comments about how I could have picked up the Oly release for the same amount of dough I spent on all of this stuff! :D