Great Deal on FL50R at Amazon

[cimman]

there's a great deal for FL50R at Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Olympus-FL-50R...3558358&sr=8-1
it's going for US$316. Used to be $300 just 3 weeks ago, now it's gone by $16, but still a great, great bargain, even cheaper than FL50, and about the same price as a used FL50 here.

I think Olympus is selling their flashes at more reasonable prices now that Metz has come up with alternatives. Isn't competition great ?

for bros with connections in the US, don't hesitate, otherwise shipping it here is still a great bargain.

[spidey89]

bro,did you type it right?it's going for US$ 316 now and used to be 300 3 weeks ago?means it has gone up by 16 dollars

[wrx_sti_22b]

Then existing stocks of FL-50 should hit rock bottom price right?

[cimman]

Originally Posted by spidey89 bro,did you type it right?it's going for US$ 316 now and used to be 300 3 weeks ago?means it has gone up by 16 dollars

hmm....rechecked again and the price is still US$296.77, that was with Cameta selling through Amazon. The US$316 was from another seller. Either way, go to either Amazon.com or Cameta.com to order the US$300 FL50R.

Somehow though, looks like FL50 is not coming down in prices below FL50R. So we have a situation where FL50 is actually more expensive than FL50R. Strange....

[spidey89]

Originally Posted by cimman hmm....rechecked again and the price is still US$296.77, that was with Cameta selling through Amazon. The US$316 was from another seller. Either way, go to either Amazon.com or Cameta.com to order the US$300 FL50R. Somehow though, looks like FL50 is not coming down in prices below FL50R. So we have a situation where FL50 is actually more expensive than FL50R. Strange....

yea....anywho....I can't order online,no more money in bank ,my credit card haven't arrive and currerntly,have no need for another FL-50R

[marky]

Its around $440.. Quite a big difference if bought in SG..

[Benares]

Hopefully, the reason as to the price slash is for Oly to announce yet another stronger flash
*wishful thinking*

[egnaro]

Originally Posted by marky Its around $440.. Quite a big difference if bought in SG..

$440 include shipping and GST?

from my calculation, US300 (FL50R) + US30 (shipping) = $481.80 (1.46 conversion) + 7% GST = $515.50 in total.

still cheaper then SG price thot.

[Benares]

Originally Posted by egnaro $440 include shipping and GST? from my calculation, US300 (FL50R) + US30 (shipping) = $481.80 (1.46 convertion) + 7% GST = $515.50 in total. still cheaper then SG price thot.

From my previous experience, it should cost slightly more than that - especially on the conversion rate. Always up the rate of what you pay (reflected on your credit card bill) from those currency exchange rate by another 4% if the mode of payment is via credit card. But generally, egnaro's computation is correct and is within the ballpark figure. I got mine for US$435 back in March this year.

Nonetheless, still a great deal/offer!

[cimman]

just checked with my bank and the exchange rate was 1.5.
So in sing dollars, it's S$454.33 = US$302.09

If you have lobang in the US, buy it first, send it to your good friend or relatives in the US, and then pick it up on your next trip to the US, it is a great deal. Just wish the exchange rate was 1.3 like it was a few months ago, I would have saved close to S$60. Ah well.... can't win them all.

[cimman]

Originally Posted by Benares Hopefully, the reason as to the price slash is for Oly to announce yet another stronger flash *wishful thinking*

from what I understand, that is about the max power one can go for a shoe mount flash. If you compare all the top end shoe mount flash of Canon, Nikon, Metz, etc... they are all in the same ball park, give or take a 1 or 2 meters here and there.

You can't go any higher than that unless you're into the next range: handle mount flash, or studio flash (Lumedyne flash, Quantum flash, etc..) ie. the ones with the reflector bowl.

Even for Olympus, it has been a good few years (was it 5 years ?) since the FL50 was introduced and the FL50R just introduced the wireless feature, no flash power increase. We're at the technical limit at what shoe mount flash can do in terms of power. The next step would be better exposure features.

[Benares]

Originally Posted by cimman from what I understand, that is about the max power one can go for a shoe mount flash. If you compare all the top end shoe mount flash of Canon, Nikon, Metz, etc... they are all in the same ball park, give or take a 1 or 2 meters here and there. You can't go any higher than that unless you're into the next range: handle mount flash, or studio flash (Lumedyne flash, Quantum flash, etc..) ie. the ones with the reflector bowl. Even for Olympus, it has been a good few years (was it 5 years ?) since the FL50 was introduced and the FL50R just introduced the wireless feature, no flash power increase. We're at the technical limit at what shoe mount flash can do in terms of power. The next step would be better exposure features.

Well, personally I beg to differ. There's definitely a lot of room to improve in terms of raw power and mechanism for the Oly flash to be compared to Nikon's Speedlight flashes. Their new SB900 really kicks ass with great cycling time and is able to cover long distance - up to 300mm (35mm standard) w/o any additional external packs/boosts, just with 4 AA's. Mighty impressive I'd say. Not to mention the SB900 is able to turn both cw and ccw for 180deg each, unlike Oly's flashes - limit to 90deg clockwise and 180deg counter clockwise.

What's more, the SB900 is priced at about 430USD on Amazon, which is probably slightly cheaper than what you have to pay to get a FL-50R locally in SG after currency conversion, shipping and 7% GST.

[cimman]

Originally Posted by Benares Well, personally I beg to differ. There's definitely a lot of room to improve in terms of raw power and mechanism for the Oly flash to be compared to Nikon's Speedlight flashes. Their new SB900 really kicks ass with great cycling time and is able to cover long distance - up to 300mm (35mm standard) w/o any additional external packs/boosts, just with 4 AA's. Mighty impressive I'd say. Not to mention the SB900 is able to turn both cw and ccw for 180deg each, unlike Oly's flashes - limit to 90deg clockwise and 180deg counter clockwise. What's more, the SB900 is priced at about 430USD on Amazon, which is probably slightly cheaper than what you have to pay to get a FL-50R locally in SG after currency conversion, shipping and 7% GST.

well, that is interesting, I thought the SB900 zooms out to 200mm only and measured based on iso200 ( I could be wrong here). Also the SB900 is optimized for both DX and FX lens, so that’s another factor in the guide number measurement.
anyway, will need to normalize the guide number measurements of these 2 flashes (SB900 and FL50) to really see if they're in the ball park figures of each other. Bros who are knowledgeable in how the guide numbers are measured for these 2 flashes, please contribute, and we’ll see if we can normalize them to provide a fair comparison. This not to see which is better but to see if we're at the limits of what is technically possible in terms of flash power (with 4 AA batteries).

as for the other features of SB900, yes, I agree that Nikon trumps the Oly. I too agree that Oly flashes are way overpriced for the features they provide vis a vis the competition (at the old price of US$420 for the FL50).
I believe this was due to a lack of competition in the Oly camp, as the Metz Oly compatible flash was not yet introduced and the only option was to go with Oly flashes for the E series. So they charged outrageous prices (vis a vis features) because they can.

I’m not saying that third party products are always better, just that they serve to keep Oly on their toes. If the gap in product features and pricing widens too much, Oly knows that they will start to lose market share.

That's why sometimes it is always good to go with the market leader as the accessories will be a lot cheaper. Look at the car spare parts for Toyota vs let's say the Renault. There are a lot of third party Toyota spare parts that goes for very reasonable prices vs the imported Renault spares. The market leader may not be the best in all the areas, but they are cheaper to maintain in the long run. This is purely from a financial standpoint of course, something that someone who is just starting out in the working world to consider. For people who can afford Mercedes, that's another story.

[egnaro]

Originally Posted by Benares Not to mention the SB900 is able to turn both cw and ccw for 180deg each, unlike Oly's flashes - limit to 90deg clockwise and 180deg counter clockwise.

look at sony alpha flash... this is more interesting... 58AM I think is ard US500

[Benares]

Originally Posted by egnaro look at sony alpha flash... this is more interesting... 58AM I think is ard US500

Wooo, very interesting swivel head and good specs.

Originally Posted by cimman well, that is interesting, I thought the SB900 zooms out to 200mm only and measured based on iso200 ( I could be wrong here). Also the SB900 is optimized for both DX and FX lens, so that’s another factor in the guide number measurement. anyway, will need to normalize the guide number measurements of these 2 flashes (SB900 and FL50) to really see if they're in the ball park figures of each other. Bros who are knowledgeable in how the guide numbers are measured for these 2 flashes, please contribute, and we’ll see if we can normalize them to provide a fair comparison. This not to see which is better but to see if we're at the limits of what is technically possible in terms of flash power (with 4 AA batteries). . . . .

I think you could be right. And oh, the 300mm I mentioned was based on my assumption 17-200 is the DX range, so x1.5 and got the 300mm. I think 300mm is kinda incredible too now that you've mentioned

Judging from the official specs published by Nikon, the SB900 seems to do GN48 @ iso200 (max), which, if 'normalized' in terms of 'raw' power comparison (to iso100), is roughly GN34. Makes me wonder if that is the actual 'full power' of the SB900?

EDIT: Which also probably explains why the cycling time is shortened?

Like what cimman mentioned, would appreciate if there are bros out there with knowledge on how we can compare these flashes better.

[microcosm]

Whenever I am looking at a flash head, there is only one thing in mind... kelvin. (colour temperature)

That is why Metz and Nikon Speedlight will always be king. They make amazing flash tubes. The colours are always nice. Have never tried the Sony, so I cannot comment on that.

Another thing that come to mind is the power pack option... and not the recycling time when used with batteries, because if it is used on a mission critical shoot, like red carpet events where I really need fast recycling time, I will use a power pack, no second thoughts about it. There are no alternatives to a power pack. I will be really afraid to use a hotshoe flash that has a recycling speed using batteries that can be comparable to a flash unit hooked up to a power pack... I can only imagine the circuitry inside and the possible *bang*.

So FL-50 (for TTL) and Metz (also with TTL) which can be used with power packs from (1) Olympus (2) Quantum (3) CD 2x2.