OP
is it just me? it seems like Olympus is not making very many underwater capable
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That's your choice. I guess that my opinion that this limits your choices unnecessarily is irrelevant since you seem to have made up your mind. As well as the fact that I see no rational reason for that stance.
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beepbird
Contributor
As a former XZ-1 owner who just purchased an OMD Em-1 and a Tough 4, Olympus is the only mfg to give you a large range of underwater choices. The Tough 4 is better than the XZ-1 having 16 Mp and the ability not to put it in a housing if you are under 50 ft. Much easier for beach diving. I bought the Nauticam hosing for the OM-D but that is the first one I bought that wasn't Olympus.
Andreni
Contributor
I absolutely love the Nauticam housing for my Om-d em-5. I cannot understand why you want to stick to Olympus housing. And yes I agree with you: they didn't think much when developing a housing for the om-d em-5 with the changable lens (18 - 50) without possibility to switch from "normal" to Makro... That's why i choose Nauticam 
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Sanpaku
Registered
Smart phones have dramatically cut sales of all cameras, especially the compact segment.
The manufacturers are hurting: If last year was like the preceding, Olympus will not have made a profit in consumer cameras for 6-7 years, I haven't revisited the financials, but cameras were less than 14% of revenue, dwarfed by the medical and scientific imaging side, where Olympus is a is a leading purveyor of colonoscopes etc. While the consumer side is important to them for heritage and brand recognition reasons, I can't blame them for streamlining the lineup.
Olympus hasn't just reduced the number of underwater housings, its reduced the number of compact cameras lines. The XZ line aimed for a vanishingly small number of enthusiasts who could appreciate the pairing of the 1/1.7" sensor with a f/2 lens, but who for some reason didn't want to step up to an entry level PEN with a kit zoom and a portrait lens for a few hundred more. There weren't many of us buying XZs because it was the best set of features among Olympus compacts for UW, and one of the nicest larger-sensor compacts. I suspect the XZ-10 from three years ago was the last we'll see of that line.
That leaves just the "Soccer Mom" Stylus line, which has little natural affinity with the ocean, and the "Adventure Guy" TG line, as the serious compacts in the lineup. You can't put a 24x zoom on a m4/3 sensor (and expect Soccer Mom to heft it), nor can a interchangable lens camera be made surf and swimming pool waterproof, so those lines seem safe from the m4/3 system cannibalizing their sales. Two housings, for the TG-850 and TG-3, were released in early 2014, and they carried over to 2015, supporting last year's editions. I do wonder about the TG-8XX "Stylus Tough" cameras, which occupy an odd space with the Stylus's 1/2.3" small sensor, and lousy low-light performance, but only a 5x zoom (vs the 1/1.7" sensor and 4x zoom on the TG-Xs). I expect that line to be next to go.
I wouldn't be surprised if the m4/3 line was someday similarly streamlined. I still don't understand why Olympus doesn't just concentrate an entry-level mini PEN, a top-end PEN w/ GX-style viewfinder, an EM-5, and an EM-1 to handle pros and the legacy 4/3s lenses, instead of the eight m4/3 and 4/3 lines they're attempting to simultaneously develop.
Eight, because there's the new Air line. Like Sony's QX, the Air says to the smartphone threat, "if I can't beat them I'll join them", and despenses with niceties like screens and buttons in favor of running everyting from a phone or tablet. I don't expect an OEM housing for the Air, but on the other hand, if they partnered with someone like iDive, they could put together an initially absurd looking but maybe attractive package that gave everyone who struggles seeing their camera screen underwater a 10" diagonal alternative. Stick a dome port on the back of an iDive, and an entirely new form factor is born.
The manufacturers are hurting: If last year was like the preceding, Olympus will not have made a profit in consumer cameras for 6-7 years, I haven't revisited the financials, but cameras were less than 14% of revenue, dwarfed by the medical and scientific imaging side, where Olympus is a is a leading purveyor of colonoscopes etc. While the consumer side is important to them for heritage and brand recognition reasons, I can't blame them for streamlining the lineup.
Olympus hasn't just reduced the number of underwater housings, its reduced the number of compact cameras lines. The XZ line aimed for a vanishingly small number of enthusiasts who could appreciate the pairing of the 1/1.7" sensor with a f/2 lens, but who for some reason didn't want to step up to an entry level PEN with a kit zoom and a portrait lens for a few hundred more. There weren't many of us buying XZs because it was the best set of features among Olympus compacts for UW, and one of the nicest larger-sensor compacts. I suspect the XZ-10 from three years ago was the last we'll see of that line.
That leaves just the "Soccer Mom" Stylus line, which has little natural affinity with the ocean, and the "Adventure Guy" TG line, as the serious compacts in the lineup. You can't put a 24x zoom on a m4/3 sensor (and expect Soccer Mom to heft it), nor can a interchangable lens camera be made surf and swimming pool waterproof, so those lines seem safe from the m4/3 system cannibalizing their sales. Two housings, for the TG-850 and TG-3, were released in early 2014, and they carried over to 2015, supporting last year's editions. I do wonder about the TG-8XX "Stylus Tough" cameras, which occupy an odd space with the Stylus's 1/2.3" small sensor, and lousy low-light performance, but only a 5x zoom (vs the 1/1.7" sensor and 4x zoom on the TG-Xs). I expect that line to be next to go.
I wouldn't be surprised if the m4/3 line was someday similarly streamlined. I still don't understand why Olympus doesn't just concentrate an entry-level mini PEN, a top-end PEN w/ GX-style viewfinder, an EM-5, and an EM-1 to handle pros and the legacy 4/3s lenses, instead of the eight m4/3 and 4/3 lines they're attempting to simultaneously develop.
Eight, because there's the new Air line. Like Sony's QX, the Air says to the smartphone threat, "if I can't beat them I'll join them", and despenses with niceties like screens and buttons in favor of running everyting from a phone or tablet. I don't expect an OEM housing for the Air, but on the other hand, if they partnered with someone like iDive, they could put together an initially absurd looking but maybe attractive package that gave everyone who struggles seeing their camera screen underwater a 10" diagonal alternative. Stick a dome port on the back of an iDive, and an entirely new form factor is born.
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jd950
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I don't know that it makes you weird, but if you were not committed to Oly housings, you would have numerous additional options. Nevertheless, according to a very brief search just now, it looks like Oly makes 21 housings for various Oly cameras, has their own underwater strobes and numerous ports, gears, diffusers, covers, etc. So in response to your initial question I would have to vote that it is just you.
Sanpaku
Registered
Most of those are legacy models. There are 5 housings for the current generation of cameras (ie, released since mid-2013):
E-M1, E-M5 Mk II, E-PL7, TG-3/4, TG-850/860
E-M1, E-M5 Mk II, E-PL7, TG-3/4, TG-850/860
The new signature photos are so annoying...we don't need to see those three cameras (as an example) with every post people make, do we? Not directed at the OP specifically...but come on.
chris196
Contributor
I find this topic strange as Olympus has provided more housings (and still does) than any other manufacturer.
Today you can buy a housing, from Olympus, for cameras ranging from a point & shoot to the best camera they offer.
If we are restricting this to what the camera manufacturers offer, it's not even remotely close.
Canon has always offered pretty good support for P&S and mid range fixed lense cameras, but after that, nothing really.
And if you watch for the sales, you can get some terrific deals. Remember when the epm1 with housing was $499.
Then you had the em5 & housing for just over 1K and then the epl5 & housing for like $700 or so (I might be a little off on those prices)
The bang for the buck on any of those is incredible.
Today you can buy a housing, from Olympus, for cameras ranging from a point & shoot to the best camera they offer.
If we are restricting this to what the camera manufacturers offer, it's not even remotely close.
Canon has always offered pretty good support for P&S and mid range fixed lense cameras, but after that, nothing really.
And if you watch for the sales, you can get some terrific deals. Remember when the epm1 with housing was $499.
Then you had the em5 & housing for just over 1K and then the epl5 & housing for like $700 or so (I might be a little off on those prices)
The bang for the buck on any of those is incredible.
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OP
anenomefishman
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