Firmware Friday: Tweaks, fixes for Nikon D5, Pentax K-1 II, Sigma MC-11, Sony radio commander and more

Firmware Friday has arrived once more, and this week we bring news from Nikon, Olympus, Ricoh / Pentax, Panasonic, Sigma and Sony. The majority of the changes made by all of these companies are bug fixes this time around, but a few tweaked features can be found amongst the mix, as well.

Without any further ado, let's get right down to it! We'll start off this week with the cameras, then video gear, lenses/accessories and finally software.

Nikon D5

Firmware version C:1.30 for the Nikon D5 fixes several bugs and adds one new feature. Rather than reinventing the wheel, let's take a look at the official release notes:

• Added Recall shooting functions to the functions that can be assigned to camera controls. Holding the selected control recalls previously-saved exposure settings (including shutter speed and aperture), a feature that can for example be used to switch rapidly between scenes that require different exposures.
  
  Recall shooting functions can be assigned to the following controls using Custom Setting f1 (Custom control assignment): Preview button, Fn1 button, Fn2 button, AF-ON button, Sub-selector center, AF-ON button for vertical shooting, and Lens focus function buttons. It can also be assigned to the Fn button on a WR-1 or WR-T10 remote control using the Assign remote (WR) Fn button option in the SETUP MENU.
  
  For more information, see the addenda to the User’s Manual available from the Nikon Download Center (Nikon Download Center > D5 > Manuals > Supplementary Firmware Update Manual).

• Fixed the following issues:

  • - If Backup or RAW Slot 1 - JPEG Slot 2 was selected for PHOTO SHOOTING MENU > Role played by card in Slot 2 in http server mode, the shutter would sometimes not be released during burst shooting.

  • - Reactivating the standby timer would sometimes fail to re-establish the link between the camera and some makes of mobile router connected via Ethernet cable (Prioritize power saving selected for SETUP MENU > Network > Options > Power saving).

• The focal lengths displayed when teleconverters for AF-S or AF-I lenses are attached have been updated as follows:

  Lens focal length	Teleconverter	Before update	After update
  400 mm	1.4×	550 mm	560 mm
  400 mm	1.7×	650 mm	680 mm
  800 mm	1.4×	1150 mm	1120 mm
  800 mm	1.7×	1350 mm	1360 mm

  • The focal length displays for some combinations of lenses and teleconverters may differ from those given above.

• The SETUP MENU > Time zone and date > Time zone display now shows only the names of major cities in the currently selected zone.

You can download firmware version C:1.30 for the Nikon D5 here.

Pentax K-1 II

Moving along to the Pentax K-1 II, Ricoh doesn't say what has changed with its new firmware specifically. The sole item on the official release notes promises "improved stability for general performance", so if you've experienced any instability or encountered any bugs, you'll want to upgrade and see if the situation has been improved. (And it probably wouldn't hurt to upgrade regardless.) You can download the Pentax K-1 II firmware version 1.02 update here.

Panasonic AK-UC4000 studio camera and AK-UCU600 control unit

With the still cameras out of the way, let's move along to Panasonic, which has released new firmware for its AK-UC4000 studio camera and AK-UCU600 camera control unit. Version 1.06 firmware for the AK-UC4000 makes color reproduction more natural and less changeable as lighting / shooting conditions evolve, and also makes it easier to match color tone between the UC4000 and UC3000 models. The simultaneous update for the UCU600 control unit fixes an intermittent E0 error when powered up or GL is input. Get the camera update here, and the control unit update here.

Sigma MC-11 EF-E mount converter

Updated firmware for the EF-E mount variant of the Sigma MC-11 mount adapter adds support for the 70mm F2.8 DG MACRO | Art lens. It's installed using Sigma Optimization Pro, which you can download here.

Sony FA-WR1CM wireless commander

Finally for the hardware, we have firmware version 2.0 for the Sony FA-WR1CM wireless remote commander. Here, there's one change, but it's a pretty handy one: You can now meter flash once, and then have the result automatically set as the manual flash power level. Download this update here.

Olympus Capture software

And with hardware out of the way, we'll move onto software... specifically, Olympus Capture. Version 1.3.1 is said to "fix a bug", although the company doesn't detail what, precisely, this bug entailed. Download the update for Windows here or for Mac OS here.

And that's it for this week. Be sure to check back next time for more firmware news!

(Camera parts image courtesy of Kelly Hofer / Flickr; used under a Creative Commons CC-BY-2.0 license. Image has been modified from the original.)