Is it 5 times as good?

And yes I did..
I did buy it. I bought it at a good price and its black. Do I love it? Er, I have to get back to you on that one. To start things off, this is what my wife had for breakfast.

Lopis

Yes, I bought it. I waited for almost a month so that I can get my hands on it. I paid in cash! I bought it at Olympus HQ itself. Woot! But why am I not jumping for joy. Well for one, besides the faster aperture, I do not see anything that is significantly better than the 17mm 2.8. 

Contextualise

The 2.8 cost me about $100. The 1.8 cost me about $524. That is almost 6 times more expensive! Do I get better pictures, I do not think so. Do I get a better lens? You damn well know I did. The build is nicer, the heft is better, and the colour, well its black, and I love black. The 2.8 is thinner, lighter and because its cheaper, I bet I will use it more than the 1.8. Its too darn expensive. There are other examples in the world wide web that can extols the virtues of the 1.8. But I have been using the lens for a couple of weeks now, and sad to say, I do not mind swapping the 1.8 for the 2.8.

The 1.8 with a hood and on the EP3.

Could it be

I must admit, that I have only the EP3 to shoot with. Maybe in a better, or newer camera such as the EP5 or the EM1, I would be able to see the difference. 

Red fish. Vignette caused by the lens hood.

I don't know. But that being said, I do not mind swapping the 2.8 with 1.8 either. Reds are fabulous in the jpegs and the 1.8 do come in handy during indoor shooting. And so are the greens.

Green leaves

And because of the 1.8, one does appreciate the more limited depth of field. 

Bicycle Bell

I would not use this lens to take portraits of the people you love though. It makes them look more sick then they really are.

Sick Su. Something runny with her nose.

Would I sell it? No. I am a sentimental person and I tend to leave a huge emotional tags on the things that I own. No, I would not sell it, either of it.

Slim

More pictures samples of the 17mm 1.8  can be found here.

Sample of the 17mm 2.8 can be found here.

Thanks to the guys at www.mu-43.com.