Sony 28-70mm f/2.0 GM is in Stock for the first time at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy.

Lenstip tested the new Sony 28-70mm f/2.0 GM and concluded:

In a nutshell the Sony FE 28-70 mm f/2 GM test showed that you get here an outstanding 2/50 standard lens along with three very good, momentarily even excellent 2/28, 2/35, and 2/70 primes in just one instrument.
Of course you have to remember that you deal here with a big and heavy zoom lens, although Sony tried their best to make it easier to handle and to use than the rival Canon device.

Still, if you wanted to get almost exactly the performance offered by the Sony you would have to buy as many as four primes. There is also another problem – no producer has 2/28, 2/35, 2/50, and 2/70 models in their line-up although it seems Sigma is the closest to that goal, offering you in their C line the following lenses. It’s easy to add up their weight – it would amount to 1440 grams so over half a kilo more than the weight of the tested Sony model.

And this is ProAvs take on the new lens:

Sony A1II at  BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy, FotoErhardt, FotoKoch, Calumet, WexUK, Clifton, CameraPro. Sony Australia.
Sony 28-70mm f/2.0 GM at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy, FotoErhardt, Fotokoch, Calumet, WexUK, Clifton, CameraPro. Sony Australia.

Becca Farsace explains why Sony needs to launch a new 1-inch R100 camera model. Personally I don’t know if Sony will ever do this. First of all they have the ZV-1 lineup that is probably the true replacement for this series.If anything, I think a new model in the Sony RX1 full-frame series is needed more. Do you agree with my opinion or do you lean more towards Becca?

SonyAlphaBlog tested the new Samyang 35mm f/1.4 FE lens and concluded:

The Samyang 35mm f1.4 AF Prima (600 euros) is an upgraded version from the Samyang 35mm F1.4 AF II (700 euros). it is cheaper, lighter, more compact, a bit sharper but has downgraded ergonomics
Overall image quality is very good to excellent (on 33Mpix sensor) , color rendering, bokeh, background blur are very good. Improvement points are the sharpness wide open on 61Mpix, level of CA , Resistance to flare , Vignetting

And this is Artur’s review of the lens:

SonyAlphaBlog tested the new lens and concluded:

The Sony 28-70mm F2 GM is a surprisingly lightweight (918g) F2 zoom lens that is suitable for everyday use. Except for the drop in performance at the corners of the 28mm, it excels in most areas, including resolution, color rendition, micro-contrast, and smooth bokeh. It is an ideal choice for wedding photographers.

Also PCmag tested the lens and concluded:

The Sony FE 28-70mm F2 GM matches the flexibility of a zoom with the image quality and background-blurring power of a prime, and somehow doesn’t break your back in the process.

Sony A1II at  BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy, FotoErhardt, FotoKoch, Calumet, WexUK, Clifton, CameraPro. Sony Australia.
Sony 28-70mm f/2.0 GM at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy, FotoErhardt, Fotokoch, Calumet, WexUK, Clifton, CameraPro. Sony Australia.

Sony A1II at  BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy, FotoErhardt, FotoKoch, Calumet, WexUK, Clifton, CameraPro. Sony Australia.
Sony 28-70mm f/2.0 GM at BHphoto, Amazon, Adorama, BestBuy, FotoErhardt, Fotokoch, Calumet, WexUK, Clifton, CameraPro. Sony Australia.

Dan Watson and Manny Ortiz gave further insight into the Sony A1II, also addressing the point of criticism with complete honesty. Still, I think the Sony A1II is the best Alpha camera in the lineup. The only real flaw is the higher price compared to the competition. But for professionals, some of the features are worth the price. So it really depends on your needs!

You can preorder it now at Amazon US, BHphoto, Amazon DE, Amazon FR, Amazon UK, Amazon IT, Amazon ES.

I’m sure many of you have forgotten that this camera ever existed: the Sony QX1 is a 20mp APS-C sensor that was introduced in 2014. It was a big flop and I’m glad someone is talking about it again now. Brings back memories :)