A Minolta inspiration idea for the Full Frame NEX :)

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[shoplink 15112 ebay][/shoplink]
Imagine that camera…in E-mount :)  Image courtesy: Wikipedia.

Have a little dream, and I want to share it:
As I told you I have no doubt anymore that Sony will sooner (or later) release a new Full Frame E-mount camera. But not only the specs and tech inside the camera will be important also the design has to be perfect. And knowing that some Minolta engineers are still involved in Sony camera development and design I really hope they are going to take some inspiration from the [shoplink 15112 ebay]Minolta CLE[/shoplink] you see here on top! More nice body images can be found within [shoplink 15110 ebay]that camera auction (Click here)[/shoplink].

I owned one for quite some time (sold it after in favour of the [shoplink 15111 ebay]Mamiya 7[/shoplink] a plastic camera but medum format). At the time of the presentation the CLE was the best M-mount camera. But what I like most is the compact size philosophy (it is the most compact M-mount camera), the zero compromise in body quality, the easy design and easy handling. Now imagine a FF NEX camera having the same simplicity. That would be a killer. And probably you would not have to dream the new Leica M anymore. Don’t you think?

The CLE still sells used on [shoplink 15112 ebay]eBay (Click here to see all auctions)[/shoplink]. There were even some Gold editions (here on slidoo ebay). History about the camera can be found on Cameraquest and Camerapedia. MIntola acutions on eBay here on slidoo.

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Ozawa Chukyo’s work with the Sony RX1.

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Sony launched a dedicated Ozawa Chukyo page that shows his work with the new Sony RX1: http://www.sony.jp/cyber-shot/1hand-fullsize/photographer.html. A poor automatic translation can be found here via google. Mr. Ozawa talks a lot about his experience with the RX1. And of course he liked the camera. We will still have to wait over a month before first cameras will be shipped. Meantime I can’t wait to see some real RX1 test soon.

The RX1 can be pre ordered at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Wex UK ,Wex Germany and more links at Alphacameradeals.

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(SR4) New NEX-7 successor coming in first half 2013!

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We all loved the NEX-7 but the time is close that it will find his way to a well deserved retirement. It stills ell well in US (see Amazon ranking) but according to our sources the NEX-7 is due for replacement the first half of the next year. We are still working on the rumored specs list and sources are welcome to send me the bits of info they have about the camera so that I can be as accurate as possible the day I will post them on SAR.

All I can say for now is that every aspect from EVF, sensor up to the AF will be changed (ok that was to be expected). I haven’t heard of any revolutionary new feature yet (like foveon sensor or whatever you imagine). While final prototypes are already out for testing you may share your wish list for the new NEX-7 successor while I am working on the real specs info. Contact me anonymously (with fake mail address) at sonyalpharumors@gmail.com. Or just drop a message on the contact form you see placed here on the right sidebar. Thanks!

The $100 NEX-7 rebates on Amazon:
Meantime there is a $100 rebate action on the NEX-7 (Click here). You save another additional $100 when purchasing it along the 55-210mm lens and another 2% on the overall total price. That deal is part of the many Golg Box deals launched three days ago (Click here to see them all / there will be a DSC-H90 deal starting soon).

There are also some good deals on eBay:
In USA: You can get them even cheaper at [shoplink 15102 ebay]Bigvalue ($1066 click here to check out the auction)[/shoplink]. And private sellers are also selling some new bodies for less than $1000 at [shoplink 15100 ebay]Bucsmom[/shoplink] and [shoplink 15101 ebay]Kirmell[/shoplink].
In Europe: Cheapest price at [shoplink 15103 ebay]Microprice Italy (topseller store)[/shoplink]. It’s about 60-70 Euro less than in other stores.
Full list of eBay NEX7 auction here at Slidoo.

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Reminder (SR = Sonyrumor):
SR1=probably fake rumor
SR2=rumor from unknown sources
SR3=50% chance it is correct
SR4=rumor from known sources
SR5=almost certainly correct!

 

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Sony new financial report…

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The Sony mirrorless market share in Japan

 

Yesterday BCNranking (translation here) posted the market shares of the mirrorless market in Japan. As you see Sony is the second top player. But how is Sony doing financially? Today Sony released that pdf document (Click to download). In short: The company lost $198 million in Q2 but that’s much lass than they amount they lost in Q1 ($312). But forecast data looks good and Sony should go back to profit by end of 2013. What do we know about the digital camera business?

The imaging division that includes Digital Imaging Products and Professional Solutions categories. had a slightly revenue drop from ¥219.1 (Q1) to ¥182.6 (Q2) but there is still an operating income plus of ¥2.6 (numbers in millions). Sony writes that “This decrease was primarily due to a significant decrease in unit sales of compact digital cameras reflecting a contraction of the low-end of the market resulting from popularization of smartphones as well as a slowing economy.“. But the forecats prediction says that “Sales are expected to increase and operating income is expected to increase significantly year-on-year.”

What is Sony’s goal for the imaging business? Here it is:
“Although the market for compact digital cameras continues to contract, Sony is working to restore profitability through reinforcement of its high value added products such as those that are differentiated through the use of highly competitive image sensors developed by Sony. For interchangeable single lens cameras, which are enjoying a steady expansion of sales, Sony aims to contribute even further to profitability by enhancing product competitiveness through the integration of network functionality and services. Image sensors contributed to profitability this quarter and, with the aim of further expanding profitability, Sony is making additional investments in production capacity to meet the growing demand for high performance image sensors in the growing market for mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets.”

P.S.: Unlike it is in Japan you can’t get real market shares data from Europe and US. To get a very basic and non scientific idea of the popularity you can still check the largest online store rankings:
US ranking (Click here), DE ranking (Click here), UK ranking (Click here), FR ranking (Click here).

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Sony TidBits (and finally RX1 manuals available for download)

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Our friend Mike Kobal shot this video about the Sansy Hurricane with the Sony RX100.

RX1:
First news of today. Our reader Mike (Thanks!) just sent us the links to the RX1 manual download links:
Various languages but not English listed as yet: http://sony.co.uk/support/en/product/DSC-RX1/manuals
And here is a working link to the English manual: http://pdf.crse.com/manuals/4443124111.pdf
The RX1 will ship in December and preorders are up at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Wex UK ,Wex Germany and more links at Alphacameradeals.

More little Sony news:
A99 test at MyNavi (translation here).
Sony Chathistory about the new F55 and F5 cameras on Facebook.
Introducing the PMW-F55 (Sony website).
Damn it…even Ken Rockwell likes the Sony NEX-5R!

Live show:
Paul Genge will have CameraDiner LIVE show today. They will talk about e-mount with Yamamoto san from Sony PSE

Readers work:
Jonas: “With my recent NEX-7 purchase i started getting interested in shooting video along with my photography. I’ve made a little sample movie of what you can do with a nex-7, tripod, sony 24-70 cz and a circular polarizer. No extra effects have been added other than a slight adjustment in curves to correct dynamic range slightly. The video is on youtube =)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xhXlnP6duc&feature=plcp
Not sure if it’ll have any impact on nex-7 opinions but perhaps it’ll spark an interest in someone as other nex-7 videos did for me =)“

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Engadget loves the new NEX-5R (and me too).

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Engadget (Click here) posted the full Sony NEX-5R review and I agree with their conclusions when they write: “Picture and video quality, even at higher ISO settings, was stellar. The camera’s exposure was typically spot-on, and we never found a need to venture beyond the automatic white balance setting, with each shoot yielding accurate results. We’ve had some issues with past NEX models when shooting in tungsten or vapor light, but we were quite pleased with the images here. ”

Like any other company sometimes Sony makes bad products and sometimes Sony makes very good products. And few of you will disagree when I say that the NEX-5R falls in the latter category. When it comes down to analyze the features you get for the price you can hardly find any other mirrorless camera that can match it!

Along the RX100 this is my favorite camera of the year. And for you?

Sony NEX-5R in Stock status and price check at: [shopcountry 14168]
Slide through the NEX-5R auctions on Slidoo.com.

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Next Sony foveon alike patent!

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Egami (translation here) spotted the next Sony sensor patent describing a Foveon alike sensor. With Foveon alike I mean a RGB 3-layer image sensor that in case of the Sony patent also includes tilted(!) pixels. As you know the advantage of such a 3 layer sensor is the color accuracy, sharpness and larger pixels (or possibility to have more pixels on the same sensor size). Now, it’s hard to understand from the google translation why these pixels have been titled. But if you saw some test of the latest generation Sigma Foveon sensor cameras than you will easily notice that at Low ISO the sensor really rocks! (while there are still massive noise problems on High ISO images).
Here are some test to check out:  DP2 ISO test at Focus Numerique. A full camera review has been posted at Photographyblog, Luminous Landscape and ePhotozine.

I hope Sony will be able to overcome some of the Sigma Foveon technology limits and release a camera with a 3 layer sensor. Would push the image quality to a new level!

P.S.: There are two 46 Megapixel Merrill compact cameras from Sigma:
DP1 with 28mm lens at Amazon, BHphoto and of course on [shoplink 15083 ebay]eBay[/shoplink].
DP2 with 45mm lens at BHphoto and on [shoplink 15084 ebay]eBay[/shoplink].

More info: Foveon X3 sensor (Source: Wikipedia)

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