Sony Alpha digital cameras

The NEX-7 gets an “Essential” stamp at Photographyblog.

January 4, 2012
reviews
17 Comments

[shoplink 8454][/shoplink]

One of my favorite websites Photographyblog (Click here) reviewed the NEX-7. Is it a surprise that they like they camera? Certainly not but you don’t see often a camera getting the “Essential” mark like it happened today with the NEX-7: “The combination of an excellent built-in viewfinder, handy pop-up flash, tiltable LCD screen and a high-resolution APS-C sensor, all in a light and compact body, simply can’t be beaten“. And I agree with them when they say that the real only flaw of the NEX-7 are the….missing good quality NEX lenses :)

More testes:
Soundimagesplus (Click here) red-did the NEX-7 vs A77 comparison using exactly the same lens on both cameras. The: “NEX-7 files are slightly softer, slightly less noisy and also slightly darker.”
Some field test images by Outbackphoto (Click here).
And the German magazine Colorfoto (Click here) compared the NEX-7 with the GX1 and NX200. Easy to guess who won :)

In Stock….sorry…out of Stock status :)
I think most of you are now almost tired to read all those fantastic (for Sony) reviews. Most of you will still have to wait a couple of weeks or even months until you can get your NEX-7 camera. I am working behind the scenes to convince different online shops in Europe and USA to notify me in advance when they will receive the a stock of new cameras. As I said a couple of days ago preorder the body only and buy the lens separately to have more chances to grab one. The only problem is that if you want the all Black 18-55mm lens ships with the NEX-7 kit only (you cannot buy it separately).
Right now I didn’t find any store having the camera in Stock. There are some auctions on ebay but you have to perform two different kind of searches to find them all:
[shoplink 8454 ebay]Ebay search for “NEX-7” (Click here)[/shoplink]
[shoplink 10976 ebay]Ebay search for “Sony α (alpha) NEX-7” (Click here)[/shoplink]. Yeah you will find more cameras here :)
Preorder search links: [shopcountry 8454].

Something else…

January 4, 2012
rumors
33 Comments

Sometimes I have small info-rumors that I don’t know how to….place on SonyAlphaRumors. Here is a short list of info-rumors:

1) The HVL-MT24AM Macro Twin Flash has been discontinued (See at Bh). A replacement should be announced this year.

2) I got this rumor about an upcoming new video technology: “Sony is working on an interesting project. It’s a software that uses two different exposed 1080p video files out of an 3D Camcorder to get a stunning high dynamic range picturestyle.” This sounds pretty interesting! Thanks anonymous source!

3) Don’t know how this is possible but the first 50mm f/1.8 lens for NEX can be found [shoplink 11003 ebay]here at eBay Germany[/shoplink]. The lens is still not for sale in any store so I am wondering how that guy got the lens! The lens shipment is supposed to start in February or even March only! Check the lens preorder options at [shopcountry 8448] (Those are search links, you may will NOT find the lens at all).

That said I am working on a bunch of important rumors. There is one bad news I will post soon and a couple of good news. Just give me the time to double check everything with other sources. Be patient!

The Verge: Sony NEX-5n is camera of the year.

January 4, 2012
rumors
16 Comments

Sony NEX-5N Users Guide Video

The Verge (Click here) selected the Sony NEX-5n as camera of the year 2011! Here is the motivation: “The door that Sony cracked open with the NEX-5 has been blown wide open by the NEX-5N. Besides making the body marginally thinner and adding a touchscreen, Sony endowed the NEX-5N with a truly supreme image sensor. Its 16-megapixel CMOS sensor competes with the Nikon D7000 and Canon 60D (each company’s latest and greatest midrange DSLR) for noise performance, while delivering image quality that leaves other mirrorless cameras in the dust. If the NEX-5N had a universal microphone input and a more generous battery, it’d be a formidable DSLR replacement for professionals as well. As it stands, it’s the top choice for any hobbyist looking for the best image-quality-to-camera-size ratio.”

I have to say that even If I love the NEX-7 I am testing in these days the Sony NEX-5n has still the edge when in terms of price-quality balance. While the A77 and NEX-7 are definitely more “spectacular” cameras the Sony NEX-5n simply does almost all the other two big cameras do, but for a far cheaper price and smaller package :)

P.S.: Dcresource (Click here) started a new NEX-5n gallery

The Sony NEX-5n is selling well in almost all countries. For months now you can find the different kit options under the top 20 of the most mirrorless stuff at Amazon US (Click hee to see ranking) at Amazon Germany (here for the ranking), Amazon France (here).

Here are some NEX-5n shop search links: [shopcountry 8452]. While the camera is relatively cheap the external viewfinder is a bit too expensive: [shopcountry 9110].

P.S.: So why did I buy the NEX-7 to replace my NEX-5n (which is now owned by my girlfriend)? Easy answer, because of the Trinavi navigation. Good usability allows me to work more precisely and faster.

Gary Friedmann about to launch two new A77 and NEX-7 books.

January 3, 2012
rumors
24 Comments

Gary Firedmann contacted me to talk about his latest Sony related books:

“Hi, Andrea! I’ve been a regular reader of your blog for quite sometime. (I even mention your work prominently in my books!) Since you seem keen on letting people know about books for Sony cameras, I thought it would be fair to mention mine as well – I’m writing one about the A65 / A77 (which is on track to be finished by the end of January), and one for the NEX 7 (which will start just as soon as the one I ordered back in October ever arrives. :-) ). They’re available as full-color, instantly-downloadable .pdf files with no DRM (and also as printed books for those who like printed books.) You can read about my other Sony books and register your interest in the soon-to-be-released ones by visiting my website: www.FriedmanArchives.com/ebooks Many thanks, and please keep doing what you’re doing! Sincerely, Gary Friedman”

Thanks Gary!

P.S.:
Sony SLT A65/A77 for Dummies!! (Click here to see it on Amazon)
A77 book from David Busch you can preorder on Amazon (Click here).

(UPDATE) A77 sold out(!) Stock at BHphoto. Zeiss in Stock at Amazon.

January 3, 2012
deals
22 Comments

UDPATE: A couple of minutes after posting this the A77 has been sold out at BHphoto (Click here). Hope some of you guys got the camera.

And Ritz is selling some Sixteen Zeiss for NEX lenses at Amazon (Click here) for “Only” $36 more than the normal selling price.

P.S::In Asia the A77 is in Stock at Digitalrev and Amazon.jp. In Europe at…didn’t found any store having it in Stock :(

New NEX-7 news roundup and in Stock status!

January 3, 2012
reviews
31 Comments

I finally got a Zeiss 24mm f/1.8 lens for testing purpose only (don’t know if I will buy it at the end). I will soon post my first impression review on SAR. Meanwhile check these other news to learn more about the NEX-7:

Echenique (Click here) posted a NEX-7 first impression: “The Sony NEX-7 is a strange beast. As a Percy Jackson fan (and general mythology buff), I would call this a chimera rather than a camera. Its image size, image qualities, and file malleability encroach well into the low-end of medium format. Its sensor size, interchangeable lenses and bokeh characteristics plant it squarely in DSLR territory. Its body size and handling is definitely in the compact camera arena. So what is it? Well like the mythical chimera, its all of the above.”

Canadianreviewer (Click here) also tested the NEX-7: “A true object of desire for photographers and the pinnacle of camera technology today, the NEX-7 is simply a game changer and the one device that might entice DLSR users to consider smaller bodies with similar features.”

Really Right Stuff (Click here) announced new plates for the A77, NEX-5N, NEX-7.

NEX-7 in Stock status:
As I already told you it’s better to preorder the NEX-7 body only and by the Zeiss lens separately. The NEX-7+18-55mm or Zeiss kit will be shipped in late February only.
The NEX-7 is in Stock at Parkcameras UK (Click here) and on eBay sold by owners from [shoplink 10974 ebay]Sweden (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 10973 ebay]England (Click here)[/shoplink] and [shoplink 10976 ebay]Germany (Click here)[/shoplink].
In USA you can find three cameras for sale on eBay (Click here). And that’s it :) Preorder the NEX-7 body at Adorama (Click here) and Bhphoto (Click here) if you want to get the camera as soon as possible (Amazon doesn’t accept preorders).

The Zeiss 24mm lens is in Stock in some stores. Click these search links to check for yourself: [shopcountry 8450].

(SR5) Sony to announce new compact camera soon (no new NEX or SLT camera).

January 2, 2012
rumors
18 Comments

Sony will soon announce a bunch of new compact cameras. There will be no new NEX or SLT cameras (or lenses). A leak at Sony unveiled that a new W610 and W630 are going to be introduced.

The compact camera market is still the biggest camera market in terms of unit sales but the profit margin is very low (Click here to see the Amazon photo camera ranking). Plus this market is going to shrink because of the phone cameras that do bring two advantages: When you have a phone that can take pictures why bother to bring a second camera with you? And the second more important reason is the APP world. It’s nice to know that you can upgrade your photo-creativity by using new tools like Hipstamatic. There is where Sony has to work. Create an APP friendly network for NEX and SLT cameras. Hope they will do that!

One more thing: join us here: https://www.facebook.com/sonyalpharumors
—
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!