Dpreview tests the Sony A580 (there will be no other models with OVF).

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[shoplink 5509][/shoplink]
You can read the full Sony A580 review at DPreview (Click here). It earns a very high score of 75% and a “Silver Award”. The Sony A55 sister got 76%. That’s a short excerpt of the conclusion: “The Sony DSLR-A580 is an excellent all-round performer that gets all the important stuff – image quality, metering, focus – right most of the time. Whether you like its slightly live-view centered design and user interface is pretty much a question of taste and shooting style.”

At that point I want to remind you that the Sony A580 is probably the last Sony camera having an optical viewfinder. The future is SLT (translucent technology with electronic viewfinder). The A77 and next fullframe cameras will be SLT models. As long as Sony can improve the electronic viewfinder technology that shouldn’t be a problem for any of us!

You can check the Sony A580 price and availability by clicking those direct links: [shopcountry 5509].
And here are the links for the SLT version, the A55: [shopcountry 3617].

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a bit about the future of Fullframe…

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After yesterdays news about the discontinued [shoplink 3028]Sony A850[/shoplink] I got many mails from readers that asked me what will happen with Sony’s full-frame line. So here is the summary of what I know!

First of all Sony will not only keep but also reinforce the full-frame system. Until know we had the A850 and A900 which shared the same sensor and had only minor differences. We heard Sony is developing two full-frame sensors with two different resolutions. So there could be two new (and very different) full-frame cameras! Both will be announced in 2012.

I am also certain that all future FF cameras will use the translucent technology. I don’t believe Sony will use the hybrid technology from the [shoplink 6075]Fuji X100[/shoplink]. Would be amazing but technologically (and economically) almost impossible to realize.

And I also get many mails confirming to me that Zeiss is working very clsoe with Sony to develop new FF lenses.

Now let’s see how good the A77 will be. It will certainly be a good indication how terrific good the next FF cameras will be!

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(SR5) Sony picture effects also for the A35 (we already knew it was coming for NEX).

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On top you can see the list of all 11 new picture effects coming for the A35, the NEX-C3 and for the NEX-3 and NEX-5 via firmware update. It would have been nice to see a tilt-shift effect too. Or even better, it would be nice if you could create your own kind of effect you can share for free with the community! I should have patent that idea before to post it here :)

Reminder: Sony will announce the new cameras on June 3! You can follow us live on SonyaAlphaRumors!

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Sony 35mm f/1.4 tested at DxOmark

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Now you have a new reason to play a little bit with the DxO mark comparison tool. They just added the Sony 35mm f/1.4 G lens test results inside their database (Click here). And you can see how the lens performs when used on different cameras. See for example the Sony A900, A700 and A550 lens results (Click here). As you can see the lens is neither a winner neither a looser. I hope there will be soon an upgraded version, maybe a 35mm 1.4 Zeiss for Alpha? Let’s cross the finger!

Check the Sony 35mm f/1.4 price at [shopcountry 7016].

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Sony posts worst loss in 16 years! (via electronista)

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I expected a small loss due the recent earthquake disaster but I didn’t expect the loss to be that big! You can download the full report as pdf (Click here). The company lost $3.2 billion in the 12 months! That’s the worst lost in 16 years. There are many reasons for that debacle. Electronista analyzed the results: “Most of the loss came from a $4.4 billion equivalent setting aside of tax assets to address worries about future results. The earthquake in the Tohoku area of Japan will also have cut into its performance through repairs and lost production. Slow TV sales affecting the whole industry, as well as a struggle to keep sales going for the PS3, PSP, and Walkman players, all of which are suffering due to Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Nintendo DSi systems, and both Apple’s iPhones and iPods.”

It’s unclear yet if that result will affect the imaging division (I don’t think so). The good news is that Sony also predicted a big plus for the next fiscal year (+$2.4 billion). So no need to be to much worried yet! I hope the whole Japanese economy canreboot as soon as possible!

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