The multi-year long rumored Canon R1 has been finally announce…or more like pre-announced! From the press release it sounds likely this camera will be on market by early 2025 and that’s also when I heard that Sony might announce the new Sony A1II.

You can read the full press text on Explora but here are the key interesting aspects:

• It’s going to use a new CMOS sensor (so no global shutter)
• Uses the same “old” Digic X processor of the Canon R3. UPDATE: CanonRumors corrected me and this is not the “same” processor but a variation within a family of processor.
• promises to have the best in class autofocus…beating the Sony A1 and Sony A9III AF system.
• Will be field tested at the Olympics

So the key really is the Autofocus performance. I have a hard time believing they can beat the A9III but at the end we all have to hope they can pull this off. This will put some pressure on Sony to give us a stunning new Sony A1II ;)

Here are my thoughts:

Sony A7sIII Firmware 3.01 has been officially released (Click here to download it).

Benefits and Improvements

• Fixes the following issues with the ISO value:
  • The ISO value is displayed incorrectly when outputting a RAW video to a RAW-compatible device connected via an HDMI cable
  • The upper and lower limit setting ranges are incorrect when the ISO value is set to Auto
• Fixes an issue where the camera may not be able to connect to the network
• Improves the operational stability of the camera

UPDATE: Sony A7IV Firmware 3.01 has been officially released (Click here to download it).

Benefits and Improvements

• Fixes an issue where the camera may not be able to connect to the network
• Improves the operational stability of the camera

Wise announced the new superfast Type A cards that should soon be available for reorder on Amazon and BHphoto. This is the press text:

Taipei, Taiwan – May 15, 2024 – Today, the 512GB Type A returned with reinforcements in 256GB and 1TB. All bear the VPG400 logo, compliant with Video Performance Guarantee established by the CompactFlash Association.
All Wise CFexpress 4.0 Type A Mk-II models unlock the full potential of Alpha cameras, supporting all video codecs including the slow-and-quick modes in finest HD / 4K in XAVC S-I format.
“Now that we are VPG certified and fully compliant with industry standards, Alpha users can make a choice,” said Wise Senior Product Manager, Frank Wang. “It’s about authenticity and reliability, right? There are options now.”
The Wise CFexpress 4.0 Type A Mk-II cards will be available early June, and will MSRP at US$219.99, US$359.99, and US$549.99 respectively. For more information contact your local dealers or visit our site.

In the past weeks we got a ton of new Type A cards and most of them are in Stock:

4.0 generation VPG400 cards:

• Exascend 1TB for $699 at Amazon, BHphoto.
• Exascend 512GB for $379 at Amazon.
• Exascend 256GB for $279 at Amazon.

4.0 generation VPG200 cards:

• OWC 960GB for $519 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama.
• OWC 480GB for $319 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama.
• Prograde 960GB for $679 at BHphoto, Adorama.
• Prograde 480GB for $479 at BHphoto, Adorama.

2.0 generation VPG 400 cards:

• Nextorage 640GB for $749 at Amazon
• Nextorage 320GB for $439 at Amazon
• Nextorage 160GB for $229 at Amazon
• Nextorage 80GB for $164 at Amazon
• Nextorage 40GB for $89 Amazon (this one has max 550MB/s write and 600MB/s read)

2.0 generation VPG 200 cards:

• Nextorage 1920GB for $899 at Amazon (lowest price of any 2TB Type A card)
• Nextorage 960GB for $499 at Amazon
• Nextorage 480GB for $199 at Amazon

4.0 generation Type A card reader:

• Prograde Type A card reader for $99 at BHphoto, Adorama.

ATTENTION: High risk card: new Airusan 256GB Type A card from Amazon US and EU (Click here) with officially NOT approved VG400 cards (as claimed by them).

Sony published the full financial report for the fiscal year 2023 (ended on March 31 2024). You can download all reports here.

The very good news is that they had a 25% increase in sales compared ot the previous fiscal year! In their reports they only have two statements about the camera business:

• In FY23, digital cameras and interchangeable lenses generated increased sales and operating income thanks to enhanced product appeals, and televisions and mobile communications reduced costs, enabling the entire segment to achieve a level of operating income that exceeded FY22 results and our projections at the beginning of FY23.
• The market for interchangeable lens mirrorless cameras, which is the main source of sales and profit for this segment, showed strong growth in the previous quarter, primarily in China and Japan, and has continued to remain strong since April.

The world is back loving cameras :)

Now Sony let’s rock in 2024 too!