Hi

I'm placing a bet on that they will annonce an a800 as the a700 replacement

APS-C 16+ mpx
Live View
Sealed Body
Video recording
10fps

Puggs

It will a complete surprise, in my book, if something substantial shows up. From the way the PMA got dissed by SONY last year, I am pretty sure that did not make too many people very happy.

Strange public relations ...

Carl,

Thanks for covering PMA for us and for your diligence. Regarding your schedule, try to get sleep when you can. If you choose to deprive yourself of sleep here are a few tricks: Avoid heavy carbs and avoid high sugar energy drinks. Instead, high protein meals with plain oatmeal helps. Also you'll find that vitamin B complexes help, (even those 5 hour energy drink work well). Also, taking a break for a bit of excercise helps, and even though you can't get a full night of sleep, a few hour nap at night may provide enough sleep to keep your mind fairly sharp. If you can get one, those Philips Blue Lights (used for light therapy) help by inhibiting melatonin production.

But how do we know Carl is really at the PMA 2010?

I'd put my bets on a wild weekend out in Vegas myself..ooops, sorry Carl I blew your cover story! ;-)

Mr. Shaw- Thank you for the healthy energy producing recommendations (big smile).

Mr. Fitz- Sorry I am not in Vegas this year as PMA is in Anaheim CA, plenty of wildness going on in CA though, usually :). Alas, instead of big hotels and shows and gambling, I'll just have to settle for the latest camera equipment and photography news- woe is me.

:)

Carl

Carl since you're a good boy staying home or near home can we have a full review [of that new product that we're all awaiting for] by this Monday or Tuesday?? :) :) Have a nice show!! Bye.
P
ps. Are you going to do some sneak peep for us today?? :) :)

Sure hope it isn't "mother in law" or "new puppy", though that would explain the lack of sleep. I'll go with the mirrorless aps-c bet myself, and Sony's first crack at big-sensor video. Oh, and have Sony toss in an A450 announcement & pretend it's news, OK? :^)

That wasn't Sony, that was PMA, trying to show that more is happening there than really is.

Dulaney

I'm so thrilled for the short CZ mentioned. This is the only thing I was really hoping 2010 would bring. Outstanding!

Just wondering do you think Sony will keep compact flash in their higher end models or abandon it all together. Since they removed it from the entry level models, i can understand that because most p&s users have SD cards already, however i hope it stays in the higher end models.

Hi Carl,

What i want to know the most about these new cameras is will it be able to do 720 60p. Can anyone confirm this? If not, then in my eyes they will still be behind the 7d and gh1 in terms of video.

Sergio

I just found this image on the web, If they are real then the new Cameras are APS-C..

You will notice the bigger one has the SAL1680Z T* and the smaller has the 18-55 kit lens...

Puggs

Hi

Just found this of the EVIL

http://twitpic.com/14ljlu

Puggs

Hi

Apparently Sony Insider doesn't allow linking to images from outside it's site, so you will need to visit these links

Here is some more details from Sony Insider http://www.sonyinsider.com/2010/02/21/pma-2010-sony-shows-off-dslrs-with-aps-c-sensor-avchd-movie-recording/ and Digital Review http://www.digitalcamerareview.com/default.asp?newsID=4273

500mm f4

http://twitpic.com/14luu6

24mm

http://twitpic.com/14mj0y

And on the EVIL http://www.sonyinsider.com/2010/02/21/pma-2010-sony-shows-off-ultra-compact-aps-c-camera-concept/ and http://www.digitalcamerareview.com/default.asp?newsID=4272&review=sony+ultracompact+interchangeable+lens and this one http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/21/sony-alpha-ultra-compact-concept-hands-off-leaves-much-to-the-i/

EVIL with a big lens

http://twitpic.com/14mjf3
Puggs

I'm not sure I will be impressed with this new DSLR meant to be the A700 successor. To begin with it is starting to look like a Canon! The grip is not the one I have grown to love on the current A700 or even the A850/A900 for that matter let alone my old Maxxum 5D. I know that this picture is only showing a mock-up and not a finished product. However, so far on Ergonomics alone it doesn't seem like it will work for me. What are the other features other than HD video? Will it have more AF sensors that are quicker to lock, focus and track as well as have more "Cross type" sensors? Will it have Intellegent Preview? Will it retain the majority of A700 external switches and features? In other words, will I have to find an A700 as my second back-up camera to my current A700?

Just some of my thoughts for the moment.

NIKO

Back from PMA, some dinner (no food at all today) then I'll update the article with some more information from today.

Initial thoughts are that what we saw from Sony today are just prototypes and it's too early to draw any serious conclusions just yet. My opinion so far is that the DSLR's are much closer to being finalized than the new D.I.L (digital interchangeable lens) cameras- based on observing them in person.

Looks like Sony abandoned the type of grip on the A230/330/380, and went back to a more traditional and functional grip, and included a DOF preview button on the front of the camera- good news in my opinion. The higher end camera (likely the A700 replacement) looked substantial- complete with a LCD on the top panel (larger than the A900's) etc... it has me intrigued.

I have a meeting with Sony tomorrow night which should give me even more insight on the camera development etc. , at least I am hoping.

More soon, I'm starving.

Carl

Welcome back Carl!! I've been glued here all day waiting for ya!! Got some clear/nice pictures for us after dinner?? :)
Bye
P

grabbed some of the back of the new DSLR's, migrating them from the camera right now in fact.

Hi Carl

beginning to think you were missing in action....

The D.I.L (digital interchangeable lens) or EVIL camera i have on good authority that it has gone to Beta testing with a select few photographers (this is second hand news)...

Puggs

Is it really made of rich, dark chocolate? Yum! :^)

First, thanks so much, Carl, for this coverage - much appreciated.

Second, I'm new to this, but it sounds like the limited info Sony offered re the A700 replacement may not be the end of the story for PMA? Do you expect more details to come out at this PMA?

Finally, I for one am disappointed that the A700 replacement appears not to be a FF with megapixels in the mid-teens, and improved AF speed. I was hoping for a real leap in image quality, and I don't need 25MP - for one thing, I don't need to fill up my hard drive that quickly. Was really hoping for a competitor to the Nikon D700. Maybe the new Exmor sensor type will, even at APS-C, offerwhat I was hoping for? I'll be watching your coverage closely to see if Sony gives any answers here.

Thanks again.

I have been glued to the screen waiting for you as well.

My take so far: the two lenses look like they are well on their way; I don't know how long it will take to bring them to the market, but I agree that it might be when the larger apsc is actually introduced.

Speaking of that camera, did you notice that although the Sony stand labels this camera as "ADVANCED," the language of the press release is: "Mid-range concept camera for advanced users (a successor to the a700)"? Two things: "Mid-range" doesn't sound like a challenger to the 7D, or a "completely new kind of camera." And the release says it is "a successor," not "the successor." Sounds very much like Barry may be right about this: it just may be the A6xx. And the camera seems not too far off from being ready; I think maybe late second quarter or early third. Maybe they'll introduce the new A7xx at the same time? Or maybe at Photokina? That, I believe, is the camera that has Sony excited.

The second concept aps-c, labeled "MAINSTREAM." looks like a somewhat reworked A3xx with video to me, and also not far from being ready. Persistent rumors have suggested the introduction of this camera in June. That feels right to me, given what we have seen at PMA, in combination with the palpable need.

Btw, if they give the A3xx video in the second quarter, I bet they do the same for the A5xx cameras in September.

As to the mirrorless cameras, they certainly look like they are at a very early stage, but people claim to have seen the real thing, and to know beta testers, so maybe they are a little further along than they look. Let's hope!

I hope you have some more details you can share with us.

The a7xx was always going to be APS-C, they already have 2 pro-sumer cameras in the FF range, they don't need anymore. They didn't have any APS-C cameras in the pro-sumer range after the a700 demise.

All those a700 owners with their expensive APS-C only lenses were not really going to move over to the FF cameras, they were aimed at Pro-Sumers that were just starting out, or who had a lot of Minolta lenses.

This camera was proberly ready mid last year, then HD video took off and Sony wanted in on the act. Knowing Sony though, they had to do better than the others...

Puggs

I don't think we are going to get any bonafide details at this point, but yes it appears the A700 replacement is an APS-C camera- which I think is the best overall choice considering the market.

Do any of you remember the A900 mock up? The A700 replacement is much like how all that worked out, we saw the mock up for the A900 first, then later on it was introduced. I think this is just Sony's way of reinforcing the many worried souls (and some that insisted) that an A700 replacement wasn't coming.

Not only that but the entry level DSLR seems to now include some features that were left out on previous models- this is a good sign.

Again, I'll know more tomorrow.

At this stage we can count on the following- A700 replacement this year for sure, new entry level DSLR(s) this year, and the new Alpha mirrorless cameras (D.I.L's).

The 24mm F/2 Zeiss looks complete, as does the 500mm F/4 - its Sony's largest lens to date by far. I can already see those lined up on the sidelines of sporting events. It's a massive (and got to be expensive) lens.

Carl

Noting that the new model has no model number on it ... if SONY did label it the "A600 - Advanced Video Camera w/HD", it would work for me.

Looking at the rear, it just does not have the noticeably more advanced interface that the a700 has (same as the a850/a900). If anything, it looks more simplistic ... hearkening back to the A300/A500 series.

I think SONY would be well served in going back to Minolta's drawing boards and if they really are going to make the "Pro-sumer" improvement on the A700 ... it probably should look extremely similar and make use of the VG-C70AM Vertical Grip, without any need for a new one.

Just a voice in the distance ...

You have to remember that Sony uses NPD definitions of camera range. A pro camera would be D3/X and Canon 1DxMKxno APSC is considered PRO by NPD weather PRO's use them or not. So whatever their nominclature is doesn;t mean it will or will not compete with the D300 or 7D for what it is worth.

... It was fun seeing you at PMA. I was hoping to see a working model of the a700 replacement, but I guess that was wishful thinking!

It looks like your image of the back of the "a700 replacement" is mirrored. Either that, or you found a special version for lefties like me that I missed. :)

Glenn

I had a fun time hanging out with ya, thanks for coming down and helping to keep me sane! :).

Indeed the image is mirrored- but don't give DSLR manufacturers any ideas! Next thing you know we will have left and right handed DSLRS- and we don't want any equality in this department. j/k

Carl

Edit: Those Nikon's were pretty nice hah? Did I just say that? whoops.... exit stage left.

Perhaps. However, I just read an interesting PMAI pdf about trends in the camera industry, called "6Sight: The Future of Imaging," that uses the term but not in the way you suggest. In any case, in marketing its cameras, Sony is under no obligation whatsoever to use categories such as this, and most camera companies & others pay little or no attention to it. More importantly, if you are marketing a camera aimed at the 7D, you need to emphasize the "advanced" and ignore the "mid-range," whatever the category technically is. In any case, I suspect that there will be more than one A700 successor, and that the "concept camera" we are looking at here is one of them.

Over at PhotoclubAlpha, one of the senior members, Javelin, just posted to this effect:

"These cameras might be closer than we are led to believe. Simon at DPR says that Sony showed them to DPR late last year and they had a chance to play with them. Not sure why they would be showing mock ups still but maybe [they're] waiting to see what everyone else is bringing to the table before they send them to manufacturing."

Then he adds:

"Engadget has some photos of the new EVIL cameras that don't look as much like movie props too so there might be a bunch of these around in various stages of completeness."

He then provides a link to a pretty good still picture of the back of the larger dslr. It does look like some of the controls may be missing.

I'm curious about the Exmor™ APS HD CMOS sensor - Any details on this? Could it be possible that Sony has an APS-C version of their foveon-like sensor? Now, that would be huge!

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/20090303371.pdf