I think probably the best solution for sealing is a thin rubber sheet contoured to fit over the sensitive bits and the edges clamped between inner and outer shell, or ribclamped around protusions and access points. The buttons are captive in the outer shell and the actual actuators are under the sheet.
Thing is, with a see through mockup we would never know if any of that is intended for the final production model...a see through mockup would tend to loose impact with full weather sealing installed, so KB it's anyones guess at this point if full weather sealing is intended for the final production model, but if the A700 is any guide the new one might have a similiar amount of weather resistance perhaps.
Greg

Body sealing is really good thing, however in real life there is no one sealed Sony lens. Even more, most of them extending during zooming and it increases possibility of water entrance into lens.

Any way knobs instead of sliding switches is bad news, because switch also indicate in which (on/of or mode) position it is. To me upper LCD is useless, I noticed that I almost never using it in my a900.

I think it is stupid to split hears is it real chassis or not, but my suspicious is based on absence of CF slot. It is really unbelievable that A77 level camera would be without CF slot. It is rumoured even 15fps and 24Mpix. If it is near true, then either SD and MS couldn't handle such data stream.

Having a sealing membrane between the outer shell/buttons and the inner dry volume is a very bad idea. It's the best way to breed mould between the outer shell and that stupid membrane. That mould/fungus would eventually eat that membrane, some fungi could even do that as fast as in a few weeks time.

The only good way of sealing the buttons is to have them made with soft rubber collars attaching to the outer shell right around the button opening. Then slide switches must be of magnetic Hall-effect type, the rotating knobs could also be the same or of optoelectronic type.

No mould or fungus would go anywhere near chlorinated rubber. In anycase sealing is a token gesture, there are just too many points where water will eventually get in if you habitually take your camera out in the rain etc. now they are putting speakers in the body shell as well. If a lens was truly sealed, and I do mean sealed, and it was the extending type of zoom lens, it would jam the moment you tried to zoom it, if it doesn't it isn't sealed.
Greg

Fungus goes everywhere, including outer shells of spacecraft

And sealed speakers/microphones are absolutely possible and do abundantly exist.

If Sony posted a picture of a banana on their website and called it a grapefruit would you believe it? Apart from the lack of visual acuity to discern a production camera from a model you seem to be unaware how marketing - or even language works. Perhaps you'll enjoy revisiting these 'concept lenses' from PMA '09:



Here's the quote from the DPreview page: "Catching a lot of attention are the selection of concept lenses on show. Sony stresses that these are only intended to demonstrate the possibilities of the lens system, rather than representing models that will definitely be launched."

They were of course launched exactly as shown because they were finished production designs, even though Sony claimed they weren't. The dpreview page is here: http://www.dpreview.co.uk/articles/pma2009/Sony/

Similarly, you don't have to work in a design studio or a production facility to realise that under that transparent plastic case is an a77 production camera chassis whether Sony suggest that there is or not. Do you really think someone made a model of all this stuff from bits of other cameras? One of the ways you can tell it's the finished design is that all of these new pieces perfectly fit through the cut-outs in the body moulding - they're not glued onto the surface - and they also neatly fit onto the pcbs beneath the shell - all detail that is pointless and too time consuming to recreate on a pre-production model.

Your rage should be directed at Sony. Hope you don't bust a gasket...or maybe that happened a long time ago.

For sure the transparent model of the new "translucent A77" is almost certainly very close to what the finished product will be. As noted the underlying mechanisms are functional looking not just a "model" put together of existing bits and pieces.

Certainly a glitch could come up to delay this camera even further but it looks close to manufacturing and distribution IMO.

Anybody remember this? I thought it would be a reassurance to anybody thinking the see-through "a77" represented a plastic-bodied camera without weather-sealing, etc...

http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/22/sonys-25-megapixel-alpha-a900-to-arrive-in-august-or-september/2

One very wild speculation could be that the black one is still being shown because it's not the a77 but maybe the a770 foveon pentaprism OVF DSLR that's recently surfaced in rumors. That would be a reason to continue to show it. And very interesting besides

Walt

If I were you Walt I'd make a move I don't see OVF models on the horizon from Sony. Hope I'm wrong but it's looking fairly likely. Sony are in a desperate hurry to abandon OVF's that alone was enough to make a move very easy indeed.

Walt Knapp wrote


I think that the Foveon speculation is longer term if true. I recall Birma complaining there was too much focus on escalating the sensor Mp and not enough done to increase DR. The current players are nowhere near matching the old Fujifilm S5 Pro for DR. I would welcome any move to increase DR. Also from Sonyalpharumors it looks as if Sony's next move is actually to introduce Exmor R sensors into their DSLRs and NEXes. As I understand it that will further improve on high ISO usability, but do nothing towards increasing DR. Maybe they are relying on the use of HDR functions.

I also agree with Barry Fitzgerald that OVF in Sony APS size DSLRs are probably history. I cannot understand why Sony continue to show that old mock-up if the transparent one is the one to be transformed into a production unit.

FUD

I wonder what means?

Maybe bakubo could enlighten me. Thanks in advance.

Sorry, I didn't mean you were spreading FUD. I meant Sony is. They want people to wonder and have doubts about what they mean when they say things or show mockups so that they don't defect. I assume you know what FUD means, right? Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt.