Why did Sony introduce the NEX for P&S upgraders - not ...

[OneGuyKs]

The NEX-7 is an interesting example of a rumour which has apparently become a fact.
David

Nex7 rumors came simultaneously last year (before PMA) from same sources who named these two cameras as Nex-3, Nex-5. They predicted correctly the name of the new mount (e-mount) berfore PMA.

[OneGuyKs]

the accessory shot was not apparently designed, as it stands, for an EVF.

You can say that again, nor does it seem to be designed for much of anything else. The accessory attachment point of the Alpha NEX cameras has to be the least elegant solution imaginable.

they seem to have designed it just to keep the body thin.

[Winedarksea]

Here we go again suggesting Sony avoid directly competing with "successful products"
Micro 4/3 has done pretty well..so why will NEX do better than that?
And yet the Canon rebel still sold far more than any ILC model on the market.

Which tells us?

I'll let you fill in the blanks..there is no going back and forth debate wise, if you honestly thing a NY times article is read by most p&s users in the world..that speaks for itself.

No Barry, the direct readership of the New York Times is sophisticated, intelligent, inquiring, and loves sleek, beautifully designed new devices like the NEX 5. The NEX5 & its siblings will sell like hotcakes to these folks, who are often simply p&s & cell phone camera users, not into dslrs. You seem to think that p&s users are all of a kind, clueless & unsophisticated. That ain't the case.

Furthermore, New York Times articles are picked up & reprinted in hundreds of local newapapers, where the readership is, while not as "sophisiticated," by no means dumb & clueless.

So an article like this, in the New York Times, is worth its weight in gold.

The NEX cameras will be very big sellers for Sony. And the enthusiasm for them will be contagious. I expect that the next round of A-mount cameras, which we'll begin seeing very very soon, will also be winners, and will sell very well.

In fact, Barry, I believe that your constantly negative predictions about the NEX cameras and Sony will founder and sink during a perfect storm of Sony success this year.

[Winedarksea]

Nothing absurd about it. I stand by my comments in that most p&s users have no concept of photography or it's basic principles on a technical or artistic level. One article in the NY times won't change that.

Anyway we'll see how these models do..the only real plus point I can see is the relatively decent price of them. Micro 4/3 has been price gouging for some time..so they're in for a bit of a challenge. I can still see many shooters getting frustrated by the lack of control in these models. Really it's about time Sony worked out how to offer proper video options..and a user selectable auto ISO level another example of dragging behind. In camera corrections..missing again. Who's asleep in Sony land?

But I'd wait till the big guns wade in..Canon and Nikon..but esp Canon. A G11 type ILC could do major damage..and we might see these pretenders getting a bloody nose when the world champ steps in the ring.

As you undoubtedly know by now, our friend Carl reported maybe on the 27th that he had had communication with Sony that indicated that Alpha had by no means been asleep, but in fact very busy. I believe that the fruits of that activity have only just begun to appear--soon the marketplace will be flooded with Sony technology.

[Winedarksea]

The NEX-7 is an interesting example of a rumour which has apparently become a fact. Of course, it is very likely that Sony will use other numbers for NEX and 7 is about as safe a bet as anyone could make. But it's a myth based on a whole set of website and forum rumours - which the Alpha 7XX and 2/5XX are not, they are based on prototypes shown.

I think Sony will be busy enough with the first two models and if a revision appears, it will actually be a NEX-5A with an EVF capability. This is the one thing almost every Sony regional office has been pressing for, and they say it is not necessarily going to happen; the accessory shot was not apparently designed, as it stands, for an EVF. Or so some Sony execs think, having questioned the Japanese and got no positive answer.

David

David, do you have reason to believe that there will be no NEX7? Some pretty responsible people have been suggesting that there will be, but that the timing of its release will depend on Panasonic's timing for the release of the GF2. My own sense is that Sony will be fairly crippled in the new marketplace for the compact interchangeable lens cameras unless they do introduce a NEX7-level camera. And I think that if they don't have an EVF up their sleeve for the NEX3/5, it is a very bad move on their part.

I rather feel like Sony will release the NEX7 in conjunction with the A7xx in late August or September.

[pakodominguez]

As you undoubtedly know by now, our friend Carl reported maybe on the 27th that he had had communication with Sony that indicated that Alpha had by no means been asleep...

any link?

[Winedarksea]

As you undoubtedly know by now, our friend Carl reported maybe on the 27th that he had had communication with Sony that indicated that Alpha had by no means been asleep...

any link?

Try the following:


http://www.alphamountworld.com/forums/s ... ment-29997

As I was afraid, the link goes to a response from me, which is the latest in the string started by Carl.

In any case, it's in the Alpha Mount World forums, under Sony Rumors and News, under the heading "Just got some word," that Carl started on the 27th.

Mind you, Carl reveals very little here.

Dulaney

[pakodominguez]

As you undoubtedly know by now, our friend Carl reported maybe on the 27th that he had had communication with Sony that indicated that Alpha had by no means been asleep...

any link?

Try the following:


http://www.alphamountworld.com/forums/s ... ment-29997

".. can't share the details of course because..."
where are the news?
:-/

[Winedarksea]

Pako, just that Alpha has been very busy, and that if it pans out like he was told, it will be good news for Alpha shooters. He adds in a comment in the same thread: "I'm not falling out of my seat yet."

I prompted him in a comment I made in the same thread to respond to the SAR prediction; I hope he does.

No real meat there so far, but a hint I believe that we should expect a string of significant announcements.

Dulaney

[David Kilpatrick]

Carl almost certainly knows no more than the Austrian, Croatian or other leaks - or me. I doubt that any Sony executive would release definite hints on the roadmap between now and photokina. I will only comment that photokina has not so far deterred Sony from June to August product launches, any more than PMA has inhibited Jan/Feb announcements.

In fact, Sony now has a long track record of using trade shows to preview far distant, concept products while launching actual products in the 2 months before each major show. When asked about the Thai factory, Paul Genge said they were so busy with new Alpha products they needed to put NEX in a new factory, so as not to impact on Alpha production. I guess that means the two prototypes shown at PMA are now in final form.

I know individuals who are using Sony models before their release. I would never consider even mentioning this, or asking questions.

Finally, I would not like to lay odds on the delivery of the NEX I have ordered, in the coming 14 days (officially, it is due this week). I hate to sound pessimistic but a delay is likely, and it might be more than some people expect.

That's another reason I do not expect to see a NEX-7 in a hurry. I get the feeling that Sony thought the NEX-5 - even with its consumer interface - was actually better than any Panasonic and unless Panasonic release 14 megapixel sensors, and a 12mm f/2.8 pancake lens for £199 on the street, NEX is ahead.

The coming three months will not be about further NEX launches, they will be about two major publicity campaigns - NEX and 3D. Advertising will really begin to show what this is all about. Their big promotion will be 3D TV not NEX, but NEX will be an important bit of it.

David

[pakodominguez]

Carl almost certainly knows no more than the Austrian, Croatian or other leaks - or me. I doubt that any Sony executive would release definite hints on the roadmap between now and photokina.

Of course!

I got a deal on a 24-70 but, even then, the investment was high, so I called the Sony Marketing director for the Alpha line (that I met at the Photo Plus Expo) and asked if it was safe (no drop of the alpha system, no plan to discontinued this or SSM lenses, etc) buying such a lens. His answer was that the Alpha line will have a long life, that the NEX will be announced sooner than expected (this was early March) and that the alpha prototypes shown during PMA were due, as expected, by Photokina. I didn't ask any more questions because I know he won't answer.

ANYBODY knows that. people like to speculate about. and some other people like to seam special, with insider information.

The only thing I know is that I was chatting with a top Adorama manager on May 12 and he knew everything about NEX and he was exited about this launch and he was sure it will sell as hot cakes. This manager confirm that this is the kind of camera people was looking for. Adorama never cared that much about the Alpha mount, Minolta or Sony (I can imagine the reasons: a lack of support from the manufacturer) before. But now they (management) are exited. For once, Adorama will have Sony stuff by the launch time, Inch'Allah!

Regards

[David Kilpatrick]

We still do not know what the technical issue that Sony engineers have encountered with the NEX to Alpha adaptor. SSM and SAM are supposed to autofocus. My guess is that the SSM used in the NEX lenses has a different basis; it seemed to be able to accelerate/decelerate smoothly and not to move in small steps or large jerks.

They were clearly hoping to fix things via camera and adaptor firmware, maybe they will succeed. If not, SSM lenses like the 24-70mm could be subject to a firmware fix or even a recall to upgrade their SSM mechanism (rather similar to the Dynax 9 being made compatible with SSM by retrofitting an upgrade kit).

David

[Headcell]

OK, I know I'm late to this party, but here is my take on P&S users. My comment is based on the 5 years I spent teaching adults to get the best out of their cameras.

There are three things they care about:
a) How many megapixels it has
b) Can they email the pictures to their friends/family
c) Does the camera fit in their bag/pocket.

They do not understand that the size of the sensor matters. They do not understand that the more pixels in an image, the smaller the amount of light falling on each sensor cell, and therefore the lower the quality will be in low light situations.

Most of the people I taught were dumbfounded when they discovered their cameras could take videos.

So, based on my experience, I'm not sure where the NEX fits in. It's expensive. It's small, yes, but the lenses still bulge, so not suitable for many who want a compact camera.

I think the majority of upgraders will consider a bridge camera. They want to walk into their local Dixons or Jessops and buy a camera, not risk walking into a photo specialist and being bamboozled by terminology like depth of field, interchangeable lenses, sensor size.

I did consider the NEX line before settling on the a230, but the lack of viewfinder and the price put me off. As did the lack of grip (not that the a230 has much of one, but there is a vestige of one there!)

Ken

[WaltKnapp]

Sony DSLRs had a fatal flaw: no video.

Have you any actual statistics on this? Anything at all where new camera buyers were interviewed and said that they choose on the basis of video in a DSLR? I've seen none, but I have seen survey results done by Sony where video was way down the list of wanted features if not a negative to buying DSLRs.

This business of requiring video is simply folklore. Said often enough that folks think it's true with no proof.

Walt

[Greg Beetham]

I think it's exactly like you said Walt...a fad, it's one of those gotta have features for it to be a 'with it' camera, a feature that most might use a couple of times, until they see the results, wobbly out of focus video with strange noises and memory cards filling up fast with the stuff, and not much room left for actual pictures. And what do you do with it afterwards? email it to friends and rellies, I'm sure they would appreciate a G/byte or two of scruffy video in their inbox? I wonder how often people who 'had to have video' in their DSLR actually take video and watch those videos.
Greg