a850/900 firmware update release

[malcy]

According to SAR website the firmware update for the a850/900 has been leaked/released by Sony Hong Kong.
1. Release shutter without lens [same as a580/Nex]
2. EV compensation upgrade +3/-3 to +5/-5
3. HDR Enhancement +2/-2 EV to +3/-3 EV [same as a580 upgrade]
4. Improved AF speed and accuracy, especially in the Tele end.
Interesting???

[Jasper_D]

[same as a580/Nex]

It would be more correct and accurate to say ´same as A700´, as it disappeared / was forgotten after that. Of course, whatever the origins, it´s a good sign that Sony is bringing it back now, and I sure hope they will indeed upgrade their flagships accordingly.

[bfitzgerald]

A tad late but I think it's worthwhile for these users to have an update in firmware. It's a real shame it's taken so long to get it, unfortunately no other bodies appear to be getting updates as well. Be nice for users but these FF models are already somewhat dated in the market, and this FW is unlikely to change that unless it's even more extensive than predicted.

[David Kilpatrick]

Dated in the market? Like the Canon 5D MkII and the Nikon D3X which are their only competitors, and are similarly dated? Yes, I know the 5D MkII has video, but its video is totally eclipsed by the 60D at well under half the price. Something does not become 'dated in the market' until new rivals, or new models from the same maker, arrives which update the basic spec.

The A900 is dated in the market the same way a Hasselblad 503CX is dated in the market.

David

[bfitzgerald]

Well the A900 is over 2 years old. Granted Canon let the original 5d slog along for some time..but they would be unlikely to leave the 5d MkII as long without a refresh. I'll accept the 5d MkII is dated too (though I bet Canon update it before Sony do their FF range)

Dated yes in some ways it is. Personally video isn't high on my list of wants or even needs, but live view is something that these models should have (and they should have at the time) The performance of the 24mp CMOS is dated for high ISO (or at least whatever Sony are doing with it) jpeg performance isn't as good as it should be either. The level of customisation is limited as well for a camera in this class.

The biggest mistake was that Sony failed to address any points at all with the A850. Other makers are not scared to enhance even lower end models above and beyond some of their upper end ones. As you say the 60d does better video (not tried one I'll take your word for it) So I think it's perfectly valid to say "dated" as they do need an update. I'm not suggesting they are not good far from it. But that Sony are behind rivals in many areas. You might "wing that" on lower end bodies, but for a flagship model it's harder to swallow.

The price of the A850 has also crept up (last time I checked) it's closer to £1900 odd once it was £1500. It's no longer the FF bargain it used to be and yes the 5d MkII is cheaper.

[Scooterman]

The A-850 can still be bought in the UK from UK suppliers For just over £1300 I know I bought one, and If you want the address I will give it, and no it is not a grey import Barry.
Just think Full frame Pro camera for that price not much more than for the Pentax K5
Regards
Richard

[alphaomega]

A warm welcome to our new A850/900 expert bfitzgerald. He seems to know everything worth knowing about these FF cameras even although he does not own one. Here is his opportunity. Contrary to what he implies he can buy a body only A850 at below £1500 if he is quick here http://www.camerabox.co.uk/product.asp? ... 4QodYAo7gA
£1429.99 incl VAT delivered free in the UK. Not sure what delivery to Ireland would cost.
May I suggest that if you are looking for a FF DSLR providing excellent image quality at lower ISO levels in particular this camera is not "dated". David Kilpatrick has delivered several tutorials on Photoclubalpha on how to get the best out of these cameras. If it could provide the goods yesterday it can deliver today as well. If that is not a desirable purchase perhaps BF could have considered the A580. It may be that David Kilpatrick will enlighten us with its capabilities after a few tests and confirm that an uprated A580 image to 24Mp size is indistinguishable from (non CZ lens) A900 output and maybe even better at higher ISOs. It is a lighter proposition but oh dear, this camera does not have MLU so of no use. Actually, I don't think Sony can do a single thing that would please BF. Anything they do is belittled as being of no consequence and any omissions are blown up as unmitigated disasters. I am glad he has found bliss in the Pentax fold. I for one intend to stay with Sony and I am happy with the results I obtain.

[Simmondsphotography]

In the old film days, I never remembered the unholy race to get the latest camera released from any stable. If a camera was taking good photo's and it suited your own style of working then there was never any need to upgrade.

Now since digital cameras have come to stay and their reliability is as good if not better than many of their film counterparts, I really do not see the rush to up sticks and replace it with the latest creation offerring gizmos that most of us are unlikely ever to use! I am not sure exactly what is creating this desire to have the latest digital creation. I can of course understand people like David needing the latest cameras to test for a living. I am not sure whether it's forums like this or others and magazines fuelling this desire or some other driver.

It is easy to get lulled into buying the latest super, duper digicam after reading and seeing images from the avid enthusiasm of others on the forums. How often I have witnessed others buying into a system with immediate praise for their new toy, only to learn a few months later that it didn't suit them after all so they had sold it in px for the next latest release!

So it is for me with the A900 and A700. Both are helping me make some fine pictures. Lenses I will continue to buy as and when I need them, meanwhile whilst the cams are behaving and in good working order I see no need to change them.

I gave my old Canon G2 digital camera to my eldest daughter about 9 years ago. That cam still gets a lot of use as she has her own family of three kids a husband and a dog. She also uses it for many other social requirements in her village. It is still going strong albeit with the markings of time on it and as she says...."after this length of time I feel that it is part of me and I know exactly how an image will turn out' She will be davastated if it ever goes wrong but the Canon G series is still in production, I lost count after G10 I think, so it shouldn't be too much new for her to get used to if needed!

[bfitzgerald]

A warm welcome to our new A850/900 expert bfitzgerald. He seems to know everything worth knowing about these FF cameras even although he does not own one. Here is his opportunity. Contrary to what he implies he can buy a body only A850 at below £1500 if he is quick here http://www.camerabox.co.uk/product.asp? ... 4QodYAo7gA
£1429.99 incl VAT delivered free in the UK. Not sure what delivery to Ireland would cost.
May I suggest that if you are looking for a FF DSLR providing excellent image quality at lower ISO levels in particular this camera is not "dated". David Kilpatrick has delivered several tutorials on Photoclubalpha on how to get the best out of these cameras. If it could provide the goods yesterday it can deliver today as well. If that is not a desirable purchase perhaps BF could have considered the A580. It may be that David Kilpatrick will enlighten us with its capabilities after a few tests and confirm that an uprated A580 image to 24Mp size is indistinguishable from (non CZ lens) A900 output and maybe even better at higher ISOs. It is a lighter proposition but oh dear, this camera does not have MLU so of no use. Actually, I don't think Sony can do a single thing that would please BF. Anything they do is belittled as being of no consequence and any omissions are blown up as unmitigated disasters. I am glad he has found bliss in the Pentax fold. I for one intend to stay with Sony and I am happy with the results I obtain.

Well my apologies for not getting the price correct. I'm no expert on the A900 nor do I intend to convey that. However..
I still consider the FF line-up to be dated.

And I am of course entitled to an opinion even if you don't share that.

I did consider the A580 but alas the same old problems are still there and not addressed (yes they put some bits back I'll give them that), crippling of lower end bodies which is an unfortunate trait from Sony for some time now. Whilst I'd love to have a FF body and I have some decent enough lenses for an A mount FF. It's really not well suited to my own needs (low light performance). Nor have I ever, nor would I pay that kind of money for a body.

I don't think I am blowing things out of proportion, just some stuff appeals more to me than it might others. It's actually a real eye opener how crude and basic some A mount offerings are v some rivals. Of course this might not matter to some users and you could debate just how useful some of these "bits" are. Like they say even the small stuff added up can make a difference bigger than you might think.

But rather than bore anyone with my thoughts here, I'll make a separate post in a more suitable forum so those who wish can discuss my thoughts on other makers.

[bakubo]

A FW update is good, but how many people really care anymore? As David says the A55 has IQ as good or better than the A900 even when upsized and the A55 has the EVF which makes it easier to get better composed photos since it doesn't show you the real scene. Plus, the A55 EVF surprise factor when you see the photos on your computer is greater. The A55 is also much cheaper, smaller, and lighter and so are the lenses. Then when you add no mirror slap with the A55 which makes all photos sharper, video with fast AF, LV, etc. the conclusion is clear. The A900 is a dinosaur in a mammal world.

[alphaomega]

Reference Simmondsphotography's comments above, my wife inherited my Fuji E900 9Mp P&S camera and has just had a book published. I was amazed that some of the pictures she had taken were reproduced as pin sharp A3 size and they were Jpegs originally - not RAW. This is an old camera and the DR can be lacking in contrasty conditions, but it has an OVF (76%) as well as rear screen. Definitely old and "out of date" but capable. When I used it, 50Mb images for Alamy were made and none failed. She also had my old A350 with Tamron 18-200 and naturally these came out superbly as well, but the E900 pictures were equally good.

[alphaomega]

bakubo says

A FW update is good, but how many people really care anymore? As David says the A55 has IQ as good or better than the A900 even when upsized and the A55 has the EVF which makes it easier to get better composed photos since it doesn't show you the real scene. Plus, the A55 EVF surprise factor when you see the photos on your computer is greater. The A55 is also much cheaper, smaller, and lighter and so are the lenses. Then when you add no mirror slap with the A55 which makes all photos sharper, video with fast AF, LV, etc. the conclusion is clear. The A900 is a dinosaur in a mammal world.

If I remember correctly David said that the A55 matched A900 pictures taken with non CZ lenses and he specified the ones he referred to and furthermore he stated that he had the CZ 16-80 fitted to the A55. His results could have been different if the CZ 24-70 F2.8 had been fitted to his A900.
I anticipated that APS-C sensors would become so good that really FF was a waste of money. I now have the A580 and this camera will be bettered probably in 2011. The problem for Sony is that the A580 is good enough for me and we have reached a point where I stand off the bus heading in the direction of more Mp sensors or whatever other improvements they can introduce. I don't need them - full stop. The A580 is good enough and so is the A550 I have. Even my A700 is good enough.

[Scooterman]

Try the "Pentax user" forum Barry; they are a very friendly lot over there.
If you think one or two on this one are not so friendly, On PU they will have a contract out on you if you criticise Pentax.

[pakodominguez]

A FW update is good, but how many people really care anymore?

Any A900/A850 owner, I guess...
I don't think we'll see an A700 V5 (I include the A7800 because this cameras hare the same technology) or an A900/A850 V2 -If that arrives, I'll take it as the best birthday present I ever had.

As David says the A55 has IQ as good or better than the A900 even when upsized and the A55 has the EVF which makes it easier to get better composed photos since it doesn't show you the real scene. Plus, the A55 EVF surprise factor when you see the photos on your computer is greater. The A55 is also much cheaper, smaller, and lighter and so are the lenses. Then when you add no mirror slap with the A55 which makes all photos sharper, video with fast AF, LV, etc. the conclusion is clear. The A900 is a dinosaur in a mammal world.

Well, if the hardware is compatible, upgrade the A700/A900/A850 firmware with A580/A55 technology, we can expect an even better dinosaur that we have now. I can tell (yet) about the A850 sensor, but the A700 sensor is incredible good but misregarded, a sleeper -for those that learn haw to get the best of it.

[pakodominguez]

I anticipated that APS-C sensors would become so good that really FF was a waste of money.

It depends the way you shoot. I like wide angles, short teles (I have a 70-200 f2.8, but I prefer using the 85 f2.8 or the 100 f2.8 SF). Having good wide angles for APS is harder than for FF, and you can not avoid the "liliput' effect (a 35mm on APS is "about the same as" a 50mm, but it is not the same at all...)
So, for me, FF bodies is not a waste of money. not at all.