The future Alpha 99

[bfitzgerald]

I have one Km5d with FBF, one was fixed as I sent it in (my original 5d purchase from 2006)
I have to assume it was an issue that was costly, as I bought a later production 5d (it arrived the day KM quit the photography business, rather ironic actually)

The one that has FBF came from a guy down under who sold it to me on a forum, I was happy enough and knew about the issue and it cost peanuts really. It does not seem to have got worse, but if you leave it a week or 2 you get the first frame black problem, after that it works just fine.
Strangely I didn't notice the problem on the first 5d I got until months later (seemed ok at first)
Anyway I am sure it was a factor, maybe just enough to push the trigger on the camera division sell off. Other issues obvious late entry into the market very likely didn't help, and I assume Sony approached them and had the cheque book open and ready (probably rather tempting at the time)

As for Sony I've no idea where they are going. They are trying lots of things (some working better than others) I'm a bit concerned about their pricing strategy for bodies and lenses, though I don't really care much as I am unlikely to add many more lenses maybe 1 or 2 over time..I have 90% of what I need to date.

I think part of the problem is they're boxed themselves into a corner with some users like myself, I don't really spend my money on anything Sony bar bodies. Everything else is third party of s/h Minolta. The only 2 Sony lenses I have, well Sony paid for them I didn't Not that they don't do some decent glass, no questions there. I can cover all my needs with Minolta or Tamron I really have no need for Sony optics wise. Ditto for flash, upon careful consideration I opted for invest in Metz (I also have a Yongnuo) and so far I'm very happy with that choice. I'm not that likely to buy a new SLT body next year bar some awesome blow out deal, I'm def not investing £1000+ in a new A77 update. Remains to be seen if Sony can sort the 5/6 series models out into something I might actually want to buy.

Long term problem for Sony is, users like myself I don't actually generate profit for Sony. In fact I'd wager due to my little green line sensor complaint, all in all Sony have actually lost money with me as a customer

[Greg Beetham]

I think the FFB was more of a battery issue than anything, the A100 in particular runs the battery down if you leave it for a few weeks unused, the KM5D eventually runs the battery down as well but it takes quite a lot longer sitting there unused, Lithium batteries can be damaged if let run down to a low state of charge (cell polarity reversal) I suspect that when the camera/battery protection circuits detects an anomaly with the battery state or when the battery runs down to a certain level the camera goes into hibernation and then when you suddenly wake it up it’s got to fully come out of hibernation again, the second shot is always quite ok.
I get the impression that if the camera has shut itself off from drawing any more power from the battery for whatever reason it takes longer to fully resume normal operation, the best plan is probably to keep the batteries charged and swapped over on a regular basis.
I also think that batteries do age with recharging cycles, and have less capacity as they age so the hibernation routine might set in sooner with a heavily used battery versus a new battery or might set in earlier with cheap substitute batteries as well.
Greg

[stevecim]

Hi All

FFB happened quite a bit on my A350 and still happens on my A550, even with fully charged batteries.. I always fire off a few frames after turning it on.. the FFB seems to happen more often after a power off to on, and not so often after wake from sleep. well for the 2 bodies I've owned.

[Dusty]

To each his own.My first computer was an IBM 360. A rather elderly machine by that time which was coded by punch cards using Cobol. I'm not sure how many people would know what I am talking about without looking up Wik********.

On one of my jobs I maintained a 1419 check sorter attached to a 360, used by an order of Nuns to keep their personal finances straight.

Seems they all had one checking account, but somehow coded the checks to know which Sister used each one. Don't really know if it was by check number or if they had some other code embedded on it, but when they got them back from the bank, they sorted them and charged back or accounted for the money each Sister had spent. Seemed like a lot of extra, but apparently it worked for them.

Most of the 1419s were either on s390s or PCs thru our retrofit. We even had digital cameras on some.

On the next job it was IBM 3890 sorters - speed demons!

Dusty

[peterottaway]

I'm of the opinion that you were the one doing the penance Dusty. It may not have been the good old days but at least things were simpler then. IBM giveth and IBM taketh and no silly complaints will be considered. And even if it was a legitimate query, it was a case of take a number and proceed in an orderly fashion to the back of the line.

[bfitzgerald]

Not noticed it as an issue with batteries, I have replaced the original KM ones (I have them and they have some power left) so I have a few new (good) cells and they are working well. The first 5d that was fixed has shown no issues since, but I suspect it was a fairly expensive repair to do (I think they replace the entire shutter assembly) it's a pull apart/strip down job though of that there is no doubt!

I have heard of some Sony users saying they have had problems, I've not seen it myself but have only owned the A200 before that (and no signs of issues there)

[Greg Beetham]

I can only speak from my experience, and that is as I said the KM5D I have had since new (not fixed for FFB) has only had a small number of FFB’s quite a while ago and two (I think) of those was a strange blue tinted image, the other couple were the traditional black frames. After I stepped up usage of the camera (on more of an equal footing with the A100) and kept the batteries charged properly I haven’t noticed a single FFB since, maybe for a few years now.
I did notice an FFB from the A100 maybe a few months ago because I think I was not using it as much as I should (and keeping the batteries charged properly) because the A700 had entered the picture (so to speak).
I think the ‘fixed’ KM5D that Barry has would probably use a battery charge faster now than before, it might be noticeable against the ‘unfixed’ one, assuming the batteries for both are of the same standard.
Also there is some stuff about Li ion batteries here, notice how much even over charging by as much as .1volt affects the life span of the battery. http://www.batteryuniversity.com/learn/ ... _batteries
stevecim if you are having random events it could be a sign that there are more than just battery issues, if a battery has gone bad in the camera before (low voltage) then the camera should be checked out too.
Greg

[stevecim]

Hi Greg. Sold off the A350, so only have the A550 now... But do still get the FFB,
wish I had more time to take photos, So I just accept it has a "feature" hehehe