Rumor: 35mm Format Sony NEX Camera Coming Soon

[Amin Sabet]

As we've been discussing in the forum, SonyAlphaRumors published a rumor at their highest reliability rating that Sony will announce a 35mm format NEX camera in the near future. Subsequent leaks have clarified the original rumor a bit. Supposedly the next camera will use the same E mount as other NEX cameras but feature a 35mm format sensor instead of an APS-C sensor. However, current NEX lenses won't cover the full imaging circle, and Sony is apparently not planning to immediately introduce any new 35mm format E mount lenses that will cover the whole sensor.

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Sony LA-EA2 adapter
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Thus, with current NEX lenses, this will functionally be an APS-C camera, similar to "DX mode" on FX Nikon DSLRs. However, the camera will allow the use of virtually all adapted lenses for 35mm format, including Leica M mount and LTM lenses as well as a full range of manual focus SLR lenses. Furthermore, there will be an adapter similar to the LA-EA2 pictured above that will allow the autofocus use of a wide range of Sony A mount (Alpha DSLR/SLT) lenses with 35mm format coverage.

I think this is a winning strategy from Sony. Many enthusiasts will jump at the chance to buy a camera with the following characteristics:

• 35mm format sensor (ideally the Nikon D800 sensor with tweaks to all better edge performance with wide angle rangefinder lenses)
• "Rangefinder-style" body with integrated high quality EVF like the NEX-7
• Focus peaking to aid in manual focusing

Meanwhile, the ability to use A mount lenses via adapter makes it a practical choice for those who prefer the M-mount lens approach most of the time but need AF some of the time. If the system is a success, and I'm confident it will be, then surely native autofocus E mount (NEX) lenses will follow.


Source: SAR

 

[RT_Panther]

So it ***appears*** that Sony is really pushing its system's adaptability.
What happens if Panasonic or Olympus creates a "peak focusing" capability for their Micro Four Thirds systems?

Need more native e-Mount lenses in the long run...body, after body IMHO isn't long-term sustainable.....

 

[Amin Sabet]

So it ***appears*** that Sony is really pushing its system's adaptability.
What happens if Panasonic or Olympus creates an "peak focusing" capability for their Micro Four Thirds systems?

Need more native e-Mount lenses in the long run...body, after body IMHO isn't long-term sustainable.....

A 35mm sensor is going to make Sony the leading brand for adapted lenses, but I agree that more E mount lenses are needed to after the autofocus crowd.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[kevistopheles]

A 35mm sensor is going to make Sony the leading brand for adapted lenses, but I agree that more E mount lenses are needed to after the autofocus crowd.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

I could see making themselves the adapted lens choice work for them. They already have a bit of that reputation with focus peaking. A 35mm sensor NEX would be a real nice alternative to a camera like the M9. Granted it doesn't have the red dot or say Leica on it but for someone wanting an old school MF experience that would literally have a bazillion options lens wise I can see it being a really seductive choice. The question is would that market be worthwhile? I know I'd be really interested in one.

 

[RT_Panther]

Then there's the Fuji X-Pro1 with the Leica M adapter...(albeit not full-frame though).....

Interesting times these are....

 

[snkenai]

I could not buy something like this, but I am glad, that Sony is not just resting on current development. May indicate a different approach to lenses in future. Could it possibly be, the reason Sony has been so slow, in bring out a full line of lenses?

 

[Dioptrick]

What happens if Panasonic or Olympus creates a "peak focusing" capability for their Micro Four Thirds systems?

If Sony has a patent on the very 'concept' of Focus Peaking itself, rather than just the way focus peaking is achieved... the patent will be hard to circumvent. A patent lasts 20 years if I'm not mistaken, so provided the feature remains clear of infringements and litigation challenges, Sony may have a strong head start advantage. I can't see Sony investing big bucks into full-sized sensor MF lens territory if they haven't got Focus Peaking sewn-up pretty tight. But, you never know...

 

[Amin Sabet]

If Sony has a patent on the very 'concept' of Focus Peaking itself, rather than just the way focus peaking is achieved... the patent will be hard to circumvent.

The Panasonic AG-AF100 video camera uses focus peaking. So does the Ricoh GXR. Why Panasonic doesn't put it in the GH series is a real mystery. Maybe trying not to compete with their video cameras???

 

[Dioptrick]

The Panasonic AG-AF100 video camera uses focus peaking. So does the Ricoh GXR. Why Panasonic doesn't put it in the GH series is a real mystery. Maybe trying not to compete with their video cameras???

Interesting... I wonder if it has to do with legal restrictions, or just internal reasons within Panasonic.

Regarding the NEX E-bayonet, I think it might be big enough to handle a full sized sensor (only just though) and still retain the gold contact pins where they are. Legacy MF lenses therefore can still be used via the adaptors we already have - but restored to the original focal length without the x1.5 factor (yay). At the same time it can also accept current SEL lenses even if the image may not cover the 35mm format fully without some vignetting. Who knows... perhaps the circular projected image by the current crop of SEL lenses may already have enough leeway to handle it!

Lenses specific for the full size sensor however... would that be the current Sony DSLR lens line up + E adaptor?

 

[WT21]

I don't care if they never make another e-mount crop lens. I'm unimpressed with ASP-C for several reasons not worth getting into here.

But I agree with Amin. This is a killer strategy (if it's true, lol). I have been considering a used 5dii or D700, but heard about the rumored D600 or Canon response (these are rumored to be FF, but sub$2K and D7000/60D sized). But I didn't want to go back to no WYSIWYG EVF. If the PDAF adapter comes somehow with the ability to micro-adjust to handle the front/back focusing issues, then this is a rockin' strategy, and will drive alpha lens sales, IMO. NEX + Alpha adapter + alpha lens is big, for sure, but it's still smaller than a D700 or likely even a D600, plus it has EVF, and can collapse down to even smaller size, with e-mounts or with legacy glass on FF! I've tried MF of legacy glass on my former 5D. No thanks!

 

[WT21]

If Sony has a patent on the very 'concept' of Focus Peaking itself, rather than just the way focus peaking is achieved... the patent will be hard to circumvent. A patent lasts 20 years if I'm not mistaken, so provided the feature remains clear of infringements and litigation challenges, Sony may have a strong head start advantage. I can't see Sony investing big bucks into full-sized sensor MF lens territory if they haven't got Focus Peaking sewn-up pretty tight. But, you never know...

I'm not a patent expert, but in following the Apple/Samsung/Android court cases, it seems to me that there is an expectation of some kind that a vendor with a patent would license at reasonable market value??? I've read this now in a couple of places, but perhaps someone knows more about it?

At any rate, what Pan/Oly does with focuspeaking, to me, is irrelevant. They should provide it if they can, but the real story here is FF.

 

[WT21]

I could see making themselves the adapted lens choice work for them. They already have a bit of that reputation with focus peaking. A 35mm sensor NEX would be a real nice alternative to a camera like the M9. Granted it doesn't have the red dot or say Leica on it but for someone wanting an old school MF experience that would literally have a bazillion options lens wise I can see it being a really seductive choice. The question is would that market be worthwhile? I know I'd be really interested in one.

I don't KNOW this, it's just conjecture, but I have lots of suburban-type friends with one DSLR and the kit lens. I'll call them the "mass market" -- these folks, a lot of them, still have a Canon XT or XTi and the 18-55 (some without IS). Some folks might have the 24-105, or maybe the 55-250. That's about it. Enthusiasts I know have multiple cameras, multiple lenses, and buy new cameras every year. I've got to think the enthusiasts spend is easily 3X the "mass market" spend per year, and my "mass market" friends haven't updated many of their cameras in 3+ years. I think we enthusiast types are on Sony's radar!

 

[Dioptrick]

I think we enthusiast types are on Sony's radar!

I certainly hope so. The enthusiast market may be smaller than the mass market, but they (we?) certainly buy (spend?) more.

 

[Phoenix]

It is really interesting to watch the NEX to develop and to mature as a model, at the inception of the NEX-3 and NEX-5 there was no indication then to which path the camera would take, there was however a roadmap to the lenses it was planning to release. One of the biggest complaint initially (other than the lens options which is normal to any new system) was the UI, and the difficulty of focusing manually and while the UI still needs some stream lining a firmware upgrade .03 helped the UI (somewhat) and introduced focus peaking (along with a new body). There also was complaints about the quality of some of the lenses and the numerous adapters found in the market to mount 3rd party lenses on the NEX to take advantage of its focus peaking feature, Sony responds by giving manufacturers access to the lens mount (by removing royalties), then there was the desire for evf, more manual controls, pro version, etc....anyway, we all know the story, the NEX-7 was released, then there was the magenta corners, noise from the number or megapixels, camera price, etc...and now we are looking at the NEX-6 and 5R. Mind you there was also talks in the past that if Sony was able to fit a fantastic EVF on the small NEX-7 body what's stopping them from putting a full frame sensor in it? (this discussion came about when the NEX-3 and NEX-5 was released and everyone marvelled on Sony's feat of fitting an APS-C sensor in the small NEX body, which is now of course something of the norm)

My question is this: Is Sony riding the wave of "giving the people exactly what they want"? this strategy seems to be working really well for them, Do they have a specific strategy in mind? Are they hanging around forums to give ideas to the R&D?

Sony is driving this idea of convergence where it is really blurring the line to what can be considered as a "camera, an electronic gadget, a point and shoot, a pro level camera, and a PSP vita"

 

[WT21]

The new rumor today ((SR5) First E-mount Full Frame cameras are High End camcorders. NEX-7 alike cameras in 2013. | sonyalpharumors) is the first FF will be a camcorder, with cameras not until 2013. That's too bad, IMO.

 

[snkenai]

Here is a very interesting read:
Will there be a full-frame NEX? | Photoclubalpha

 

[Dioptrick]

My question is this: Is Sony riding the wave of "giving the people exactly what they want"? this strategy seems to be working really well for them, Do they have a specific strategy in mind? Are they hanging around forums to give ideas to the R&D?

Sony is driving this idea of convergence where it is really blurring the line to what can be considered as a "camera, an electronic gadget, a point and shoot, a pro level camera, and a PSP vita"

This.

Thanks for the fascinating recap of the NEX history, Pheonix. I came into the picture late (during the 5N's release) so I missed out on what had happened prior.

In today's world of mass consumerism, I often wonder to what degree (if any) do manufacturers 'cultivate' (manipulate) the market to accept what they believe would generate their most secure margins of profit. In other words, the manufacturers determines what it wants the market to buy.

If the NEX early history has anything to go by, it seems that Sony is doing the opposite of this by giving careful consideration to what the people exactly want in the NEX (by listening to the most vocal constituents of their market, internet forums perhaps). It's a healthy strategy because it goes back to the very grass-roots level of 'supply-and-demand.'

But I somehow think it's more than just simply giving people what they want, as Sony always had a knack for pioneering (the world’s first all-transistor radio in 1955, the first Trinitron Colour Television in 1968, colour video cassette player in 1971, Betamax VCR in 1975, Walkman in 1979, the world's first CD player in 1982, the 8mm camcorder in 1985, the first consumer-use digital video camcorder in 1995, the next generation high capacity optical disc "Blu-ray Disc" recorder in 2003, etc).

The bit that sticks out to me in Sony's corporate history was their Betamax VCR video tape format war with JVC's VHS, in which they lost. "What Sony did not take into account was what the consumers wanted... whereas it soon became clear that consumer desire was focused more intently on recording time, lower retail price, compatibility with other machines for sharing... because JVC quickly licensed its VHS technology to just about every major consumer electronics company of the era." - Wikipedia (Videotape format war)

Whatever it is they're doing with the NEX... judging by their corporate history, I think Sony is only doing what is already in their innovative nature - tempered with lessons learnt from their past. But today's enthusiast market is so diverse... I certainly hope that Sony gets it right.

 

[Phoenix]

I reckon Sony is getting it right with their NEX line, there are always going to be haters and trolls everywhere but the numbers never lie (maybe with Olympus it does ) the NEX is one of the most sold and most in demand camera to date. One of the reasons I have asked this question with the NEX is that I am also looking at the trend and path of their Alpha line.

While their Alpha bodies offer really good value for money performance-wise and technology-wise in the dslr market (albeit it being a dslt) it has not achieved the mainstream success the NEX line has even though it has the same (if not better) specs and capabilities than its Nikon and Canon counterparts (let us not forget that Sony supplies the digital sensors Nikons use in their camera bodies) and it has a more developed lens line up than the NEX model.

This got me into thinking:
Is it technology and function innovation? Sony has fully utilised the translucent glass technology on their Alpha line, something of which Nikon and Canon has not even fully explored.

Is it brand loyalty? There always will be the "Canonikon" crowd who will be set in their ways no matter what happens.

Is it performance issues? As I've mentioned earlier, their Alpha bodies does what it's counterparts does as in some ways even better.

One difference I did find is the way they are developing their Alpha bodies, they dont take (or as much ) consideration at what the consumers want e.g. the development of the NEX, this would be a good example as other than Sony's having a history of pinoneering technological advancements, they also have a god awful history of making Sony proprietary products e.g. flash adapter in the early NEX models (they even have a non-Sony proprietary hot shoe in the new NEX models), memory sticks, MD players, and of course Betamax.

As compared to the NEX models, Sony seems to be taking a more conservative approach and incurring less risk with their Alpha line, probably because it's targetted to a different market, who knows? But if they can cause shockwaves by first releasing a small camera with an APS-C sensor, and now planning to release a small camera with a 35mm FF format sensor, maybe they should adopt a similar approach to their Alpha line up?

 

[RT_Panther]

I reckon Sony is getting it right with their NEX line, there are always going to be haters and trolls everywhere

Can one still not like the NEX line without being labeled a hater or troll?

 

[Phoenix]

Can one still not like the NEX line without being labeled a hater or troll?

I'm just using the phrase in the broadest of terms, I know a couple of people who do not like the NEX who aren't haters or trolls, but just more along the line that it didn't suit their shooting style or wasn't what they had in mind.