Some people must complain about a camera they don't own. Everyone else enjoys using it.
red light on a550 view finder
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Some people must complain about a camera they don't own. Everyone else enjoys using it.
Simple, until you find out that Sony's design is more prone to letting dust into the view finder and focus screen. The whole penta-mirror chamber isn't as tightly sealed as it should be. You can make a simple comparison between the mirror boxes across the different builds, it is a simple truth that the sealing implementation of Sony's view finder isn't as tight as any of others at the same price level. After every few sessions of macro photos I have to send the camera body in for cleaning of dusts in the view finder/or on top of the focusing screen. Of course, I learnt not to get too close to the ground and all the actions for my insects/nature macro photography. Plus constantly cleaning the lens barrel, nice design.
Seriously speaking, I am not a professional photographer nor an enthusiast, so it doesn't bother me with all these minor issues, which in the first place A550 is targetted for....consumers...to take good photos in hassle-free manner...
If you need weather-proof cameras and lenses, you shouldn't be using Sony or A550 in the first place.
If you need weather-proof cameras and lenses, you shouldn't be using Sony or A550 in the first place.
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right, the figure is all wrong,
should be closer to one hundred than 90 :bsmilie: do care about a new model,
minus one or two individuals who is more secure with their skill.
i for one always look out for new model,
easier to blame cam than my skill,
n new is always better.
Yes, I do have that on my A550, the red glow. not too bothered by it. Ok on the focus though.
The best voice you can have is with your buying dollars and decision.
Let your voice be heard by buying another brand, and move on. Ranting here is not going to help anyone or solve any issue.
Ranting? Stating simple truth only. I'm not going to jump ship just because of a little red merry Christmas light. I hold high expectation for the upcoming A700 replacement. I'm not like other Sony users who are so thrilled about the fast expansion of the Sony clan as it further vindicates his/her investment decision. Because this fast expansion comes at the costs of build quality and slower high-end bodies development. Why be so merry when the Manufacturers are clearly milking the consumer market? Why be ignorant when the truth flash in your eye every time your come into focus? Anyway, I can already see Sony's inevitable succession to the throne of the 2nd largest market player. I just hope it is worthy of that title, don't steal it by creating a large unstable lower-end user base. I have such thoughts because Sony has being too quite after the discontinuation of A700 and there are too many rumors in the air.
I always think Sony has poor PR with the camshop dealers and online networks. This time there are mitigating circumstances--remember the recent news of Sony relocating its digital imaging department to a different location in Japan? I guess it is just a Japanese way of restructuring, retrenching and reorganzing. Maybe the development of new cam bodies and ad campaigns are affected which resulted in the quietness about the A700 replacement.Hopefully, Sony releases it early enough before the World Cup. Talking about the restructuring of Sony's Digital Imaging department, I am not sure if the Konica-Minota folks still represent the core of Sony's camera body development process because the new cams are less and less KM-like to me in terms of product design philosophy.
Oh... sorry for the random "ranting". I also hope the forum has more functionality other than just sharing our thoughts(rants) about photographic equipments here. I am also visiting other online communities(forums) in China and of course Dpreview and Dyxum. but ClubSnap is the only place I would like to share my thoughts on photography equipments as it is Singapore's only online venue for such purpose. I just hope for more different perspectives. It seems to me the dSLR world is much more flat than the economic world already is. People from different countries/fourm(China or America) all share the same attitude toward dissenting ideas when the only intention of sharing those ideas is actually to give an analytical view on a particularly interesting equipment. People keep talking about let's just take pictures and forget about the trivial in a photography equipment forum, should we just not have an equipment forum? Or just open a forum that only praises the all potent equipments we love so much? Oh... almighty ...
I understand your pain. Really, I do. But in the end, will Sony try to do better after your comments here? Don't think so.
We all get your point here. Just that your point here is not going to make a difference in how the manufacturers do business.
Such is how the world operates. It is a pragmatic world. And big companies will always do what they do best, maximizing stock holder's value (profits...)
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Pain. :bsmilie:
My favorite quote from 2012 " you think life is fair ?" (not directed at anyone, just a self-reflection)
My opinions ara not pure, but still I try to be true to myself. I derive no pain from expressing opinions on such plain cruel reality. Opinions are just opinions. Sometimes discomforting but unlikely to realize any psychological pain unless one gets too emotional to his/her choice (of a camera brand).
Glad to know someone here is also willing to tell the reality on how the world really operates, not afraid of telling the harsh truth in a word sensitive forum.
It isn't that Sony hasn't done enough to earn the No. 2 spot where market share is concerned. It's simply that you can't walk into the market and flood it with cameras to win No. 2 spot. Designing DSLRs is a very high end industry, a little different from the usual electronics market. Cos it's a whole ecosystem of lenses, bodies, backward & forward compatibilities, current user base, and then the competition with the usual issue of patents, copyrights, etc... so it is not so easy to earn No.2 spot... It took Toyota 70 years to earn No. 1 spot in US... what makes you think Sony can vault into No. 2 spot inside 5 years with only 2 generations of DSLRs?
I think you'll find that Sony doesn't release news of their cameras until they are about to be released. They work differently in this respect. The exception was the release of the A700 & then the A900. Which perhaps put them off announcing timelines... that much is clear from the latest interview with the Alpha chief. The translated text is on dpreview. I think there are many people who are saying that they want Sony to release a roadmap... but in this business of electronics, a roadmap is a giveaway, which no one can afford since you're usually only half a step in front of your competitors with your newest and latest and 'bestest' camera...
Second thing is that Sony has repeatedly said that it would not introduce video into the DSLR until they can overcome the problems faced by all manufacturers - AF issues, liveview issues, OVF issues, ergonomics issues... and they said that when they do put video into the DSLR, it would be THE solution... it would seem that Sony cannot release the latest APS-C flagship without video. Perhaps that's why it's been delayed... anyway, the announcement seems imminent with thinning A700 stocks worldwide and an end of manufacturing for the A700... I rather Sony release the camera when it's ready... having many firmware updates after the fact isn't a good thing... I think they learnt that with the A700... it seems that Canon hasn't...
Do you really think that many PnS shooter want to upgrade? The reality is that many PnS users realise the limitation of the PnS camera and want something that makes substantially better photos but not much harder to use. The cheap lineup as you call it isn't cheap per say. It's a category that Sony has created (if you didn't realise) all on its own. A very simple DSLR that is not intimidating to use but takes very good pictures with minimum fuss just like a PnS should. And also sells for a good margin, and makes the user feel good cos it's a DSLR. That is called growing the market. And Sony has always been very good at this...
If you look at the sales proportion for all DSLR companies, I think it's the lower end models that make up the bulk of the sales. Not the high end models... not many people are willing to cough up $2000 for a high end DSLR... even fewer are willing to go higher than $3000... take a look at the Sony owners list - see how many own A900s, A700s and the lower end models...
You seem to contradict yourself here... In any case, there is a definite announcement that there will be something to replace the A700... Go look up the translated interview with the head of the Alpha line on dpreview...
Wrong... the pie can grow... if you convert PnS uers to DSLR users. DSLRs always give better margins than PnS, especially when comparing the lower end models and the higher end PnS models... compare say a H20 and a A230. The difference is cost may not be very much, but the price difference is pretty significant. The higher up the model chain, the better the profits... so yes, there is great incentive for Sony to grow the market. It is still not clear if Sony wants the higher end market. They have never stated that they want the pro market. They simply stated they want a larger market share - the substantive target was to be No.2... But don't think they aren't going for it... they may be waiting for technology to mature to enter into that segment...
In any case, there aren't many pro Nikon bodies, I'm sorry to disappoint you... they have only two D3s or D3x. The D700 is not considered professional, neither is the D300. But they are used by the pros as back ups or even as main bodies. Same for Canon only the 1D series is pro. Not the 5DMkII, not the 7D... don't confuse matters here... and Sony has no pro bodies; the A900 & A850 which compete in the same segment as the 5DMkII & D700...
I suggest you spend a bit more time reading up before ranting here... different companies have different ways of doing things... and Sony does do their market research... Sony has done exceedingly well is certain markets and not so well in others. In some, they are market leaders, in others, they are No. 3. So that's pretty good performance after 5 years in a new market in which they had no prior experience save for what they obtained from Konica Minolta.
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I think you misunderstood Rashkae... even if you looked at the next model, do you upgrade immediately if it suits you? In reality, how many DSLRs users, either casual or even serious hobbyists, change cameras like they change mobile phones? Dude, you're talking about at least $1000 a pop each time... and if you change brands, the whole ecosystem has to change as well... I find it very unlikely that many would change their DSLRs with every whim and fancy...
Actually, the entry level market is where the most revenue and profits are made.
Nikon took the market starting from the D40 in 2006.
Canon is raking in the bucks from 1000D and 500D.
Now Sony is going aggressively in pricing with the A2xx and A3xx series.
The money is in the entry level market since the volume is there.
Nikon took the market starting from the D40 in 2006.
Canon is raking in the bucks from 1000D and 500D.
Now Sony is going aggressively in pricing with the A2xx and A3xx series.
The money is in the entry level market since the volume is there.
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Whatever it is, the way I see it is no matter if any replacement for A700 is coming or not, aren't we wasting precious time to capture beautiful moments by keep on complaining about what we have and what we cannot have?
Talk less, go take photos. Complaining about product flaws does not make capturing photos better.
Talk less, go take photos. Complaining about product flaws does not make capturing photos better.
2 generations of DLRS only? I think we should give the Konica-minota folks some credit for their generations of work. Aren't you comparing apple with orange when you pull the 70 years figure from the automobile industry and argue the fast changing modern electronic industry should follow a similar timeline? In this 5 years Nikon has grown from a sidekick to overtaking Canon in the dSLR industry. Sony is just stepping on the same ground and finally pushed the panic button and starting to sell cheaper lower-end products. Remember when A100 came out the prospect appeared a lot better. It was like a benchmark for the upcoming higher level products. Then what we got for the 200 and 300? You can argue a200 and 300 are cheaper but they are launched at a later time when the prices and quality of entry level dSLRs are sliding down. A100 wasn't supposed to be priced so high anyway.
I understand that a roadmap is a deadly giveaway which only serves to intensify the industry competition as it changes every player's plan. However I don't think the waiting for video excuse is the main reason for Sony's stall in the release of a700 replacement. One thing I know is that the WORLD CUP doesn't wait for Sony's release or require any video function in a still photography camera.
I also find Canon's recent bloopers in its pro-level cambodies amusing. Most of the mistakes are unfathomable for they should never happen to the meticulous Japanese people. It appears as if Canon has forgone its product quality control. From another perspective we should also see that Canon is really trying to hasten up its introduction of pro-level cambodies before the World-Cup game even at the risk of making such laughable pratfall.
Yes, growing the market. Most of the new growth are just a once only investment into dSLR in a person's whole lifespan. We should also not forget the one important fact that lenses generate more profits than kit-body sells.
Most of the P&S converts are unlikely to be buying those intimidatingly priced and sized lenses. Is Sony trying to defy the market mechanism and hoping that cambody sales can outgrow lens sales. Well since it's slogan is Make. Believe. now, I'm not going to so quickly rull out that possibility. Still it is somewhat hard to believe.
We have a short list of higher end cambody users however it is this short list of people who are buying most of the expensive lenses. As I have mentioned before don't expect most of the P&S converts to accept lugging few kgs of weights as their daily routines, most of them are likely to just get a 18-200 zoom. I believe the most frequent question from P&S users who's interested in a dSLR camera is about how many times a camera can zoom in.
This new growth if does not readily initiate further purchases of more lenses would be very much like a benign deadweight which only serves to corroborate Sony't 2nd largest player claim.
Anyway, I'm not overly concerned with Sony's own profit making process and how much it sells for it's own sake. We are supposed to be talking about the pros and cons of dSLR equipments in a dSLR equipments forum, not to so readily stand up and defend for the manufacturers' position. If we are to stop sharing our views, which you call ranting on an equipment forum here, then what are we supposed to do?
Yes, time to move on :bsmilie:
dormy
New Member
i agree that sony is trying to attract new dslr users to increase its user base. But for the price, obviously there has to be some compromise. I'm sure sony designers are not blind to notice the leaking light, however you cannot make speculations that they are too lazy/ don't want to spend money to fix it. It may be a hardware limitation.
If im not wrong they are already 3rd in the market, if what you say about sony is true, then they won't be overtaking olumpus/pentax already. Its basically a marketing strategy. Also if you were to observe their line up of cameras, the a4xx and a6xx series are not released yet. Since you think the a2xx/3xx series are not up to standard, sony is deliberately leaving this series out to take feedback from consumers before developing 4xx.
As the 5xx series is relatively new entry series since they are using cmos (apart from the higher end 7xx-9xx), the 6xx gap is to improve from the feedbacks of the 5xx series or possibly a video series.
Thus in my opinion the a4xx will be the final "entry" body, the a6xx will be the final "mid-range" body. However I cannot conclude about the pro range as sony released a850 instead of a800, and the a900 can possible be replaced with a1000 or more.
If you were to read the thread on reasons we chose sony over other brands, most would say that inbody IS/motor/price/cheap old km lens etc. contributed to their decision, which they are willing to exchange for some minor disadvantages such as MLU.
If im not wrong they are already 3rd in the market, if what you say about sony is true, then they won't be overtaking olumpus/pentax already. Its basically a marketing strategy. Also if you were to observe their line up of cameras, the a4xx and a6xx series are not released yet. Since you think the a2xx/3xx series are not up to standard, sony is deliberately leaving this series out to take feedback from consumers before developing 4xx.
As the 5xx series is relatively new entry series since they are using cmos (apart from the higher end 7xx-9xx), the 6xx gap is to improve from the feedbacks of the 5xx series or possibly a video series.
Thus in my opinion the a4xx will be the final "entry" body, the a6xx will be the final "mid-range" body. However I cannot conclude about the pro range as sony released a850 instead of a800, and the a900 can possible be replaced with a1000 or more.
If you were to read the thread on reasons we chose sony over other brands, most would say that inbody IS/motor/price/cheap old km lens etc. contributed to their decision, which they are willing to exchange for some minor disadvantages such as MLU.
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Yup, when you know it's time to move, it's time to move.
This is an open market, everyone has the right to choose whatever equipment that serve their needs and change whenever necessary when time/money permits.
For myself, I dun support certain brands or models. I just buy whatever that I like and useful to me.
Since manufacturers nowadays are only concerned in money making and not producing products to meet people/fans' needs, then there no point for consumer like us to stay loyal to certain brand as well.
Isn't this the reason why we need to have competition? So as to improve and also to benefit the consumers?
MLU doesn't affect my photo-taking process that much. However, I still see the lack of it unreasonable though not sufficient to deter any entry level buyers as you have explained the other functions are really attractive. It's still unreasonable for MLU is not an asked for feature but some thing of a norm nowadays in entry level dslr. It should be seen an exclusion.
As for the leaking light, I don't believe Sony has no sufficient engineering capability to overcome any minor hardware bummers. It could be a cost issue or a serious design philosophy problem. I tend to believe it's both.
It's really the time for me to go out and take photos, time to move on to the actions.
Happy shooting
just wondering... dun jump on me now.. but dude.. if you are so hell bent in your opinions about sony... i mean.. why are you even in this corner of cs.. i mean.. yeah... at the end of the day.. consumer chooses what to buy.. dun like sony buy nikon.. dun like nikon buy canon.. does beating your chest and trying to make a point magically transform your favourite make or model into the perfect specimen.. just a personal opinion here..
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wise man once said... Please Do Not Feed The Troll..
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