I don’t know if the info I got here is correct but an anonymous source sent me the sales figures for the A99:
Sales figures for a99:
-europe with russia 12773 /10.jan 2013 – 10.mar 2013/
-usa 16071 /same period/
-asia /39407 /same period
-rest of the world 5269 /same period/
I can’t evaluate if those numbers are actually a good or a bad sign. Anyway, at leats in US SOny launched a new action to push A99 sales. You get a free vertical grip and free flash with the camera purchase at Amazon too (Click here) and at Samys (Click here). The body only sells for less than $2600 at [shoplink 17727 ebay]BigValue (Click here)[/shoplink].
103 Responses
Free Zeiss 50mm instead, and instant riot against Canikon
SR6 – Nex 7N and A78 will come on Aug 27th, early morning London time.
sure? 🙂
99,9% sure 🙂
Reasons:
1) No hard data on A78 and Nex 7N so far -> Probably HW not completely finished yet
2) Release in the following months -> Sources know the models are in the works, but there is no internal info on when the release is (this comes at least a month in advance in most cases if not more).
3) Sony makes releases of 7/9 series on the last Tuesday of August for a couple of years
I could be wrong, but so far this looks predictable.
Prediction != Rumor.
Great news. That’s my birthday! I’ll buy myself a Nex-7N. You may be right but I hoping for a sooner date.
Don’t do it. They’ll drop the price, and give you over a thousand dollars in discounts and add-ons just three months after releasing the camera.
Sincerely,
Guy Who Got Reemed Buying A99 a Few Months Ago
The start date is a long way before the release date.
Not bad at all, wouldnt it be a success if they could get to the 100k mark before its replacement? considering non existent marketing and market presence and after sony made a disastrous decision to release with D600 with the same sensor and at the wrong price! i would do a million times better job at sony!
Yep. My thoughts exactly. It sold surprisingly well, especially in Asia. 73,5k units sold in 3 months is quite good result considering all the failures of Sony marketing and… whoever made the decision of having tiny AF area along with issues with video which was supposed to be a greatest selling point but still ended up with worse IQ than in any Full Frame Nikon or Canon.
I’m also very surprised that more cameras were sold in US than Europe. I suppose HDDSLRs are much more popular in US market that that’s what accelerated sales there.
I am not surprised given the price difference!
In part also the European economy to blame which is currently in a worse state than the US economy which is showing small signs of recovery.
Is it? You listened to the Adobe and Microsoft explanations for price differences between US and AU? (besides it being BS in most of the points) It doesn’t have anything to deal with temporary condition of the economy. And to remind you: Euro to USD either constantly grows in advantage of Euro or keeps steady. And Europe also shows signs of recovery, whatever media show it or know – since Greek crisis we’re on the way up almost constantly.
That is a joke right? In what part of Europe do you live? I bet it must be Norway or Sweden…
“we are on the way up”?
… in which parallel universe?
There are still a couple of problems to solve (such as: Greece and Cyprus not out of the tunnel; Spain, Portugal still problematic; Slovenia entering just now the tunnel; France and other “major” countries ready to be downgraded by agencies; Italy… hohoho, don’t even mention it; all numbers on unemployment and society failures going up in all continent… etc. etc.). Without considering non-economic problems such as the raise of the new Hungarian dictatorship, and the major failure of all EU institutions in promoting freedom, equality and democracy inside EU…
Besides: yes, you are right, Sony low numbers have nothing to do with this. I’m not being sarcastic: in the same time frame Nikon FF camera sales went up. So, well, I guess it is still a marketing problem…
Wrong on all accounts and that’s coming from a fellow European.
Consumer confidence is overly negative (-21) here, overly positive in the USA still (+61). Unemployment rates in Europe have steadily increased in Europe while they are slowly declining in the USA (see Eurostat, posting a link will prohibit my message from showing). And the Euro is hovering around or under $1,30, well below levels 2 years ago and well below the alltime high above $1,50.
Zohee35 – Consumer confidence is meaningless. Euro is keeping roughly stable since that record high being quite surprising when we constantly hear about governments behaving like a kids in a kindergarten (and if we’re on Cyprus – they got what they deserved, but in the scale of Europe they’re meaningless. Their whole country GDP is roughly one of a single big German city). UK got lowest unemployment rate since a decade. And EU budget despite of having some cuts remained surprisingly high in key parts for the economy.
But let’s not argue about economy. It’s not a proper place for that.
What does matter is that the price difference comes from many factors, and US market was always the one getting lowest prices from all of the manufacturers. It’s not just Sony’s policy. And it’s nothing new either so I have no clue why some people are surprised seeing low prices on the other continent.
No, consumer confidence is directly related to consumer spending, specifically on luxury/more expensive goods. Basic economics. Low confidence as seen now, results in more saving, less spending. Which is partially the reason for horrible car sales in Europe for example. The UK unemployment rate is close to 8% and hasn’t been that high since 1996, 17 years ago. Not sure what you’re looking at but it’s nicely documented in statistics and economy books.
Besides that, Europe is more than a single country (for example the UK). Again, it’s pointless to argue statistics, the numbers are there.
It’s Sony pricing policy to blame: A99 in USA costs $2800, in Europe it costs €2800=$3600.
You need to pay about $600 directly to the governments (VAT).
No, it is sony pricing policy. The Nikon D600 costs the same as in USA.
It’s within TWO MONTHS ONLY!
Just a small correction: “73,5k units sold in 3 months” – that’s actually only 2 months ( Jan 10th – March 10th )! Even better!!
+1.
These figures are too damned good! 😀
Agree,
If Sony want to attract more people to Sony Family,
They should sell A99 similar price to D600.
It will be much more competitive.
If Sony do not want to lower the price of A9x Series,
they should name it as A88.
Who cares…! They have no cheaper alternative FF camera for 1600 Euro. Too much cheap lenses or overpriced lenses … and I’m still waiting for the NEX 7N … and consider to buy me the Fuji 100s …
These sales figures just show Amazon ranking pretty much useless now that most of the market is in developing countries in Asia. US sales totals no longer indicative of worldwide performance.
And even in US Amazon is hardly responsible for majority of the market. It’s just one of the big shops selling cameras, but not the only one.
Totally agreed that any rankings from Amazon are rather useless.
Indeed… so why would Sony stop making such cameras when they sell like this, and they are #3 manufacturer? long live A-mount 😀
mmh… “developing countries” include Japan?
Why, I guess half of those numbers come from Japan, where Sony is kind of a “national pride” (among others) and marketing is, ideed, very effective (with adds on trains, metro, but screens in big crossways, i.e. Shibuya, and, last but not least, demo videos in large electronic stores such as Yodobashi…
A mount has historically sold poorly in Japan. It’s mainly in China/Malaysia/Singapore/Thailand where its sales are comparatively strong.
good sell in asia, really can see alot of videographer in my country switching to sony because of the a99. It is really good for video work especially interview with the new pro mic system can be use for a99. It is really a great camera! Hope to see more improvement on camera and as well as lenses to really get more ppl switching to sony. Too less weather sealed lens, so many pro would not use this camera at risk in bad weather. Body got weather sealed but lenses not. Same result lenses going to be easily spoil.
How is the Sony camera marketing where YOU live? Here in Sweden there’s absolutely none at all… Like a year ago or so they had some Nex marketing that I found to be total crap compared to Nikon 1…
The marketing for TV or Print should go the way apple goes … based on a simple use case a targeting message. But Sony needs topnotch products, cameras too. Not in price but in a balanced way of consumer friendly products with good design & functionality.
In Poland it’s quite intense – They come to trade shows, make a roadshows each summer, lead regular workshops, you can rent Sony gear in each major city, they offer door to door warranty (with relatively quick and good service – by far better than one offered by Nikon in Poland) up to 5 years, and the Sony’s support forum is lead very well with actual Sony (and Sony repair center) representatives answering questions.
In UK on the other hand it’s rather non-existent – haven’t seen ANY advert of Sony gear during last year. They haven’t come to the Focus on Imaging, and I couldn’t find any information about workshops. Also renting Sony gear is rather difficult, although doable (I rented A99 for one gig, not cheap, but doable).
wow, makes me feel jealous. In Slovakia its the total opposite. Horrible availability compared to canicon. Zero advertising, testing the A99 in shop? Forget it…not in stock, only way to get it in hands is to simply order it 🙁 Not even in the Sony centers!!! And the prices? Horrible, at the time I was getting mine (about 2 months ago) people from Sony center asked 3050e!!! for it, I was sooo pissed..at that time you gould get it everywhere in Europe for under 2800. In the end I got mine in Austria for about 2700 (there the situation looks much better). Sooo..not happy times for Sony users in Slovakia:( Well..its a small country, small market, but still…
Very disappointed by local Sony sales strategy…
Identical situation here in Croatia…..a99 costs 3100 Euros, marketing non-existing, support non-existin, i don’t even want to ask what about repairs….
I too live near and work in San Francisco you and I are seeing different things I will say Nikon and canon Are seen all the time,Sony cameras are not missing in action
Where I work they are seen daly the A99 is a rare bird
I’ve seen maybe 6 and talked to their owners
Two days ago in golden gate park I ran into the proud new owner of an A77
As far as seeing the cameras,99 and 77 in camera stores
Have you been to a real camera store? Mikes is a joke
I bet you won’t see a D800 or a 5D mark 3 in mikes
Have you ever been in fireside camera or calumet
They are real camera stores with top of the line cameras from all makers
I never see anything Sony in my local Calumet (Orange County, CA). Only places I can go for Sony cameras around here are Sony store or Samy’s (and I know more than the sales guys at both stores…).
99% of the a99 marketing is done by andrea on sar!
They seem to focus more on areas where the largest growth can be expected, Asia, certain central and eastern European countries etc.
Makes sense if you have a set budget to spend on worldwide marketing… as long as you don’t become invisible in markets that you have already penetrated to some extend…
I am Swedish but I´m currently living in a Russian industrial city. In Sweden, I was about the only photographer around with Sony at most events (Gothenburg area) and the marketing of Sony DSLR/SLT´s was nothing.
In Russia though, there are a lot more Sony cameras and at events like kindergarden shows, I would say that Sony SLT´s are more common than Canikons. However, the local Pro´s seem to use Canon or Nikon. The Sony marketing in Russia as a lot more obvious than in Sweden as well, with adverts in magazines and massive posters at airports.
BTW, I still haven´t decided if I will be buying my A99 in Russia or in Sweden, need to check warranty coverage…
And still the same crap pricing policy as in the rest of europe.
only warranty issued in Scandinavia is valid in Sweden. there is no such thing as an all European warranty, no matter what the Russians might say. trust me. i lost 1000 sek because of this.
@emir I’m Swedish too and I can confirm there are no ads, still i get the impression that – oddly enough – Sony seem to be doing pretty well with their cameras in our country. this time of year i see a mount cameras pretty regularly in the streets, more than what seem to be the case in the us for instance. could the explanation be that some of the big electronics stores, such as elgiganten and Swedish media markt, are pretty a-mount friendly? (förresten: det måste ha varit du som var på gång att köpa min 35mm 1.8?)
Nikon N1? F**k that.Its the worst Nikon on earth!
Not true. Nice shooter for the holidays.
pizdec ebanutye v rashke, cho esche skazat?
No idea if they’re real, but the numbers sold look decent enough!. If so, then well done SONY!.
But why doest it say Jan 2012 when it was launched in september? It looks more like numbers of a77 than a99! Hope i am wrong!
Any rumours about promotion in Europe? I am still waiting.
I see the f60 can be bought in the UK for around £400 now. When it falls to f58 prices, I might be tempted!
Reaching 0,001% of world population in 2 months is not that bad I guess…
Making 205.000.000,- euros in 2 months, this could be a billiondollar business at the end of the year.
Didn;t see the 2012 date hehehe 🙂 Still not bad I guess for a pro cam
lol. I just noticed I did the same in the other post. Fail.
When was A99 available ? Surely not in Jan 2012 ?
just checked: 12 Sep 2012
How is that possible that someone knows how many cameras were sold? Is that the way distribution chain works that there is one place were every purchase is reported? If those numbers are right and I doubt they are then all what it might say is total number of cameras put into distribution. It is not possible to say how many of those cameras found owners.
Those numbers if right (and I have said I doubt they are) could come from Japan only. Sony marketing since years tries to be like apple with high prices and now they add impression that they sell well. If those numbers are right an if those numbers meet sony expectations why do we see offer with 1/3 price of A99 free accessories on one of the most important markets?
Just look around yourself, forums, flickr, friends I see more people dumping A mount than buying A99 with APS-C AF module, soft video, and ridiculous price.
Should I upgrade my A850 to the A99 or just wait for a cheaper version of the A99, something like a A85 or whatever…?
Nah, I guess I will keep to money and myself a 24-70 Zeiss instead…
Get the 24-70 CZ it is lovely. Heavy but lovely.
Are those sold into distribution or sold to customer numbers? Would make a bit of difference to interpreting them. To put things into perspective, sold to customer numbers for the Nikon D800 are about 250,000 during the same period, meaning the A99 sold only about one-quarter as well, best case. If those numbers are sold into distribution, things would be worse.
The other problem is that the A99 is currently going it alone against D600, D800, D3x, D4, 6D, 5D3, and 1Dx full frame cameras. If we add all that full frame activity together, the A99 numbers indicate very little full frame market penetration for Sony; same problem as before (A900, A850).
It’s only rumor. I believe actual numbers are a bit worse. Otherwise, there weren’t any actions.
Sony still is a giant corporation, but in the photo business Nikon and Canon the giants who have been there for over 50 years. That said, IMHO the Sony A99 did an excellent job selling 70k+ units even in face of what you say Nikon sold of D800 ( with a Sony heart )! Sony’s in this business for less than 10 years.
I see no fun in you trying to spoil Sony user’s excitement, just keep your beloved Nikon and biased opinions to yourself.
> Sony still is a giant corporation,
Yes, it is. Financial Services is Sony’s biggest moneymaker. Motion Pictures next. Music next. The consumer electronics businesses? Not so much. They make some money in semiconductors and in games and lose money in almost everything else in consumer electronics (TVs, phones, cameras, etc.). I’m not sure what the point of saying “they’re a giant corporation” is in defense of weak product sales numbers. Technically, a business should look at ROI in each area it is involved in, and maximize the areas with strong ROI (not electronics for Sony) and minimize those with low or negative ROI (electronics for Sony).
> but in the photo business Nikon and Canon the giants who have been there for over 50 years.
Let’s see, when Sony took over Konica-Minolta, they made two very specific claims about how they’d be competitive with Canon and Nikon, neither of which have come remotely close to pass. Your argument here appears to be a variation on the Tortoise and the Hare. Only problem is the Hares aren’t stopping.
> That said, IMHO the Sony A99 did an excellent job selling 70k+ units
You’re entitled to that opinion. I simply pointed out a fact to put that number in context, not really an opinion.
> I see no fun in you trying to spoil Sony user’s excitement
You can be as excited as you like about the numbers. Thing is, as Admin knows, the Sony CEO has stepped in and made modifications to the Imaging Group’s plans, and that’s partly because he’s NOT excited about the numbers. As Ries and Trout outlined many years ago, being a distant number three in a market is not a winning proposition. After ten years of trying, it’s not likely that you’re going to change the result without changing something dramatically. The A99 was not that change. The SLT designs were not that change.
> just keep your beloved Nikon and biased opinions to yourself.
I see, so only YOUR opinion deserves to be on the Internet? Nonsense.
As for your other statements. “Beloved Nikon”: apparently you don’t read what I write and have no knowledge of it. I’ve been highly critical of Nikon for over a decade. Indeed, I’m one of the most visible critics of Nikon there is. “Biased opinions”: all opinions tend to have some level of bias in them. Your opinion happens to be biased by the fact you’re a happy Sony user.
As usual, you wright, wright, and don’t say much… Anyway, being a Nikon user for decades and either liking it or not, you should keep your bashing to Nikon, then. I sure am a happy Sony user (with minor complaints…), but at least I keep my posts within Sony communities and talk about Sony gear. I don’t go into CaNikon or any other communities to bash their products or whatever, they have their own fans and bashers.
Good shooting and have a nice day!
I read Thom’s blogs regularly and I don’t see the bias or the anti-Sony attitude you allege at all. He never said he hates Sony and wants them to die. I believe if Sony made the moves necessary to become one of the top players in this market, Thom would be quite happy to have another good option. He certainly is not averse to using NEX cameras, and I detect no hint in his writing that he would hate for the future of mirrorless to be led by Sony.
Anyways, Thom, I welcome your insight and really hope that you don’t stop posting here. If this site turned into a Sony fanboys only club, I would certainly lose interest very quickly!
Tim – you must be reading a different blog than, cause his attitude is quite clear.
To be fair Thom, the D800 is a much waited for camera, best-in-class, and has a lot of legacy upgraders coming from older users who have held off for many iterations of cameras. So if the A99 did 1/4 of that, it’s actually pretty respectable, given the Sony base vs Nikon base.
Very nice, with over 73000 sales, they made close to 200 Million USD!
I don’t believe these numbers at all… And what’s the point of them anyway?
There is no way these are correct when the cheapest listings on ebay for the a99 hardly Ever gets a bid or purchase…
Of course it is not true. Their next step to make impression that A99 is desirable camera will be making issues with supply. Apple does this trick and it works for them. The problem is Sony is nowhere close to Apple. I think people in Sony responsible for poor A99 sell are sitting on hot seats and will try every single marketing trick to sell one more camera.
And you’re here to make it fail, right? Does that make you the real Canon or Nikon CEO? 😀
The A99 deal didn’t sway me. I bought a 6D and actually returned it this week due to an LCD problem. I have a replacement 6D on the way. I sold my SLT and 6 lenses after holding out for the A99 for a year, and then hoping prices would drop.
For ~$2,300 with Canon I got a FF with pro build quality glass (24-105L). I re-evaluated my decision in light of the new A99 deal, and Sony is still out of reach. The only good build quality standard zoom lens in the A-mount lineup, the Zeiss, is 2 grand. The only alternative is the Sony/Tamron 28-75 (blech!). Even if I was willing to accept that glass, the best for the kit after selling the battery and flash would be ~3 grand. Then what do I do for a high quality 70-200mm at a reasonable price? Bust out the 1985 F4 70-210 beercan? Go 3rd party? I can get an L glass 70-200mm F4 for $670, or with IS ~$1100. Even with the lens stabilization “tax” it’s not that bad. My whole FF purchase came to ~$3300, with two “L” lenses covering 24-200mm at constant F4. I tacked on the pancake F2.8 too, for which there’s no Sony equivalent.
Hopefully the FF E-mount is targeted to fill the FF enthusiast gap in Sony’s lineup. The A-mount FF glass gap is what really kills it for enthusiasts. I expect rumors they’re going to dump A-mount are true. They don’t have the R&D resources to maintain both mounts. Sony has a sort of karate kid half do each squish like grape thing going on right now, but if they do mirrorless only, they could own the market.
Nice summary, keep in mind in Europe we are raped with even higher prices (~ +50%) while Canon and Nikon aren’t that different to USA prices.
Is there anyone in Sony that is listening to us?
A99 shouldn’t be priced more than D600 but is more expensive than D800 here. How dumb one must be to buy this camera for this price. If it had 10-12fps in FF mode with at least 3 seconds buffer, sharp video and FF AF module, and no menu lag then I could think seriously about this camera with current price. With all those issues there is no single reason to pay almost 2x the price of D600 in Europe.
I doubt they have sold more than 10K cameras globally. Even if you look at above stats where they state to sold about 5K camera to rest of the world it means they have sold no more than tens or hundreds in average country – and it is probably how much they were able to put into stores not customers hands. It must be really shameful for Japan management.
The is the reason why people don’t complain so much about Nikon d600/800 and Canon 6d prices so much and they do about A99.
Agreed!
“Nice summary, keep in mind in Europe we are raped with even higher prices (~ +50%) while Canon and Nikon aren’t that different to USA prices. ”
Don’t you think that you overreact a bit?
Quick search on Google shopping, prices for body only:
A99 in USA: 2500$ in UK: £1635 (~2500$) or in WEX: £2200 (3400$)
Canon 5D Mk III in USA: 2500$ in UK: £1900 (~2900$)
Nikon D600 in USA: 1500$ in UK: £1100 (~1680$)
In no way I can come to your 50% – even picking one of the worst deals online – from WEX – it’s still roughly 36% difference as of today between A99 price here and in US.
Even though the a99 is overpriced, it’s a tax I’d pay to have that technology. Personally, I shoot faster on a Sony and feel comfortable doing it. Also spend less time in post. The extra few hundred is worth it IMO. But then again, I never liked looking through an OVF even before SLT was released. Maybe I’m weird.
Funny, I took back my 6D as well but becuase I didn’t like it. The only thing I liked about it was the amazing low light capabilities. But I still found that even my a55 was pumping out better photos in good to fair light. The 6D may be affordable but it’s in a weird place. Pro-like functions but on a simplified body. Almost too simple. The whole thing just felt incomplete compared to what Sony offers in their cameras and how they set up their menus, buttons, overall handling. To each their own I guess but I’m a little disappointed in myself for not loving a camera so many others do.
If these figures, i.e. 73,160 Alpha 99 sold in two months, are accurate this is a huge success:
– total shipment of Japanese SLRs and SLTs in January and February amounted to 1,637,879 pieces
– Alpha 99 figures would represent a 4.5% market share whilst 24×36 market share is said to be lower than 10%.
$200+ million revenue in 2 months off the A99? That’s laughable. There’s no possible way. It’s not even in any of the top 100 lists on Amazon. They’d be celebrating at Sony if they’d gotten that since launch. Nope, they scrubbed the enthusiast FF A-mount to concentrate on the success areas- RX1,100, and NEX.
My thoughts exactly, these numbers do not add up or make sense. The camera is not selling well according to amazon. Also if you look at past sales on ebay, not good either.
I am not a professional. I have never taken a class in photography. Everything I know is based on my experience of taking pictures since 1974.
I have the A700, A900 and A77. The A700 was a good camera, the A900 I love and for me in the conditions I shoot, the A77 is not a satisfactory piece of equipment to use. The A77 is rated at 104 degrees F. but it shuts down on me at 100 degrees and I’m not even shooting video or constant continuous shooting or with the image stabilization activated. I shoot a burst of 3 or 4 pics twice over the course of 30 seconds with about a 15 to 30 second lag after the last burst and it still shuts down. I’m in Arizona and I shoot pictures outside, not inside. I have never had a problem with the A700 or A900 even when it was 115 outside. (Mind you, even I find it hot to shoot outside when it is 115 and almost never shoot under that situation. I can tolerate it up to 110 but after that it starts getting totally unbearable and miserable.)
I will not buy the A99 because I have no reason to believe it will operate any better than the A77 has.
The second reason I will not buy the A99 is that I frequently shoot gymkhanas. Those are horse rider competitions. Pay attention Sony, if you read this stuff. Horses are prey animals. They are skittish. They do not move in a constant direction at a constant speed unless there is a 100% trust in each other between horse and rider, which is very very very seldom. When I am shooting at 10 fps, your method of showing me a picture of where my subject used to be and expecting me to guess at where it will be for the next shot is unacceptable as these horses will frequently come to a stop, make a 90 degree turn to one side or another or come almost to a complete standstill then resume its course at full speed. I estimate about 15% of my shots are now either out of focus because they aren’t where I predicted they would be based on a picture of where they used to be and my focal point is no longer on the horse or they have altered their speed and course so much that I only have half a horse and rider in the frame. (It is not uncommon for me to shoot 2500 pictures at a gymkhana that has 80 riders competing.) Sometimes by the time I get my finger off the shutter release button they are nowhere to be found in the EVF and I have to re-acquire the horse and rider before shooting again. I never had that problem with the A700 and A900 because I could see where my subject was BEFORE the next picture was taken and I didn’t have to guess at where I hoped it would be based on a picture of where it used to be.
Those are two deal breakers for me:
1. As my amateur hobbyist logic sees it, I do not see what good a camera is if it keeps shutting down and won’t take pictures. I stand out there in the sun (between the camera and sun so my shadow is falling on the camera) for 8 to 10 hours with nothing to eat, no breaks to go potty, two quarts of Gatorade to slake my thirst and I don’t “quit working”. The camera should be just as “robust” as I am and I’m 59 for crying out loud.
2. I am sick and tired of consulting my Ouija Board and Crystal Ball and trying to coax the future location of where my subject will be based on a picture I took of where it used to be. I want to see where it IS before the next shot is taken. For all I care, don’t show me a picture at all while I’m shooting 10 fps, let me see where my subject is. I can look at the pictures later.
Until you fix these two deal breakers (for me anyways), I will not buy another Sony Camera. I am currently deciding if I’m going to go with a D4 or a 1DX. I’m leaning towards the 1DX. (Yes, I can afford the move. I have set aside $17k for new camera gear and since Sony can’t deliver, I’m prepared and willing to go elsewhere. I am going to wait until Sony releases their next generation FF “professional” camera before I make my final decision.) I am thoroughly disappointed in what Sony is offering and that is why I am prepared and willing to move away from Sony and if I do, I will not come back until (imho) they get their act together with their new cameras.
Note: This is not an EVF vs OVF issue. I am not against the EVF, I am against the way in which they force me to try and pan on my subject. I actually prefer the EVF because I get a live preview for exposure, white balance etc.
J. Viera
Glendale, AZ
1. It isn’t summer yet, but as someone who has had the same overheating issue you’ve had, (I’m in Dallas) I haven’t had over heating issues at all on the A99.
2. Turn shot review off. I don’t like to shoot in crop, but if you’re shooting in (T10) The screen absolutely doesn’t black out, or review shots. It’s like watching an old time movie. If you’re shooting in any other mode, (non crop+RAW) you’re really only going to get maybe 6 shots per second, and the buffer fills up fast. Still, if you have in high speed shutter mode, it doesn’t black out between shots. Now, in single shot mode, it blacks out right when you hit the shutter. If that’s what you’re talking about, I agree there could be some improvement there. Maybe even with a firmware update.
This would be nice if true and I’m not saying it is or is not true, but living in San Francisco and covering press events events and living near and around some of the biggest photographic tourists locations in the world I have never seen an a99 out in the wild and I look at cameras being carried and can recognize cameras from a surprising distant location.
If Sony is sell that many I like to think I would have seen one by now
It’s also unusual to find a Sony a99 or even an a77 in many camera shops in SF. As a rule I stay clear of Discount Camera store downtown because the sales people act like used car salesmen, but others like Mike’s Camera haven’t had one the times I’m been in there store on Market Street.
Not saying you can’t find one anywhere I just haven’t seen any so the sales numbers seem a little questionable.
It’s around 200M$ gross revenue, pretty shallow unfortunately.
200M$ in 2 months is shallow? LOL.
I find it very interesting that the vast majority who bash the a99 don’t own one! I own an a99, I own an a77, an a900. I have owned an a 55 and others. I have had pentax k20d and eos cameras. The a99 is a superb camera.. it has many wonderful features. Its low noise is good.. it really is. Every camera and I mean every camera has good and bad bits, along with things that they could have done better.. but I can tell you as someone who actuallyuses it to take photographs .. its superb.
I hope the sales figures are right as I am sure there will be a whole lot of other happy people!
+1 Users here are not representative.
Never seen so many system users so upset that the system they use is doing ok. The quarterly sales numbers will be out soon in May and these totals can easily be verified. Based on the Feb. report I believe these numbers are pretty accurate.
I have been waiting for a better price before buying the a99. The bundle deal was a good offer for me as I wanted the flash and grip. My invoice from Amazon listed the item prices as follows: a99 $2,102.26, grip $284.01 and flash $411.23. I do not care one bit for any talk about Canon or Nikon they do not offer IBIS, focus peaking, EVF, and a tiltable screen on their high end models. For once I do not feel like I got ripped off by Sony’s pricing. Now I get to see what the a99 can do mated to all of my CZ glass which I love.
I was very very disappointed by this deal. I was looking for hundreds off to compete nearer Nikon FF low end.
I bought a grip and flash for an A700 and find I never use them. So I was never interested in these for the A99. I just want that FF sensor. Maybe if a LENS was tossed in…. Doesn’t even have to be a Zeiss or a zoom. Just FF and ready for this camera.
This was pretty much a classic Sony move; toss your customers stuff most of them don’t need and charge the same – calling it a bundle deal. Nikon does the same (or did).
After A99 price became clear I sold all my alpha grear and use NEX now with Nikon full frame. The european prices are just obscene
US – A99 – 2800 USD; D800 – 2800 USD; D600 – 2000 USD
Europe – A99 – 2650 Euro; D800 – 2400 Euro (can be found for abour 2100 Euro too); D600 – 1600 Euro
Do you see the difference? D600 is about 2 times cheaper than A99 in Europe…D800 is way cheaper too…..
Crazy people at Sony europe even Canon lowered 5d mk3 price, did you notice?
With it’s emphasis on video, the A99 was clearly targeted at the 5dIII. Street prices in certain European countries are on par at the moment. So, Sony would not have done such a bad job. The D800 undercutting those prices substantially is another point. But Nikon is competing against Canon on price, and price, and price.
For all those who claim the European prices are too high. Don’t forget we have 24 months of guarantee. That comes at a price too.
Same warranty with other brands, but lower prices.
In Europe Sony is overpriced, dot. Aiming at the Mark III? Who said it? Plus: Nikon D800 did not “undercut” the A99, as it came before. We could well say that the A99 “overcut” the D800, in Europe.
Anyhow, all these numbers have to be compared with equivalent numbers of Nikon and Canon FF cameras. Only a graphic (or table) with all figures in comparison shows the “truth” on these matters. Otherwise we talk about the shape of fresh air…
Laughable comments re sales numbers. What is really important and no-one mentioned that is what the investment was and what the revenues are.
second, what sells a camera is the evidence of its ability to make great pictures of a certain class, category and type. There is no-one camera for all photographers and one for all picture types.
Next, people who buy cameras either calculate what the money can that camera return in whatever way (good pictures sold and the camera selling well after its service with a photographer) or, alternatively, buy with emotions of various kinds only.
Is anyone at SONY sharing that view or are they wiser and know better?
I think the company is in a transition period and must decide who they are going to be in the next 15 years.
I have submitted proposals several weeks ago but they were ignored. I repeat them: 1. the new Sony’s FF SLR must be capable of equaling middle format in quality of PRINTED picture at halved price. I want at last to be able to repeat a picture quality of a 4×5 camera while using SONY. 2. A totally b&w camera clearly and by wide marigin exceeding picture quality of Leica Monochrome – be it whatever: NEX, or PEX, or SLR FULLFRAMEX. The glass must be top class and the time from camera card inserted to printing computer to the good quality print must be short.
Last, the Sony cameras must regain the ambiance of a quality and upper middle class instrument. And sell to everyone by making everyone wanting it.
Agree EU prices suck on the A99
Those sales figures are bad I bet Canikon sold an awful lot more
CZ2470 + A99 pack for 2999 €, for example. Combination bundles of A99 + CZ primes “A99 and take your CZ prime…” & etc. Superb quality products but where is that commerce strategy? Hey SONY we are here!
Did I read full frame & fully blunded?
Why only Asia buys Sony? Especially Europe is not tempted… I wonder how many of those 12K are russian (and generally former USSR) sales?
I Always get a kick out of the a99 owners who say they love their a99 because they like to use it better than their VERY OLD a350, a700, a900… Of course you do!!! Those cameras are OLD with very lack luster features… The cheapest in that bunch(a350)is even the only one with a flip screen lcd… I know you want to feel good about your ‘Expensive’ Purchase but wake up… Just because you like it better than very OLD alpha, doesn’t mean it truly delivers or is a good deal…
Wake Up Please. Thank You.
The early adopters have been the ones really laying it on thick lately about how the a99 is a good deal to feel good about their purchase… If I was an early adopter I would be really pissed if the price basically dropped 930.00 That Fast!…
The start date is a long way before the release date.(2)
I was an early adopter of the Sony A900 and loved it right up until the Nikon D800E was released. A900 was the leading DSLR in megapixels for years. Now the A99 is released with significantly lower resolution than D800E– what’s to like? I was hoping for a 48mp Sony alpha camera and have held on to my A-moount lenses hoping for such an announcement this year. I thought that Sony might at least release a DSLR with the Sony 36mp chip this year after the 12 month lead given to Nikon D800, but I see no sign of either this or the 48mp version we have all been waiting for. But there is no word of this. So now I am thinking of selling all my Sony A-mount lenses and buying the Hasselblad H4D-60 which is now selling at deep discounts on eBay (~10,000)- I already own the Hassy lenses. That would tide me over until either Nikon or Sony comes out with a higher resolution DSLR in the next few years.
==Doug
I was purchase of $3250 with Canadian Tax. Just body.
Very bad. Next, I don’t buy Sony. CRAZY.