Many of our readers sent us emails with the latest rumor found on a dutch forum. The administrator (“Nico”) posted a list of new rumors. He also copied the SonyAlphaRumors ranking to classify the rumors: NR= Nicorumors instead of our SR= Sonyrumors 🙂
These are his rumors (we used the google translation tool):
“NR4: The 500 f/4 will be launched in April 2011
NR3: A new “budget” full-frame Alpha
NR5: The 16 Mp EXMOR HD “gives” 30% less noise than the 12MP sensor of the [shoplink 3228]Alpha 700[/shoplink]
NR5: The new Alpha 77 sensor gets a completely new APS-C Exmor HD with more than 16 MegaPixels
NR5: The beta version of the Alpha 77 is ready for a large series of field tests
NR5: A major European delegation in Japan will negotiate a Sony version of the Minolta 300mm f/4, Minolta and Minolta 200 f/2.8 200mm Macro.
NR5: The trigger problems in the [shoplink 3617]A55/33[/shoplink] via a firmware update solved
NR5: The Alpha 77 gets a new, more powerful, battery on board
NR5: Newly developed full-frame Alpha’s getting an Electronic Viewfinder
NR2: In five years, the OVF will be past”
We can’t confirm or deny any of these rumors because we are waiting to get latest info from our sources. As soon as we have our SR5 rumors we will post it here.
Reminder (SR = Sonyrumor):
SR1=probably fake rumor
SR2=rumor from unkown sources
SR3=50% chance it is correct
SR4=rumor from known sources
SR5=almost certainly correct!
36 Responses
Trigger problems?
maybe it has to do with camera shutting down when overheated
Or maybe it’s related to underexposure with HSS flash? This could be solved by firmware. And it’s an A33/A55 camera issue, not related to A560/A580, so it’d fit the description.
NR3: A new “budget” full-frame Alpha
es ist zwar keine neue kamera aber
ein händler hat mir gesagt, dass es die alpha 850 bald unter 1500 euro geben soll.
Can you please translate? , apart from some european countries (Switserland, Austria, Germany) no one understands German
Add France to your list 😉
“Actually it’s not a new camera but a reseller told me that the Alpha 850 should soon cost less than €1,500“.
He says that it won’t be a new camera, but a sales representative told him that they’re gonna sell the A850 for less than 1500€
Haha Nicorumors! It is great that you aggregate rumors from other sites as well!
I am hoping for (NR3: A new “budget” full-frame Alpha) – and then a modest wish for translucent mirrors because I am hooked of those now! As for the A850 comment above, I don’t think resellers know so much more than anyone else on the internet, so we can hope for a real update rather than sell the older one cheap.
(NR2: In five years, the OVF will be past) – Sounds like a thought I had ten years ago. I see it as inevitable, if not in five years, then ten years. I’m changing to “Tru-Finder” next time.
I need a when on the a77. I have money burning a hole in my pocket and I need a new body.
“NR4: The 500 f/4 will be launched in April 2011
if this is true i would expect the A77or A7xx (if there ever will be one)to be released at the same time.
Although the 500f4 will fit on any alpha/nex camera Sony makes WHY would they release such a beast until they have an appropriate body for it to be married to?
Or even just before the lens release to prolong the effect of the Sony updates. I agree it would be released in conjunction with other releases.
“WHY would they release such a beast until they have an appropriate body for it to be married to?”
Well, the a900 fit perfectly! And Sony confirmed that they haven’t given up the full-frame business…
Well nothing against the A900 as it is a truly an outstanding camera (although getting long in the tooth)
BUT a similar body with an aps-c sensor which has a 1.5 crop factor gives the 500 f4 a 35mm equivalent of 750mm. REACH being an important consideration.
Yes i know you can also crop the A900 shots but who wants to.
Also the A77 will have at least 10 FPS (or the mythical A7xx which will be at least 7 FPS) as compared to the A900 5 FPS. Not important to me as I find 5 enough but to some shooting wildlife/sports this could be very important.
This lens will probably be in the area of $10K US so Sony will not sell many to begin with but will attract a lot of attention from other shooters Canikon etc.
Well…
I think most of those rumors are just wish.
“A major European delegation in Japan will negotiate a Sony version of the Minolta 300mm f/4, Minolta and Minolta 200 f/2.8 200mm Macro.”
– Now that sounds interesting. First of all – the lenses could be decent, especially the 200 Macro (I wonder if they’ll resurrect the 100 Macro as a cheap version), hopefully they’ll talk about resurrecting other Minolta lenses, like 70-200 f/4 which would be amazing if made a new, with new coatings to solve the ghosts & flare, cause that’s actually only real issue this lens has.
Secondly – this means the probability of longer discussions there about customers wishes, like the A700 successor, pro-NEX, OVF in cameras (as SAR poll told – the demand for OVF cameras from Sony is still there), compact with lot of manual controls, accessory EVF for NEX family.
“NR5: Newly developed full-frame Alpha’s getting an Electronic Viewfinder”
It’s weird because I remember some people from Sony saying that professional FF bodies will still have an OVF for the best image possible. Does it mean that this new FF won’t be as ‘professional’ as, say, an A900?
Yes, most likely it is the case – guy wrote: “new “budget” full-frame Alpha”, so it it’ll be a budget one… I wouldn’t count for too much.
That’s what I’m expecting, too. The a900 is just two years old (and I’m still not through with exploring the limits of the camera). So, no urgent need for an immediate successor. On the other hand, full-frame offers possibilities APS-C can’t offer. The only problem is the price tag of suitable lenses. But with the 2,8/85, Sony showed us that they are willing to offer affordable FF lenses (of course, at the cost of speed and built quality)…
“NR4: The 500 f/4 will be launched in April 2011
I am hoping the a77 will be launched with it, cause there must be a semi-pro APSC camera to go along with the lens, or maybe the a77 will be shown the first time then and launched a few months later.
NR3: A new “budget” full-frame Alpha
this is probably 50%, i would like to see a 16mp sensor used with good low light capabilities, and the rest of the specs of the a850, that should bring it down to about 1700$ or even less. The current way sony is adding LV to it’s cameras is very problematic for OVF, i rather they implement a slower AF version of LV than cannibalize the great OVF of FF cameras.
NR5: The 16 Mp EXMOR HD “gives” 30% less noise than the 12MP sensor of the Alpha 700
this is a given based on what the a55 can do, ad the a580 should be a bit better
NR5: The new Alpha 77 sensor gets a completely new APS-C Exmor HD with more than 16 MegaPixels
as SAR reported it might have a 18mp sensor, which is not that different from the 16mp sensor, but it given an extra selling point over the a55
NR5: The beta version of the Alpha 77 is ready for a large series of field tests
it could still be a long while until we can actually buy one.
NR5: A major European delegation in Japan will negotiate a Sony version of the Minolta 300mm f/4, Minolta and Minolta 200 f/2.8 200mm Macro.
SAR reported a while ago that sony might introduce a new 200mm macro and a new 200mm f/2.8 zeiss lens. personally i would like to see a new reincarnation of the minolta 400mm f/4.5
NR5: The trigger problems in the A55/33 via a firmware update solved
maybe they are reffering to the studio problems the a33/55 had, in which the EVF or LV didn’t light up enough.
NR5: The Alpha 77 gets a new, more powerful, battery on board
this should be a given cause it’s aimed at people who care less about weight/size.
NR5: Newly developed full-frame Alpha’s getting an Electronic Viewfinder
The only way i see this happening is if they decide to go for a low mp FF and they want to add a translucent mirror, it would be a cheap way to achieve very fast FPS and by introducing an EVF the camera would be cheaper cause sony has extremely expensive OVF for FF. The cameras taht have OVF and LV are crippled, also by going with EVF and translucent technology they could introduce video to the camera.
being a NR5 if it’s right i am really curious of what sony had in mind.
NR2: In five years, the OVF will be past”
maybe for a few companies, but the OVF will never fully die, heck there are still companies who sell film cameras, cause there is a market for them as there will be a market for OVF for purists.
Nikon still sells 35mm film bodies.
Guys, I’m a bit confused:
1) NR5: The 16 Mp EXMOR HD “gives” 30% less noise than the 12MP sensor of the Alpha 700
2) NR5: The new Alpha 77 sensor gets a completely new APS-C Exmor HD with more than 16 MegaPixels
Is the 16Mp sensor mentioned in (1) the one used in a-55?
Or is it the new sensor mentioned in (2)? Although admittedly a-77 sensor is said to have > 16Mp, so (1) can’t refer to a-77 sensor, right?
i hope sony dont make a silly mistake not releasing a A7xx (ovf version) and loses most A700 users away… it will happen if not careful.
They’ve already lost a great deal of a700 users by neglecting to release an competitive update, i would think.
Still no news on A900 fw with “fixed” cmos readout (longer integration time, 14 bit etc). It’s funny – hardware in most Sony devices is great – firmware is another sad story.
Sony don’t care about FF users who wants best quality possible.
Translucent Full frame sensor, that would serious send chills to the competition…
A friend of mine with excellent Sony connections has confirmed many of the “rumors” posted by Nico.
More than a month ago he told me that the 500 f4 was ready but being withheld to be released alongside the A700 successor, which would be a great wildlife/sports camera. Now he is saying that 1) the 500 f4 will be launched in April, and 2) that the A77 is being tested & would be ready for launch in 2-3 months or more–though his Sony source is unsure of this timing. It apparently depends on how well the testing goes.
He says that the new APS-c sensor in the A77 will be more than 16 MP, and that he personally believes that it will be more than 20 MP. I think that he is basing this belief on hints dropped by his sources–such as “you won’t believe the specs,” and “it will be a monster of a camera”–“far powerfuL” as Katsumoto-san said.
He said that it will not look like tha camera shown at Photokina, but will have far more buttons, that they are withholding a real picture in order to cloak the capabilities of the camera.
He said that it will have a more powerful battery because the power-demands of the LV & EVF modules will be greater. I think this implies new much more powerful LV & EVF modules.
He said that, long-term, they are thinking about a 300 f4 & a 200 f2.8 macro, and that it is realistic to expect them.
Given the emerging picture, I believe that Sony is convinced that the A77 will be such a great camera that OVF purists will quickly forget their old love. But I have to admit that the thought of going forward without an ovf makes me nervous.
I believe that sometime roughly in the same timeframe Sony will introduce the NEX 7. And I still hold out some hope for an A7xx. Once the 7 level has been filled out, they will begin introducing the new FF cameras, probably next Fall. I suppose there may be a cheap FF, but I certainly believe there will be others as well, intended to put a serious dent into Canikon’s “professional” FF sales.
I would be very surprised if it was more than 20mp! If it is all it’s cracked up to be it doesn’t need to be. It’s competition is the D7000 16.2mp and the 7D 18mp. If you can produce an 18mp that’s superior to both those, save the 20mp+ sensor for the upgrade! Plus you have to consider the price point, which I think will be between the two, but closer to the D7000.
My thoughts.
I saw the light this morning. If there is a top of the line FF with an EVF by Jan 1, I will be unboxing a new a900 Feb 1, 2011. I will not embrace an EVF and will not jump ship as i thought i will in 4 years. While i use film Maxxum 7, there is no need for high iso, as I use a tripod most of the time. Ability to experiment with 12 raw burst exposures is what attracts me to a digital camera(film D&P is much to expensive to shoot bursts).
I doubt that new 500mm will attract Canikons. They have some great HSM lenses. 500mm with a 2x converter on a APS gives Canon a reach that Sony can’t offer with their noise levels at high ISO required for this set-up.
Prototype of new very budget FF alpha also already available for large scale tests… 🙂
http://www.failiem.lv/viewer.php?i=zgcqzb&n=sony_FF_alpha.jpg
Month after announcement it will come in pink, orange etc.
lol… photoshop masters? ROTFL
At least there is no EVF.
My friend has written to add one more thing: he asked his sources whether there would be an A77 or an A750 with an OVF, and they said no. They must really think the new EVF they have come up with for the A77 beats the OVF hands down.
Well, I ordered an A850 on Tuesday. If the A77 is as great as Sony seems to believe it will be, then it will make a good complement to the A850, to replace my A200.
Yesssss 300F4 ! Love it Love it !
And 200F2.8 Too 🙂
I misquoted my friend about the long-term lenses. He said that they are thinking about 300 f4, a 200 f2.8, and a 200 f4 MACRO. This is in line with the SAR “Nico” rumors above, except that my friend says that the 200 MACRO will be f4, and adds that, while long-term, it is realistic to expect these lenses.
One feature I would really like to see in the A77 is the USB host for any mass storage ( I think Sony calls this Direct Write) and is available on Sony’s camcorders. Very usefull if you travel without a laptop, and run out of flash space. An external harddrive is much cheaper than flash. And you will run fast of flash if you do video.
I think this feature is much more usefull than connecting to Sony’s external DVD writers.