We know have confirmation from our sources the A77 will feature a 3 Million dots OLED viewfinder. That more than double of the resolution fo the current [shoplink 3617]Sony A55/33[/shoplink] viewfinder. They have 1,4 Million dots (of which only 1,1 Million is used). We have no specific technical details about the new viewfinder but we were told that it has a higher refresh rate and a greater brightness too.
One more thing: the same viewfinder will be used for NEX cameras too. But the soruces didn’t tell me if that means there will be soon an optional external EVF or a camera with built-in EVF (?).
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55 Responses
That is excellent news!
🙂 i`m waiting for the A77 but such an external EVF would be a really nice addition to my NEX5
Do the current NEX cameas have the right hardware for a snap on EVF? I didn’t think they did. I’d prefer a removable one for future NEX cameras, as long as the connection was well made.
Awesome rumor! Awesome feature! 😀
Can’t wait to look through one of those! Likely to be an external add-on for NEX I would imagine.
Great news! I’ve felt that the A33/A55’s EFV was lacking, compared to OFV cameras. But a 3 Mpix OLED EFV would surely change that! Is the EFV in the current SLT-cameras an LCD-viewfiner?
Hopefuly this will be compatible with nex-5, if not then it means that sony is screwing those that made nex line camera so succesfull – their customers, us!
But I’m optimistic, after all connection port on nex has too many pins to be only designed for flash or microphone 😛
The larger size is nice but the biggest limitation to EVFs is the refresh rate. This is where they need to make a significant improvement if they want it to replace the OVF.
Sounds tasty))
Great news!. Andrea I think your picture is confusing (reading the reply I see also that half are already confused :). The EVF you speak about is the internal EV of the camera so a VERY small OLED with a very high resolution (highes I know about, must be new Sony development). The external one you show in picture is a big 11″ one.Technologicaly very different.
So to clarify, the EVF will be used in future NEX (like NEX7 for example which most likely will have a very different look and form factor than current NEXes -more like a small DSLR look). The technology can not be applied to current NEXes (This does not mean Sony can not release an external big screen like the one in photo but this CAN NOT be the same OLED you speak about for A77).
Why can’t Sony make the OLED-EVF attachment for current NEX cameras?
Is it proven there is no video out pins on accessory attachment plug/shoe?
Even if that’s true, they can still make a 2MP EVF attachment. Why? HDMI OUTPUT. 1080p = 1920×1080 = 2MP. Yes, not as elegant with the HDMI cabling, but it should work non the less. Not much different than these external monitors Sony is pushing out.
1.The hotshoe does not have any video out pins
2.Yes you could attach any HDMI monitor to the HDMI output (Like the one Sony already makes). Is Sony going to make a “smaller” version of it ? I doubt.Anyway why would you ever want to use an external LCD with a NEX? NEX main reason to exist is the size. If size does not matter go to Alfa line. Probably NEX7 will be bigger but still smaller than Alfa (even smaller than A33). If not , I doubt it will sell (what is the advantage in that case as the price difference is very small comparing with Alfa line).
3.Like I said, the news is about an aprox 1/2″ 3 Mpixel OLED VIEWFINDER not about a 3″ – 11″ screen. Technologically is a very different story.
Yes, I was, talking about the Electronic View Finder.
Even without video pins on the attachment socket, Sony could still make an EVF attachment for current NEX cameras (NEX-3 and NEX-5).
An EVF attachment that utilizes the HDMI output port to get video. If the HDMI port can output 1080p, that means it is possible for such an EVF attachment to also have 1080p resolution. 1920×1080 = 2073600. That is about 2 million (Mega) pixels. Only 1MP down from the 3MP EVF being discussed.
Not elegant, because this requires HDMI cable to connect to the camera’s HDMI port. Just like external displays.
I’m sorry you feel strongly against external displays on the NEX. I was only stating that, if Sony wanted to make an OLED Electronic View Finder attachment for the current NEX cameras, they could.
A dream? Most likely.
Yet at the same time, can an electronic giant such as Sony make such an EVF? Most likely.
As long the a77 has manual video control I’m in.
Otherwise if they keep crippling their DSLR video features, I’m going to buy another canon.
I own 2 a900 and a55, I had to buy a canon 7d for having manual video control.
I’m not going to buy one of their 7/8k camcorders, when there are such alternatives from Canon and Panasonic for a fraction of the price.
Ain’t happening.
I’m with ya man! I hope the A77 video controls are at least up to par to what the T2i offers, if not better.
agreed. maybe admin can drop the picture? quite misleading. Anyway great news…! i wonder how it feels like to look through it..hmmm..
Definitely. I’m not thrilled with how often this site uses loosely-related photos to head articles. It is usually annoying.
cool down. andrea is working on it. it is ugly w/o photo 🙂
Picture dropped!
I always try to find a picture to make the website look a bit nicer and friendlier. The picture I had posted is the first external OLED viewfinder for profesisonal use. I thought it would be interesting to see it.
Anyway, I removed it.
from now on you should post some info about the picture just below it so that people won’t get confused.
Great news!
It looks more and more that a replacement for my A700 is practically here.
I have used the A55 for a couple weeks, but the OVF on my A700 was still better.
Now this sounds more like it already 🙂
I have the money ready SONY, just release it already!
*sigh*
Hopes the viewfinder for NEX is external EVF, should be fit, not loose, and try to make it compatible with all NEXs(if not NEX-3 and 5, at least all the coming NEXs)
Damn, that’s a resolution of roughly 2000×1500! I thought the LCD in my Panasonic G1 looked pretty amazing at 800×600. LED + that resolution = better than optical IMO. I’ve learned to love EVF’s since getting the G1. I just love seeing true DOF when composing. No wonder Sony has decided to stop making optical view finders if they have an EVF like that in the works.
I think it will not be a resolution of 2000×1500. Probably they follow the ‘convention’ of counting each color (Red Green Blue) separately (done for camera LCDs and also SLT VFs). So really it would be a resolution of 1 million pixels, about 1200×800. Still very good.
I think you’re probably correct here. They’re called field sequential displays. Still, it should be a substantial improvement over the A33/A55 EVF. Can’t wait to have a look through it.
I agree. Usually on camera’s screens and viefinders you need to divide by 3 to get the number of pixels in the TV/Monitors/Phones use. By some reasons (marketing ?) the count each color separately (on TV-monitors they don’t. If they did, Sharp could say that their Quatron screens have more pixels than the competition :). But still, it’s a great achievement, as you will gave 2-3 time higher resolution as the previous viewfinder and much faster response(OLED is much faster than LCD).
hopefully the EVF for the NEX won’t be built it, cause that will probably mean only the NEX-7 will get it. But i wouldn’t expect it to be under 250-300$ if sold separately, still quite interesting, cause the NEX is for most a crippled system for the lack of a decent VF, although i would also prefer a optical VF for the new zeiss 24mm( with a bit of head room ), battery will last longer and for street shooters that would be a dream come true… 24mp apsc sensor+24mm zeiss+rangefinder style OVF
What about those of us waiting for a new FF camera from Sony? I’ve heard absolutely nothing from Sony about their FF plans. I have mostly fast FF lenses and tired of the APS-C crop factor and limited DoF control for the wider range of the lenses.
I’m just an inch away from getting a Canon 5DMkII but the only thing keeping me from pulling the trigger is the the problem of how to affordably replace my lens collection and how long it would take to even get my basic lenses.
Come on Sony!!! Geez!
What speaks against the a900/a850? It’s available right now and the built- and image quality is next to perfect (when you use a proper RAW converter); much better than D5/2…
What does the 5DII have that is better than the A900 and would make you go through all the hassle of changing systems? Canon badge..?
I am confused. If you want FF, why aren’t you using the A850/900 now?
Glorious News!! For sure the refresh rate will be higher than with the LCD from the a55. Oh and pure blacks, YES! However, OLED’s a few drawbacks, mainly aversion to water, so no rainy day pictures.
Sounds promising…the A77 might just be worth the wait!
But I hope Sony also make a compact sized mirrorless body with an optional OVF of similar quality or close (2MP OLED) as their NEX 7, because I think it would sell truckloads to current users of every DSLR make out there as their second carry all the time body, particularly with SSS (and AF to all Alpha mount lenses).
Then Sony just needs a set of nice pancake e-mount lenses to compliment the NEX range – mind you I wouldn’t mind a nice 16mm pancake for the A77 either.
Just a thought – my car’s nav system has a detachable screen that works as a gps when it’s out of the car (also, it’s good to take it in when in “some” neighborhoods). My thought is that it would be wonderful if the new big Sony screens were detachable so that it could be used as a picture viewer. If it had other functions too, like gps, or smartphone, it might be nice to have access to those features without carrying around the camera and lens – when you want to shoot, then just snap the pieces together!
Hi Rob, he is talking about the viewfinder, not the LCD-screen…
Right – well the viewfinder should be awesome and eventually bring down viewfinder costs once R&D costs are taken into account.
However, are we really looking at yet more incremental development? How about making a smartphone, with all its abilities (hooked into a 3G or faster net) and retina display, that can be plugged into a “real” camera back? Either component (back or smartphone) could be upgraded over time (keeping lenses of course)allowing for some real convergence.
Any news about the dynamic range of the new viewfinder? Having used the Pana G1 and Sony A55 EVF, I didn’t find current resolution to be limiting in 99% of the cases (though more is welcome :)). For most situations the current EVFs are surprisingly good and hard to tell apart from an OVF (as long as you have a fast lens – things are different with slow zooms). The main issue that I have with current EVFs is the limited dynamic range which becomes an issue in high contrast scenes, If they can improve that then I would prefer the EVF over the OVF all the time.
Good. That’s trending in the right direction. I could easily imagine them providing a 1280 X 800 X 3 = 3.072.000 (or 3,072,000 for us Americans).
Since Sony plans each product as part of an overall product family, I could easily imagine that they would hold back just a bit for the A77 and offer the top performance in a future A99. So, I think 3M pixels is plausible for the A77 and for the A99 they would offer a more tightly packed display of 1280 X 1024 X 3 ~ 4M pixels. I believe 4M pixels is essentially the top of the line for these tiny displays – (But it’s not an industry I track carefully – does anyone know the top of the line spec for micro displays?)
Regardless, I’m just amazed that there is technology to offer this type of resolution in a postage stamp size display. I’ve been told that 3M pixel is getting into the virtual reality region of display specification. That’s pretty impressive for a micro-display. Kudos to Sony.
either way… 4mp alone is pretty awesome.
I mean, there’s got to be a limit to the resolution that the human eye can distinguish anyways right.
Somewhere I heard it was between 2-3 megapixels (equivalent to the human eye)…
It would be helpful if sony invented a hybrid viewfinder that can switch EVF to OVF (and vice versa) for photographers. Im not into EVF anyway. Still deep in love with OVF. For me if you really want EVF, just look at your LCD screen for better view. Just my one cent laaa.. 😛
they have the technology, i just dont understand why not? saving for A99? they even can implement 3D focusing (detecting distance view 3D sensing). they have so many tech over from videocamera(sensor), movie production(3D), computers(engine), radio(WL), bravia(LCD), playstation(motion detect/3D engine), and many moreeee….
i guess it all boils down to releasing ur technology bit by bit to gain more market share. if u plunk all u have in one TOTAL camera, well, its gone once u finish selling it..
ahhh, if they did, it will be the long for “perfect” camera? and Alpha might dominate camera world within a year! (taking advantage of canon and nikon will be slow this year)
I just concern about ISO proformace for NEX7 pleas give us 100K iso.. Some might wonder why bother with 100K? I have uses for it =) and D3s is just too big.
Nicer EVF definitely. But one we must concern is the battery life….i got A55, and its battery cannot last for a long time… since A77 going to have a higher solution and refreshing rate EVF, i think it would be more power consuming… i hope SONY gonna fix this in A77.
The good news is that OLEDs consume less power than LCDs because LCDs have to power back-lighting. OLEDs do not require backlighting like LCDs.
Even so, I wouldn’t be surprised by Sony releasing a newer battery, too. Kinda’ like they did when they released the A700. The newer battery would be backward compatible but the older batteries wouldn’t work in the newer cameras – However, this is purely speculation.
OLEDs not only consume less energy, but also wider color, higher DR and display response time could be hundreds times faster (2-4ms vs 0.01ms). Actually, color, DR and response time is much more important than resolution.
Thanks for the info from you guys, it makes me get a clearer picture about it. I am so excited about this and want to try A77 EVF asap haha.
Based on the limited information I would say the bad news is that 3.3 million pixels (counting R/G/B separately) may be no more than the 1.1 million dot field sequential system in the A33/55 in terms of spatial resolution. In my opinion the viewfinder needs a step up to provide the no-question quality of an OVF. However, on the positive side from what I have seen OLED will be a big step up in contrast and colour saturation. Also without the field sequential system motion should be smoother and no colour tearing but ultimately this is limited elsewhere in the system. It should be more power efficient too.
Pleased to see it coming but I was expecting another step in resolution beyond the A33/55.
http://www.oled-info.com/sony-oled-monitor-bvm-e170e250-introduction-video
I believe the 1.1M pixels in the current EVF are not “real 1.1M”. The real resolution is something like 0.36M and then they multiply by 3 to account for the field sequential part. So we are getting a real resolution gain here with the new EVF.
I believe the 1.1M pixels in the current EVF are not “real 1.1M”. The real resolution is something like 0.36M and then they multiply by 3 to account for the field sequential part. So we are getting a real resolution gain here with the new EVF.
A lot of screen manufacturers count the red, green and blue subpixels together as a total. 🙂