Sony started off PMA 2010 with a major introduction: its first new interchangeable lens camera system, delivering a sensor that is larger than that in compact cameras, but in a body much smaller than a standard SLR.
The new Sony model will ship in 2010, the company said at a
Feb. 21 PMA press conference, but pricing was not disclosed.
The concept model will employ an Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor,
Sony says, about 24-by-16mm in size, and capture full AVCHD video. Few other
details were announced. The prototype shown was pocket sized, excepting the
lens.
Previous Sony interchangeable lens cameras were built on
older SLR designs acquired from Konica Minolta.
Sony also displayed prototypes of upcoming SLRs in the Alpha
line, indicating the company is not done with the larger SLRs, despite the
newly developed models.
The new model will face off with the Micro Four Thirds
offerings of Panasonic and Olympus, which also offer interchangeable lens
capabilities without the size requirements of SLR mirror-based photography.
Press and analysts at the PMA event greeted the announcement
with enthusiasm, while noting it is also an example of Sony once again refusing
to join any industry consortium, and instead going its own way.
As the company makes its own sensors, it was unlikely to
join the Four Thirds group, oriented around particular sensor designs that
likely come from Panasonic.
March 1, 2010
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