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Optical or electronic Viewfinder? It doesn’t matter anymore what you prefer! If you want to stick with Sony than electronic viewfinder is the only possible future. As you remember Sony officially announced they will drop the classic optical viewfinder technology. So is there really no other option?

Yes there is one…The hybrid Viewfinder! The new Fuji X100 offers a dual EVF/OVF vision. The bad news is that such technology works with fixed lens only. I thought you might be curious to see how it works (see the video on top). The question now is, can the X100 technology be improved? In short yes. Sony should learn from the Contax G2 that has the best viewfinder ever put in a rangefinder camera. It zooms as you change lenses, so it always has the perfect size! (Click here to read the review made by Ken Rockwell). Now the dreamers question:

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I would love to get my hands on that camera!

You can preorder the Fuji X100 at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto and Amazon UK. There is also one single camera on auction at eBay (Click here). It will not be cheap!
Check out the Contax G2 auctions on eBay (Click here).

Today we have a nice mix of new Sony camera reviews!

Whatdigitalcamera (Click here) tested the Sony A580: “The most important element of the Sony A580, the image quality, is impressively consistent if not quite as eye-catching as it should be. Results are of an equivalent level to the chasing pack and the camera performs reasonably well in low light, although above ISO 800 image noise becomes apparent.”
Direct Sony A580 links to Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.

Stayfocusedpress (Click here) posted a three part Sony A55 review: “When I first learned about the Alpha A55, I was amazed by the number of innovative features that Sony claimed to have packed into this new body. In the two months that I’ve used this camera, I remain impressed by the results that I’m seeing in the images and the ease with which I am able to capture them.”
Direct Sony A55 links to Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.

Trustedreviews (Click here) tested the Sony NEX-3 which is going to be replaced soon by the NEX-C3: “The ‘negatives’ here are a ‘basic’ looking design, lack of body integral anti shake, omission of built-in flash (so you have to carry the clip-on variety around with you), and in the case of the NEX-3, video clips are ‘just’ 1280×720 pixels rather than Full HD. Howevermitigate, on the positive side, the price for the NEX-3 body plus twin lens kit combo on review feels very fair, at between £540 and £599 depending on where you shop. It’s also very easy for the amateur to get detailed, ‘professional’ looking results at the press of a button. It may not be truly pocketable, and has it’s issues but overall it’s well worth considering either as a smaller alternative to a DSLR or a step up from high-end compacts. ”
Direct Sony NEX-3 links to Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.

Warning! Don’t show that post to your Canon friends, they could become very angry
It’s right, Canon has a much wider lens range and a more professional/complete system. But you can no longer say that Canon sensors are really better than Sony sensors. De facto DxOmark (Click here) proved that Sony do deliver a better image quality than Canon sensors! See the image on top. The new Canon 600D gets easily beaten by both SLT and DSRL Sony models. Also the much more expensive Canon 7D can’t come close to the Sony cameras (Click here to see that at DxOmark). Now let’s hope Sony can prove to be a reliable system by releasing new lenses too and by improving their customer service. If that happens I am sure they will get much closer at Canon in terms of sales share.

Check out those direct links to see price and specs of the cameras:
Sony A55 at Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.
Sony A33 at Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.
Canon T3i/600D a Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.
Canon 7D at Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.

A Photorumors source said that: “When you look in front of the new Sony NEX 7 with the 24mm Zeiss mounted, the new camera looks like a twin of the Minolta Dimage A2 – a really small nice pro body.”. According to Photorumos that camera should be releeased very soon.

You know what I think on that. We will see a NEX-3 replacement in April, so no NEX-7 yet! The professional NEX-7 camera will be announced a few months later and share the same A77 sensor!

Image on top: The current Sony HVL-F42am flash.

It sounds like Sony will not only announce new cameras and lenses but also a new external flash. I got this from a source: “The new flash that is going to be released this year replaces the HVL-F42am and instead of a guide number of 42, it is 43. I’m pretty sure the product would be called hvl-f43am. Its not huge news but at least we know the guide number of the new flash.”
UPDATE: The flash should be announced in April. You can see a current prototype picture at Dyxum (Click here). Check out the current Sony HVL-F42am price and specs at Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.

Reminder (SR = Sonyrumor):
SR1=probably fake rumor
SR2=rumor from unknown sources
SR3=50% chance it is correct
SR4=rumor from known sources
SR5=almost certainly correct!