(SR4) Sony A33 to be discontinued! (SR3) Sony A35 to be announced in April?
I’m receiving rumors after rumors from many new and trusted sources. The latest rumor is a bit…surprising!
An important dealer (can’t reveal the name here) contacted me to say that Sony told them they will not sell anymore A290,A390,nex3 and the A33! He is not surprised about the first three cameras but “I don’t really understand why they stop so quickly the “production” or just the selling life (of the A33).”
We know the A33 price dropped in US (Check here: Amazon, Adorama, B&H). Another new source told me weeks ago that Sony would introduce a new Alpha, the Sony A35 in April!I confess that I am a bit confused as it doesn’t make any sense to me to release such a camera. What do you think?!?!?
I ask my trusted sources if they can confirm or deny the rumor! Thanks!
In Summary: It sounds like Sony will announce an incredible amount of new cameras (and hopefully lenses) on April 4th right before the NAB show in Las Vegas. We do expect the new NEX-C3 (That’s SR5), a more advanced VG-10 model (SR3, with XLR, no name yet), the NXcam modular videocamera (SR5), the fullframe camcorder and 2-3 more new camcorders (SR5). If the A35 rumor turns out to be correct than we will have another translucent camera too! There should be new E-mount lenses too but I don’t have a 99% sure confirmation about that…yet!
In the meanwhile check if some store has officially announced the following cameras:
Sony A33 at Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.
Sony A290 at Amazon, B&H, Adorama, J&R, eBay.
Sony A390 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!
SonyA77
3 years ago |Maybe the rumour about the A77 not being named that are true. It might be A75
Tomodo
3 years ago |Ah that sounds right to me. I was at a Sony show for dealers and the guy demonstrating the cameras quickly mentioned the A33 will be replaced. As he didn’t mention any new NEX bodies I thought that was a mix up. So maybe he’s right.
contraspirit
3 years ago |The spirit of innovation gives more pain in the ass than hemorrhoids. It is worth sometimes tolerating it for the sake of science and progress, but will progress really benefit from A35?
Looks very familiar and therefore suspicious. Instead of the A750 we were given a whole lot of entry-level toys. Are we in for another lot instead of A77? Too sad to suppose.
shamb
3 years ago |Sounds like they’ve made significant advances in the translucent or EVF technology and are in a position to update (although the advances are perhaps not in performance, but in production costs per unit).
Sky_walker
3 years ago |If they would – wouldn’t it be better to upgrade A55? While keeping 33 as less advanced and cheaper alternative?
IMO the reason for 33 being replaced is low world-wide sales comparing to A55. They need to give more reasons to sell it. Or they discontinue it without replacement.
UKPhotoClub
3 years ago |That seems to be a repeat of the release of the A230 etc not that long after the A200. Rather than having revisions under the same model Sony seem to replace the model with a slightly improved version with a different model number
albin
3 years ago |Really?
A replacement for a new camera when we ve been waiting almost 2 years for sony to maybe release something to replace the a700.
Not cool sony
SonyA77
3 years ago |I fail to see why people get so wound up by low-end releases. The A35 and A77 are not mutually exclusive. Sony can develop both at the same time.
Vlad
3 years ago |Because it doesn’t make sense. Between the SLT, NEX and the A5xx, where do the A290 and A390 fit? Admittedly I do not have any numbers, but my bet is they don’t sell at all. While clearly a lot of people are interested in a pro APS-C body.
SonyA77
3 years ago |It makes perfect sense. You can not be seriously suggesting that Sony can only develop one dSLR at a time?
As you go up the price points you get diminishing returns, for example with Nikon more people buy the D3100 than the D7000 and so on. The big money is around the D3100 price range, not the D7000 price range. I bet that Nikon make a bigger profit margin on a D3100 than they do on an expensive to manufacture D7000.
The problem with the A290 and A390 is that they lack video and like it or not, video sells cameras. The price difference between the A390 and D3100 is tiny in UK, so why on Earth would somebody buy the Sony A390, when they can have a D3100 with video AND a Nikon badge?
Vlad
3 years ago |“You can not be seriously suggesting that Sony can only develop one dSLR at a time?”
No, that wasn’t my point. You said that you “fail to see why people get so wound up by low-end releases”. I am merely showing the *perception* that some users have (me included). As you say yourself the A290/A390 are not so interesting cameras and I say, who would go for them when there are the NEX, SLT and A580, all of them being very close in price (well, the A580 is quite much more, but you get one hell of a camera)? So it doesn’t *feel* right to some people that a clearly needed pro body isn’t delivered for so long. Not to mention that imho it doesn’t make any marketing sense.
Daniel
3 years ago |One of Nikon’s bestsellers was and still is the D90. The D7000 is meant to replace and upgrade it as well as steal some atention from the D300s.
The real money is in the D7000 range of customers. It would be nice to see that you have your facts right, but you don’t.
The D7000 customer has the money and the interest but no real need to go all the way to the much earlier designed D300s.
The more expensive camera brings more profit in this case. The difference between production cost and final price gives more room for profit. The added value to the production cost is maybe twice of that in the D3100′s case.
A D7000 customer also buys more lenses and flashes becouse he considers himself more serious about photography. And trust me, every D7000 sold means at least twice the profit than a D3100 sale for Nikon in the end.
A D7000 will have a longer life cycle also, so this means the cost of development will amortize at some point thus bringind more profit over the entire life cycle comparatively.
I would put it in a simple explanation…every 5 D3100 cameras sold might equal in profit 3 D7000s and the D7000 might outlive the smaller sibling by quite a while.
You would be amazed at how well the D90 has sold over its life time!!!
Thomas
3 years ago |Hmm, Strange move by Sony. I also fail to see why it’s such a big deal that they update other cameras than the A77. If they worked exclusively on the A77, other cameras would also be un-updated and we’d have an A700 situation all over again.
Only 3 weeks ’till April 3rd, so it’s not too long of a wait
Zstan
3 years ago |Whoa nice. I wonder what will the specs be like? a much much more powerful EVF?
emopunk
3 years ago |“It sounds like Sony will announce an incredible amount of new cameras (and hopefully lenses) on April 4th right before the NAB show in Las Vegas. We do expect the new NEX-C3 (That’s SR5), a more advanced VG-10 model (SR3, with XLR, no name yet), the NXcam modular videocamera (SR5), the fullframe camcorder and 2-3 more new camcorders (SR5).” Of all those you named the only camera (or close to that) seems to be NEX-C3.
Clivengu
3 years ago |This is very weird… I hate it. Will this kind of strategy actually boost the alpha camera sales? The new Sony a35 could be the replacement model for a700!!! Hahaha.. Crazy..
Admin, where are the sr5 news bout the upcoming a77 + next, u said u will post this week ? ;p
JB
3 years ago |+1
ZeevK
3 years ago |To me it sounds very logical – Sony stops production of the cameras that do not use it’s current best 16Mpx. CMOS sensor. I believe both NEX-3 and A33 will be shortly replaced by very similar bodies that are using the 16MPx sensor. Due to the mass production of the 16Mpx sensor it is possible that for Sony the 16MPx sensor is cheaper than the current 14MPx.
Z.K.
Kiril
3 years ago |Do you know of upcoming accessories?
Panfruit
3 years ago |Sony has a habit of putting out a million new entry-level cameras a year. Non-entry-level cameras is their Achilles’ heel.
SonyA77
3 years ago |No it isn’t. It is a long-term (YEARS) strategy that few appear to comprehend. It is common sense that you capture market share at the low end first.
If you can not make a good profit at the lower end then it is pointless releasing higher end models. The money is in the low end where Canikon models don’t compete as well in price, not the higher end where the 550D/D90 dominate.
It never ceases to amaze me the amount of people who think that experienced Sony executives have got their dSLR strategy wrong!
Vlad
3 years ago |“It never ceases to amaze me the amount of people who think that experienced Sony executives have got their dSLR strategy wrong!”
Many companies get their marketing wrong. Sony is one of them and has proven it not only with its camera division. Look at the PSP and the minidisc as examples.
“No it isn’t. It is a long-term (YEARS) strategy that few appear to comprehend.”
Maybe you should try to explain that strategy in depth then? Surely you know something we don’t?
Sony released the A100/A700/A900 very early – what do you do with that? Doesn’t seem to fit that strategy.
“It is common sense that you capture market share at the low end first.”
Yes, but not in the way you explain it.
- Sony didn’t start out of nowhere, they already had plenty of Minolta pro switchers.
- low end buyers are motivated to invest in a brand because of an existing upgrade path and professional recognition, not because they hope for some strategy
Given those two points and some common sense, the best strategy is to have the whole lineup ready at the same time (like they did in the beginning). Suddenly they decided not to update the A700 for 4 years, meanwhile releasing a slew of redundant entry-level cameras. That clearly didn’t help their market share.
They released the SLTs and NEX which are great cameras, but they basically upped their consumer market share. That market is very dynamic so I don’t count it as a win for Sony unless they build up on that. Look what happened with m43 – great market share because of an innovative product, but now they are starting to lose to the competition.
Daniel
3 years ago |I see you still have the “fight” left in you..:)
I couldn’t agree more as I see the level of undocumented opinions keeps on growing.
I see people tend to forget about the starting point, about the large number of Minolta designs and technologies that still breath underneath Sony clothing(lenses mainly). In fact, a large number of Sony lenses are obviously relabeled Minoltas, the most important example being the 70-200 G.
Minolta developed the SSM while Sony only introduced the SAM in cheaper products.
Sony has an obvious tendency to invest more in the consumer part of the DSLR market. For now it seems it is enough to sell sensors to Nikon which might get used in much more serious cameras.
Remember, the D300s is to be replaced soon and I bet it would use the same sensor of the A77. So if the EVF or noise capabilities or something else would not please those who found the patience and resources needed to deal with all the long wait, these people could take a peak at the Sony sensor inside the Nikon.
It might be Sony’s intention to win more by selling sensors in the upper SLR segment than by building the entire camera which would cost more to develop and test and bring less profit afterwards.
Sony has a very strange strategy regarding the A mount. I just hope this year proves to be a good one for the A mount and I’m not thinking of an armada of shity entry-level cameras..I wish it would bring good lenses and semi-pro cameras.
Vlad
3 years ago |Sure there’s fight left
Nobody of those claiming that Sony has a strategy has managed to convince me or to describe me said strategy.
Now, here I consider a strategy of building a complete system to rival Canon or Nikon. If Sony doesn’t have such intentions and wants to be the small player and sell low end stuff, which is a valid strategy, then what they are doing makes more sense
My opinion is that they started extremely well, messed up big time by not following up and now they are starting all over. We’ll se how that turns out.
Daniel
3 years ago |Vlad, they are doing the “more baits in the wather more fish in the pan” strategy thing !!
) Just that they are missing some newer big hooks for now…
SonyA77
3 years ago |I explain it by pointing out that Sony are in the number three slot for dSLR sales ahead of Pentax, Olympus and others. That is an incredible achievement and shows that they are following the right strategy by targeting consumers.
Just because YOU don’t like entry level cameras does not make the strategy wrong, it is not a strategy aimed at YOU. The amount of return on anything above the A5xx series is TINY compared to the lower end models, when will people get it into their heads that there is very little margin in making high end Sony models in a market dominated by Canikon?
You establish your brand on high volume sales and market penetration, high end models WILL NOT DO THIS.
Vlad
3 years ago |“Just because YOU don’t like entry level cameras does not make the strategy wrong, it is not a strategy aimed at YOU.”
No. It is not about liking or not and I am not looking at it from a consumer PoV. It is about a strategy that I do not understand. Does that make the strategy wrong? Of course not. But let me ask you – do you see the point of having the A290/A390, when there are the SLT and NEX, which clearly are more attractive as entry-level models by being smaller and having much more features for only 100US more? And not one, but two models!
“The amount of return on anything above the A5xx series is TINY compared to the lower end models.”
Please, do give me some data that confirms your statement.
“You establish your brand on high volume sales and market penetration, high end models WILL NOT DO THIS.”
Not necessarily. It depends on what you want and how you define your market. Sony seems to want it all. In that case what you’re saying is only a part. High-end models sell lenses (that’s a lot of profit there). People who buy entry-level tend to stick with the kit. High-end is also a very stable market share. You don’t lose it overnight, when the competition provides some new innovative feature or lower price. High-end also gives you brand recognition. Etc.
“I explain it by pointing out that Sony are in the number three slot for dSLR sales ahead of Pentax, Olympus and others. That is an incredible achievement and shows that they are following the right strategy by targeting consumers.”
I can’t find the numbers for 2007 for some reason, but in 2008 Sony had already 13% of the DSLR market and was third. That was built on the A100 and A700. If memory serves well I read that they expect to have 15% this March. Now, they didn’t explain, but I bet they include NEX and SLT in the numbers. That isn’t a very good measurement. For example, the NEX certainly taps into the compact camera market. Also, it is easy to gain there, where the competition doesn’t have an equivalent. What will happen when said competition provides one?
And let’s not forget that this market share is not the whole picture – lenses!
Daniel
3 years ago |Sony marketing, please pay your deffender!!
)
As for you my dear, see my comment above.
You are so wrong!!!
You establish your brand through the quality and performance of your products!!!!!!!!!! AND TROUGH THE QUALITY OF YOUR AFTERSALE SERVICES ALSO!!!!!
DON’T MAKE THIS HUGE CONFUSION AGAIN!! TAKE AN ECONOMICS CLASS FIRST!!
Brand value and volume sales are quite different, but highly dependent on eachother and of course of great importance regarding profit.
Volume sales are not an indicator of brand value,nor brand establishment as you reffer to, my friend!!
At least not alone!! Take Rolls Royce, Porsche, Ferrari, these are brands that make huge profit without the amazind sales volumes of Toyota. They sell a well-established brand image over time(through continuity of all i’ve described above).
Don’t make such statements about the way you establish a brand, you sound childish, maybe you are…you have to establish a brandname, not only a brand.
It is true that volume sales are made by cheaper products but it takes hard work to convince somebody to buy your product in such a competitive domain as photography related products.
When you have to build a brand image to “establish the brand” as you call it, you won’t achieve it through entry level cameras.
Being number three in volume sales for the last few months, far behind from number one and two, but not necesarly number three in overall profit doesn’t mean that much right now. It.s not relevant and certainly not enough for the giant company Sony is.
Arthur
3 years ago |I just hope they will produce a worthy pro-level camera that will need no replacement within 3 months.
hot
3 years ago |i still think the a35 will be almost the same camera as the a33 minus the melting core err overheating sensor when shooting video > 10minutes
Crazy
3 years ago |Im seriously getting dazed with all these entry models, if they dont deliver an the presumable A77 this year next year im Jumping Ship, maybe even jump to a Rangefinder not a DSLR!
Milos Janata
3 years ago |Call it A35, give it A77 spec, keep it in A33 price range.
And Everyone is happy
acolyte
3 years ago |It continues to amaze me how Sony kept on flipping their Alpha products in between the time it takes since A700 has been discontinued and its successor to be announced. And until NEX 7 is announced. All these news continues to pass by under my radar.
*sits back and watches the ‘I’m gonna jump ship’ comments*
SonyA77
3 years ago |“*sits back and watches the ‘I’m gonna jump ship’ comments*”
No I’m Spartacus!
..sorry, wrong forum…
Sky_walker
3 years ago |THIS IS SOOOOONNNNYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!
*hole-kick*
/now, better./
Maveric19
3 years ago |I’m really confused now. Why on god’s earth must Sony be so damn secretive?
SonyA77
3 years ago |Obvious really. You don’t want the competition to be ready to launch something the day before you do.
You also announce the specifications at the last minute just-in-case your competitor releases something new, then you can change your specification to better it.
Daniel
3 years ago |How would it be possible to change specifications overnight in a camera which has beend in development and maybe in testing for quite a while!?
What specs could be changed in a short notice!? Do you have a sensor alternative in tour back pocket just in case the rivals found out what your plans were!?
Grow up!! Do you think industrial espionage is dead, that it exists only in mithology!? Sony’s got around this at least with Nikon…sell them your sensors, make serious money out of it and see what they do with them, meanwhile you build your own cameras!! And make Canon feel lonely and look like they lack innovation rather than letting your customers see that their lineup of lenses is the most complete and that they have products covering each customers demand.
Right now Sony is far from covering each customers demand to say the least!!!
SonyA77
3 years ago |What is your problem? Quit ranting.
kurth
3 years ago |maybe it´ll have manual control for video ? The a33 has one distinct advantage over the mythological a77….size- 16mp is definitely enough. And I love the physical size of the a33/55. If they could give me a manual-video option it might suffice until they get the kinks ironed out of the highend. And I´d love to see the higher-rez sweep panorama per the hx9v. And who knows what other goodies they´ll pack inside. There´s no reason getting angry because sony isn´t listening to your private desires. Let them do the show and worry about being creative with their products.
SonyA77
3 years ago |Each to their own
I love the size of my A700 with VG. One reason I didn’t go for a Canon 1000D/XS was due to it being smaller than the A200, the Canon felt like a toy and I still think they do. Before buying the A700 I played around with the D90 and took an instant dislike to it too!
Thomas
3 years ago |I also chose the A200 over Canikon due to it’s larger size. That’s the same reason I don’t like the A33 and A55. They’re too small.
SonyA77
3 years ago |Yeah I held the A33 when it hit the shops around here. I actually liked the EVF, but the size was too small and girly for me
Sky_walker
3 years ago |“I also chose the A200 over Canikon due to it’s larger size” – hahaha, funny, cause I got the same situation back in the days.
Daniel
3 years ago |Me too, I still have the a200, it doesn’t look ridiculous when coupled with the 24-70 or the 70-200, in fact, it is ok. When I first got my hands on a friends Canon EOS Rebel T1i 500D it left me somewhat unsatisfied with handling it. The grip was insuficient, narrower, closer to the lens mount, it just did not feel as confortable to hold in my hand as the a200 did.
Zstan
3 years ago |a35 with a new vertical grip looks good too. But the tilt screen might get in the way.
Q
3 years ago |A new replacement for the A33 is better then say an update on the firmware. (unless you already have purchased an A33)
A lot of people said they would wait out the first generation of EVF bodies (from Sony), to see some maturity in the technology and perhaps this is an area that will be improved upon with the replacement.
Any hardware upgrades to the A33 should apply to the a55 too, otherwise one would think the lower model would cannibalize higher.
mafiosito
3 years ago |I believe Sony initialy tried to be in the same race with Nikon, Canon.
Pentax is still trying to be different… look at their fancy dslr colors.
Sony is taking a new path alternative technology for techys, better image for purists and more fps for action/ wildlife. I believe it will payoff in the long run. Maybe we don’t have yet new mid high models but it’s coming. Look at the industry most of them using sony sensors already.
Funny every time I have watched ship jumper’s post their ebay link they have nothing interesting but DT lenses, ordinary minolta glass, third party lenses and lower end models.
David
3 years ago |The main thing which worries me is commitment to a camera.
I’d be upset if I bought a camera which was quickly discontinued. I want to be sure that I would keep being supported with lenses and accessories. When you buy a dSLR you are investing into a whole system.
At the moment, everything is compatible but it would still worry me if Sony pulled the plug on my new camera only months after buying it!
pancanikonpus
3 years ago |same to computer stream. business nature
in this case, recommend you stick to canon, they will no launch any EVIL and keep on produce their lenses. If EVIL come, major lenses need to be redesign. that will impact their business. likely their lenses will go longer in that sense.
sony, I like it. innovative firm. dare to try 1st market.
Q
3 years ago |Like you daniel and sky walker, I’ve got an A200 and enjoy the size and feel, I generally dislike the canons size and plasticky feel of their equivalent models. Once I had the VG grip it was a perfect fit, on that note I LOVE the Sony VG grip with it’s contours design that dates back to the Minolta grips, it just works so good
Maveric19
3 years ago |Am I looking at this photo correctly? It looks as though the image on the right is larger in every sence and has some of the phanthom (a77) details including a 16-80 kit lense. Maybe, just maybe we’ve been hosed and the replacement is not going to be called a77 but instead something else. I’m just asking.