UPDATE: For unkowns reasons DxO has removed the 90mm FE lens reviews from their site.

DxOmark (Click here) reviewed the new Sony FE 90mm macro lens. And the conclusion is:

With some innovative cameras in the range, Sony is beginning to fill out the E-mount system with some useful high-quality lenses, and the FE 90mm f2.8 macro is up there with the best in terms of optical quality. The only downside, perhaps, is that the lens is at odds with the perceived benefits for buying into mirrorless systems: sure, the bodies are smaller, but this lens is not significantly smaller nor lighter than rival options. Be that as it may, there’s little wrong with the optical quality of the Sony FE 90mm f2.8 Macro G OSS, and if the size or weight isn’t an issue, then it can be easily recommended.

The lens even outperforms by one single point the $400 more expensive Zeiss 10mm macro lens! It will be hard for the new Batis 85mm f/1.8 lens to outperform the 90mm FE lens!

90mm links:
In USA at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, [shoplink 37938 ebay]eBay US (Click here)[/shoplink].
In Europe at [shoplink 37991 ebay]Fotomundus[/shoplink], Amazon Germany, Sony Germany, Sony UK, Sony FR, Sony IT, Sony ES, Sony NL, Sony BE, Sony AT, Sony CH, Sony SE, Sony FI, Sony NO, Sony PT.
In Asia at Digitalrev, Sony Australia.

Batis links:
Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 lens in US at Adorama, Bhphoto. In Eu at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2.0 lens at Adorama, Bhphoto. In EU at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.

Image courtesy: DSLRmagazine

The very first batch of the new Batis FE lenses shipped yesterday in Hong Kong! You can see first user image samples from Samlee at SonyAlphaForum (Click here). He writes:

I got the Zeiss Batis 85mm F1.8 Yesterday at Hong Kong. The price around 0.9 x1199 USD with Free B+W filter. Light, Very Very Fast AF, Sharp Sharp Sharp, nice Broken

Also the spanish site DSLRmagazine (google transltion) posted the Batis hands-on review:

This new Zeiss Batis series meets all expectations. The Batis optics are specially designed for those who want to exploit every ounce of your sensor without sacrificing good design and a completely intuitive.

Zeiss Batis store links:
Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 lens in US at Adorama, Bhphoto. In Eu at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2.0 lens at Adorama, Bhphoto. In EU at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.

Luminous Landscape says:

The 90mm Macro that just started shipping is nothing short of exceptional.  Yes, some folks may claim it is too big and some may even claim too expensive at $1098 USD.  But for the price you get a solid really well designed lens that is dust and moisture resistant.

Mirrorlessons says:

As Yasuyuki Nagata (Sony General Manager – Lens and Peripheral Business) stated in an interview with us at Photokina, consumers are looking for three things from their lenses – compactness, quality and a good price – and with a full-frame sensor, it isn’t easy to deliver on all three fronts. In the case of the 90mm, Sony has prioritised optical quality and performance above all, and it shows in the resulting images.

Now the question is, should I buy the 90mm Sony macro or the 85mm Batis lens? Damn it…

90mm links:
In USA at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, [shoplink 37938 ebay]eBay US (Click here)[/shoplink].
In Europe at [shoplink 37991 ebay]Fotomundus[/shoplink], Amazon Germany, Sony Germany, Sony UK, Sony FR, Sony IT, Sony ES, Sony NL, Sony BE, Sony AT, Sony CH, Sony SE, Sony FI, Sony NO, Sony PT.
In Asia at Digitalrev, Sony Australia.

Preorder links:
Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 lens in US at Adorama, Bhphoto. In Eu at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2.0 lens at Adorama, Bhphoto. In EU at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
In Europe and Asia the Loxias can be found in Stock via [shoplink 36456 ebay]eBay sellers (Click here)[/shoplink] and Digitalrev (Click here).

Is the new Sony 5 axis image stabilization really a deal breaker? Just watch Matt Granger’s video above to hear his opinion on it!

And Diggloyd is asking Sony why the new Sony A7R II has no Pixel Shift:

Conspicuously missing from the Sony A7R II feature set is Olympus-style pixel shift, which in my testing can deliver roughly a 32-megapixel image from a 16-megapixel sensor. On the 42-megapixel Sony A7R II sensor, a similar technology would deliver ~63 megapixels, or maybe more like ~80 megapixels using a Zeiss Otus.
It’s a pity that Sony is not offering pixel shift, since it has Olympus-style sensor stabilization. Perhaps it will appear in a firmware update, but that seems dubious, since it is a terrific feature to brag about at a product release (and would be a first for a full frame camera).

A7rII and RX camera preorder list:
In USA:
A7rII at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, SonyStore US, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
RX10m2 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
RX100m4 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
In Europe at:
A7rII at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
RX100m4 at DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
RX10m2 at DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
In Asia at:
A7rII at Digitalrev, CameraPro.
RX10m2 at Digitalrev, CameraPro.
RX100m4 at Digitalrev, CameraPro.

Matt Granger (Click here) compared the Batis vs Otus 85mm lenses. Of course the [shoplink 38439 ebay]four times more expensive Otus lens[/shoplink] is a better lens. But how close does the new Batis get to it? Check it out on the video below:

And Mirrorlessons made a Batis 85mm vs 90mm macro vs 55mm f/1.8 comparison:

You will notice that the Zeiss Batis has a smoother bokeh and produces less of a “swirl” effect than the 90mm. But the latter looks good in terms of bokeh rendering too. Both are really sharp. The 55mm on the a6000 does a good job as well. It is slightly less sharp but this is also due to the lower resolution of the a6000. The bokeh is less smooth than the other two lenses but I like its rendering and it remains a more than valid choice for portraits.

Preorder links:
Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 lens in US at Adorama, Bhphoto. In Eu at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2.0 lens at Adorama, Bhphoto. In EU at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
In Europe and Asia the Loxias can be found in Stock via [shoplink 36456 ebay]eBay sellers (Click here)[/shoplink] and Digitalrev (Click here).

Dpreview posted their first impression review:

The RX100 IV fits pretty well in your hands, though those with large hands might find controls to be on the small side. The camera can be operated with one hand, though you’ll need your other hand for rotating the control ring around the lens.

Philip Bloom tested both new RX cameras and writes:

The 250fps (240 in NTSC) is excellent when in “quality mode” although just 2 second buffer and a 20 second write to card time. The 500fps (480 in NTSC) is passable on certain things, avoid hard lines if you can as it will moire and alias like crazy! 1000 fps (960 in NTSC) is ugly as hell but I still managed to get away with it in my test film. In the real world I can’t see me using past 250 fps very often. The modes where you can record twice as long are much poorer quality so I avoid them.

Ken Rockwell also tested the new RX100m4 and writes:

The RX100 Mk IV is a fantastic point-and-shoot camera that quickly and easily makes great photos in any light, and its larger-than-most point-and-shoots sensor giving sharper, cleaner images than cell phones or most other pocket cameras.

Call the Cleaner! Sony RX100 IV 250fps, 500fps & 1000fps from Philip Bloom on Vimeo.

A7rII and RX camera preorder list:
In USA:
A7rII at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, SonyStore US, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
RX10m2 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
RX100m4 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
In Europe at:
A7rII at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
RX100m4 at DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
RX10m2 at DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
In Asia at:
A7rII at Digitalrev, CameraPro.
RX10m2 at Digitalrev, CameraPro.
RX100m4 at Digitalrev, CameraPro.

Zeiss photographer Christian Dandyk had the unqiue chance to test the new Batis lenses for seven months already! He now posted his full review of the lenses at alphafotograf.de.

I have recently been asked several times which of the two Batis lenses I would recommend more. I can’t really answer this question because their areas of application are too different, even if they both feature the same high level of optics. Regardless of where I use them, they have always delivered the impressive results I demand. Photographers tend to quickly try to find fault with something – my search failed and that is a good thing as we like to say in Berlin.

Christian can be seen on the official promo video here:

Preorder links:
Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 lens in US at Adorama, Bhphoto. In Eu at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2.0 lens at Adorama, Bhphoto. In EU at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
In Europe and Asia the Loxias can be found in Stock via [shoplink 36456 ebay]eBay sellers (Click here)[/shoplink] and Digitalrev (Click here).