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We just got that screenshot that describes a new feature of the upcoming A35 (to be announced on June 3). The text is pretty clear and I don’t have to add naything to that :)

I expected a small loss due the recent earthquake disaster but I didn’t expect the loss to be that big! You can download the full report as pdf (Click here). The company lost $3.2 billion in the 12 months! That’s the worst lost in 16 years. There are many reasons for that debacle. Electronista analyzed the results: “Most of the loss came from a $4.4 billion equivalent setting aside of tax assets to address worries about future results. The earthquake in the Tohoku area of Japan will also have cut into its performance through repairs and lost production. Slow TV sales affecting the whole industry, as well as a struggle to keep sales going for the PS3, PSP, and Walkman players, all of which are suffering due to Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Nintendo DSi systems, and both Apple’s iPhones and iPods.”

It’s unclear yet if that result will affect the imaging division (I don’t think so). The good news is that Sony also predicted a big plus for the next fiscal year (+$2.4 billion). So no need to be to much worried yet! I hope the whole Japanese economy canreboot as soon as possible!

Via Electornista

In his latest article Thom Hogan (Click here) talks about the aggressive and well planed Sony strategy compared to the actual conservative Nikon and Canon approach. It’s worth to read!

Here is an excerpt of the text:

“Sony: most interesting strategies (yes plural) of the bunch. On the Alpha side went for very different technologies (e.g. pellicle mirror), which took awhile to get settled, but has clear benefits long-term. Also has been shoring up and improving dealer network here in the US, giving them a potentially significant advantage over the other players, above. Has been aggressive on price with the Alphas (some of which is happening with the dealer), and appears to be about to get more aggressive. Meanwhile, they’ve made NEX into a potentially serious mount (it currently extends from a low-end mirrorless model to a highly professional video camera). Too bad they don’t have the lenses to back it up yet. Status: making progress on all fronts, and Canon and Nikon need to be especially wary of this competitor. Forecast: one weakness is still not having all the right lenses. This blunted sales of both the full frame Alphas as well as NEX models. Even the Alpha is missing a few key lenses if it wants to tackle the high-end Canons and Nikons well. Rumors show progress on this front, but it needs to happen faster. Other weakness is in marketing. The dual strategy makes a strong cohesive “why Sony cameras matter” message very necessary.

Canon and Nikon have continued to pursue their old strategies: entry to pro DSLR lineups, iterated regularly, moved upscale in features and performance with each generation. Status: Quo. Forecast: declining returns from this strategy. A 24mp A77 at US$999 that performs well threatens the more expensive D7000 and D400 on Nikon’s side, the same-priced 60D and more expensive 7D on the Canon end.”

Read the full text at bythom.com. What do you think about his anlysis? I do agree that Sony needs to extend their lens offering. The problem I see with the NEX roadmap is that Sony doesn’t plan to make any new pancakes. I hope they will change that. The Alpha mount will see 4-5 new Zeiss lenses within 2011 and a couple of new Sony lenses. This should make us go a huge step closer to Canon and Nikon!

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And here is the next set of images! Now it’s getting boring with all those leaks :)

The image on top compares the NEX-C3 with the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-W570 and the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10. And below you can see the NEX-C3 in all his colors (Black, Silver and our preferred color Pink).

Reminder: The Sony NEX-C3 + 30mm macro + new nex3/5 firmware + A35 will be announced on June the 3rd! Take note of that date and follow us live on SonyAlphaRumors. We will keep you updated with all last minute news, first previews and image samples.

Wow my job as rumor writer is becoming easier and easier. Inside the dpreview forum you can find plenty of new leaks! And as we all have already seen the many pictures of the NEX-C3 during the last two weeks the only news here is that Sony also leaked the girl holding the camera :)

And there are also the very first screenshots of the menu system:

The menu system confirms the rumor about the new NEX-C3 having the new art filers. They will also come for the NEX-3/5 via firmware update on June 3!

Via Photorumors

Quite a couple of people asked me where they can get the new Samyang NEX lens. I wanted to remind you that you can find them on eBay only for now, and that the new 8mm fisheye lens for NEX has been optimized for the NEX-VG10 camcorder! There should be a version for the “normal” NEX cameras coming later.
And if you have some doubts about the quality don’t worry! Read some tests of other Samyang lenses on Photozone (Click here). You will see those are very good quality lenses!

It’s worth to mention that Samyang made a total of four very good manual lenses for Alpha mount:
– The 8mm f/3.5 fisheye (Click here to see current auctions on eBay).
– The 14mm f/2.8 (Click here to see current auctions on eBay).
– The very good and very cheap 85mm f/1.4 (Click here to see current auctions on eBay).
– The 800mm f/8 (Click here to see current auctions on eBay).

Sonystyle is not exactly the most reliable source to understand if a product has been discontinued or not. Fact is that the Sony A850 is “no longer available” in their store. But as we have seen in the past that could be a temporary status. My trusted sources do still confirm that Sony will put the A850 out of production and lower the price of the A900. The next Sony Full Frame cameras will be announced in 2012.

Check the camera price and availability status:
Sony A850 at Amazon, B&H, Adorama, eBay.
Sony A900 at Amazon, B&H, Adorama, eBay.

Thanks Ishootalpha