Sony A68 US gets an over two month shipment delay! New product release roadmap delayed too because of the Kumamoto damage?

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A68

Yesterday many US stores suddenly changed the Sony A68 shipping date from May 19 to August 4 (See at Amazon and BHphoto). A source told me that this is due the Kumamoto sensor production stop. Because of that Sony had to postpone the A68 launch by two and a half months. He said the full camera release and shipment roadmap has been overhauled with some of the future new products that will be launched later than expected.

The past years Sony regularly announced new products in June. But at that stage I don’t know if the some or all of the announcements will be delayed….

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Good news: Sony wafer sensor production will resume on May 21

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Sony issued a new press release to inform that the Kumamoto facility damaged during the recent earthquake will resume the wafer sensor production on May 21. Here is the full press text:

Status of Sony Group Business Operations Affected by 2016 Kumamoto Earthquakes (Fourth Update)

The status of Sony Group business operations affected by the earthquake of April 14, 2016 and subsequent earthquakes in the Kumamoto region, as of today, is as follows:
  • Operations at Sony Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation’s Kumamoto Technology Center (located in Kikuchi Gun, Kumamoto Prefecture), which is the primary manufacturing site of image sensors for digital cameras and security cameras as well as micro-display devices, had been suspended due to the impact of the earthquakes. However, as of May 9, 2016, testing operations, which are one of the back-end processes carried out on the upper layer of the building, have resumed and other back-end processes, such as assembly, are also expected to restart sequentially beginning May 17, 2016.
  • Wafer processing operations located on the lower layer of the building are expected to restart sequentially beginning May 21, 2016.
  • Although there was a delay in the supply of components to Sony from certain third-party suppliers that also have manufacturing facilities in the Kumamoto region, inventory adjustments have been made and a timeframe for regaining supply levels is now in place, so no material impact is anticipated on Sony’s business operations.

Based on the above, the effect of the Kumamoto earthquakes on business operations within the Mobile Communications, Game & Network Services and Home Entertainment & Sound segments is not anticipated to have a material impact on Sony’s consolidated results.

On the other hand, regarding the Devices and Imaging Products & Solutions segments, the impact on Sony’s consolidated results due to the effect of the earthquakes, including from opportunity losses, as well as expenses for recovery and reinforcement work, continues to be evaluated.

Sony is scheduled to announce on May 24, 2016 its consolidated results forecast for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2017, as well as its forecasts for the Mobile Communications, Game & Network Services, Imaging Products & Solutions, Home Entertainment & Sound and Devices segments for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2017.

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Sony Tidbits…

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RX100 Pocket Camera: The Viewfinder with Marcin Lewandowski

Sony Alpha 7 Aktion: Bis zu 80 EUR Rabatt auf ausgewählte Objektive at Amazon.de
a6300 and MBIV Review: Video (SonyAlphaForum).
New CIPA report shows a surprising glimpse of hope of recovery of the system camera business! (Mirrorlessrumors).
Triple rolling review by Phillip Reeve:
Zeiss Batis 2.8/18 – http://phillipreeve.net/blog/review-zeiss-batis-18mm-2-8/
Voigtländer 4.5/15 – http://phillipreeve.net/blog/review-voigtlander-15mm-4-5-e-super-wide-heliar/
Sony FE 1.8/50 – http://phillipreeve.net/blog/review-sony-fe-1-850/
Laowa 105mm f/2 T3.2 Smooth Trans Focus Lens Review (ePhotozine).
All three Batis lenses in Stock in Germany at Photo-porst.

Drasko: “In my latest video review i´m comparing the Sony Smooth Reflections App vs. a ND1000x Filter. If you never used it, you will be surpised how good the results with this apps are! Get some Lemonade and Sandwiches and have a look! http://www.dsphotoblog.com/?p=1158 “

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New Sandisk and Silicon Power SD card deals

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SD

Today we got new SD card deals: Sandisk savings at BHphoto (Click here) and the Silicon Power on Gold Box at Amazon (Click here).

Reminder: BestBuy is selling a new large Stock of Open Box sony Zeiss stuff (see the full list here):
$230 off on the A7rII (Click here).
$195 off on the A7 with kit lens (Click here).
$180 off on the A7II (Click here).
$170 off on the 70-200mm FE (Click here).
$150 off on the 90mm FE (Click here).
$110 off on the Zeiss 24-70mm FE (Click here).
$100 off on the 24-240mm FE (Click here).
$90 off on the 55mm FE (Click here).
$70 off on the 35mm FE (Click here).
$50 off on the 28mm FE (Click here).

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SD card deals via 43rumors.com

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Sony RX10III in Stock at BH and FocusCamera. New reviews by Ken Rockwell and Cinema5D.

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Bildschirmfoto 2016-05-04 um 17.24.02

The Sony RX10III is in Stock at BHphoto (Click here) and FocusCamera (Click here). And first camera reviews and tests are being posted on various sites:

Ken Rockwell writes:

Get one; I’m astounded at how useful this is. It’s especially for people who need the complete lens range in one zoom; if a 24-70mm is enough, the RX100 MK IV is the same thing in a smaller package.
While I can see slight differences in color rendition between the RX10 III and my DSLRs, few other people will, and the RX10 Mk III’s technical qualities are better than 99% of the people who will use it.
Sony has come a long, long way in recent years, and this RX10 Mk III may now be the only camera you need for just about everything.

Cinema5D tested the video capability fo the camera and was not impressed by it:

The absence of previously available features like ND filter and a constant fast aperture leads me to think that this particular model is aimed more for the photographers among us rather then the videographers.

[EU] Wonder Woman – Shot on a Sony RX10 III from cinema5D on Vimeo.

Sony RX10 Mk III: First Impressions (Bokeh).
Sony RX10 III First Shots (Imaging Resource).
The ultimate hiking partner? Sony’s RX10 III goes the distance (Dpreview).
Sony RX10 III: primeras muestras (Quesabesde).
Sony RX10III 1st Shoot: More Blades, a Toothpick, and a Spoon Added to the Swiss Army Knife of Cameras (Dpatsblog).


Sony RX10M3 Unboxing and First Look

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The new Voigtlander 10mm f/5.6 E-mount lens is on preorder at BHphoto. Costs $899 and ships soon!

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10mmFE

The new Voigtlander Heliar 10mm f/5.6 native Sony Full Frame E-mount lens can be preordered now at BHphoto (Click here). The lens is priced at $899 which is exactly $100 more than the Voigtlander 15mm FE lens. Here is the full lens description:

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Offering an incredibly wide field of view while maintaining a rectilinear design, the Heliar-Hyper Wide 10mm f/5.6 Aspherical Lens from Voigtlander is dedicated to full-frame Sony E-mount cameras, and features an updated Heliar design to limit distortion and maintain consistent sharpness and illumination to suit mirrorless camera designs. One aspherical element is employed in the 13 elements, 10 groups optical design to control spherical aberrations and distortions throughout the aperture range. The lens also uses a manual focus design to permit fine-tuned control over focus placement, with a minimum focusing distance of 11.8″, and a Selective Aperture Control System allows you to de-click the manual aperture ring for smooth, silent exposure adjustment to suit filmmaking applications.

Incredibly wide 10mm focal length lens is designed for full-frame Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras and provides a 130° angle of view. It is also compatible with APS-C models where it will produce a 15mm equivalent focal length.
Rectilinear (non-fisheye) design maintains straight lines toward the periphery of the frame for a more realistic portrayal of architectural and other geometrically complex subjects.
Updated Heliar optical design helps to maintain consistent peripheral illumination, eliminate color fringing, and reduce distortion; making it ideal for use with mirrorless digital cameras.
One aspherical element is featured in the optical design to control spherical aberrations and improve clarity, sharpness, and resolution.
Manual focus design permits smooth, refined control along with a minimum focusing distance of 11.8″.
Selective Aperture Control System produces a stepless, de-clicked aperture ring, which provides silent and smooth exposure adjustment that is well-suited for video application. The aperture ring can also be configured to utilize traditional 1/3-stop clicks for more intuitive tactile control over exposure settings.
Ten-blade diaphragm contributes to a smooth quality of bokeh.
Built-in lens hood guards the front lens element and also helps to control lens flare and ghosting.
Contacts transfer all Exif data between the camera and lens in order to permit full use of camera functions, including focus magnification, image stabilization, and lens corrections.

Bildschirmfoto 2016-05-12 um 14.12.35

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found via Brian Smith.

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