NEX cameras announced ! (part2)

jedidentite wrote: I just pre-ordered the 16mm kit with the nex 5 on ritzcamera.com with bing cashback. Not too fond of how the 18-55 looks on the nex, but that 16mm pancake looks like a must have.

I'm thinking about the same. I debating between the 3 and the 5. Is the video mode worth $100 more? The mag case doesn't really matter to me.

I also will only consider the 16mm pancake. The whole point to all this is to have a compact "DSLR". The 18-55mm makes it so big that I might as well just carry my A300. I'll wait for a cheap ebay manual only adapter and use my 18-200mm with it.

Afripixel is a South African photographic group consisting mostly (but not exclusively) of Sony users. Today's meeting at the national war museum was of particular interest as Sony brought along the NEX cameras and accessories which were very well received. We were given an opportunity to play around with them and I can confirm that the E to A mount adaptor does AF with both SAM and SSM lenses. A bit slow compared to DSLR performance but very definitely fully functional. The tripod mount is also definitely included. Once attached to the 70-300mm SSM the NEX 5 felt surprisingly comfortable and was capable of great photographic results. I did not try out the video side at all. NEX is very important to Sony as it is seen as an area in which they will be the undisputed leaders and Canikon will be in the back seat. That said however they assure us that major efforts are still being put in to the Alpha mount.

The Sony representative also confirmed the A290 will be out shortly, when asked about video and the smaller mockup at PMA he responded that more than one version "could be possible" It seems (reading between the lines) that the 230/330/380 models are all due for replacement

The pros amongst us mentioned concerns with the future of the A mount at the top end with A700 gone and now A900 to. We were told that the A900 is NOT discontinued and that it's production line is still functional. Certain markets had taken a decision to run with the A850 only just like others had declined the A450. Whilst details are not available to those of us outside the Sony corporation we were told that Photokina will not disappoint and in fact we will probably get even more than we expect. One of the concerned pros was told to go ahead and invest in new top range glass "with confidence in the future"

Not even a hint on lens development could be winkled out except that it is "ongoing" for both E and A mount.

It's around the speed of those bridging compact cameras.

travfar wrote: jedidentite wrote: I just pre-ordered the 16mm kit with the nex 5 on ritzcamera.com with bing cashback. Not too fond of how the 18-55 looks on the nex, but that 16mm pancake looks like a must have. I'm thinking about the same. I debating between the 3 and the 5. Is the video mode worth $100 more? The mag case doesn't really matter to me. I also will only consider the 16mm pancake. The whole point to all this is to have a compact "DSLR". The 18-55mm makes it so big that I might as well just carry my A300. I'll wait for a cheap ebay manual only adapter and use my 18-200mm with it.

The 5 is metal. Your adapted 18-200 will not have the silent AF and Aperature for video.

kefkafloyd wrote: The amount of button presses to change ISO doesn't seem excessive to me, as plenty of Minolta cameras took six or seven presses to change ISO (Z series could not set the flash button to sensitivity).

I'm sorry to disagree with you but i don't see any reason why we should compare a new line of cameras with the minolta z one.
Going so "deep" in the past to find worst solutions isn't helpful IMHO.

While i do understand that these are low end products aimed at P&S users in the first place i believe it is better to compare their usability with other "EVIL" cameras on the market.

Just IMHO

travfar wrote: jedidentite wrote: I just pre-ordered the 16mm kit with the nex 5 on ritzcamera.com with bing cashback. Not too fond of how the 18-55 looks on the nex, but that 16mm pancake looks like a must have. I'm thinking about the same. I debating between the 3 and the 5. Is the video mode worth $100 more? The mag case doesn't really matter to me. I also will only consider the 16mm pancake. The whole point to all this is to have a compact "DSLR". The 18-55mm makes it so big that I might as well just carry my A300.

Really? It's still got to be noticeably smaller than that! But the "L" shape formed by the two pieces has got to make it difficult to stuff into a pocket. Either the lens or the camera by itself, no problem. Too bad they couldn't make the lens a bit retractable, like the Oly. It may not sound like much, but a few mm could make a difference. But I will reserve judgement until I can see it in person myself.

I'll wait for a cheap ebay manual only adapter and use my 18-200mm with it.

I'm not looking forward to MF with old lenses. A zoom-mode to assist with focusing might be a big help, though.

teddybear wrote: It's around the speed of those bridging compact cameras.

This is with SSM / SAM lenses or with the E mount lenses? How fast is focusing with the SSM / SAM lenses as compared to E mount?