Sony Grew Some Balls! The NEX-7 announced and it looks AMAZING! My thoughts…

117 Comments

1. Awesome camera, d7000 vs this? hmmmm

2. How about the noise level!?one might think that it should be quite high,i hope that its not,but there are just so many pixels that you can jam into a APS-C sensor.im considering buying a Nex5n and to be honest the resolution difference wouldn’t really matter to me,on the other hand i would really like the view finder and the new controls as im planing to shoot with old manual focus super takumar lens,but high noise level would definitely be a deal breaker for me

3. How come the Nex-7 goes for $1.200.– in the US but also has an advice price of €1.200.– in Europe. At the present rate that is a difference of almost $400,–. Enough to buy an airplane ticket. Buy the camera in the US, take some pictures and be on my merry way home.

4. For me, it is either FF (D700 at the moment), or something really significantly smaller ( m4/3). I am confortable with the idea that the m4/3 sensor will never really compete with the APS-C, knowing that great lenses are available for m4/3 and many more are coming. Furthermore the size of the newly announced Panasonic X series lenses, and the quality of the Olympus offering make me realize that I will really be in business when I change my GF1 for the coming Pen-Pro or the GF7.

   The NEX7 with huge lenses simply does not excite me so much even if I am sure it will be a great camera (can’t own them all).

5. Maybe it would be interesting to have a comparison between a M8 and the Nex-7, using similar lense on both (summicron 50) ?

6. printed specs look impressive, that’s right, but let’s wait what real life shots may tell (specially with M wide angles).

   At the moment the Ricoh GXR with the dedicated M module and taylor made sensor might be better in terms of controlling the properties of different lenses (f.e. 15mm Color Scopar or 21mm Super Angulon).

   It could be that for shooting 75% M lenses + 25% AF the Ricoh might be better and in the other way round the NEX 7.

   For me the launches now from Fuji, Oly and Sony is too fast…… 😉

   Ahhh, got a sweet 24mm f2.8 Nikkor AIS today……..

7. Hi Steve
   I am as keen to see what the NEX 7 does as you are. I hope Zeiss designed the lens around the sensor to give decent depth of field control. Waiting for panasonic to come out with a good general purpose leica lens now for its G series cameras.

   The jackpot would be a full frame NEX or panasonic G series. I spoke recently to the Nikon Rep in Australia. They asked me what I would love to see. I said a Nikon S3 rangefinder full frame digital with the same sensor as the D3s. I hope something like that is released.

   I recently went to Hong Kong. I used a Leica Minilux 40mm f 2.4 because it was the smallest camera I had with the best lens on offer. I also used an Xpan as well. I don’t own an M9 because I feel compelled to disagree with any view that an M9 will produce colours that match transparency film. I have tested a Leica S2 against transparencies and Fuji Sensia is still better than a Leica S2 at producing the blue colour of the sea and the sky. Hence, the reason for the Minilux and the Xpan.

   I noticed something that made me sad. If you think M9p’s are hard to get in the US (and in Australia where I live), they grow on trees in Hong Kong. Every shop has one at a price that is a little less than B&H’s. I was tempted to get one. I love HK. I don’t like how the shops deal with the shopping public and thought I would rather wait for one at home before risking a substantial amount of money on the chance I get a dud M9.

   Keep up the good work.
   Noel

   • Hi Noel. Since you`re on good terms with Nikon Rep, could you add to your wish list a digital
     Nikonos V. Preferably same size. Digital S3 is wonderfull idea but with M-mount please or at least with possibility to use an M adapter. (kind of S-M Orion adapter.)

8. Hej Steve. Exiting news about NEX-7. I have two requests I`d love to suggest Sony to make NEX-7 more usefull. Maybe they are already met, that would be sweet. The first one: when you remove the lens let the shutter cover the sensor automatically, here I think about windborn droplets and dust. Or make it at least an option. Second one: the think that would set the EVF apart from optical one would be ability to see the scene in b/w with or without b/w filters. It seems Sony doesn`t have a place where one could send ideas or wishes that`s why I use your site hoping they read it too.

   • Yes, all that and may pixel binning for noisefree lower resolution fotos.

9. Hello Steve,

   I’m also very happy to see such a camera. On http://www.photographyblog.com/news/sony_e-mount_lenses_for_2012/ you can see a lens roadmap with interesting zooms. But I also hope to see some further Zeiss/G lenses.

   B.r.

   Oriwo

10. As I read about tHe details of the NEX-7, I am all the more glad I did not buy a Fuji X100. Of course, I may buy an X100, anyway, or may buy neither camera, but thus far, the NEX-7 looks more interesting, especially with the new Zeiss lens.

11. My f1.0 Noctilux and 35mm f1.2 Nokton are waiting for this baby! No M9 for me. I have 2 M8 cameras and all I want are much better high ISO than the M8 or M9 can offer and a new way to focus a Noctilux.

    At a little over $1000 USD I cannot resist this. Also, when a full frame comes out, as I know it will eventually will, updating to that after spending only $1,000 is much less financially painful than upgrading from an m9 to a future M10!!!!

    I would much rather spend my money on great lenses than expensive camera bodies. Thank God we now have more choice in mirror-less cameras. More money in my pocket and more cash for the glass!!!!

    • I agree about putting money into lenses vs bodies in general. The big unknown for me is how well the EVF will work for me. Being able to see outside the frame lines on a rangefinder is one of the main benefits in my mind. I feel like I have enough info to make a decision on buying a Nex 7 in order to give it a proper evaluation of at least a few weeks but until I’ve shot with it there is no way to know what the experience will be like ! How’s that for obvious 🙂

      • I occasionally use a Leica SBOOI 50mm OVF on my NEX-5 with zone focusing when I feel like using an OVF, and it is bright and fun.

12. I have seen many concerns about 24MP and that the 100% crops looks mushy with NR.

    The problem with this argument is that a 100% crop on a 24MP camera is equivelent to a 200% crop on a 12MP camera. The only way to fairly compare is to do a 50% crop of the 24MP compared to a 100% crop of the 12MP. The nice thing about the extra MP is better tonal variations/transitions, but personally, I will turn the MP down and use around 10 MP – so the extra MP don’t really bother me that much.

    That being said, the proof will be in the prints. Not the 100% crops

13. It is great, and a bit funny, to see how Steve got soo excited about the sony and that lens. And I agree that it’s a nice looking camera. But the lenses are too large (and too few), it has been said here before by many.
    The most fantastic thing about the cam is certainly the EVF and it’s huge resolution. I think the mirror and optical VF will be gone within a few years, and canon and nikon have to change tac or loose the battle.
    When you say an optical VF is better, I say that with optical you see no right dof, and with an EVF you can see the photo you are going to get digital. And cams are digital these days.

14. I may add this camera to my setup mainly to cover video and macro. It should also shine for landscape photography with all that resolution.

15. i dont think the other manufacturers can beat this one.
    my money went down today….now the wait

16. The NEX7 looks to be great and the addition of the VF is a wise move by Sony, will 24mp be too much? I guess we will have to wait and see

17. I love the idea of a camera that can mount M lenses (with adaptor) but that can also be used for macro, telephoto, high frame rate shooting and HD movies ! I’m seriously considering dumping my Nikon D90 and lenses if the Nex 7 lives up to the hype. I think it would make a great companion to my M8 !

    • The NEX5 gave you enough reasons to dump it. Keep a lense or two if you have anything cool in there… Then buy the nikon to E adaptor, you can choose with or without aperture control (for the G I think you call them). The NEX7 can only be better

      • I thought long and hard about the NEX5 Francis, just couldn’t pull the trigger without a viewfinder ! Nothing special in my Nikon lens collection, I do love my 18-200 for photographing the kids sports, etc but hear the NEX 18-200 if pretty good. I love my M8 and shoot 80% of the time with it but it looks like the NEX 7 would fill in most of the limitations of shooting with a rangefinder. The more I think about it I think the two would make a great combination. Both could fit in a small bag along with a few M lenses and a couple of NEX lenses for macro and telephoto. Coming from 10 and 12 MP cameras I also love the idea of 24 MP to play with !

        • Your comment fits my experience pretty well. The NEX 5 was just not there in terms of handling (mostly the lack of viewfinder) and the NEX 7 should be a huge improvement. I don’t really know yet, but this may prove enough camera for me not to update my DSLR setup and possibly even sell it. The rangefinders and my MF Pentax will stay, no doubt.

          • Thanks for sharing your experience, now we just need to get the camera in hand to see how it lives up to the hype !

18. I am SO waiting for the 24/1.8 Zeiss. I think it will complement my Fuji X100 very very well. Unfortunately it doesn’t have the OSS like the 50/1.8 OSS does.

    But all in all, I am not all hyped up about the NEX 7, but the lenses! I’d definitely be getting the 24 Zeiss and the 50 OSS once it’s released. Already called my local dealer for it and asked him to order both for me.

    Sony did grow some balls, finally.

    Now the long awaited replacement for my A900 is yet to come though.

19. Interesting! I will not sell-off anything to get a NEX-7, but it may well figure into long-range plans, particularly if my wife likes it.

20. Honestly, it seems pretty bad that they release a view finder accessory that only works with the new nex-5n, it should’ve at least have worked with the nex-C3, I can understand nex-c3 owners being a bit pissed at sony

21. Sorry Steve, the M9 Titan is the best looking Leica Digital ever made!

    Cu Alexander

22. Finally an NEX i will buy due to size and pretty darn good specs for use with manual Minolta, Konica and Leica lenses i already own… Should be fun! ( Pre-ordered Body Only on Amazon via Steve’s site )

    Cheers Steve!

23. I know id don;t like it at all, the good news is all the other brands will come with something better very soon, i still love my lumix Gf2 and my Nikon D700.

    i will go for a Fuji X100, all this cameras are good enought, the best camera is the one that push you out to take pictures !!

    Greg

24. I pre-ordered both. I’m very excited about this combo.

25. For 2,200 bucks they couldn’t include some kind of viewfinder?

    I’ll bet they’ll try to sell you an add-on one for about $350.

    Silly.

    • Oops. I take it all back. I read the story again and don’t know how I missed that it DOES have one.

      My bad.

      My stupid pills are obviously working.

26. @hendrik
    I dont recall saying any thing Bad about Zeiss lenses,and I have owned a number of them over the years,as well as Leica,I simply said having the Zeiss name dosent make it a great lens,thats not
    the issue,its getting what you paid for.If you are sastisfied with your lens thats all that matters,as for
    myself if I pay a Zeiss price I dont expect a cosina lens.

    • Well, you’re not paying “Zeiss price” for a Cosina lens for only $1K. The 2 Zeiss ZM lenses that are made in Germany are 3-4x the price of the rest of the Cosina-made ZM lenses.

27. Nice looking body, probably with a great sensor. If Sony only wanted to learn from Pentax how to design and make excellent pancake lenses.

    • I agree with you definitely on the Pentax’s pancake lenses. They are absolutely awesome in design. I wish someone adapted their technique on how to make lenses so small yet so fast.

    • They just made a camera you can slap your Pentax Pancake on…tadaH

      • Sure, except that the adaptors are larger than the lenses themselves. 🙂

28. The image samples DPReview has published from the preview Sony A77 camera they received are disappointing, and the NEX-7 has the same sensor. Though those preview images are jpgs, the noise, and noise reduction applied, are way obvious. Still, things can change, hopefully.

    • Omer,

      I was just looking at those samples and if that is the same sensor (assuming that it is) they are certainly a bit disappointing.

      Especially the street shot of the honda insight, I don’t know what’s going on in that shot @100%, unless it’s motion blur.

      And the shot in the woods with wooden bridge and canoe, the leaves on the trees have a disturbing amount of CA.

      [img]http://i.imgur.com/DMiP6.jpg[/img]

      • In real life pictures (not pixel peeping), I think it’s quite negligible. IMHO.

    • Two things to keep in mind.

      1) Sony jpegs have long been known to be smudgy when pixel peeping. Raw will be an entirely different thing.

      2) Because the A77 has a translucent mirror in the way that re-directs light, the NEX-7 will receive about twice as much light as the A77.

      • Not to familiar with Sony at all so thanks for the info. I really don’t enjoy being a pixel peeper, but I enjoy getting my moneys worth.

      • Good to hear. Thanks.

    • DP review are champions at taking crappy shots…I dunno why, I never managed to do the same. They take crappy picts with any camera they tried.

29. I’m not so sure about this one.

    The moment NEX7 was decided to be a pro model, the size/weight of any body+lens combo is going to push towards that of lighter DSLRs’. So not much of an incentive for people who own DSLR systems to switch. (not saying nobody under this circumstance will ever switch, just not a very big factor)

    Then you have the rangefinder shooters. Last time I checked, the holy grail of that is still a Leica. Now you may want to adapt your many rangefinder lenses to the NEX7 body but that’s mostly because (a) you already own a Leica M8/M9/M9P and could use a second body or (b) you can’t afford a Leica but would like a something-in-between model for now. But I mean, admit, if you are shooting rangefinder, you WANT a Leica. Simple as that. So why waste money now to buy something that will eventually become a second body in your pursuit of a Leica. Now don’t say that it’s because you can start shooting sooner, because nobody has just a bunch of rangefinder lenses lying around without a usable body to attach them to.

    • I agree. I recently bought a sony Nex-3 for a camera that would a) fit in my pocket and b) use rangefinder lens (I don’t have a rangefinder but am hoping to get one by the end of the year, either a M6 or a M8).

      While I’m happy with how small the camera is and the results with zeiss 50mm f/1.5, I’m not happy at how soft the 16mm lens is. Using it and bumping the iso up to 1000 (i think it’s 1000, i’m going for memory here) gives really really soft pictures, whereas the zeiss 50mm f/1.5 gives very nice pictures at this iso.

      So the 16mm is going to be non-usable on the NEX-7, too many pictures, to crappy lens. That leaves you with the new huge auto focus lens. If I can’t put it in my pocket then I might as well by using my D90 which i have a good set of lens.

      And yeah the view finder is cool, but as someone who started shooting with digital and then moved to film, its not a deal breaker.

      • Bah I meant too many pixels….I’ve got a cold, can’t think straight…sorry.

    • Scewed… My rebel with a Canon EF L 24mm 1.4 (if I am not mistaken) weighted a ton and was huge. Of course it will be the size of a small DSL with an f3.5 or f4 lense but that is not what you get. My Biogon (f2.8) 21mm is Canon L grade not the cheapy one and L glass is very big and heavy. You will carry the NEX7 with a wide Voightlander or Zeiss MF plus that 24 AF and maybe a 75 or 90mm (old leica) for less than the weight of a Canon 24mm L 1.4 and the 40-70 L 2.8 alone.

      Why a NEX over an RF? Leica RFs have issues with WB, color rendering, back/front focussing (even Steve needed a second body during one of his trip because one of them was out of calibration… who can carry $15000 worth of cameras around their neck). I used to own an M8.2 that took fabulous pictures (once tweeked in LR) but I changed it for a rather cheap NEX5 because it did the job without sacrificing the thrill of shooting an MF Prime)

30. “Whats in a name”? obviously a great deal,everyone is getting so excited over the Carl Zeiss lens
    these are not genuine German Zeiss lenses but japanese Cosina made lenses which even in their
    recent 35mm incarnation have not tested that well against their Canon and Nikon counterparts.Go
    to SLRgear and review the test.And perhaps it will indeed be a wonderful lens,I just wouldnt be to
    excited just yet.Remember all the hoopla over the Fuji x100?now you dont hear a word about it.Lets all spend more time shooting what we have,being excited about Photography,not the latest camera,
    trust me you will save thousands and become better at your craft.

    • before saying bad things about cosina for manufacturing zeiss, have you tried the zeiss 35mm f/2 for ZF and ZM mount? if not, you should 🙂

      • I was just about to mention how brilliant the ZM glass performs.

      • I love the look of the images I get from my ZM 35mm f2, that lens lives on my M8.

        If I get a Nex 7, I’d consider the E mount 24mm Zeiss a personal luxury as I think I’d be more likely to get a 21 or 25mm ZM lens that I could use on both my Leica and the Nex. If I fall in love with the Nex then I can see springing for the E mount Zeiss. ( autofocus would be nice, but it’s not a necessity )

        • Agreed. The ZM 50/2 Planar is pretty amazing and kicks the shit out of just about every other 50 that’s not a Noctilux or Summilux IMO… and for $700 at that.

    • Danny, you should check out the ZA 24mm F2 Distagon T*, which according to Photozone… “has reached the highest level of perfection”. The new E mount 24mm is a very different design (Sonnar), so it will be interesting to see how the reviews compare these two lenses.

31. Steve, your “preview WITH video” link is Engadget’s, not Gizmodo’s. =)

32. Hmm.. super tempting, but taking into account it’s APS-C what would the total crop factor be w/an M lens?

33. At last, an EVF!
    Am excited but it’s over my budget though.. maybe settle for the body first.

34. Stopped using my NEX-3 the day I got myself a Leica M8, so the logic would be to keep saving for the M10 rather than spending money on this NEX-7.

    I agree this is a great looking mirrorless camera, and I would have been (much) happier (amd poorer) with a NEX-7 than a -3. But then, I might not have switched to the real thing then 😉

    • You are right but Leica has a great way to keep the value of its cameras…keep cranking the price up… The M10 should come around $8000 (maybe $9000) so you will feel like you stole the 2 year old M9 you just paid $6000 which has undergone many servicings. The leica EVIL might be it though and it should be out in 2012 for photokina, at that time the EVIL will be around $4000, when the NEX7 will be available as a deal with the Zeiss lense for just below $2000. I guess my NEX 5 with the clearviewer will see a few more trips. The peaking feature is making life much easier, I just need to see how it performs in real-life now.

35. Seems tere are two camps of enthusiast as the nex already had. Adapt mf glass camp and want af in a small camp glass.

    The former must be delighted, the latter unswayed.

    I agree with frosting, one lens that af and ITs big. We will see but you acould get an x100 and dslr for the money. If you want af.

36. Lens TOO TOO TOO TOO TOO TOO TOO big for such a tiny camera! where are the advantages?! BAH.

37. I am not excited. Where are the damn dials? Why only one? The Ricoh GXR has everything accessible with one hand. They are better off having dials instead of knobs!

    • It has three (3) dials!

38. The preview and video that you link to is from ENGADGET not GIZMODO….
    + really want to see X100 vs. the Ziess.. can’t wait

39. i heard tbis could be based on 12mp sensor and process tbem 2 times and use something lime HDR tech to boost MP to 24MP… please cofrect me if i am wrong

40. Dangerous… I think my wallet is giving me an EVIL… Poor pun but so excited. Really impressed with Sony. My a55 goes everywhere with me despite a very neglicted x100, was waiting on a77 but with the introduction of focus peak and the evf I’m in.

    • I’ve always wanted one of the D-SLR Sony cameras, and heard great things about the A55. but because I have a Nikon D90, I didn’t jump and buy one.

41. so it’s nex-7 vs fuji x100 for me. i guess i’ll get fuji, sony with zeiss is way too expensive and also bigger. i don’t need video, need just 35mm equivalent lens and camera to take photos. love direct controls on fuji.

    does anybody know if you can map those two ‘knobs’ to exposure compensation and exposure time settings? this is why i like x100 – direct access to everything i need, aperture, exposure time and exposure compensation and ISO via button. if i could use nex-7 like this i might change my mind

    • Why do you say “versus” hexx?
      Apart the X100 having “also” an optic viewfinder, and some other important differences not hardware related, I think these camera can complement each other and are not real contenders. But this will depend on users preferences (including consumption ones) and/or needs, but if you have a X100 why shall you sell it to buy a 35mm lens for the NEX-7?
      Do you enlarge over 13×19″ that much to consider the megapixels as important as that?

      • why do I say ‘versus’? I have a DSLR and found out that I don’t use it often due to the size of it. so i was looking for a small replacement with the same/similar IQ and since both fuji and nex offer aps-c sensor i was thinking which one to get. fuji has been on the market for some time and was ready to buy it until i’ve seen rumours about nex-7. i love direct access to aperture/exposure/exposure time settings on fuji and wasn’t sure how sony would use those two ‘knobs’ on top and was hoping it will have same functionality like fuji. but it doesn’t so i’ll go for fuji because it will do all i need. I do currently have telephoto zoom lens which I used twice. most of my photos are taken with 35mm f/1.8 (52mm equivalent) and could do with a bit wider angle of view – where fuji’s 23mm lens comes. so it’s fuji for me.

        wanted to wait for sony or other manufacturer’s offerings but there’s nothing quite like that little fuji.

42. So $1200 for the X100 or $2100 for the NEX-7 w/ Zeiss (aka the one decent NEX lens for the forseeable future).

    -signed guy who wants to preorder this thing, but cannot afford, so will instead be a hater

    • I’ll join in the hate comment
      the NEX-7 hype is pure nonsense.

      Why would i pay 1000$ over X100, for a clearly much bigger combo?
      What does it help me if the NEX-7 has interchangable lens if there is only one lens that can utilize its 24mpx sensor? (the other nex lens which comes close is the 18-55mm kit, for that i’ll buy a 1399$ camera?)

      Would i buy NEX-7 for 1200$ to use the SLRmagic 28/2,8? No!
      Would i buy NEX-7 for 1200$ and Voigtlander 35/1,4 600$ and would have a mediocre quality manual focus only, 0.7 minimum focus distance 1800$ combo?
      No Thanx!!

      • Yup. Combo size/weight pushes this into small DSLR range. I could grab the a35 with faster 50mm and 85mm lenses, for about the same price, and the total size would be similar.

        • One sentence destroys your argument: Adapting Rangefinder lenses and it’s super fast Manual focus capabilities light years beyond any other modern camera makes it worth more than any SLR to many.

          • I can see your point for those interested in a better (?), cheaper Leica and prefer manual focus.

          • I agree with Dana.

        • I’m happy that your satisfied,
          but rangefinder lens on NEX have poor border quality, they have lousy minimum focus distance, they are only manual focus and cost a small fortune,
          the only benefit is they are small,

          overall paying 1200 to use lens that perform medicare quality, no thanx

    • Why pay more? Because I can change lenses….

      • what lenses? =D

        • good one but there is an easy answer. All Leica M, All Zeiss ZM, All contax G2, All Nikon, Canon, Pentax, with or without aperture rings (those adaptor makers really had fun with the NEX), so pretty much any lense from the 50’s.

          As far as I am concerned i love to use it with manual lenses although getting a 24mm AF is very attractive.

    • Leica M lenses. Focus peaking. If you don’t mind the crop factor, RF heaven.

      BTW – with focus peaking, I don’t have to focus recompose, it is just as easy to focus on something in the far corner as the center of the screen. I LOVE focus peaking on my NEX-5 and thing it will be even better on the OLED NEX-7

43. And what about your X100, Steve ? Are you still using it ? Will you abandon it for the nex 7 ??

44. Why not show the Sony dealership network some love and get it from a store?

    • Not at their prices! You’ll pay a good £100 more In a Sony centre over the prices In a camera shop. The only way you’ll get a good del is to see if they’ll prices match.

      • I presume that Steve would get his here in the US, where he lives. Sony prices are all the same – online and in the store.

45. Watch out Leica! Read the signs ! You will have to correct your prices soon…

    The next avatar of EVIL mirrorless cameras will have a full frame sensor, 30 Mp, articulated 3 inch OLED screen,built in flash, hotshoe, 7 fps,GPS , 1080p video…..

46. Sweet, happy it is not available for pre-order in Canada yet. Otherwise I would have pulled the trigger. This is everything I ever asked for

    • Francis dear, dont do it, I mean pulling the trigger. We want you around to be asking all you`ve been asking for.

      • Lol…no in fact now I want more… a moving sensor for the AF so i could choose wether I manually focus or AF my manual lenses… Why sticking to the focus on the lense… for most of us that plane can moved since we are not using film anymore…
        Forever unsatisfied for your reading pleasure,
        Francis

47. This is awesome! I have been considering ordering a Leica M9-P, but this may change everyting. If quality is good on high ISO, manual controls works as good as they look. This will be my next camera. Just add some kick ass glass and I think we got a Leica killer.

    • Same here. I was going to get an M9-P or M9, but that will be a long time down the road now.

    • I have seen many “Leica killers” come and go. What steyed, was Leica 🙂 Dream on.

      • Leica killer might be a litle to hard, but this looks like a nice camera. And if it delivers it will be my Leica Killer. Until an M9.2/M10 will be released. There will always be that crop factor on small sensor cameras that will bug me. But if everyting else is awesome, I can live with that. I can now get one Leica lense, Voigtlander lens, some extra batteries etc and Sony NEX-7 body for the price of just a M9 body.

48. Here is another link with a video (in English) that has the NEX-7, other cameras and new lenses.

    http://blog.sony.com/cameravideos

    Hope this helps:-)

49. This would be a true successor of my beloved [but aged] R1. If only I did not buy the D700 last month! Wich I love, btw.

    Adventurous greetings,
    Coen

50. Hi Steve,

    Agree with you. I was on the Sony launch and the Zeiss lens is not as big, it’s almost the same size as the 18-55 lens.

    I was asked by a Japanese (Sony Guy) what I think of the 2 dials on the top and it makes perfect sense to put it in there as you don’t have to release your index finger from the shutter just to make adjustments like on the NEX-5.

51. I read somewhere the mention of a Sony NEX-5N. It was said to be “identical” to the NEX-7 but with 16 mpx. The price mentioned was quite a bit less and indicated as a blow to the competition.

    Point being, there may be more fun over a wider price range:-)

    • Maybe I’m wrong but I don’t believe the NEX-5N has a standard hot shoe but the NEX-7 does.

52. Sorry, I’m not convinced about this whole line of cameras. Build the smallest possible camera for a given sensor size and then have to stick a whopping big lens on it kind of defeats the purpose of having a small camera body, and to me at least, looks lopsided. I’ll stick to my GF1/M9/5D2 for now.

    • Yeah, I agree. The interface and EVF look awesome, but when I buy a small camera, I want it to be small, duh. Having a tiny body with big DSLR-sized lenses is not really what I’m looking for.

      Now if this was a M4/3 sensor, we’d be in business!

    • NEX5 + 16mm I can have it everywhere and if I need more I can … whereas when you have a big camera body … you’re stuck with it no matter the lens ! I wasn’t ready to buy any DSLR before, sony did change everything in this field in my opinion !

    • You just envious Calvin boy. Now you have realized that you`ll have to throw away Alpas,Hassies, Leicas, Nikos, Cannos, films, pixels, papers, pencils and brushes because the NEW NEX SEVEN SINS are here and it will kick ass of all adore your gear boys. Let`s the hell roll. I`m wild as never.

    • I pre-ordered it and the Zeiss, and will be keeping the NEX 5 as well. Perfect! I can carry both. Even with the “whopping” lens on it, it will still be less weight and smaller than my Nikon D90, (for when I don’t want to carry that around.) I’m used to the Sony interface, and love it. I’m used to the big lens on the front and hold the camera there. the only thing I would suggest is a neck strap as opposed to a wrist strap as it isn’t a compact like other compacts. It’s just easier to carry with the neck strap.

53. I bow before this camera. the only way this could possibly be better is if it was full frame. Also all you Olympus fans would whine about interface, handling; blow it out your @$$.

    The Nex C3/3/5 is already customizable to one button mapping on all important functions and this have additional purposely blank to customize knobs. Only thing the Nex 3/5/c3 had going against them for ergonomics is the button prohibitive size. Not a case here.

    With the high res EVF and the superb peaking function; this camera could the first plausible entry to the ultimate successors of the Rangefinders and SLR MF template. Even if Zeiss and others pump out great AF lenses; this camera drive RF glass prices through the roof.

54. as ken rockwell says, the limit of 35mm film is 25 megapixells. This camera got 24 mp (without grain), so film is loosing for a very first time. (despite the a900/a850 and d3x). And is aps-c sensor! That’s crazy. The biggest question is Where/when are lenses witch provide the optical quality as good as the sensor deserves. MAYBYE the 24 mm zeiss, but any other of nex lenses is – in my opinion – not enought good, to live’on.

    • If film’s limit is 25, do you mean 35mm film format never got lenses good enough to show its capabilities?

55. this looks amazing. that small sleek body + a fast 24 = :O

56. You missed out a few choices in your question answers:
    No, can’t afford it but would like it!
    No, just bought the NEX-C3

    Cheers,

    • I agree,

      – I just become a new owner of NEX and
      – I can not afford to sell as cheep as they are on sell.

      I am sad at this point of news, because I know now I just lost a bunch of $$ 🙁

57. I can’t tell you how hyper I am about this camera! It looks like FINALLY they listened to what we crazy camera geeks want 🙂

    • Yep, it looks like they nailed it. Can’t wait to see what it can do with the 24…

      • Steve, your poll doesn’t have the option of buying the 24 zeiss only. 😀

        I already have a Nex c3, so I don’t think I’ll be upgrading anytime soon. Perhaps going for Nex 8 instead.

    • +1 Yippeee!

      • Really? DSLR replacement with limited lens offerings, giant size pocket camera, would-like-to-be digital RF replacement? Which role is it supposed to take in ones arsenal? The potential and design of the camera look great, on paper at least. If it was mft, maybe, considering the high end compact af glass available for this format, including the Oly 12mm, Summilux 25 and Oly 45mm.

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