[MW Forums]

Sony's newest DSLR is the A700, a 12.2-megapixel camera coming in October. more

[leicaman]

This camera is not going to help achieve the bragging rights they want - displacing Nikon as the #2 camera maker. Well, first of all, Nikon is not the #2 maker anyway. As of the past six months, they actually sell more DSLRs than Canon does. Though it's on the amateur end of the spectrum. Canon still dominates in the pro camera area, and that isn't likely to change soon. Though the D3 is going to give Nikon major in-roads to that area.
But the Sony will have to live up to its promises to make Konica/Minolta/Sony owners to feel they can stay with, or go with, Sony. It has some compelling features. Like some Zeiss lenses. But unlike the Nikon D300 and Canon 40D, it doesn't have an auto dust removal system like the Nikon and Canon competitors. At least the article doesn't mention it. And it seems aimed at amateurs with it's "mode" oriented settings. The D300 is a much more serious camera. It actually competes as much with the Canon 5D as the D40. Whereas the D40 is a bit less money than the Sony. (Unless that's not the street price.)
As far as using Memory Stick, that's a joke compared to UDMA CF cards. They are blazingly fast with the Lexar or SanDisk Firewire 800 card readers. So pros especially are looking for that capability in all new cameras.
Speaking of lenses, when lenses are listed, the maximum aperture should always be included. That's one of the most critical aspects of a lens's feature set, and often plays the biggest role in a photographer deciding to buy it or some other lens.

[fribhey]

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But unlike the Nikon D300 and Canon 40D, it doesn't have an auto dust removal system like the Nikon and Canon competitors. At least the article doesn't mention it.

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so because the article doesn't mention it then it doesn't have it? sony was the first to incorporate anti dust removal and did so in the a100. why would they remove that feature in their top model?
maybe you should have clicked on the link to read all the features:
Anti-Dust Technology
Changing lenses in a DSLR can allow dust to enter the camera -- so to help keep the CMOS imager cleaner for better pictures, the ? (alpha) DSLR-A700 utilizes both static-free anti-dust coating on the CCD filter and anti-dust vibration that automatically shakes the CCD to dislodge dust each time the camera is shut off.

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And it seems aimed at amateurs with it's "mode" oriented settings

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COMPLETELY AGREE.

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As far as using Memory Stick, that's a joke compared to UDMA CF cards.

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it's a joke compared to anything.

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Speaking of lenses, when lenses are listed, the maximum aperture should always be included. That's one of the most critical aspects of a lens's feature set, and often plays the biggest role in a photographer deciding to buy it or some other lens.

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i completely agree but hey, this is macworld not cameraworld.

[Peter Cohen]

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Speaking of lenses, when lenses are listed, the maximum aperture should always be included. That's one of the most critical aspects of a lens's feature set, and often plays the biggest role in a photographer deciding to buy it or some other lens.

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If this was a photography Web site or a review, I'd be inclined to agree with you. As it is, this is simply a tangentially Mac-related news item noting a new product announcement from Sony that's probably of some interest to a percentage of our readers, and isn't meant to be a comprehensive look at features or capabilities of either the camera or its lenses. I've provided a link to Sony's Web site for those readers looking for more information.

[DavidChin]

Amazingly, a couple of full-sized Sony A700 pictures are already making their rounds so soon after the official announcement. I've consolidated some related information at this Sony A700 page, which I hope will be helpful to those interested in Sony's latest DSLR cam.

[mrbach]

So I guess the fact that I prefer Pentax as a DSLR and switched from Nikon won't earn me any points in this thread?
The only thing worse than a Mac PC debate is a camera debate. 30 years ago when I used Nikon, it was a different world. Lenses were very individual to a maker.
Today, everyone uses the same CMP polishing system and probably sources the same basic lens. Give the level of technology today, there is very little, if any difference among glass quality. As for cameras, many of them now share sensor technology and other internal systems.
If you want a good DSLR, pick a name brand and choose one that gives the most features for the money. Flickr is solid proof that the quality of the picture has little to do with the camera these days.

[seho]

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sony was the first to incorporate anti dust removal and did so in the a100.

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Interesting how that feature being introduced in 2006 was before Olympus introduced its anti-dust/removal system in its E-1 DSLR.
In 2003.