I fully agree with your story. I wanted to buy a A100 a few months ago but decided to wait a while since I found the price difference with the 400D to much. In the mean time the price dropped quite a bit but also the very high lens prices and their total unavailability caught my attention. (Good) changes are that I will be holding a Canon within 2 weeks and not the Sony. This then will be due to the way they are now presenting their alpha system.
That is nicely put
and I fully agree with you. 
Not the same. The PS3 is to the A100 as the games are to the lenses and accessories. Get them info the PS3, even at a loss, and make it up selling the games.
At this level (A100/D70s/D50/400D), people are not as focused on accessory prices. The compare bodys or kits, make a decision, and start adding just before or at the cash register.
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Maybe so but lenses, flashes, etc are much more expensive than a typical video game. Honest sales people (are there any
will start to let people know the true cost of the Sony system. Will photo mags start to do system comparisons? How about consumer magazines? As I said in another post: I thought AS/SSS was for image stabilization and not a way for Sony to raise lens prices.You are probably right here for some of the people. I also think many people at this level depend on an "expert" friend to tell them what to get. If these people are anywhere above an entry-level amature they are likely to understand that you need to price a system and not just a camera and kit lens.
True. But again I go back to the honest sales people like you typically find in specialty camera stores. They will typically ask what type of shooting you want to do and give you the pros and cons of each system. They will be fully aware of Sony's higher accessory costs. Maybe that is why it appears Sony is avoiding small camera shops like the plague (at least around here).
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Relative cost is irrelevant. So, before buying your last car, did you aks how much an oil change was? Yeah, the data is available but not looked at by too many people.Maybe so but lenses, flashes, etc are much more expensive than a
typical video game. Honest sales people (are there any
start to let people know the true cost of the Sony system. Will
photo mags start to do system comparisons? How about consumer
magazines? As I said in another post: I thought AS/SSS was for
image stabilization and not a way for Sony to raise lens prices.
Oxymoron
. . . of the brand of their perfered camera (Canon or Nikon) that fits your budget
of the other brands.
And their increased commissions. I spent three very unsuccessful years in electronics retailing in a specialized high-end shop and saw an amazing amount of lying from the "top" sales people. A well informed consumer was somebody to avaid. This is exactly why I do all my own research.
Actually I did check the maintainence costs for the last vehicle I purchased. I also read auto magazines that give cost/mile and repair costs. As the products get closer in performance this type of data becomes more important. Most magazines give a value assesment now. Will it become more detailed? I guess we will see.Relative cost is irrelevant. So, before buying your last car, didMaybe so but lenses, flashes, etc are much more expensive than a
typical video game. Honest sales people (are there any
start to let people know the true cost of the Sony system. Will
photo mags start to do system comparisons? How about consumer
magazines? As I said in another post: I thought AS/SSS was for
image stabilization and not a way for Sony to raise lens prices.
you aks how much an oil change was? Yeah, the data is available
but not looked at by too many people.
OK great, they haven't "raised" prices. They do have higher prices than very comparable products (i.e. the Minolta lenses they rebadged).
The only rules they have to follow are laws. Sony is free to run their business as they see fit. Is there startegy good for them in the short term? Maybe. Long term? I'm not so sure.
This may be true of most stores but I have found some exceptions.
Me too but there is a great local camera shop not too far from me. Unfortuanately they don't do Sony.
This is an age where gathering information is much easier than in the past. Before the best you could hope was that you knew someone, there was something in a publication, or the people at the shop were honest. Now you can go to fourms, read on-line reviews, etc.
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Sorry, the main selling point in the Alpha system is the fact that since it employs a body-based stabilization, you don't have to pay for stabilization additionally in any of the lenses. Now if you have to pay several hundred dollars more for a non-stabilized lens, then where are you gaining ?
There are NO excuses to be had form sony pricing...none at all....
I bet you some people are..and I bet many will look at Sony and think hmm nice camera..prices for other stuff sucks...hello Canon...if Sony are serious about this game..they have a whole lot to learn...
Ha Ha. The Law of Supply and Demand applies to all products. Ask a farmer how it applies to corn. Corn is not a rare substance either.
There is no doubt the premium Sony lenses are overpriced but not everyone lives in a premium world and can afford $1600 lenses.
The merits of each system are as they are but in-body IS apparently knows about the focal length (certainly on Pentax, not sure aout Sony) so is matched. You what you say the above on IS lenses but only on those lenses. You don't get it on a canon 10-22 and it is surprisingly useful at wide angle for interior shots of numerous sorts in low light. I have some shots taken with a Minolta A1 at very slow shutter speeds in museums at wide angle for example.
And another is when the next generation of in-body IS comes out all you have to do is buy one body to get better IS with all your lenses whereas new improved IS lenses mean either new lenses or sticking with the old generation. How many versions of VR and IS are Canon and Nikon on now with some lens variants? At least three I think.
A large number? Well I count two IS lenses covering wide-angle to short telephoto in the Canon range and none that cover anything wider. The 17-55 "L" and the 17-85 consumer grade lens.
Yes, a large number of Canon lenses have USM , covering the spectrum from ultra-wide angle 10mm to 1200mm.
I did economics thanks very much...and I have my own business....
