So Canon improved its video capabilities via a firmware update. As far as I read from their forums, most users are delighted! Another improvement yet to make is contrast-detect auto-focus, but probably only feasible in the later models. So i think Sony could have implemented video earlier before everything is perfect.
I think if Sony is a painter, a poet, or a writer, it has ALL THE REASONS to perfect its masterpiece before bringing it to the light. But since it's a commercial company, i think it's unwise to withhold something lucrative and relative easy. After all, it has all the subsequent firmware or even models to update or upgrade!
I think if Sony is a painter, a poet, or a writer, it has ALL THE REASONS to perfect its masterpiece before bringing it to the light. But since it's a commercial company, i think it's unwise to withhold something lucrative and relative easy. After all, it has all the subsequent firmware or even models to update or upgrade!
Video would have been one way to try to lure new users. I think that offering class-leading resolution (at low ISO anyway) at a rock bottom price (along with the lure of CZ lenses) is another. We see anecdotal evidence of people buying an A900 & lenses, even Nikon/Canon shooters picking up a camera & couple lenses as a "second system". What we don't know is whether sales of the camera are meeting Sony's goals. Which is all that's really important to judging their strategy.
Though they have different market dynamics. They're fighting each other in the enthusiast/pro markets. In a sense, they have more to lose. I look at it this way: Canon & Nikon have to put out cameras that appeal to a larger percentage of potential buyers than Sony, Pentax & Oly. Obviously, if you're looking at higher end products, you're mostly looking at existing system owners upgrading, but still, if even a small percentage of the market wants some feature, when you have nearly 50% of the market, you have to offer that feature. When you have 10% and are looking to grow to 15% (with this latest product cycle) you have a little more freedom to decide what features to implement, how much you want to invest, how you want to target the market.