I have seen a lot of people who love this camera longing for some changes, simple things that could be done in the firmware, better AEB comes to mind... and I see a lot of replies to a lot of threads saying "if enough of us ask Sony to add this or that, maybe they'll listen". I know it's a long shot, and I know for the most part getting companies this size to listen to anything is mostly pointless, but does anyone have a recommendation as to WHO to ask at Sony? Is there a place where requests are commonly sent (deleted / ignored, or not)?
I posted this on their support forums because it was the most logical place I could think to :
https://forum.sel.sony.com/viewtopic.php?f=68&t=10180
if anyone has a better idea, I'd love to hear it.
Ok, I'll bite.
What do you expect from Sony? Or, how, does this work on other consumer products - from cars to tv sets? Or notebook computers?
First, your title is suggestive - it hints of a complaint support line, a place to vent.
This is usually not a channel into marketing or engineering
Second, most feedback is collected fairly early and leads to roadmap and strategic decisions. Plans that are set in motion are less likely to change in dramatic ways than new plans.
Third, Sony is a consumer company, their products are mass produced and marketed, and do only exist & migrate to future products, if the support base is sufficiently large.
It is unclear to many of us whether the NEX user base is mainly formed by upgrading P&S users or by experienced
dSLR users looking for something smaller. This is significant, because either side would push the product into a certain direction. So far, we are excited about the NEX-7 rumors, and, if true, its effect on the product (and market).
Fourth, Sony, more than other electronic manufacturers, is a very technology-centric market leader. Many of their products came about because of non-linearities in technology development, the NEX included. They will always push 'new' or 'novel'.
Fifth, try writing to "Mr. Sony", or any of the public executives by name. You may even get an answer - a friend did when he wrote to Autozone to open a local store (he received a reasonable quick response thanking him for his input and that they would consider the matter - they ultimately did open a local store).
Sixth, you are already doing it - post in a forum, a blog, etc.
Forums like this work in a roundabout way - many professional writers for photographic magazines get their information through many ways, including forums like this, (as does Sony). Then they form their opinions and we read back some of the consensus. Its somewhat complex, in an ideal world, they would all be completely objective. But in this world, some reviewers seem to have a bias. Still, they may agree on certain things.
Firmware changes are a response to public feedback (gladly so) and happen quicker if the professional writers reflect some sort of consensus.
Maybe use this thread to make a list of most desired upgrades? We may see them in a future NEX-7, but still, such a list has value, imo.
I don't want to start a new one, if there is, but if there isn't, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea, at least to get people day-dreaming, or possibly even sharing work-arounds with eachother for some things that can be solved in creative ways.
