Gear Talk > Canon General
Canon Destroys Nikon in DSLR Marketshare for 2010
EYEONE:
--- Quote from: ISO100 on April 21, 2011, 11:27:24 PM ---
--- Quote from: EYEONE on April 21, 2011, 07:02:20 PM ---I hear people talk a lot about wanting Canon to innovate. And maybe I should just ask them to clarify what they mean exactly. Would you like Canon to invent a new kind of camera? Because I seriously don't know what else you would like them to do with the DSLR ...
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They didn't really innovate. The DSLR is what it is. We have auto focus now, and IS and advanced metering systems. And we have more megapixels than we need in the entry level models. We have ISO ranges that go way beyond what was imaginable 10 years ago. The only thing left to do in my mind is simply make the DSLR better. And I'm really fine with that.
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At this point in the game it's just a matter of finding the right mix of technology that they have already developed and putting it in a camera that yields a good product for the market you are aiming for. What else should they do?
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And the same goes for Nikon. I don't expect anything more than a "better" camera than the last. Because like I said before, you can only "innovate" so much before you've created something that isn't a DSLR.
--- End quote ---
I wholeheartedly disagree with this notion! Right off the bat I can think of the following true innovations I would really like to see on any and all new Canon DSLRs:
1) twentyfirst century grade Eye Control Focusing! Selecting the active AF-point(s) with only the movement of your eye - autofocus will be exactly on the item in the frame viewed by the the user. Yes, Canon has invented this already many years ago (analogue Canon EOS 3 and others models) ... but it did not really work well for most users back then. A perfectly working ECF system in a DSLR would be the greatest innvovation in a long time!
2) built in wireless RC (!) master flash control - full ETTL II and III functionality with all new speedlites and via a small adaptor also with all current EX speedlites (580/II, 430/II, 270 II) would be another great and industry-first innovation!
3) wireless ETTL-III - very simple inmnovation for Canon: deliver exactly the same functionality Nikons CLS system is delivering for years by now. Specifically: FP ("Hi Speed sync") and flash on second curtain over wireless master-slave not in case of on-shoe or wired connection. Wouldn't this be a great innvoation for Canon?
4) Multi-touch LCD screen for operation in live view/video modes. Not an industry first (see Panasonic and others) - but from Canon I would like to see exactly the type of (capacitative) touch panel and intuitive user-interface as used in an Apple iPhone4. Would be industry first DSLR featuring this functionality.
5) Built in WIFI in any in every single new Canon DSLR ... at little extra cost and with smart battery saving firmware. Another industry first innovation for Canon to bring to us ...
and and and ... innovations waiting to happen GALORE!!!
--- End quote ---
You didn't list a single innovation. It's all the same stuff. Could Canon put a wifi transmitter into a body? Absolutely. They just haven't wanted to yet. Or they like the money they make from the attachment. This is not an innovation.
Neither is a touch screen (which is the worst idea ever, btw).
Actually you're #1 was a great example of my point. Canon has already done eye control AF. They would simply need to take it off the shelf and use it.
I'm not sure what your #2 is about. The 7D has wireless flash control. Am I missing it?
dilbert:
2011 will tell a much different tale as without a doubt, the earthquake will impact numbers.
traveller:
I like to think that innovation has two 'axes', technological and market. Technological innovation is all about creating new features to differentiate your product (e.g. developing a new AF system) and market innovation is about carving out a niche for your product to fit into (e.g. the original Digital Rebel/300D). Generally most new products/features have a measure of both of these aspects. For example, developing a new AF system is about how much capability you can put into it without increasing cost beyond what the camera's intended market will bear. Developing a cheaper DSLR like the 300D, was also about technological innovation in developing new lower cost components.
It worries me that even in the traditional DSLR market, which Canon should be well versed in, they seem to be allowing Nikon to get the jump on them in both areas of innovation. Canon definitely seem to have become followers rather than leaders, it's Nikon that are taking the lead introducing new features into cameras with Canon seeming to follow somewhat reluctantly. There even seem to have been some reversals: Canon stated their aim was to introduce some form of USM motors to all their lenses, now they seem to have gone back to dc motors at the lower end.
More worryingly, Canon seem to be myopically following Nikon's market segmentation, a strategy that is ensuring that they are always one step behind. Nikon pioneered the high-spec APS-C camera with the D300 (which nicely pulled away from the 40D to establish a new premium price point), two years later Canon followed suit with the 7D. Last year, Canon brought out a great D90 killer in the form of the 60D, and Nikon responded a month later by again moving the goalposts with the D7000 (classic Nikon: "for $200 more, look what more you can have").
Canon's greatest triumph was when they had the balls to dump their well established FD mount system to step into the unknown with EOS. But it wasn't just this move that put them in the market leading position where they are today, they built up the reputation of EOS by continuous development. This applied to new technologies that made their cameras and lenses industry leading, as well as those that reduced production costs and brought these products to the mass market. My point is that Canon needs to return to this mindset and stop just following the pack.
S P:
As far innovation goes, or at least adding new features that are actually useful, I would LOVE built-in WiFi and the ability to upload photos directly from my camera to Facebook, or photo hosting sites like Zenfolio, SmugMug, flickr, etc. That would be killer. My iPhone can do it, so why not DSLRs?
7enderbender:
Just out of curiosity: did anyone actually read the underlying article and the data that goes with it? I'm not so sure that the news is "oh joy" for Canon. The Bloomberg headline reads: Sony, Nikon Narrow Gap to Canon With New Digital Camera Models
Not quite the same. Let's not forget that SLRs are not the big money maker. The game is about who sells the most P&S cameras - and all the stuff that comes with it.
Vendor 2010 2009
----------------------------------------------------
Canon 19 19
Sony 17.9 16.9
Nikon 12.6 11.1
Samsung 11.1 10.9
Kodak 7.4 8.8
Panasonic 7.6 7.6
Olympus 6.1 6.2
Fuji 4.9 5.4
By looking at that, both Canon and Nikon have to be concerned. And, unfortunately, the earthquake will make this worse. This is even more remarkable, given that Sony's core business is not as tightly connected to cameras than Canon's or Nikon's - and they just have a lot more money to throw at this if they want to.
And here it comes: if the two companies weren't so tied up in their traditions and the what results out of the longstanding rivalry they would be reaching the point where in other industries people would be starting to look at a merger...
Since that is not really an option given their unique situations we'll be seeing Canon and Nikon buying up some of the smaller ones, both camera related and otherwise. Something like Kodak or Fuji may actually be an option.
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