A Bit About the Modular DSLR Rumor

[Diko]

...
- 64-bit processing picture (much higher performance that anything Canon has today)
...

Could you please elaborate on this....

 

[Khnnielsen]

One way that could be called modular is for Canon to do the following:

Make a DSLR that could dock an iPhone 6 in the back.

I might be biased because I am an andriod user, but no offense - this might be the worst idea, I have heard in a long time.

 

[canonfuture]

One way that could be called modular is for Canon to do the following:

Make a DSLR that could dock an iPhone 6 in the back.

I assume this is so the camera is obsolete and useless within 2 years?

The best way would be to use a bracket that could be exchanged if you wanted to upgrade to a phone with a different form factor. Maybe reminding of the different data backs Canon used a while ago. As long as the main interface is the same (i e Thunderbolt) it would be quite easy to upgrade the phone.

A phone upgrade would of course be optional and some users would probably keep the same phone during the life span of the camera and keep it permantly attached to the camera. Just compare the cost of a Canon Wifi-adapter with the cost of a phone...

 

[canonfuture]

...
- 64-bit processing picture (much higher performance that anything Canon has today)
...

Could you please elaborate on this....

The raw computing power of the hardware is higher (A8 processor vs Dual Digic 6)(I am comparing iPhone 6 to 7D Mk II). Apple are doing some things with images they don´t say but some things are official:
- Tone matching flash
- HDR photo
- HDR video
- Slo-mo video (120 fps or 240 fps)
- Time-lapse video
- Cinematic video stabilization
- Continuous autofocus video
- Take still photos while recording video
Some things are more speculative:
- Picture stabilization using motion coprocessor together with gyros and accelerometers
- Near realtime composites of 4 separate photos to decrease noise and increase sharpness

I would argue that the A8 is a better platform for further improvements in picture processing and it is easier for Apple to propagate these improvements with the normal system upgrades.

Added to that is the immense number of post editing software that runs on the phone...not much of that on Canon...

 

[canonfuture]

One way that could be called modular is for Canon to do the following:

Make a DSLR that could dock an iPhone 6 in the back.

I might be biased because I am an andriod user, but no offense - this might be the worst idea, I have heard in a long time.

Several of the advantages would be applicable with an Android phone too...

 

[canonfuture]

One way that could be called modular is for Canon to do the following:

Make a DSLR that could dock an iPhone 6 in the back.

This would guarantee me switching to Nikon or Sony.

I'm always amazed how Apple users think everyone should use an iPhone when Apple isn't even the market leader in smart phones.

"Market leader" is irrelevant. The question is: Who has and makes the most money to put into processor/hardware and software development? Who has the best economy-of-scale regarding this? - I know it´s not Canon or Nikon or Sony...

 

[lintoni]

You really think that people want to do their post processing on a phone screen?

 

[dgatwood]

It reminds me a bit of the A7s, where you can attach an audio module via the hotshoe, which is a really cool idea that I would like Canon to do as well.

That functionality would be better as part of an optional oversized battery grip. Having a stack of XLR cables hanging off the top of your camera would be unwieldy.

The best way would be to use a bracket that could be exchanged if you wanted to upgrade to a phone with a different form factor. Maybe reminding of the different data backs Canon used a while ago. As long as the main interface is the same (i e Thunderbolt) it would be quite easy to upgrade the phone.

In the best case scenario, on iOS, you would be limited to USB 2.0 speeds (the maximum speed supported by the hardware). At CR2 sizes, that's less than 2 fps maximum shooting speed. And I'm not certain whether you could even achieve those rates. I'd expect the same limitation on Android.

Of course, if you use in-camera storage and only transmit a low-quality image during previewing, it could still be viable, but it would be less than ideal, and the software side would be relatively complex.

No, it would make a lot more sense to just build Android (or iOS, ostensibly) into the device itself. As tempting as it would be to be able to have a dockable camera, the performance limitations imposed by USB 2.0 make it very unlikely that you'd see any practical benefits when compared with just adding Wi-Fi to the camera itself (which is how Sony designed their dockable, incidentally). By contrast, if Canon built Android (or iOS) into the device itself, they could easily provide an SDK for camera control so third-party vendors can extend the device's camera features, and the media would be accessible in the same way that any other media is accessible, which would be a much more practical approach than providing a complicated library with a giant pile of custom views that load different data from the camera based on zoom setting and a complicated back-end piece in the camera to generate that data.

 

[Khnnielsen]

It reminds me a bit of the A7s, where you can attach an audio module via the hotshoe, which is a really cool idea that I would like Canon to do as well.

That functionality would be better as part of an optional oversized battery grip. Having a stack of XLR cables hanging off the top of your camera would be unwieldy.

If the YAGH interface for the GH4 is anything to go by, then I couldn't disagree more. The YAGH interface is big, clunky, and expensive.
Sony’s XLR-K1M audio pack is featured in this blogpost, and it's one of the smallest complete run-and-gun setups, that you can get.
http://www.newsshooter.com/2014/08/25/video-review-movcam-cage-for-sony-a7s-the-best-yet/

And by the way - I don't get the rumor system if something this vague can be a CR2 rumor.

 

[Diko]

...
- 64-bit processing picture (much higher performance that anything Canon has today)
...

Could you please elaborate on this....

The raw computing power of the hardware is higher (A8 processor vs Dual Digic 6)(I am comparing iPhone 6 to 7D Mk II). Apple are doing some things with images they don´t say but some things are official:
- Tone matching flash
- HDR photo
- HDR video
- Slo-mo video (120 fps or 240 fps)
- Time-lapse video
- Cinematic video stabilization
- Continuous autofocus video
- Take still photos while recording video
Some things are more speculative:
- Picture stabilization using motion coprocessor together with gyros and accelerometers
- Near realtime composites of 4 separate photos to decrease noise and increase sharpness

I would argue that the A8 is a better platform for further improvements in picture processing and it is easier for Apple to propagate these improvements with the normal system upgrades.

Added to that is the immense number of post editing software that runs on the phone...not much of that on Canon...

I tend to agree with your idea. However please note:

1/ 64 bit has nothing to do with that.
2/ 2 CPUs on the CANON are for one sole purpose: more fps.

Otherwise most people here and elsewhere will tell you that Smartphone shooting is a lame (not even amateur-level).

I on the other hand have a different more like your idea about those tiny little miracles.

Smartphones as they may (still) be in their infancy. I see a great new expression tool.

Soon the difference between Smartphones' BSI CMOS based cameras would be as different as the Full Frame to the Medium Format - almost unnoticeable for the regular human eye.

Will see ;-)

 

[canonfuture]

It reminds me a bit of the A7s, where you can attach an audio module via the hotshoe, which is a really cool idea that I would like Canon to do as well.

That functionality would be better as part of an optional oversized battery grip. Having a stack of XLR cables hanging off the top of your camera would be unwieldy.

The best way would be to use a bracket that could be exchanged if you wanted to upgrade to a phone with a different form factor. Maybe reminding of the different data backs Canon used a while ago. As long as the main interface is the same (i e Thunderbolt) it would be quite easy to upgrade the phone.

In the best case scenario, on iOS, you would be limited to USB 2.0 speeds (the maximum speed supported by the hardware). At CR2 sizes, that's less than 2 fps maximum shooting speed. And I'm not certain whether you could even achieve those rates. I'd expect the same limitation on Android.

Of course, if you use in-camera storage and only transmit a low-quality image during previewing, it could still be viable, but it would be less than ideal, and the software side would be relatively complex.

No, it would make a lot more sense to just build Android (or iOS, ostensibly) into the device itself. As tempting as it would be to be able to have a dockable camera, the performance limitations imposed by USB 2.0 make it very unlikely that you'd see any practical benefits when compared with just adding Wi-Fi to the camera itself (which is how Sony designed their dockable, incidentally). By contrast, if Canon built Android (or iOS) into the device itself, they could easily provide an SDK for camera control so third-party vendors can extend the device's camera features, and the media would be accessible in the same way that any other media is accessible, which would be a much more practical approach than providing a complicated library with a giant pile of custom views that load different data from the camera based on zoom setting and a complicated back-end piece in the camera to generate that data.

Apple only states that the Lightning-CABLE supports USB2. Regarding the hardware limitations on the phone we can only speculate... my own belief is that Apple could quite easily implement USB3 (or another higher-speed interface) in their Lightning-connector - if they wanted to... (I base this belief on the level of performance the other hardware has in iPhone 6...)