You may be right about R3 pricing but am hoping for $52-5495.00 USDRemember the "crazy" R1 specs that were leaked a while ago? I'm starting to think they aren't that crazy.
Not naming this the R1 because of the 1DX III is not a valid business reason to create a new line, so I doubt that as well. You don't hold back new technology in a highly competitive market because someone may not be happy their camera was replaced after a couple of years. They were also able to reuse much of the tech (Sensor, Processor, Software) in the R6 and R5. They have recouped their investment. The people who these cameras are designed for don't care... they don't buy them anyway. The companies that do can justify the cost by the return. An R1 will likely make that workstream more efficient which makes the cost negligible. They also don't have an ego about the number plastered on the front of the camera. They are just tools. I think the market for the R3 are professionals that buy their own gear (ie not employed by a large organization) and people like us who have enough money and passion to want a better camera but may balk at the likely $8k price tag of the R1.
As far as the A1 goes... most direct comparisons show the R5 holding its own against the A1, this one will likely crush it. I'm quite sure Canon doesn't see the A1 as a competitor for the R1. That camera likely doesn't exist. Camera bodies are developed over years. Companies also have a good idea what their competitors are up to. You can be sure they knew the A1 was coming for quite some time. The move to mirrorless is, I'm sure, a program with multiple projects each with specific deliverables and likely is scheduled out at least 5 years. Covid likely delayed some portion of the R5/R6 projects which probably held this one up as well. Expect to see it before the Summer Olympics with a US cost of just under 6k. I expect to see the R1 arriving before the Winter Olympics in 2022 at around USD 8K.
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