Hugely Disappointed In 5D III Price

[BillyBean]

There is no way to make something better and still make it cheaper to the public.

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

Go figure.

I want more, I want better, I want cheaper. Guess whose going to be proven correct... If Canon cannot get this, they will go the way of Kodak.

 

[gn100]

Guys, take a look at this data courtesy of www.camelcamelcamel.com. This shows the price tracking of the EOS 7D after initial announcement in early September 2009 through to today. It shows price maintenance up until a certain point, then a dramatic re-adjustment. Sadly, the EOS 5dII doesn't show the same rapid decline, but what this says to me is that Canon does sometimes get initial prices totally wrong, and is forced to adjust them once initial demand subsides, in this case just a few months after announcement. So my option isn't in the above list, it is "I want an EOS 5D Mark III, and I'm willing to wait...but not forever!"

Another thing to consider is exchange rates - the USD is weaker now than when the 5DII came out. Where I live the 5DII cost NZ $5400 when it came out (that's $4400 US in today's terms). I'm hoping the weaker USD will mean I can buy the 5DIII for a cheaper price than the original 5DII price

 

[rj79in]

There is no way to make something better and still make it cheaper to the public.

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

Go figure.

I want more, I want better, I want cheaper. Guess whose going to be proven correct... If Canon cannot get this, they will go the way of Kodak.

Comparing apples to oranges won't work. What worked for computer hardware may not work universally especially when the market competition is limited to a select few corporate houses - in this case mostly Canon and Nikon.

 

[D_Rochat]

There is no way to make something better and still make it cheaper to the public.

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

Go figure.

I want more, I want better, I want cheaper. Guess whose going to be proven correct... If Canon cannot get this, they will go the way of Kodak.

As a consumer, it's your right to want more for less. However, you have to be realistic with your expectations. There are countless posts of "I want my 7D to do the same as the 1D X for $1500".

The computer industry is sort of a thing of it's own. 99% of electronics go up in price rather than down and I hardly doubt that Canon is run by a bunch of mouth breathers that will run it into the ground. Do some Googling and see what the top selling camera is right now and and then tell me that they don't know what they are doing.

 

[ippikiokami]

There is no way to make something better and still make it cheaper to the public.

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

Go figure.

I want more, I want better, I want cheaper. Guess whose going to be proven correct... If Canon cannot get this, they will go the way of Kodak.

There is a limit to it at any given time. Otherwise while you might get "better" features.. you end up getting less quality.

 

[briansquibb]

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

You were lucky - my first PC only had 1 floppy disk - the XT was a latecomer

 

[BillyBean]

Sure there are limits, and don't misunderstand me - I'm not complaining about the 5D3 price. But anyone who thinks that equipment is not getting cheaper and better over time is sadly deluded. And I'm sorry, but this isn't just computers. It is cars, cameras, hifi just about anything. Maybe someone under 20 wouldn't realise this yet, but to anyone else it should be obvious.

 

[cliffwang]

There is no way to make something better and still make it cheaper to the public.

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

Go figure.

I want more, I want better, I want cheaper. Guess whose going to be proven correct... If Canon cannot get this, they will go the way of Kodak.

Comparing apples to oranges won't work. What worked for computer hardware may not work universally especially when the market competition is limited to a select few corporate houses - in this case mostly Canon and Nikon.

Actually Canon / Nikon DSLR market is called oligopoly. There is not thing reflex to the cost/price. They can make higher profit from their new product even thought the cost of new product is same with old product. If 5D3 demand drop very quick in the coming three months, Canon will lower 5D3's price. Everything is simple: supply and demand.

 

[RuneL]

This poll sucks. You lack a bunch of response options, like "don't know" or "not buying anything"

 

[tt]

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

You were lucky - my first PC only had 1 floppy disk - the XT was a latecomer

Luxury! Eee, in my day we would dream of a floppy disk! Each day after working at mill we would have to bite out holes in't punchcards with our teeth.

And a digital camera? Eee, by eck, we used to have to etch out paper with sharpened measuring rod. Hugely dissapointed I tell you, hugely dissapointed.
It's like they're a monopsony to the EF lens cameras or something.

 

[cliffwang]

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

You were lucky - my first PC only had 1 floppy disk - the XT was a latecomer

I was lucky enough. I got a tape drive for my first Apple. My brother even had no tape drive for his.

 

[D_Rochat]

Sure there are limits, and don't misunderstand me - I'm not complaining about the 5D3 price. But anyone who thinks that equipment is not getting cheaper and better over time is sadly deluded. And I'm sorry, but this isn't just computers. It is cars, cameras, hifi just about anything. Maybe someone under 20 wouldn't realise this yet, but to anyone else it should be obvious.

I just checked the MSRP of my truck from 2000-2012 and, wait for it............. the cost went up! To be fair, I included inflation and guess what happened next? It went up! Next time you want to be condisending, at least give proof.

 

[tivoboy]

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

You were lucky - my first PC only had 1 floppy disk - the XT was a latecomer

My first computer had 4kb of memory.

 

[AJ]

You're kidding, right? Have you been on another planet the last 50 years? Sorry, make that 250 years...

I started work on an IBM XT with a 5mb (yes, MEGABYTE) hard drive, and 512k of RAM which cost around £5000....

You were lucky - my first PC only had 1 floppy disk - the XT was a latecomer

My first computer had 4kb of memory.

The VIC-20?

My first computer was a Commodore 64. And for the first month I didn't have a tape drive. I programmed the game Mastermind, but at the end of the day I had to turn off the computer.

Prior to that I managed to borrow my cousin's Apple II computer. It came with Pong. My brother and I spent many hours playing it. Good memories!

I did program a computer at school with punchcards - probably an early PDP.

 

[tivoboy]

original apple II

 

[cpsico]

Its a great deal with the improved auto focus and improved sensor. It will be the go to wedding camera for canon pros with the specs it has

 

[kdsand]

This poll sucks. You lack a bunch of response options, like "don't know" or "not buying anything"

I thought I was the only.
Perhaps a 7DII will tickle my fancy.

 

[Curmudgeon]

As an old English teacher, I wouldn't say that I am "hugely disappointed" by the price of the 5D3--that would be assigning physical dimensions to an emotional state. How about "moderately disappointed" and a little surprised that Canon didn't follow Nikon's lead in pricing?

My vote in the poll was to keep my 5D2. Nevertheless, on paper at least the 5D3 seems like a sensible upgrade to the 5D2, and if the real-world performance matches the specs, I'll upgrade--but not until the price drops.

Still, I can't help but shake my head in admiration of those clever folks in Canon's marketing department. Nikon introduces a well-featured camera at an aggressive price, and rather than meet the competition, Canon neatly bookends the D800 by keeping the 5D2 in production at a a significantly lowered price. Here I thought I was the owner of a mid-level full-frame camera with aging-but-still-serviceable technology. Turns out the 5D2 is actually a state-of-the--art 2012 entry level full-frame camera. Who knew?

What's really nice about this strategy is that Nikon has no way of responding. Not only does the D700 lack the now-obligatory video, but Nikon can no longer legally sell the camera in its home market of Japan. (Wouldn't you know, Sony's A900 also lacks video.) And you thought those boys in Canon marketing were overpaid parasites.

I expect Canon to keep selling the 5D2 for as long as its aging technology can divert first-time or modestly bankrolled buyers from Nikon or Sony. When that's no longer possible, I imagine the model will be retired and the 5D3 will be repriced in line with the D800. In the meantime I might buy some glass or the new flash.

The question for me then is how long will it take for the 5D3 price to soften? And for a couple of reasons I'm actually optimistic that I'll have a new camera within 12 to15 months. For all the hype, hoopla and hysteria, the hallelujahs and the gnashing of teeth surrounding the recent introductions of the 5D3 and the D800, we still know almost nothing about the comparative performance of the production cameras either in testing or in everyday use. I expect both to be good, but if it proves difficult to pinpoint $500 worth of value for Canon's premium, I suspect the price difference will erode pretty quickly. Go Nikon.

The other factor which will I believe affect pricing will be how current owners of higher-end Canon DSLRS perceive the usefulness of the 5D3's upgrades in relation to their present cameras. And here I think the clever boys in marketing have made at least one serious mis-step. I'm not a videographer and I don't pretend to know their priorities, but I do know that video was the sine qua non feature which gave the 5D2 its enormous market advantage. And it can't be good news for Canon that several prominent DSLR videographers are already on record as saying that the 5D3 is a much larger step forward for still photography than it is for video. Vincent LaForet, the Godfather of DSLR video, is aghast at the lack of clean HDMI output from the new camera. "Why? Why? Why?" he asks in exasperation on his blog. (Nikon has it.)

Likewise, several videographers and commentators simply assumed that the 5D3 would take the next step to 1080p output at 60 fps, and expressed shock when it didn't. It's a capability now found on several mirrorless cameras, which also feature video autofocus superior to anything Canon has yet demonstrated. More people might feel Canon's $500 premium is justifed if it included a second processor (a Digic 4 or perhaps a 5 with or without the +) to provide the processing horsepower to handle 60 fps.

All in all it seems like a golden lead squandered. "Explorer of Light" and loyal Canon champion Laforet is so disenchanted with the specs of the new camera that he goes out of his way on his blog to tell his patron company and the world that he will not be making a video with the 5D3. And just in case Canon executives are oblivious to the fact that this a howl of protest, LaForet remounts a page-one link to his seminal video, Reverie--shot with the 5D2. Could there be a clearer slap in the face from a videographer?

If the 5D3 can't maintain the 5D2's enormous sales advantage among videographers, I'll have my new camera about as soon as I can afford it.

 

[VirtualRain]

Understanding the price increase on the 5DIII

A lot of people are extremely disappointed, like I am, that the price on the 5DIII increased 30% from the $2700 that was the 5DII's price for much of the first few years.

To better understand why this has happened, it's important to note that...
1. Canon is a Japanese based company that operates on the Yen.
2. The USD has weakened compared to the Yen over the last few years - perhaps not surprisingly... 30%. A graph of the USD's decline against the Yen is attached.

So back when the 5DII was announced, it was priced at 270,000 Yen ($2700 USD). Incidentally, the 5DIII is priced the same, except that 270,000 Yen now translates to $3500 USD.

As much as it sucks, it's the global economy and the weak USD that's the primary culprit here.

 

[meli]

Re: Understanding the price increase on the 5DIII

And pray tell us what kinda of wizardry has Nikon implemented with D800's price, since the d700 launched @ 300k Yen?