Theory about the slow painful release of the 5D MIII

[Lance James]

Is it possible the slow release is intentional, using the consumer to test it so they can fix the bugs before a major roll out?

The other option is they can't produce enough to meet demand, which honestly seems ridicules, they knew what the demand for this camera would be.

Based on what is happening with various issues coming to light, the first idea seems very plausible.

 

[PeterJ]

I'm not sure there's evidence of it being a slow release, but I'd imagine a DSLR due to its nature has a lot of manual assembly involved. Part of that would involve training and custom assembly and testing jigs. Most is probably outsourced but even then it would cost them a lot to ramp things up to 500% above normal to meet months of pre-orders quickly. Most of the companies that do that sort of contract assembly have a fairly steady workload for mature products so it's not like they'd want to spend a lot on additional plant / staff for a few months.

 

[Wrathwilde]

No. The light leek is an issue that wouldn't present itself in normal use, and slipped by. There is no way that Canon would release a flagship product, and start full scale production, unless they thought they had a solid product. Selling a beta stage product, as a final release, is a sure way to lose the trust of your customer base. Things do slip by on occasion, and did here.

No company can ever know precisely what they'll need to produce for a consumer product. The best they can do is estimate. Take the iPhone for example, no matter how high they estimate initial demand... they've always been caught woefully short.

Original iPhone released 3Q 2007 - Sold 270,000 units 3Q (The original Jesus phone)
iPhone 3G released 3Q 2008 - Sold 717,000 units 3Q (More than double the original sales)
iPhone 3GS released 3Q 2009 - Sold 5,200,000 units 3Q (More than 7x the 3G sales)
iPhone 4 released 3Q 2010 - Sold 8,400,000 units 3Q (3.2 million more than 3GS)
iPhone 4S released 3Q 2011 - Sold 20,300,000 units 3Q (More than double the iPhone 4)

Seeing as how Canon kept the specs and release of the 5D3 under wraps until almost the last minute, it's quite possible that they were a little low in their estimate. They probably figured that the lack of extra megapixels, and the increase in price, would have kept sale a little lower than they turned out. That said, I don't think they vastly underestimated demand, if they had - you would see a lot of people trying to sell them for more than they paid. This is not the case, although if the recall/hold lasts more than a couple of weeks, you may see more people trying to sell them at a profit.

Cheers,
Wrathwilde

 

[psolberg]

Unlike the D800, the 5Dmk3 is available in most places. I've even seen boxes at local dealers. Demand seems in line if not a bit softer. Contrast to the D800 which is sold out worldwide and still ranking higher at amazon from a new surge of orders after the impressive reviews. D800s are going for 4k+ on auctions. Canon users who want a 5D3 actually have a good chance to find one so IMO canon had a good forecast.

 

[96Brigadier]

I got on the wait list for a 5DIII the week before they were announced and got mine on March 22nd, the first day they were available.

A buddy of mine decided to get one on Thursday this week, not on a wait list. We phoned two local stores, one had only the kits so that was a no go as he already has the 24-105. The other store had both kits and bodies only. So bottom line is we were two for two on stores having them in stock and he bought his the same day he started looking.

There doesn't seem to be an issue finding 5DIII's here.

 

[nightbreath]

I've seen 5D Mark III at a local store today and they cost up to $5.000 for body only because of high demand in our country.

I heared somewhere Canon are producing it in amounts of 2 times more than 1D X, 7 000 of which should be produced each month.

Is 14 000 of 5Ds per month enough for everyone?

 

[smirkypants]

Slow release? Are you kidding? Have you tried to get your hands on a D4 or a D800? It's impossible!

 

[Axilrod]

Our biggest dealer here in Atlanta said that they still have a long waiting list and have yet to have any hit the shelves for general purchase.

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

5D MK III's are usually available from one of the major suppliers, Adorama had a bunch earlier this week. Canon has two factories dedicated to building them. I talked with our local Nikon Rep today at our local camera store and looked the D800 over. Apparently, a new shipment of D800's has arrived in the US, but they are likely all pre-ordered. I looked over the 14-24mm lens, wow, what a hunk of glass!. It has that tiny Nikon F mount on the rear that doesn't look capable of holding it. The D800 was a nice body, I can see why people like it.

 

[markIVantony]

For your first idea, no. I don't think any company who develops this kind of product and wants to stay in business for long uses the consumer to find test and find bugs.

 

[markIVantony]

Let me add to that: there's too much risk with hardware products. What if a customer found a problem severe enough to require a hardware change? Or a recall? Too costly in terms on money and lost customer base.

 

[JR]

Is it possible the slow release is intentional, using the consumer to test it so they can fix the bugs before a major roll out?

The other option is they can't produce enough to meet demand, which honestly seems ridicules, they knew what the demand for this camera would be.

Based on what is happening with various issues coming to light, the first idea seems very plausible.

I would doubt very much this is happening. There would be too much backlash to actually plan things like this. Hopefully i hope the slow release is simply a pperception because of high demand!

 

[V8Beast]

Unlike the D800, the 5Dmk3 is available in most places. I've even seen boxes at local dealers. Demand seems in line if not a bit softer. Contrast to the D800 which is sold out worldwide and still ranking higher at amazon from a new surge of orders after the impressive reviews. D800s are going for 4k+ on auctions. Canon users who want a 5D3 actually have a good chance to find one so IMO canon had a good forecast.

I cancelled my D800 pre-order after receiving my 5DIII, but had I known I could flip it for $4,000 I wouldn't have. Damn. The guy on the phone at B&H said there were people who pay to take my spot in line, but I figure he was just full of $h!t. Maybe I should have listened

 

[smirkypants]

I cancelled my D800 pre-order after receiving my 5DIII, but had I known I could flip it for $4,000 I wouldn't have. Damn. The guy on the phone at B&H said there were people who pay to take my spot in line, but I figure he was just full of $h!t. Maybe I should have listened

I shot surfers today with a d800 and a 200-400 f4 lens in 1.2 crop mode. That gives me a 1.2 crop and a 25MB file. The ability to crop is amazing. The ONLY down side is 5 fps.

Granted, I do love my 5D3 and my 70-200 f2.8 II, and I love how the 5D3 sees in the dark.

 

[V8Beast]

I shot surfers today with a d800 and a 200-400 f4 lens in 1.2 crop mode. That gives me a 1.2 crop and a 25MB file. The ability to crop is amazing. The ONLY down side is 5 fps.

Granted, I do love my 5D3 and my 70-200 f2.8 II, and I love how the 5D3 sees in the dark.

How do you like the D800 compared to the 5DIII? It's very cool to hear from someone who has actually shot with one. I just wasn't curious enough, or serious enough about changing systems, to go ahead and buy one. The 5DIII just seemed like a better balanced machine for my needs.

 

[Wideopen]

I think canon undershot the demand for this camera big time on purpose. Probably testing the economys waters to see how high the demand was gonna be before building more units to insure a profit.