The stuff I’m told
I’m told a lot of stuff every day about upcoming products, especially recently. Here are the CR1 rumors I’ve received in the last couple of weeks.

1) Announcement on March 10, 2010 (That would be a weird day of the week for an announcement, I’d expect the 8th or 9th as per Canon tradition)

2) Canon is waiting for the upcoming “D700x” to introduce a new full frame camera.

3) A host of new professional products for WPPI. This would make availability of new lenses perfect for wedding photographers.

4) 3D!

5) Canon doesn’t care about the EVIL market and isn’t even doing R&D on such a camera type.

6) Some of the Big White Lenses get a redo for the World Cup in South Africa. They may just be test lenses, and not publicly available.

7) The 1Ds Mark IV is coming in February, March, April, May and for Photokina.

8) 5D Mark III for Photokina with serious video applications.

9) DIGIC V for Photokina.

10) G11 will be the last of the current “G” series design. Complete redo and model name for the next one.

These are rumors from people I’ve never heard from. So take them all with a grain of salt and we’ll see what becomes of them.

cr

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104 Comments

  1. Anyone else wish someone other than Leica produced a digital rangefinder? Digital Canonet maybe?

    I’m just dreaming I’m sure, but I would buy one.

  2. Could anyone explain me 2) (I know it’s a rumor, but we’ve seen this Canon approach in the past)… I never understood why the big guy need to wait to see what the little guy is doing… Which scares me on the long term. Sounds a bit “sissi” from Canon to play this game. I don’t want to buy from followers, I prefer leadership.

  3. Just a question:
    Do you think Canons next FF will be in the same price range as the 5D Mark II. I want a FF but doesn’t dare to buy the 5D yet, would crush me if a Mark III came out soon haha. I want the newest, always! ;)

  4. Another CR1 : Canon to be bought by Apple. Next DSLR will be the iCamera with FF multi-touch sensor that will allow you to directly draw your picture on the sensor. By perfect integration to iTunes, you’ll be able to download the best available pictures of the world and pretend they’re yours.

    iCamera : the perfect camera for geeks who don’t care about actually shooting…

  5. Charles Bronson on

    Canon would be silly to not try and enter the EVIL market. Especially since Sony and Sigma both just announced that they’re going to be designing cameras in that format.

    Of course if Canon does enter this market they’ll really need to make some pancake lenses, otherwise afaik it wouldn’t be very compact, which defeats the whole purpose.

    They already have electronic viewfinder cameras. How hard would it be to just make a similar version with a lens mount instead of a fixed lens?

  6. I think there are a lot of people who would like a Leica camera without the leica price.
    But its not gonna happen, closest thing is a Micro 4/3rd camera.

  7. I think CR was trying to point out the massive amount of junk he has to filter. Tough job that’s done quite well. Although, 24-70 IS would be nice.

  8. If you want the newest, you’ll keep waiting.

    You are aware of the fact that as soon as a model is being introduced new models are already on the drawing board.

  9. The G11 follow-on could be the EVIL camera for Canon. Something that size with interchangeable lenses would be killer. I own a G10 and I am tempted to upgrade to a G11 just to get the fold out screen, but I keep thinking about holding off for the G12 to get HD Video.

  10. another commenter had asked CR Guy if he could show us some of the rumors he’s been filtering lately, just so we could have some fun seeing what he’s seeing. glad he did it

  11. if you mean, will the next 5-family FF be in the same price range as the 5D Mark II, the answer is probably yes. note that the next FF to be released is more likely to be the 1Ds Mark IV, which will be light years away from the 5D price range.

    Canon has so far been fairly good about offering new replacements at roughly the same price as their predecessors, so for the 5D Mark III we can expect to see something in the $2700 to $3300 price range.

  12. I’m not sure the G line will be killed off for an EVIL. canon may very well still introduce an EVIL (like 2 years after Nikon does, whenever that even may be), but it doesn’t mean the Gs are gone. as others have pointed out, there always will remain a huge difference in functionality between a $500 pocketable (yes, they are definitely pocketable, or at least purse-able) G-camera with built in 5x or 6x zoom, versus a $700 EVIL limited to a pancake prime when being pocketed.

    nikon’s pointed out at PMA (and I think they’re right) that in terms of compacts, EVILs, and DSLRs, they can have their cake and eat it too. Sure EVILs are going to eat market share from somewhere, but I bet Nikon and Canon would rather their own EVILs be the ones eating that market share rather than Panny or Oly or Sony

  13. It is not necessarily about the tech (although that is an important issue), it is mostly about the marketing. Waiting until after the Nikon announcement will allow Canon to tailor their announcement to combat against what Nikon comes up with.

  14. I really would like to know what Canon’s market research is that led them to conclude AF-handicapping was a necessity. not looking at it in a nikon-vs-canon sort of way, but looking at it in a case study fashion, Nikon seems to have done just fine even with slapping their high-end AF into everything. in fact, one might argue that that’s basically constituted the majority of the Nikon advantage over Canon in the last generation of DSLRs.

    BS like the AF handicapping really just muddies the waters in terms of the Canon upgrade path. maybe they’re hoping we’ll all buy both a 5D Mk II and a 7D. I know people that do that, but for that to be implied by their market lineup is sort of laughable

  15. About lenses : a lot of people seem to be longing for a replacement to the 100-400 L.

    I am wondering why Canon would do this when one can buy an excellent 70-200/2.8 and make it a 140-400/5,6 with the x2 extender. With the MkII it even has the latest 4 stops stabilizer.

    Of course it is more expensive, but less than 100-400 plus a wode opening glass around 100, isn’t it ?

  16. Hmm CR guy, people you’ve never heard of? Is that nutters who just make things up then?

    What the heck, I might as well make some things up!

    -We won’t ever see the 1Ds MkIV or the Nikon D700, Canon and Nikon will play chicken with each other and end up in stalemate!

    -Both Canon and Nikon are still sore about Japan losing WW2 so they read these forums and like to get off on English speakers howling, therefore neither will release a 60D/ D90 successor as it would spoil their fun.

  17. The xxD line is now being replaced by the new Rebel series.
    The G series is being dumped to make room the the Evil Camera to replace the rebel as the new entry level slr.

    So the new lineup by this time next year will be:
    Powershot
    Evil
    Rebel or xxxD
    xD

    Just a guess. Dont see much room between the T2i and the 7 other than price point.
    And the world needs the EVIL market.

  18. epson has a digital rangefinder which is not so inexpensive. I would expect cosina (as voigtlander) to come up with a digital rangefinder rather than canon or nikon.

  19. Sorry, but the 550D is not even close to being a proper 50D replacement. Whilst I suspect that the price will fall, I just can’t see what all the extra money gets you over the 500D. The 550D is an ‘entry-level’ camera just like every other Rebel before it. If it was meant to replace the 50D (at XXD prices), it should have at least been given:

    -all cross type AF points
    -larger pentaprism viewfinder
    -rear control dial for a better user interface
    -faster shooting speed
    -better quality chassis (read: Mg alloy)

  20. Digic V will be launched. The only question is when.

    As for the 60D, I have the following common-sense observations:

    – in the budget there is a lot of room below the 5D2, but much less between the 550D/T2i and the 7D. That could mean that Canon will either make the 60D full frame, or produce a pair of 60D (APS-C) and 60Ds FF cameras.

    – if the 60D is APS-C, it will certainly have the 550D’s sensor, the 50D’s build quality and controls layout and probably also the 50D’s or 550D’s AF. If it were to get the 7D’s AF, it would eat up too much of the higher price market. It will also inherit the 550D’s video features.

    – the xxD series is very popular with advanced amateurs – a group that potentially spends a lot of money on lenses, too. Canon will do everything possible to bind that group to the EF(-S) mount.

    – it may have a Digic V processor, but I think it is unlikely

    – any full frame camera positioned below the 5D2 has to leave some performance margin to the more expensive model. Look at the 5D2 and see what you can “downgrade”. AF? Already a weak point of the 5D2. Build quality? Some margin, but cheapest-kit beginners will buy APS-C. Pixel number? Don’t think so. High-Iso performance? Video performance? Maybe, but that would be artificial. Viewfinder? Certainly. Processing power (frame rate, noise reduction, etc)? The only way is up.

    The 60D (APS-C) has the continuity of the line and the established market going for it. The 60Ds is opening up a new market segment.
    So take your pick. I don’t see a very clear picture for either a 60D or a 60Ds.

  21. Yes, you are right! Further, CR Guy did post the demanded Top 10 rumors which shows that he reads our comments and listens to us. Canon should probably take that as an example especially because we pay them thousends every year compared to CR Guy!

  22. Cosina used to (7 years ago ??) make a APS-C sensor, rangefinder, interchangeable lens range finder camera that uses Leica lenses with a price tag of $2500 (??). It is almost like a poor man’s M9. The market cannot support it. Therefore it is discontinued. The Micro 4/3rd is a far cry from the M9. The sensor is a lot smaller. It is not even a range finder. It does have manual focusing by looking at how sharp the screen is. When Canon was making range finder camera (for film), their price is not too far from the comparable Leica. Canon has pulled out of this market almost 40 years ago. I doubt that it will ever get back to the range finder business, not even in digital format.

  23. With the x2 extender you loose quite a lot of IQ, at least unless you stop down by 2 steps. Not surprising really, if you consider that all the converters do is magnify the center of the image circle.
    With the x1.4 externder the loss of IQ is much more limited, and you can still use the lens fully open.

  24. My guess is marketing telling R&D:
    “Get that body out NOW, If the new AF is not ready, use the old one.” Plus it makes the 5D2 owners more likely to buy an upgrade :-(

  25. That’s why I filter more often now, I’ve made good relationships with people. I have a good pot of folks to get info from.

    This past Tuesday went bad, hope to never repeat that again. That was a first missed announcement we’ve had.

    This post was to give you an idea of what I see day in and day out.

    Thanks for reading.

  26. Their revenge for loosing WW2 is that no new camera will ever be manufactured or designed in the US. Never mind the UK or France. China and Korea gotta be a big sting, though ;-)

  27. Sorry for the long post, but I have to kill the day and love to speculate on CR… with a grain of salt, as CR admin suggests. BTW, thanks CR guy!

    1) No comment, tradition (i.e. rules) are there to be broken sooner or later, or, if you prefer, exceptions are there to confirm the rule. Who knows…

    2) No surprise. The 5D2 was thrown on the market to compete with the D700 when it was still a bit immature. Remember the black dots issue, the incapability for the camera to communicate with the battery when a single battery was in the battery grip (I went crazy at that time trying to understand what was wrong!), or the claim that the LP-E6 battery and relative charger had a function to run a periodical “reconditioning” (now I can’t remember the exact phrase) when the camera prompted the user: when the 5D2 hit the market, this function was not available, but the claim was still there on the Canon USA website, it was removed later. The market rules.

    3) I can’t wait to see what’s in the frying pan! But, my hope is for a brand new lens I’m wishing to see come true since a couple of years now, a 35-70 f/2 obviously L, IS & USM. I already attempted to initiate a talk about this missing one in Canon’s lineup, both here on CR and elsewhere, but nobody seems to share my wish… BUT: a) rumors concerning a f/2 zoom have already been heard here and elsewhere. b) No better place to announce such a lens than WPPI. I’m not a wedding shooter, I’m not even a pro, just a serious amateur who likes walkaround shooting, but I’m sure wedding and indoor sports pros would rejoice having 1 full stop advantage over the 24-70 f/2.8. It is feasible, it could even be slightly lighter and smaller than the 24-70 f/2.8 despite its large f/2 aperture, the only problem is that nobody seems to like a 2x zoom in this range… Why?

    4) I don’t believe this one, at least not FF and not now.

    5) I don’t believe this one either.

    6) Very likely to be true.

    7) In March or for Photokina. More likely Photokina. After all, it is the most important photographic event in 2010, so no better place to announce the new flagship.

    8) Absolutely don’t believe this one. A firmware update for the 5D2 seems to be ready for release, “waiting on the desk and even getting dusty” according to 5D Mark II Team; according to Chuck Westfall, “Canon clearly stated that it would be released during the 1st half of 2010. The release schedule is still on target”. This firmware update will add new video features and, hopefully (but probably won’t), add selectable lower and upper limit for Auto ISO and something else for stills. So, why release a 5D3 “with serious video applications” soon after a firmware update that implements… serious video applications on the 5D2, apart from the fact that it is still selling very well? I think we’ll see the 5D3 no earlier than the 2nd half of 2011.

    9) If the 60D will see the light, and if it’ll have the 18 MP sensor of the 7D and T2i (550D), it MUST have digic V to surpass the 3.7 fps of the T2i.

    10) No comment on this one.

    Cheers!

  28. “There always will remain a huge difference in functionality between a $500 pocketable G-camera with built in 5x or 6x zoom”

    There may be a difference in functionality, but if more people give 50mm equivalent pancake primes a try they may never go back to a small sensor camera with a 5x zoom lens. I find a nifty fifty can handle pretty much anything I can do with a 28-70mm zoom. In fact, standards zooms really don’t make much sense to me at all. My idea “standard zoom” doesn’t need a 5x or 6x range; a 24-50mm f/2.8 would do just fine. That would give me a wide angle perspective and a normal view. My legs would take care of the rest.

    I feel more constricted by having no DOF control then I do by not having a long enough zoom….so I’ll take the larger sensor + fast prime any day of the week. Canon needs to get on board.

  29. Son of Daguerre on

    The Antichrist will need a great camera to document his destruction, and Jesus will need a better camera to snap a photograph of the Antichrist’s severed head!

    So all this camera talk is still apropos.

  30. Kodak used to make sensors and fit them into professional bodies. They have either given up on that, or Canon/Nikon don’t provide the bodies anymore.
    I don’t know where exactly the compacts are made, but I’d bet it is somewhere in the far east. Maybe some of the design is still in the US, but Kodak’s star is sinking. They are nowhere near the dominant position they had 20 years ago.

  31. Son of Daguerre on

    Agreed, but your statement of Their revenge for loosing WW2 is that no new camera will ever be manufactured or designed in the US is false. Jut for the sake of veracity.

  32. The marketing plan of Canon is poor…explain my point of vision, the 7d should have called as 60d. Now the 60d the 60d will have many megapixels? 21 or 18… three cameras with 18 megapixeis?!

    The new 5d markIII will have many megapixels? 32 megapixeis as 1Ds Mark IV one a 7000 euros, other a 2500 euros…

    Photokina announced 1Ds Mark IV.

    5D Mark III august 2011

    60d april/may 2010

  33. Nice to see someone writing an in-depth post!!

    We really think your point # 8 is right.

    The firmware release for 5D Mark II is imminent.

    As posted in our BLOG, it seems Canon is waiting for Nikon’s announcement and then make their own.

    It’s amazing how even high level people in charge can’t tell something without the risk of corporation’s directives change in last moment.

    Probably that’s why there is no CR3 about 1Ds Mark IV either.

  34. SO Japan’s second biggest company is being over take my a small computer company who make a few phones and music player.

    If this is CR1 then this site has zero knowledge about the real world.

  35. I still don’t understand how Canon can launch a 60D without severely cutting into the sales of the 7D. Let’s face it, the 7D should have been called the 60D. The 50D is currently around $1100, if they put the 7D’s image sensor in it, add video, then leave everything else the same as the 50D is the 7D’s upgraded view finder and faster AF really worth the $600-700 more? If they want to fill the gap between the Rebel line and the 7D then they should think about making a small high end DSLR ala the Pentax K7. A magnesium weather sealed Rebel-sized camera with a prism view finder perhaps. At least then we’d have two different body types to choose from…a 60D and a 7D would just be too similar.

    One more thing, I call BS on the rumor that Canon doesn’t care about EVIL’s. They better care because in 5-10 years all these people you see walking around with their Rebels and their kit 18-55mm zooms will be carrying cameras like the Panasonic GF1 instead. I bought my mother an entry level DSLR a few years ago (Sony A200) because she needed something better than a P&S, but she lost all interest in it when I showed her the Olympus E-P1. She may be a DSLR owner for now, but she won’t be after the A200 dies. I imagine a good number of the Rebel crowd feel the same way….they only bought them because there was nothing like an E-P2 out at the time.

  36. Pierlux – I think you’re right. I’m going to stick my neck out and predict new lenses soon (in time for the World Cup), but no new bodies until Photokina. Canon, like all the camera companies, will want a big splash at the year’s biggest event, but we are still in a recession (despite what the politicians say).

    Watch Canon announce the 1Ds Mk IV next week now that I’ve written this!

  37. 60D – 12MP FF (tweak 5D MK I sensor for High ISO & Video), New 11 point AF, price at $1900 US. yes it will affect the 5D MK II but the MK III is on the way, FF 7D price @ $2800 US. 7D price down to $1400 US.

  38. The market value of Apple is 182 billion $ for a revenue of 47 billion $.

    The market value of Canon is 51 billion $ for a revenue of 35 billion $.

    Who’s the giant, who’s the dwarf ?

  39. here’s something for march 10-Focus on Imaging at Birmingham NEC, 7 – 10 March 2010.-could this be where announcement will be made?

  40. 35-70L f2-just not wide enough. I shoot events with 24-70L and I love the ‘walk around’ range. Don’t need to get too close and yet wide enough to capture a big part of the venue. I would rather go to my subject rather than zoom to it.

    My second body 50d has a sigma 10-20 attached for a fun pov. What I find is that many of my clients don’t understand DOF. And would like most of their photos clear throughout a shot.

  41. Missed post or not-it don’t matter. This is the only site I participate on. It’s fun and it takes the stress off in terms of photography and yet I don’t have to talk about composition, lighting, blah blah blah.

    Cr guy great job for CR

  42. whatsthatsmell on

    Thanks for sharing CR Guy. Glad to see you’re not an evil genius bent on making us twist. Good fun having a chance to add out thoughts and rank the rumors.

  43. Charles Bronson on

    Maybe Canon’s focus was keeping it in a certain price bracket and AF was something that had to be dumbed down a bit. Perhaps Nikon had just discovered a more economical way to produce high end AF systems. Maybe it was rushed, who knows.

    I’m looking forward to seeing what’s going to replace the 5DII. The AF system as it is is OK with me. Would a 7D AF system be better? Hell yes. But, it won’t stop me from buying it, that’s for sure.

  44. very ignorant of canon to discard the evil market. could be their undoing especially with samsung willing to listen to the market and the consumers and wanting to dominate the mirror-less camera market.

    Even nikon are apparently listening and will provide a better resolution to ISO to their next cameras

    I feel canon aren’t listening and aren’t doing enough to want their customers feel like they are integrating with the best.

    Canon are coming off as someone who has been on the throne for far too long and thinks that everything they do is best.

    On that note I still like what they are bringing to the table but I think the rest are just doing that little bit more to catch up. LOve competition!

  45. I would be seriously disappointed if a 5D Mark III is released this year. Just seems ridiculous.

    Also, Canon needs to match the ISO of the D3s.

  46. Re the 35-70. As a professional shooter I need the 24-35 range far more than I need the extra stop. In situations where I need the extra light gathering capacity over the flexibility of a zoom, I go for a prime where 1.4 is far better than even f/2.

  47. So what’s wrong with that? Nikon has 9 or 10 12MP cameras and all their fanbois keep repeating that “12MP is enough”, the same way they said “DX is the future” until 2007. :P

  48. No it won’t… 60D will stay APS-C
    There is a clear line which won’t be passed.

    The prosumer line has shifted towards 7D and 5D series.
    Entry and advanced amature level camera’s are now XXXXD towards XXD line.

  49. We have noticed a huge demand for a FF camera that has more advanced features then 5D MKII but will have to cost much less then 1Ds series.

    Therefore a EOS 3D is currently being investigated and tested.

  50. I would be very pleased instead!

    An even better camera then the 5D MKII would be well appreciated by me!

  51. complete redo/replacement of G serie? oh god!
    I think we should worry about this, because the G11 body is not far from being perfect.
    What do we need for G12? no new body, for sure, but mainly sensor enhancement: Keep the 1/1,7″ 10 MPixels, but use a BSI CMOS technology sensor (if a sensor manufacturer would decide to produce a such size BSI CMOS), and you will get a G11 with better sensitivity (less noise at high iso), better speed (10 pictures/sec), a few “secondary functionalities” (HDR, auto panorama…) and HD video…. Most of the drawbacks of G11 corrected.

    This don’t need to redesign completely the Gseries, but just a new sensor and correspondant firmware update.
    Oh! we could also expect a better lense, but i guess that this is technicaly very difficult: if you want more apertune, you’ll get less zoom range or bigger lens (no more a compact camera), or more artifacts… so there is no miracle solution about this… just compromise… this one of the G11 is not so bad…. it’s a good quality and very versatile lense.

  52. It would be nice to see in the future pairs of models with APS-C and FF sensors, but otherwise similar features:

    7D + 7Ds for prosumers, the 7Ds replacing the 5D2.

    60D + 60Ds, the 60D replacing the 50D and the 60Ds a new advanced amateur FF camera

  53. I love the compiled list of rumors.

    While there is a slight mention of big white lenses in this list, it would be cool to compile a list with a emphasis on lens rumors like the nikonrumors admin compiled!

    Thanks for all the work!

  54. We will release the 60D when you show some respect for the honorable and wise former Gov. Palin. PALIN 2012 TEA BAGGERS UNITE!!!

  55. Agreed – you can’t put high level electronics in an entry-level body and call it an enthusiast camera.

  56. Son of Daguerre on

    EOS 60D:

    – 18mp APS-C

    – ISO 100-6400; expandable to 12800

    – 9-point AF; all cross-type

    – 1080/30p,25p,24p; 720&SD/60p,50p

    – Weather sealed like EOS 50D

    – 98%, .98x viewfinder

    – 1,040k 3:2 screen

    – DiG!C 4

    – 6fps burst

    – WFT-E3 II [A]

    Price: $1299; $1649 with EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

  57. I think Canon is smart enough not to get into the EVIL type of market. If you are looking at the micro 4/3rd system now. The only benefit is a smaller size. But that also comes with a high price tag($1500). If you are going to spend $1500, would you spend it on a DSLR or a micro 4/3rd? Also Canon needs to come up with a whole new set of lens for EVIL to keep the size down. And customers are going to pay for the R & D of them. That means the lenses will not be cheap.
    For Olympus and Panasonic, micro 4/3rd is their way to try to be in a nitch market since they cannot complete in DSLR with the Canon and Nikon.
    Also this is another way for them to seel more 4/3rd DSLR lenses (via adapter). Also they can also claim that they have a ‘complete” system with both 4/3rd DSLR and micro 4/3rd.
    As for Samsung have the vision of dominating the mirrorless camera market, I think they maen the point and shoot market, not the micro 4/3rd.

  58. Hope they bring the 60D.
    ATM there is nothing for ppl. who want an xxD body but for whom the 7D is overkill.

    Comme on Canon!

  59. Some rumours have linked a Canon release announcement to March 10th at the Focus show in Birmingham. I have attended Focus on Imaging a number of times over the years. Among other things, it is a fine time for UK photographers to check out equipment, even those items seldom held in stock, among other opportunities. There are usually a number of releases, but I don’t recall any really major equipment launches ever being made there. The last day has a rather laid back feel, with an earlier closing time, retail stalls running out of stock, and most journalists having left. The idea of Canon choosing this setting, on the last day [10th March] in particular, for a major release seems rather implausible.

  60. I’m ‘hoping’ the f2.8 400mm will get a facelift (weight reduction) – any more rumours about the big whites?

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