A7S III - coming soon?

We shall have to see how serious Sony is with this...

- Will it have 4K 10-bit 4:2:2 recording ?

- Will it have unlimited recording in all formats ?

- Will it have IBIS that is competitive with Panasonic's cameras ?

I think it's a given that it will have great eye-AF because that's Sony's strongest card right now.
 
I would be surprised if we ever see one in the A7 series body style. 4K 10-bit 422 is a massive increase in processing power over 8-bit 420. Especially in FF. The higher the bit rate and processing requirements are the hotter things run. I think it would need to be a whole new larger body design to specifically handle those sorts generated heat issues. You just have to be shooting 4K 10-bit 422 with the FS7 and realize even with its much bigger body and smaller S35 sensor that it gets hot enough to run a built in fan a fan over a pretty big copper heat sink. The FX9 has some pretty serious heat control measures in its much larger than A7 body apparently and I can't see all that being incorporated into a smaller A7 body. IMHO, highly unlikely.

Chris Young
 
The DIY article is incorrect in suggesting that it's a video geared sensor. It can do stills as well. 60 MPX is nothing to sneeze at.

And it can do 12-bit.

I have a hunch that the cartel will try to beat the next generation of smartphones to the PR punch. Samsung 108 MPX Gal 11 is supposed to be announced in February and shipping by March-April. As a hint for the video pros, this won't change much. For the upscale smartphone users, it will change less than that.

PS. This is a supposed leaked image of A7SIII (or IV) - https://www.instagram.com/p/B6AG71hjAMi/
 
Just to add - Nikon Z6 now has 12-bit Raw ($200 upgrade) via HDMI to Atomos Ninja external recorder/monitor. The combo runs ~ $2,600 as of now (Ninja was discounted down to $500 earlier his month). This sets a pretty decent measuring stick for A7SIII/IV. It won't be able to get away with 8-bit codec at ~ $2,500 price point. And it can't go down to $2,000 either because that's where A7IV will be.

Likewise, S1 got its 10-bit+Vlog upgrade last July and Panasonic GH-5 had 10-bit 422 since its release (btw, GH-5 is being heavily discounted, indicating that GH-6 is about to be announced). And S1 is being offered at $2,100 right now.

Stranger things have happened and there are plenty of ways to cripple a camera but SIII/IV certainly looks to have the chops.
 
The 1DX III is getting 422 10-bit + internal raw and the EOS R(x) I'd expect to get 10-bit 422 as well: these cameras need to be able to produce content for HDR TVs. The A7S III will likely get at least 10-bit 422. ~60MP Quad Bayer should create really nice 4K- no word yet on RS, DR, or phase detect pixels (there was a comment about PD missing in leaked specs). I'm willing to get another A7S and invest in Sony glass again, however if Sony gimps it in any way, forget it, will stick with Canon and maybe someday ARRI will produce a great AF capable compact camera similar to Red's upcoming Komodo :)
 
Canon RF-mount, especially if it's photo oriented with a supposed 75 MPX sensor, will have either a crop (more likely) or a bin and potentially both. The company might release a C-100 MKIII for video shooters, likely also in RF. Currently, they have no video units in RF, so they may as well get moving in that sector. Their current RF options in RP ($999) and R ($1,500) are being blown out the door.

The 1DX family might get two cameras, as an homage to 1D C, with a sports/action and videocentric features. The technology does allow it to be a single camera these days, however. Its size might be a disadvantage and it's expected to be an EF piece.

Sony might have to cripple some features in A7SIII/IV, as per agreement with its partners/competitors, and it will probably be in the auto focus rather than the codec department. That would be a shame, since their AI AF is deemed the best in the business. The rolling shutter at 15 MPX video should be quite manageable.

And ARRI doesn't bother with trifling matters. Their current roadmap is getting a new 6K/8K sensor out at full frame. A recent video implied that they're working on it.
 
I'm curious as to what people actually want from the A7S III. I mean, there's always "I want more" just because why not, but what makes you say gee, "I really needed *this* from my A7S II and it doesn't have it, this is a serious limitation". For example, the 30 minute recording limit - how often do you find yourself needing more than 30 minutes? Do you regularly record events where the camera has to record for longer than 30 minutes? How many such users do you think exist? Of a 1000 buyers of the A7S III how many would find the 30 minute recording time the thing that pushed them to buy it? Or alternatively, how many of those 1000 buyers would not buy the A7S III unless it no longer was limited to 30 minutes recording time... I suspect there are very, very few such users - maybe in the hundreds at most, so how much effort is Sony going to put into removing the 30 minute limit to get those few hundred buyers - does it make economic sense in return on R&D, or just marketing?

And so on. What are you desperately missing from the A7S II that's a dealbreaker, and absolutely must have in the A7S III? How exactly is the II limiting you today?
 
The 30-min limit is one of those Euro tax things.

As to what people might want, I'll speculate that among them will be -- S1H dynamic range, top notch auto focus, internal compressed Raw a la CRL (X-OCN), CFexpress, plus more menu options (i.e., the ability to set up own screens), plus personal preferences.
 
A7S II missing, needed features (had one (and the A7S I), now 100% Canon):

1. DPAF level (eye) AF: up to par with Canon and Sony's other recent cameras
2. 10-bit
3. A7x III/IV level skin tones (ideally S Cinetone or better)
4. True 4K (e.g. 6K => 4K level real resolution. 60MP Quad Bayer should be fine for 4K)
5. Latest DR / lowlight (BSI sensor etc.)
6. Significantly lower RS
7. Better battery life
8. Flippy screen

The Canon EOS R does much of this, though some of it's gimped (4K crop + soft) or requires ext. recorder (10-bit). The EOS R is fine for what I'm currently shooting. This list represents what Sony's got to deliver if they want a sale.
 
Sony's been putting a different color filer array into their cameras for the last few years, beginning with A6300. That said, to me, the footage looks better with the Zeiss rather than Sony's own glass.
 
Sony has a CES related presser on the 6th. It could be a bridge RX-10V.

The next likely announcement will be at the end of February for the CP+, which should be a reveal of A7IV (A7III is being heavily discounted).

A7SIII/IV or something in that vein could turn out to be a hoax (going around lately). But I think whatever it is might be shown at PhotoKina in Köln at the end of May. If Sony promised some exclusivity/non-compete to Panasonic for S1H, then the one year window ends at the end of summer 2020. S1H was announced at the end of May 2019, so Sony could follow the same schedule. As it is, they don't have a videocentric hybrid - what with A7III being 8-bit and FX-6 being priced much higher - in the $2,500 range aside of an ancient A7SII.

PS. Of course, Sony could surprise everyone and make A7IV an S1 competitor ... but it probably won't.
 
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Got the A7RIV, and with the K3M it’s a pretty complete package, far better than the A7SII in usability, IQ, battery life, and of course, AF. The big feature I’ve never seen mentioned is custom video file naming... that alone saves a silly amount of time in post.

It lacks in absence of 10-bit anything (not a huge deal since 95% of my work winds up on the web anyway, but would be a nice option), and maxing out at 4K30.

The absolute fantasy would be a DSLM camera taking 2 XQD cards and recording to the XAVC-I codecs, that also replaces the opaque shutter with Sony’s electronic VND. NDs are about the only major usability headache with these cameras now... with the outlandish sensitivity of the A7S#, I don’t see why it wouldn’t be feasible to even just plop one fixed in front of the sensor.
 
FWIW, Nikon has upgraded their Z's via firmware to accept CFexpress cards (they have the same pin layout as the XQD), which looks to be a trend.
 
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