In Depth: Sony a99 rumours: what you need to know

In Depth: Sony a99 rumours: what you need to know:

Sony has impressed with its DSLT technology, which essentially uses a fixed translucent mirror and, amongst other things, offers faster autofocus speeds.

Launching the technology with the a55, back in 2010, Sony has yet to produce anything for professional users, sticking with traditional SLRs to satisfy their needs.

But, rumours are abound that a full-frame DSLT camera, possibly called the Alpha 99, could be on the market any day now, so here, on this continually updated page, we will be keeping track of all the latest rumours.

Sony a99 specs

Other than having a full-frame sensor, what can we expect from the Sony a99?

There have been several suggestions that the camera will feature a 24 million pixel sensor. However, given that it's very likely that Sony manufactures the Nikon D800's 36 million pixel sensor, we wouldn't be surprised if the a99 shared a similar resolution.

There has also been a suggestion that "pixel binning" will be making its way onto Sony compact cameras. This essentially means that a cluster of pixels are combined together, effectively making a smaller number of larger pixels, and perhaps Sony will also use this technology on its next SLT.

This should mean that in practice that image noise is reduced, and is perhaps the reason why an a99 camera may have a lower resolution sensor than expected.

SonyAlphaRumors has suggested that the a99 will have the ability to shoot ISO 100-25,600, expandable down to ISO 50 and all the way up to a whopping ISO 102, 500.

With most professional level cameras now offering increased sensitivity capability, we consider this to be a very likely feature.

Of course, if Sony does release a pro-level SLT, it will be the first full-frame camera to feature an electronic viewfinder.

Sony a99 release date

Most rumours point to an announcement date of August or early September for the a99.

This would make sense considering the last major DSLT announcements from Sony came in August, and the Photokina photography trade show is due to take place in September.

It would also be in-line with Sony's announcement of the Sony a900, which came in September 2008.

Sony a99 price

Currently, the highest specced Sony SLT camera, the Sony Alpha 77 retails for around £1500, which is significantly more than its enthusiast competitors, the Nikon D7000 and Canon EOS 7D.

With the recently announced Nikon D800 costing around £2400 (RRP), it seems likely that Sony will want to compete well in terms of price with this camera.

However, it's worth remember that the Nikon D4 flagship model will retail for around £5000, so perhaps we will see an a99 price point falling somewhere between the two points.

Keep following for more information on any Sony a99 release date as and when it happens.

Source : Google Reader