That’s right – the A300. The photo gearheads acknowledged the announcement of the Sony A200 with a collective sigh and dove head first into rumors of the Sony A300.
Granted, these rumors have their genesis before the official announcement of the A200 – along with rumors of the A900 (or whatever Sony’s flagship will be called). However, the rumor mill has clearly flourished in light of the underwhelming announcement of the A200.
In case you’re not up to speed, Sony announced the A200 on January 6th at CES in Las Vegas. It’s clearly an entry level DSLR at $700 in a kit with the 18-70mm lens. The price and features of the A200 have spurred the suspicion that Sony has got something bigger planned for PMA.
Several Sony gearheads believe that Sony will slot at least one camera, if not two, between the A200 and the prosumer A700. That’s not just smoking rope and talking smack – there’s a method to the madness. The Sony A200 kit rolls in at $700, while the A700 retail is $1500 in the kit (although the street prices are a little lower). That certainly leaves room for an intermediate model at the popular $1000 price point (think Nikon D80).
Some believe that this image, which has been floating around the internet, is a shot of the foldout screen on the A300. It sure does look familiar. Take a look at the small tabs on the top and bottom of the LCD panel. Now compare those to the notches that you see above and below the A200’s LCD panel (below).
Similarities? Yeah, that and more. Take a close look at the button configuration. The layout appears the same as the A200, meaning it may be the same housing fitted to some upgraded components. Note the button in the top right corner of the purported A300 shot. Many believe that this may be a “Live View” button. Of course, the A300 shot also includes the battery grip.
Speaking of battery grips, the product number for the A200-compatible battery grip is VG-B30AM. Seems rather innocent until you consider that the product number for the A700’s battery grip is VG-B70AM. Why not name it the VG-B20AM if it’s for the A200?
A little deductive reasoning that you got from that college class your sophomore year leads to the assumption that the VG-B30AM is really made for the A300; however, since the A200 and the A300 share the same housing, the VG-B30AM also works on the little brother A200. Sure, that could all be smoke and mirrors. But where’s the fun in that?
Dan Richards over at Pop Photo has added a little more fuel to the fire with his comment in the A200 First Look stating, “And for those who were hoping for yet another slam-bang Sony introduction, we can only say: Keep checking PopPhoto.com.”
Are we onto something here? I dunno. My guess is that Sony has more in store for the photo gearheads at PMA. Stay tuned.
UPDATES
1/28/08: Leaked photos from SonyStyle.com of the A300. (Read more)
[tags]sony, a300, a200, rumors, news, announcement[/tags]