Canon Dominates DSLR, Mirrorless and Lens Market In Japan

Mirrorless
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BCN posted their annual “BCN Awards” and look who is ranked on top for the mirrorless and DSLR market. It appears to be true that there is life in the old dog.

Canon ranks first for DSLR and mirrorless market shares in 2018.

DSLR market shares:

  1. Canon – 57.4% share
  2. Nikon – 39.3% share
  3. Ricoh – 3.1% share

Mirrorless market share:

  1. Canon – 31.6% share
  2. Olympus – 23.5% share
  3. Sony – 22.7% share

Canon’s success in the mirrorless market is mostly because of the commercial success of the EOS M50, and also to some minor degree thanks to the new EOS R. It’s interesting to see that Nikon doesn’t show up among the first three players in the MILC market. Surprisingly the so much touted Sony mirrorless systems are not getting that much love in Japan.

Nikon still ranks first for compact cameras with 31.5%, followed by Canon with 29.8% and Sony with 11.9%.

Canon also ranks first for sold lenses with 20.7%, followed by Sigma with 15.7% and Nikon with 13.7%.

Below you see how Canon’s market share in the mirrorless market evolved since 2016.

Not bad for a company so heavily criticised. I’m curios to know how much market share Canon will gain this year because they are clearly headed to lead the market.

Lexar Made The World’s First 1TB SD Memory Card (preorder at $400)

Lexar
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Press release:

Lexar Announces 1TB 633x SDXC™ UHS-I card, the behemoth of storage capacity.

You can preorder the Lexar 1TB memory card for $399.99 at B&H Photo and Adorama

Key Messages:

  • Leverages Class 10 UHS-I (U3, V30) technology for a read transfer speed up to 95MB/s (633x)*
  • Capture high quality images and extended lengths of stunning 1080p full-HD, 3D, and 4K video**
  • Enjoy shooting longer without changing cards with this high-capacity 1TB memory card
  • High-speed file transfer from card to computer to dramatically accelerate workflow

San Jose, USA, January 9, 2019 – Lexar, a leading global brand of flash memory solutions, today announced the new Lexar® Professional 633x SDXC™ UHS-I card with 1 terabyte (1TB) of memory.

Shoot and record more of what you love without changing cards with this high-capacity 1TB memory card that supplies the space you need for capturing all the action. Designed for your mid-range DSLR, HD camcorder, or 3D camera, the Lexar® Professional 633x SDXC™ UHS-I card lets you quickly capture, and transfer high-quality photos and stunning 1080p full-HD, 3D, and 4K video**, with read speeds of up to 633x (95MB/s)*. This Class 10 card leverages UHS-I technology to deliver high-speed performance to get the shot you want, while providing the reliability you need.

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Nikon’s Updated Nikkor Z Lenses Roadmap (For FF MILCs)

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Nikon released this new updated Nikon Z lens roadmap. And it contains quite some changes compared to the original Photokina roadmap

NikonEye sums it up:

1) First we now know that these lenses will come in 2020:

  • 20 mm f/1,8 S
  • 50 mm f/1,2 S
  • 14-24 mm f/2,8 S

2) The 24mm f/1.8 will be released in 2019 instead of the previously suggested 2020 release

3) In 2020 we will get additional four TBA (to be announced) lenses instead of the previous three

4) In 2021 we will Nikon will announce 7 lenses instead of the previous 8

We expect Canon to release at least three new lenses for the EOS R mirrorless camera system in 2019.

Canon Waits For User Feedback To Further Develop EOS R, EOS M and DSLR, New RF Lenses To Be Announced Soon, 8K Model On Its Way

Canon Eos R Firmware Update
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Imaging Resource’s Dave Etchells interviewed Canon execs about the EOS R system.

The interview discusses various topics related to the EOS R development, to Canon’s market strategy, and future plans. Some excerpts:

DE: Canon continues to offer many capable and high-end DSLR cameras. Do you expect to continue with similar R&D expenditures on DSLR cameras and lenses in the immediate future, or will resources be shifted toward the EOS R system and future mirrorless cameras and lenses?

Canon Inc: It’s a bit too early to make that decision. While we have heard a lot of positive feedback on our EOS R System and wishes for its future, we saw very strong demand [for] DSLRs including 5D Mark IV, 6D Mark II, 80D and Rebel series during the holiday shopping season. Also, the EOS M50 has been very popular since its launch.

Canon offers a wider range of cameras and lenses over any other brand to meet various demands of our customers. Currently, we are simultaneously developing new products in the DSLR family, EOS R series and EOS M series. The most important 

When asked if Canon has a clear plan for the future development of the EOS R, EOS M and DSLR systems, the answer was that they are waiting to hear from customers to learn where to focus.

More statements from Canon execs:

[…] sales performance of EOS R camera and RF lenses is almost in line with our original expectation. We have gotten a huge amount of positive feedback on the RF lenses. Everyone who has tried the RF 50mm F1.2 has loved it.

We developed the EOS R System for the next 30 years, and started by introducing higher-end RF lenses. Yes, we are very serious about mirrorless. But please do not get the wrong impression, we will continue to enhance DSLR technology and products as well.

Video will play a huge role in the EOS R System for sure. For example, an 8K video capable camera is already in our EOS R-series roadmap

Canon execs also confirmed that the company is already developing the next RF lenses, and from the wording used it seems clear that the announcement isn’t far away. And as you can read above, Canon has an EOS R model with 8K video on their agenda.

There is a lot to grab from this interesting interview, and I guess it killed a lot of possible EOS R rumors for the next months.

Canon EOS R world-wide order links:

America: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA
Europe & UK: Amazon DE, Amazon UK, Amazon IT, Canon IT, WEX Photographic, Canon FR, Canon UK, Canon DE

Canon RF mount lenses world-wide order links:

America: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA
Europe & UK: Amazon DE, Amazon UK, Amazon IT, Canon IT, WEX Photographic, Canon FR, Canon UK, Canon DE

Canon Ranked Among Top Five In U.S. Patent Rankings For 33 Years Running

Top 10 Cameras Canon Rumors Full Frame Mirrorless Camera Canon Eos R Pro Eos R Canon Lens Explorers Of Light
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We cover Canon patent applications, listed here.

Press release:

Canon places top five in U.S. patent rankings for 33 years running and first among Japanese companies for fourteen years running

TOKYO, January 8, 2019—Canon Inc. ranked third for the number of U.S. patents awarded in 2018, becoming the only company in the world to have ranked in the top five for 33 years running, according to the latest ranking of preliminary patent results issued by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services. What’s more, Canon once again ranked first among Japanese companies.

Canon actively promotes the globalization of its business and places great value on obtaining patents overseas, carefully adhering to a patent-filing strategy that pursues patents in essential countries and regions while taking into consideration the business strategies and technology and product trends unique to each location. Among these, the United States, with its many high-tech companies and large market scale, represents a particularly important region in terms of business expansion and technology alliances.

Canon U.S. patent rankings 2005–2018

YearOverall 
ranking		Ranking among 
Japanese companies		No. of patents
20183rd1st3,056
20173rd1st3,285
20163rd1st3,665
20153rd1st4,127
20143rd1st4,048
20133rd1st3,820
20123rd1st3,173
20113rd1st2,818
20104th1st2,551
20094th1st2,200
20083rd1st2,107
20073rd1st1,983
20063rd1st2,366
20052nd1st1,829
  • Note:Number of patents for 2016 to 2018 are based on figures released by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services. Figures for 2005 to 2015 are based on information issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Canon promotes the acquisition and application of intellectual property rights, not only for fundamental technologies required for next-generation products, but also such technologies as the wireless communication and image compression technologies shared by next-generation social infrastructure. Canon contributes to the realization of technology that serves society by continuing to provide even better products, greater convenience and by contributing to the development of manufacturing.

Sigma 70mm F/2.8 DG Macro Art Lens Review (DPReview)

Sigma 70mm F/2.8 DG Macro Art
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Sigma 70mm F/2.8 DG Macro Art at a glance:

  • EF-Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format
  • Aperture Range: f/2.8 to f/22
  • Two FLD Elements, Two SLD Elements
  • Low Dispersion and Aspherical Elements
  • Super Multi-Layer Coating
  • 1:1 Magnification, 10.2″ Min. Focus
  • Coreless DC AF Motor, Manual Override
  • Weather-Sealed, Brass Bayonet Mount
  • Rounded 9-Blade Diaphragm
  • Compatible with Sigma USB Dock

DPReview TV’s Chris and Jordan test Sigma’s latest macro lens, the 70mm F2.8 DG Macro Art. Find out why they like it.

Sigma 70mm F/2.8 DG Macro Art:

America: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA
Europe & UK: Amazon DE, Amazon UK, Amazon IT, Canon IT, WEX Photographic, Canon FR, Canon UK, Canon DE