Canon Top Japanese Company in USA Patent Ranking (for the 9th year)

Canon

Canon tops among Japanese companies in U.S. patent rankings for ninth consecutive year

TOKYO, January 15, 2014—Canon Inc. again ranked first among Japanese companies and third overall for the number of U.S. patents awarded in 2013, according to the latest ranking of preliminary patent results issued by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services on January 14, 2014.

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.

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Canon Releases Firmware Update For Rebel T5i/EOS 700D (ver. 1.1.3)

Firmware Update

Canon has released a firmware update for the [shoplink 11242]Rebel T5i/EOS 700D[/shoplink].

Download the new Firmware Version 1.1.3

Details
Firmware Version 1.1.3 incorporates the following fixes:

1. Fixes a phenomenon in which the camera displays Err01 or Err60, or in rare instances will lock-up when in Live View shooting mode (or Movie shooting mode) when attached to the following STM zoom lenses: EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM, EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM, EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM.

2. Corrects some Korean language misspellings displayed on the menu screen.

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Canon Powershot G1X Mark II Specification May Have Leaked

This was posted to Chinese Xitek forum (translated) back in November 2013 by a user claiming these are the specs of the successor of the Canon [shoplink 1785]PowerShot G1 X[/shoplink], the “G1 X Mark II” (unusual moniker for a compact camera):

  • Same design as the G1X, with a slightly longer lens
  • DIGIC 6 Image Processor
  • 24 – 120mm f/2.8-5.8 lens
  • 20.2MP 1.5″ CMOS sensor
  • New optical zoom viewfinder with better image quality
  • 3.0″ LCD touch screen with 922,000 dots

The camera could indeed be announced for CP+.

Take this with a big grain of salt, although it is true that in the past there have been leaks on Xitek.

The Powershot G1 X is somewhat unique in the overall Canon line-up. The G1 X features a sensor that is 20% smaller than the sensors Canon uses in APS-C DSLRs, and it is a bit larger than the 4/3  size used by Olympus and Panasonic, and it is more than 4x the size of the Fujifilm X10‘s sensor.

Canon PowerShot G1 X price check: [shopcountry 1785] [via TNC]

Zeiss Apo Sonnar T* 2/135 ZE DxOMarked (ultra-high performer)

 

Sonnar T* 2/135

DxOMark reviewed the Zeiss Apo Sonnar T* 2/135 ZE lens, a luxury, manual focus lens that sells for over $2000.

The lens was tested on a [shoplink 2431]Canon EOS 5D Mark III[/shoplink]. This is a “ultra-high performer”, the [shoplink 15999]Zeiss Apo Sonnar T* 2/135[/shoplink]

[…] achieves an excellent DxOMark score of 38 points putting in first place in our rankings of fixed focal length telephoto lenses on the Canon EOS 5D Mk III in our database.

DxOMark’s conclusion:

The Zeiss Sonnar T* 2/135 is the best corrected and sharpest lens of its type in this focal length, and it’s also one of the best performing model we’ve seen so far on the Canon EOS 5D Mk III.

But, it’s up against tough competition from the Canon EF 135mm f2L USM. Not only is that lens close in optical performance it’s lighter, smaller and has the additional flexibility of auto-focus. It’s also more accessible in terms of pricing.

Be that as it may, the Zeiss is a superb performer optically and appears good value when compared to other models from the company.

Indeed, the Zeiss score better than equivalent or similar Canon lenses.

Zeiss Apo Sonnar T* 2/135 ZE: [shopcountry 15999] [via DxOMark]

How To Get The Canon EOS M2 Wherever You Are (not just in Asia)

[shoplink 18353 ebay]EOS M2[/shoplink]

Despite the fact that the EOS M2 has been released only for the China and Japan market you can get it shipped wherever you are located. You can via eBay.

Top rated plus eBay seller matsuiyastore (99.8% positive ratings) sells and ships the EOS M2 world-wide.

  • Canon EOS M2 body for [shoplink 18353 ebay]$748 (click here)[/shoplink]
  • Canon EOS M2 + EF-M 22 mm f/2 STM + EF-M 18-55mm IS STM for [shoplink 18354 ebay]$998 (click here)[/shoplink]
  • Canon EOS M2 + EF-M 22 mm f/2 STM + EF-M 18-55mm IS STM + EF-M 11-22mm IS STM for [shoplink 18355 ebay]$1298 (click here)[/shoplink]

This appears to be a serious eBay seller with a very good feedback. I am listing US prices, but you have just to click on the links above to see the price for your country.

EOS M2 specs:

  • 18-Mpix APS-C format CMOS sensor
  • ISO 100-12,800 (ISO 25,600 extended)
  • 4.6 fps burst mode with continuous AF
  • 3.0-inch 1.04k-Dot LCD
  • Full HD 1080 video capture at 30/25/24 fps
  • Advanced Hybrid AF System
  • Built-In WiFi
[via photoblogue]