Top 10 new camera rumours for 2010

1) 24-megapixel Nikon D700X
Rumours of a higher resolution version of the Nikon D700 were circulating as early as February 2009, and Nikon certainly needs to act quickly to keep up with the Canon EOS 5D MkII. The D700’s 12-megapixel sensor may be great at high ISOs, but the difference in resolution compared to the 21-megapixel EOS 5D MkII is painful. At the top end of the range, Nikon’s split its original D3 into a high-resolution model (D3X) and high-speed version (D3S). Logic suggests the venerable D700 is now ripe for the same treatment. Some sources suggest the D700 won’t get the same 24-megapixel sensor as the D3X in case it undermines its sales, guessing at 18MP or so instead, but Nikon didn’t worry about that when it launched the D700 alongside the D3, so why would it worry now?


2) APS-C format Canon PowerShot G12

Canon showed with the PowerShot G11 that it wasn’t afraid to step back from the brink in the megapixel war, and the G11’s improved high ISO performance and excellent definition prove what everyone’s been saying all along – that you can’t increase megapixels without increasing the sensor size. And it could be that the G11 is only an interim measure for Canon and a stepping stone towards a much more radical camera, and that an APS-C format PowerShot is on the way. That’s not such a wild idea. Olympus and Panasonic have shown the level of interest which exists in larger-format compacts, and Samsung’s been bouncing around the NX concept camera for a while now. We think it’s not a question of if, but when.


3) Canon EOS 1Ds Mk IV

Once, the position of Canon’s EOS 1Ds was unassailable. Now it’s under threat both from rivals (Nikon D3X, Sony Alpha a900) and its own stablemate the EOS 5D MkII which, let’s not forget, has the same resolution as the 1Ds and an HD movie mode. A new version of the 1Ds is long overdue and some sources are suggesting it may have a radical new square 36 x 36mm sensor. This would retain compatibility with Canon’s EF lenses but offer a larger image area and the advantages of classic square medium format cameras (flexibility in cropping, no need to rotate the camera for different orientations). If Canon took this bold step it would be a showstopper, but at the very least we should expect an increase in resolution and a full HD movie mode.


4) Nikon D7000

Nikon’s been refreshing its non-professional D-SLR range and the D90 is the last of the old guard left. Technically, there’s little wrong with it, but the model name and some of the features are out of step with the camera below it. The D5000 is cheaper, for example, but has the same sensor and an articulating LCD. We’re not expecting any increase in resolution because Nikon’s only just launched the 12-megapixel D300S, so we predict a cosmetic redesign and a few routine updates. The logical name for the new model is the D7000 and we expect a larger body than the D5000 but an articulating 3-inch 920,000 pixel LCD and some carefully-judged performance advantages. Nikon will be aiming for the D90’s existing market – advanced amateurs who want professional levels of quality and features but in a lighter and less expensive form than the D300S.


5) Fujifilm S7 Pro

Fujifilm launched its high dynamic range SuperCCD SR sensor in 2003 but chose its compact cameras as a test bed before incorporating it into a digital SLR, the FinePix S3 Pro. This was a great camera and the subsequent S5 Pro (which shared the same sensor) was even better. Now Fujifilm has moved on, developing its new high-resolution, high-sensitivity, high dynamic range EXR sensor. This has successfully debuted in a range of compact cameras (F70EXR, S200EXR) and if history’s any guide we can expect an EXR SLR in 2010. Is Fujifilm still interested in the D-SLR market? If so, what are the odds of a brand new 24/12-megapixel S7 Pro?


6) Panasonic G2/GH2

Panasonic’s proved the worth of the Micro Four Thirds sensor with the G1, the GH1 and the GF1, but is that 12-megapixel sensor enough? In 2010 we think we’re going to see Panasonic (and Olympus) upping the stakes. So what’s it to be – 14 megapixels, 15, 16? There’s nowhere to go with the sensor size, after all, but there is scope for improvement in resolution, build, continuous shooting speed and features for pros. We could see G-series cameras diversifty into different sectors of the market in the same way as Olympus has developed a whole range of Four Thirds digital SLRs. Panasonic has to move quickly because there’s no reason why APS-C sensors can’t be used in compacts too.


7) Samsung NX

The problem for Samsung is that it announced the NX so long ago, and so little has happened since, that the press and the public alike have rather gone off the boil. In the meantime, Olympus and Panasonic have debuted their rather good Micro Four Thirds cameras and kickstarted this new hybrid market on their own, so that by the time the NX does arrive its newsworthiness may be limited. The main features are known already: an APS-C format sensor in a mirrorless body with an electronic viewfinder and interchangeable lens system. The precise details won’t be known until the launch, but the best guess at the moment seems to be 14.6MP, HD movies and a bespoke lens system.


8) Olympus E-5

It looks as if we can expect a new Olympus D-SLR body in 2010, but will it be a replacement for the ageing E-3 pro SLR or yet another mid-range/enthusiasts body? Most of the Olympus news has concerned its mid-range cameras and Micro Four Thirds, but the company has also invested heavily over the years in its professional lens range, so it would be a suprise if it gave up on this sector of the market just yet. And yet the current E-3 relies on Olympus’s old 10-megapixel MOS sensor, which is nowhere near as good as the 12-megapixel sensor in the newer models, so it badly needs a refresh. So will we get a new pro Olympus body? And, even more interestingly, will it be a Four Thirds SLR or a mirrorless Micro Four Thirds ‘SLR’ instead?


9) Nikon APS-C compact

We’ve heard rumours of a Canon APS-C compact but there’s also talk of a 12-megapixel Nikon APS-C model too, though none of it’s coming from Nikon. The rumours appear to originate from comments made by a Leica representative discussing the sensor in the Leica X1 and have been seized upon and extrapolated by digital camera forums around the world. But is it such a wild guess? In fact, isn’t it a little surprising that Nikon hasn’t made a 12-megapixel APS-C compact already? If Canon does come up with an APS-C sized PowerShot next year, then all eyes will quickly turn to Nikon. Let’s not forget that Nikon was once just as famous for rangefinder cameras as SLRs. Olympus isn’t the only camera maker with an illustrious non-SLR heritage ripe for exploiting.


10) Sony Cyber-shot R2

Sony’s short-lived Cyber-shot R1 was launched in 2005 and disappeared off the radar not long after that as mainstream digital SLRs captured the public’s imagination instead. But it was a remarkable camera with a 10-megapixel APS-C sized CMOS sensor and 5x 24-120mm Carl Zeiss zoom with no mirror but an articulating LCD and full time live view. It was ahead of its time, and we wonder if Sony knows it. What if Sony is planning a new version? Let’s call it the Sony Cyber-shot R2. Let’s say it has a 12x fixed (non-interchangeable) 12x super-wideangle zoom, articulating 3-inch 920,000 pixel LCD, 1.4-megapixel EVF, full HD movies and the 10fps continuous shooting and sweep panorama modes of the Cyber-shot HX1. Interesting, eh?