It’s taken some time, but mirrorless technology has finally begun to surpass the DSLR and now Canon/Nikon are trying to catch up. Ted Forbes has put together a great video explaining how and why mirrorless technology surpassed the DSLR, which he breaks down into 5 parts.
- Sensor
- Processor
- Software
- Power
- Lens Design
In the first 4 categories, Sony has some very clear advantages since they manufacture most of the hardware inside today’s best cameras regardless of manufacturer. They also have a very efficient model for moving their hardware forward that allows for experimentation since Sony has decided to focus on 3 high-end sensors the 42MP (High Resolution), 24MP (Standard) and 12MP (Low Light) sensors used inside the a7 series of cameras. Sony also creates a variety of APS-C and 1-inch sensors that advance in a very different way, but Sony experiments far more with their cellphone chips than them.
Sony is set up to innovate, but lens design is still arguably their only area of weakness. It’s taken Sony a long time to catch up with Nikon/Canon designing lenses and they still have work to do, but most Sony lenses are second to none when they are launched. Yes Sony has some amazing glass, but they need to provide more options going forward if they really want to knock out Canon/Nikon.
