The Sony A9S is gunning for the Canon EOS R5, with 8K that doesn't overheat – and it'll be here in time for the Olympics
UPDATE 04/11: New rumors regarding the upcoming Sony A9 camera (possibly to be called the Sony A9S) have surfaced. Apparently, the final price point has not yet been officially set by Sony. However, it is said to be considering a price around the $4,999 mark. This is a slightly more conservative figure than the previously rumored $5,999, but it's still a good chunk of cash.
We've also heard, via Sony Alpha Rumors, that this upcoming Sony camera could be announced on 11 January at the virtual CES show. However, it's also been mentioned that the second wave of COVID-19 could potentially push back the announcement. Either way, the leaks are flowing thick and fast for the Sony A9S, so we wouldn't be surprised to see more information leaked soon…
ORIGINAL STORY: This new camera is rumored to be the Sony A9S – part of the A9 flagship line, but not a direct successor to the current A9 products. This Sony A9S will feature a sensor in the 50MP range to enable its 8K 30p capture, which is intended to outperform the Canon EOS R5 with no recording limits, and features AF and other tech from the Sony A7S III. The manufacturer is keen to release it early next year in time for the Olympics, where it will be used by pros alongside the Sony A9 II for stills.
Intriguingly, the latest leak from Sony Alpha Rumors describes the video as being an “infant” 8K mode, and that "there will be limitations in the quality you can record internally", suggesting that it may possess fewer bitrate and RAW options than the 8K offered by the EOS R5.
ORIGINAL STORY (24 Sep): Do you have a big bag of salt in your kitchen? Well, go and take a great big pinch of it, because here's a crazy rumor for you: Sony could be set to unleash a new 8K camera early next year for $5,999.
In what could be positioned as a Canon EOS R5 killer, the Sony 8K body will be a "a new top of the line camera" with a large, professional form factor, a never before seen sensor and some of the new benchmarks from the Sony A7S III, such as the 9.4 million-dot electronic viewfinder and the improved menu system.
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The reports make no mention of the supposed sensor size, though like the R5 it will need to be in the 45MP region in order to pack enough pixels for 8K capture. Thus it will obviously far eclipse the 12.1MP of the video-oriented A7S III, but will likely clock in at a lower resolution than the 61MP Sony A7R IV.
While some have taken to referring to this 8K monster as the Sony A9 III, we don't think that's the right fit. People have likely taken the "top of the line camera" description to mean 'flagship camera', but the specs just don't stack up.
After all, the A9 is the Sony's flagship professional camera line for sports and newsgathering – its USP is having blazing-fast burst shooting and killer autofocus, not in capturing obscenely hi-res images (which is actually counter-productive for sports and news pros). Not to mention that the Sony A9 II only came out last year!
Is Sony really gunning for the Canon EOS R5 with its own 8K camera already? (Image credit: Canon)
Instead, we see this fitting a similar category to the Canon EOS R5: a powerful hybrid camera that can be used for advanced 8K videography as well as high-resolution photography. And if it can record 8K without overheating, that's one huge advantage over the R5.
An equally huge advantage will be that Sony will no doubt employ its pixel-shift technology to quadruple the resolution, just as the A7R IV's 61MP sensor could produce 240MP images. So if we assume that the new camera has the same 45MP resolution as the R5, Sony's clever tech could potentially produce 180MP shots.
Of course, this is speculation on top of speculation; these wild specs, leaked by Photo Rumors, could be completely untrue. However, they're pretty exciting:
• Bigger and truly pro body
• 9.44M dots EVF
• Newly developed sensor
• 8K video recording with no overheating
• Dual card slots
• New menu systems from A7S III
• IBIS with Steady shot active mode
• Everything about this camera is new
• Price $5,999
Does Canon's groundbreaking camera have to start looking over its shoulder already, or is this rumor too good to be true?
James has 22 years experience as a journalist, serving as editor of Digital Camera World for 6 of them. He started working in the photography industry in 2014, product testing and shooting ad campaigns for Olympus, as well as clients like Aston Martin Racing, Elinchrom and L'Oréal. An Olympus, Canon and Hasselblad shooter, he has a wealth of knowledge on cameras of all makes.
