Rewrite the Technological Landscape

When the news of Kodak DCS Pro 14n spread on the Internet, there was a heated discussion in the industry. At least on Fengxin, the search volume of the words photography and Kodak has increased significantly.

There are shocks, surprises, expectations, and of course doubts, but Kodak’s industry status is there. Although Kodak said at the press conference that this camera will not be officially released until next year, everyone still believes in him. This is the power of the brand. The important thing is that in 2002, the Internet had just developed, and the phenomenon of commercial blackmail through public opinion was not so serious.

However, the excitement of consumers puts pressure on other manufacturers. Kodak’s 13.5 million effective pixels must be surpassed by no one, and the past history is also true. Kodak is relying on this camera to return to the high-end market in the digital age Yes, there is no second company that can produce such a high pixel.

Fortunately, pixels are not the only criterion for distinguishing a good camera from a bad one. Some companies have to temporarily adjust their strategies and prepare to show other advantages as much as possible at their press conferences.

On August 3, Fuji released two cameras at the press conference, one is Fuji F402 and the other is Fuji M603. Fuji’s camera continues its advantages, that is, its most advanced third-generation CCD image sensor, which can The camera sensitivity can reach 1600 ISO at 1280X960.

The third-generation CCD image sensor is the trump card in Fuji’s hands, and it is also the core for him to have a place in the field of high-end digital cameras. This time, the two cameras still follow the high-performance route.

On August 4th, Nikon released three cameras, including 4300 improved by 885, Coolpix3500 and Nikon’s ace COOLPIX5700. As the classic of Nikon’s COOLPIX digital camera series, 5700 has only 5 million pixels, but it uses eight times optical zoom lens and The electronic viewfinder, which takes only 2 seconds to go from wide angle to the far corner, is the highest-end Nikon camera in 2002.

On August 5th, the Sony press conference came, but it seemed a bit unexpected, because none of the models at the Sony conference used CMOS image sensors, but Sony had previously hinted that the new models would use CMOS images. sensor. The reason, even Meng Qian is not clear.

The first is the Sony U10, which launched the Sony U series. The Sony U series is mainly fashionable and light, and it is also a series that Sony is very popular with female photographers. However, although the U10 uses a professional-grade CCD sensor, its performance is actually not good. Pixels are only 1.3 million.

And another camera that Sony took out, the Sony F717, is still very eye-catching. The F717 is an upgraded version of the F707 known as the cannon king. In this era, the unique shape design and the legend of perspective photography make the F717 gain a lot. attention, but the F717 still uses a CCD image sensor.

Sony also did another thing at the press conference. He is the only company that has released a camera. Sony DCR-IP220 is officially launched. This is the world's first camera with 2.11 million pixels, but it also uses CCD. sensor.

In any case, it is the world's number one, and Sony's press conference has received a lot of praise.

On August 6th, Canon’s press conference came, and Canon’s press conference was later called the light of the neon country in this melee.

Canon directly sacrificed 4 cameras, and these 4 cameras are all classics, namely S45, G3, V3 and Canon's super classic model EOS-1Ds.

On S45 and V3, Canon has adopted the newly developed DIGIC high-speed processing chip and 4 million pixel CCD sensor.

The G3, on the other hand, tilted the overall functions of the camera towards the direction of a professional-grade camera. It was the camera with the most functions, the most innovations, and the best user interaction in the world at that time.

As for the last finale product, it is naturally EOS-1Ds, which is the first full-frame professional SLR in Canon's history. It is also the appearance of this camera that has established Canon's position in the SLR industry.

Moreover, EOS-1Ds uses a CMOS image sensor with up to 11 million pixels. It is the only camera other than Kodak with more than 10 million pixels in 2002.

From August 1st to August 10th, in just ten days, more than 50 well-known camera companies around the world participated in this melee, and only one of them was a Chinese company, and that was BenQ.

In addition, there are some companies that only provide sensors, such as Micron. Micron has provided nearly ten companies with its latest CMOS image sensor in this round of melee. .

Photographers who have experienced 2002 must remember that 2002 was a carnival in the photography industry. In this year, one in February and one in March, one in August and September, the global camera industry experienced two big battles, and the development of the camera It has pushed into a new era and also opened the curtain of the development of CMOS image sensors.

So 2002 is also known as a milestone in the photography world.

Of course, behind the carnival of photographers is the competition among entrepreneurs who almost vomit blood. After August 10, no relevant companies reappeared for several consecutive days, and the atmosphere on the Internet changed from anticipation to tension.

After all, every brand has its supporters. Now that everyone has spent their money, it's time to come out and quarrel. Who is the best.

In general, major companies still have a lot to gain. Kodak is back as the king, Canon is in a stable position, Sony is developing in an all-round way, and companies with a real foundation can always find a prominent point.

As for some supporting companies, they also became lively, such as Zeiss lenses and Micron's CMOS image sensors.

Even after three days, the entire market remained unabated, and the competition continued. Until August 13, 2002, news suddenly appeared on the Internet that a camera company was about to develop a press conference.

As soon as the news came out, it was immediately spread to various photography forums in line with this wave of enthusiasm, but when everyone saw the name of the company.

"Seagull? What 18th line brand?"

"Brand new CMOS image sensor, the strongest performance? Such a big tone?"

"Let's go, let's go, it's a Chinese company, it's not worth seeing."

"Hey, I'm so excited, I thought Leica was going to release the M8."

"What are you thinking bro, Leica has just released the M7, and there will definitely not be a new model this year."

"Do you think that since Huaxia made a rumor, we can see more and more Huaxia news. I used to know only a little about this country, but now I can see Huaxia news every now and then..."

"But I don't want to see it at all. What is there to see in such a backward third-rate country? I usually skip the word Huaxia when I see it."

"It's okay, I think it's good to read Huaxia's news, just take it as a joke."

"What I said upstairs has aroused my interest. You said that this seagull is so loud, and you will probably be scolded to death by then. Isn't this a big joke? A Huaxia company dares to say that it has the strongest performance. ,Ha ha ha ha."

"Then let's pay attention to it when the time comes, and watch some jokes together."

"Okay, I guess there will be a lot of funny jokes by then, and I suddenly find it interesting."

On August 15, 2002, at one o'clock in the afternoon of China time, in Shanghai Jinmao Hotel, which was built in 1999, a press conference started on time without any expectations.