p.1 #1 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
It appears from my (admittedly short) investigation, that Viltrox might be getting sued. I am looking to pick up An EF/RF Adapter for my new Canon R10. I was going back and forth between the Viltrox $268 speedbooster, and the $99 Canon Official Adapter. (Unfortunately the $599 Canon Speedbooster is a no go ). Before I could decide, my choice was sort of made for me. It appears Viltrox is no longer making any Canon RF mount products. My logical guess leads me to believe they are getting sued for using Canon's mount (who they don't let other manufacturers use unfortunately). BH still has the normal RF/EF Viltrox adapter in stock, but the speedbooster is listed as "Discontinued". The speedbooster is also discontinued on Adorama. On Amazon, every single Canon EF/RF mount adapter/lens, etc. Is out of stock. There is no way they all sold out that fast. A couple weeks ago all these items were in stock. They were obviously pulled from shelves.
The most obvious evidence of all though is the official Viltrox website. There is not a single EF/RF Product listed there- straight up. NONE. Not out of stock, they're just gone. I even looked at their instagram and there's not a single post about Canon RF products, they've all been taken down.
It appears us R7/R10 owners are screwed. Our only option now is to pay the $599 for the official speedbooster. At that point why not just get a R6 for $2500? Unfortunately native RF glass options are atrocious. It's hard to recommend canon at this point especially now that the leaked APSC RF lineup from Viltrox is likely not happening.
p.1 #4 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
Not too many of us R7/R10 owners are screwed. Maybe just two or three that actually need a Speedbooster. Most R7/10 owners don't need one (or even know what one is). I'm happy with my R7 as is but maybe you can buy a used Speedbooster on EBay or buy directly from China.
p.1 #5 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
It looks like there is a dpreview thread about Viltrox pulling all of their RF mount lenses and adapters from their website, and apparently Yongnuo did the same?
Adorama says "closeout" but I have no idea what that means. The EF-R2 (standard adapter) is also in stock at both stores.
That's the wrong one my friend. That's the "Pro" version and they are most likely just selling it until it runs out. The regular, popular version is discontinued it seems .
p.1 #7 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
Jesse Evans wrote:
It looks like there is a dpreview thread about Viltrox pulling all of their RF mount lenses and adapters from their website, and apparently Yongnuo did the same?
p.1 #10 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
it does seem likely that something is behind this, unfortunately.
I doubt that it has come to an actual lawsuit, however. Just the threat of legal action alone from a company the size of Canon would probably be sufficient. A threatening "cease and desist" letter from Canon's attorneys would probably do the trick.
If this is what's really going on, I think it is a shame, and will ultimately prove short-sighted on Canon's part.
p.1 #13 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
Canon needs to cut this crap out. Either license the mount to third parties, or let them use their reverse engineered stuff.
I love my Canon kit, but this honestly has me considering whether I made the right decision. This anti-competitive bull crap really rubs me the wrong way.
p.1 #15 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
How old was the EF mount before third-party entities started making AF lenses for it? Curious because I'm wondering if it was protected initially by a patent for the first 30 years of its life, before the patent protection ran out.
I really don't know the answer to that - just wondering.
p.1 #16 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
Sony would not have been so successful if they had not allowed Zeiss, Sigma and others to make Sony-mount lenses. It was a win-win situation for everyone except Canon and Nikon.
p.1 #17 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
Sony didn't really have a choice if they wanted to get traction with their FF FE system as quickly as possible. But yes they've done well and it does present more options for photographers. It may keep some loyal to Sony due to the greater variety of lenses available at lower price points.
Tom_W wrote:
How old was the EF mount before third-party entities started making AF lenses for it? Curious because I'm wondering if it was protected initially by a patent for the first 30 years of its life, before the patent protection ran out.
I really don't know the answer to that - just wondering.
I worked in photo retail in the 90s and remember selling third party AF lenses in Canon EF mount. The EF mount was released in 1987, IIRC. Maybe back then Canon was more permissive or did licensing?
I remember one customer bought a Tokina 80-200/2.8 that didn't work properly on his Canon camera. What we would now consider firmware incompatibility. So it's possible it was reverse engineered rather than licensed because you would expect it to work correctly, if licensed.
p.1 #18 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
Jman13 wrote:
Canon needs to cut this crap out. Either license the mount to third parties, or let them use their reverse engineered stuff.
I love my Canon kit, but this honestly has me considering whether I made the right decision. This anti-competitive bull crap really rubs me the wrong way.
p.1 #20 · Is Viltrox Getting Sued? (No more RF-EF Adapters/Speedboosters/Lenses)
EB-1 wrote:
Go Nikon!
EBH
Nikon has a long history of denying 3rd arty makers through FW 'updates.' The Sigma and Tamron docks are from this history. I learned my lesson a few years back when several updates disabled Sigma lenses. A fellow FMer found previous fw and I was able to roll it back Now I am hesitant t update any FW. Nikon will likely follow soon.
). Before I could decide, my choice was sort of made for me. It appears Viltrox is no longer making any Canon RF mount products. My logical guess leads me to believe they are getting sued for using Canon's mount (who they don't let other manufacturers use unfortunately). BH still has the normal RF/EF Viltrox adapter in stock, but the speedbooster is listed as "Discontinued". The speedbooster is also discontinued on Adorama. On Amazon, every single Canon EF/RF mount adapter/lens, etc. Is out of stock. There is no way they all sold out that fast. A couple weeks ago all these items were in stock. They were obviously pulled from shelves. 