dolina wrote:
If the difference between a video and non video DSLR was $100 or lower would you still opt for one without video?
Interesting question. But there is no real world answer because no one has a choice of buying a 7D, or 5D2, with or without the video feature.
Which do you think would sell better if Canon put both of them out at a price that reflected each one's true cost?
And, at the risk of being accused of harping ad nauseum on a pet peeve, which do you think would sell better if Canon offered two versions of the 7D with different sensors - the current 18 Mp model, and a second model with a 12 Mp sensor that had all the advantages of larger photosites, smaller file sizes, etc.?
saaketham wrote:
How much does video feature add to the cost of a DSLR body? Assuming that you need Live View.
Nearly zero. A guy on another forum has hacked his 40D firmware to capture video with that camera. The hardware is already there in any Live View camera. It only took software to enable it for video, and the basic code for that already existed in the P&S cameras.
To put out another camera with Live View but without video would be a matter of blocking some lines of code. The expense of maintaining two models of camera that differ by nothing but a single firmware feature would increase the cost of both of them beyond what the single camera costs now.
RDKirk wrote:
Nearly zero. A guy on another forum has hacked his 40D firmware to capture video with that camera. The hardware is already there in any Live View camera. It only took software to enable it for video, and the basic code for that already existed in the P&S cameras.
Correct. And it's not like leaving video off a body somehow means that Canon can ignore the video development costs already sunk.
The world moves on, whether people like it or not.
I suspect it evens out. There's clearly a lot of non-video R&D improvements in the 7D. For every person who doesn't want video there's another person who does want video and wouldn't have bought the camera without it. I doubt that either side -- video vs. still -- is subsidizing the other side.
I'll chime in here as I was never really interested in video from a DSLR; it didn't have good enough "video ergonomics" in my mind. I tried out the 5DmkII, including some video...eh. It was awkward getting video shot with it, but the results were indeed very nice especially in poor lighting. Now with the 7D, video is so much easier to utilize that I find myself shooting it for family things. DSLR video is giving us a huge increase in performance in lower light, better color, a huge selection of lenses (remember how most camcorders aren't wide enough?) and the quality of the HD video...loving it.
The ergonomics of shooting video on the 7D still are not to my liking (as with any DSLR) but what I have shot makes me reluctant to grab the HD camcorder. The next thing to come in DSLRs will be a retractable LCD display that will make shooting video easier as well as still in some instances. I won't seek that feature set out, but if it's there it will be a bonus to me.
I keep seeing comments that assume people don't want to try video, or are somehow behind the times if they don't want it. That makes no sense. We know what we like to shoot and what we want in a camera. I would rather not have the space, technology and $$ sunk into adding a video feature I will probably never use, and apply all that effort and $$ to enhance the still feature of the camera. That doesn't mean I am too dumb or backward-thining to use it, it just means I consider it a frill designed to make Canon money & in my case, I don't need it or want it. I play the piano but I don't care to play the organ or electronic keyboards. Can I play them? Sure - the keyboards are almost the same; the performing techniques are a bit different but easy to translate. Do I want to play the organ? No. I play the piano. Would I want a piano that converted into an organ? No.
Adding video on a camera is not the same as adding AF - they're two entirely different types of 'enhancements.' It's like comparing the advent of automatic transmissions (all cars need some form of transmission) to having a car that doubles as a truck. Either you need a truck & you use a truck, or you don't.
The only advantage I see for having video on my 5D2 is that it will enhance its resale value if and when I ever decide to sell it, because video on a still camera is all the hype right now. I love the 5D2, but I probably would have been happy with a 5D, had I been able to find a decent copy that was in good shape rather than the copies I saw that had been nearly used to death (well-loved, but very well-used). So I got the 5D2, even with video.
I think Canon should leave out HTP, Dual axis level, AI focus, and ALO and charge more for people who need any one of those features...mainly because I don't use them.
On a serious note, do you actually believe Canon is charging significantly more, if anything at all, for a video feature? If you don't need it, don't use it--someone else most certainly will. Point is Cameras, along with most other electronic and mechanical devices, will include certain features you, I or the other guy will never use...they may even charge us for for them, but you need to understand that developers of these products are not going to tailor design something for any one person to save that individual a few bucks. It is what it is, take it or leave it.
Adding video on a camera is not the same as adding AF - they're two entirely different types of 'enhancements.' It's like comparing the advent of automatic transmissions (all cars need some form of transmission) to having a car that doubles as a truck. Either you need a truck & you use a truck, or you don't.
You're not paying attention. Your analogy is totally, completely wrong. It's like comparing a car's brake lights with the rear nighttime lights. If the camera has Live View, it has video--all the components are the same, all the components are there...there isn't a single new component added to give it video capability. You can take any camera with Live View and hack it the firmware to shoot video.
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