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*May 11, 2006 - *Sony Corporation has released an interview on their corporate site offering a basic outline of their Digital SLR plans. The interview with Toru Katsumoto, the Senior General Manager for Sony's AMC Division of their Digital Imaging Group, does not disclose specifics on the product, but does provide some general insight into the company’s goals and aspirations in the consumer SLR market.
It has been known for quite a while that Sony will be adapting Konica Minolta’s SLR technology into their new products. In his interview, Katsumoto started off praising Konica Minolta's legacy, saying that the company, 'has a long history of developing groundbreaking technologies, liked the world's first auto-focus SLR camera and an exclusive anti-shake system.'
Katsumoto discussed how Sony aims to become the 'headline performer' of digital SLRs and earn the respect of users everywhere, despite their late entry. Sony will be going up against companies like Canon, Nikon, and Pentax, companies that have been manufacturing single lens reflex cameras for decades and have earned a strong reputation among generations of photographers.
While Katsumoto does not offer many specifics or pricing information on the introductory model, he does say that over the course of their first year, Sony will introduce at least 20 lenses with their Digital SLR cameras. He states that the reason they chose the alpha letter as their symbol was because it represents the first letter in the Greek alphabet, and they want to be first in quality. The interview did indicate that the cameras would be available this summer.