Sony Camera Upgrades Are Coming! Here’s What’s Next...

Here are all the different Sony models out right now, and these are the ones that I think will get an update this year. Will we see the revival of compact cameras with the RX100 Mark VIII? Could there be an APS-C Hybrid King to observe the current A6700? Will the A7R Mark VI, the next high megapixel hard drive destroyer, exist in this economy? And of course, we had to talk about the two most anticipated cameras of all time. Please, sir, can I have some more? The A7S Mark IV, and the FX3 Mark II. And no, I am not sponsored by Sony, but over the last 10 years, I've been shooting with Sony cameras professionally, owned at least a couple of models in each of these extensive categories, tested many of their secret pre-release products, and while I don't have any official information, I have at least an idea of what Sony's release patterns are, the philosophy behind each of these family trees, and the current market trend, so I can offer you realistic expectations so you won't be disappointed when the camera you've been waiting for finally arrives. My name is Jason Wong, get your grain of salt ready, and let's get started. RX100 Mark VIII. There is a rumor buzzing around that a new premium pocket-pointed shoot RX100 will be coming out this year, the current one being the RX100 Mark VII that came out back in 2019, seven years ago. That's the time it took Young Link to become Adult Link in Ocarina of Time. Now, this is a special camera because despite its compact size, it's rocking a one-inch sensor with a 24 to 200-millimeter FUJIFILM equivalent lens, and it can do 20 frames per second raw versus no blackout frames, similar to the full-frame A9 Mark II, which was a top-end Olympic sports camera, and honestly, it still can be. Within the last three years, it's gaining a lot of popularity with old unks like me who are tired of big-ass setups, but still yearning for that same speed and power. And funny enough, it's gaining popularity with the younger Gen Zers who are looking for a quality compact camera for concerts. Now, even though it's a small one-inch sensor, combined with its actual optical glass elements, it will outshine any smartphones with their so-called 100x zooms. So what can Sony improve on? The 24 to 200-millimeter zoom lens is the biggest selling point, so I don't think they will change this, but with a newer processor behind it, could improve or enhance the image quality, i.e. better low-light performance through in-camera processing, better optical stabilization with optional enhancement from digital stabilization, and most importantly, better straight-out-of-camera JPEGs, because that alone will convince a lot of casual users to go for a camera like this. Now, I've been saying a lot in my other videos, but those new film looks that Sony have been implementing look pretty damn good, so make more. Y'all got any more of those film looks? Now, those are the bare minimum updates, so let's talk about how they can wow us. Can we go from 20 frames per second to 30 frames per second raw burst? We don't need this to be a baby A9 Mark III when it's 120 frames per second raw burst. Just make this a baby A7 Mark V with all the new AI autofocus subject recognition and autofocus tracking. Animo and Burt lovers are going to pine for this camera. And for video, folks, 4K 60p, 10-bit 422, non-negotiable. And I can imagine this and the Osmo Pocket 3, and of course, the eventual Osmo Pocket 4 from DJI, being in every solo creator's kit, one for smooth gimbal videos and the other for tight close-up shots. I'm gonna be honest with you guys, okay? As much as I love for the RX100 Mark VIII to exist, I personally doubt it is coming. Ever since the ZV-1 launched in 2020, Sony has focused a lot of their energy on compact cameras in this budget line only. And for them and the current market, it just makes sense. The RX series have been marketed as the premium compact line with the premium price tags. So it only ever appealed to hardcore enthusiasts because let's be for real here, dropping $1,700 plus for a pocket point-and-shoot, unless you really love photography, RX cameras will not be flying off the shelf. Now, what Sony could do is take some of those potential upgrades that we talked about and shove it into the next ZV-1 Mark III. And even then, that's very hopeful. Short answer is, don't get your hopes up. A6900. Now, I do think we're still one year too early about this because the A6700 launched back in July, 2023. We are only approaching the three-year mark, barely. It pretty much does everything that we need to do at a reasonable price, but competition in this space is getting quite fierce. So it could motion Sony to release the next A6000 sooner, perhaps calling it the A6900. Yeah, I've been telling that same joke for the last 10 years. But really, there isn't enough improvements yet, at least not unless Sony is willing to step on some toes with their full-frame lineup. But if it had to come out now, what improvements could Sony realistically do? 26 to 33 megapixels? I don't really feel confident about a jump in resolution like that, but Fujifilm is currently offering 40 megapixels in their high-end and mid-range APS-C cameras, so this is a maybe. But I think it would make more sense for Sony to keep it 26 megapixels, but give us a speed boost instead, from 11 frames per second to, say, 20 frames per second raw burst with pre-capture. And I think this is something that is highly likely, given the fact that the mid-range full-frame A7 Mark V can do 30 frames per second raw burst, no blackout frames. This speed boost could start becoming a trend for future release models. And we will, of course, get the new and improved AI subject recognition and autofocus tracking, obviously. But in terms of video, I don't think we're gonna get anything new other than a slight quality bump. It's still gonna be 4K 60p no crop and 4K 120p with a slight crop. And I doubt we'll get 6K and Open Gate, which would disappoint a lot of video users. When Sony finally gives us 6K and Open Gate, it has to happen with the higher-end full-frame models first. So this is exactly why I said it is still too early for this camera to get updated. Sony hasn't moved the needle for their higher-end full-frame cameras enough to warrant a big change for their APS-C line. And there is no way in hell that their APS-C line will come out with something that their full-frame line didn't get yet. If they release the next A6000 now, it would just disappoint a lot of people. So bottom line, I'll say this. If they rush it, it will be a mid-2026 release, but then it will probably also be mid, as the kids will say. But reasonably, I have a feeling it will be a Q2 2027 announcement at the earliest. A7 III Mark III. So here's a camera that I really want to see late this year, and we don't really have to guess much. The A7C Mark III will have 90% of the same specs as the A7 Mark V. The latest 33 megapixel sensor with 30 frames per second raw burst, no blackout frames. The new and improved AI subject recognition and autofocus tracking, obviously. 4K 60p no crop, 4K 120p with a 1.5x crop on a compact size, and I will 100% buy this and crown it as my number one favorite compact hybrid photo, video, full-frame camera of all time. Finally dethroning my beloved ZV-E1. Let's go. Hype, hype, hype, hype, hype, hype, hype, hype, hype. Ahem, yeah, here's what it won't have. No four-axis multi-angle LCD screen, which I know, bummer, because I love that style. But Sony will likely gatekeep it for their higher-end, bigger bodies, which, okay, fine. And I don't expect any improvements with the viewfinder or LCD resolution than what they already have with the current A7C models. But as long as they keep the silver top version, I'm not gonna complain too much. And does it need to be said, no 6K, no open gate. Case closed. Close the gate. While I desperately want it to be this year, I think logically the A7C Mark III will be announced mid-2027 at the earliest. Sony's priority is pushing the A7 Mark V hard. They really wanna sell this camera. So I wouldn't be surprised if they would even delay the A7C Mark III to 2028. Look, I'm just trying to be real here, okay? The A7 Mark V's currently doing numbers for them. So until that slows down, the current A7C Mark II, A7C R, and the ZV-E1 are going to be safe to buy for another year. So short answer, A7C Mark III, 2027, 2028. A7R Mark VI. The high-res photo focus A7R Mark V is coming up on four years old now, launching back in late 2022. And boy, it is ripe for an update. There's a real strong chance that we'll see the A7R Mark VI Q3, Q4 of 2026 with the A7C R Mark II following a year or two after that with 80 to 90% of the same specs. Now the A7R Mark V is 61 megapixels currently. So Sony can go about the upgrades in two ways. One, a bump in resolution, or two, speed boost. Historically, the A7R Mark II and the A7R Mark III both were 42 megapixels. The A7R Mark IV and the A7R Mark V were both 61 megapixels. So following this trend, we could see it going up to 80 megapixels. Rip our hard drives and our wallets, especially with the rise in price for the storage, am I right? That Samsung T94 terabyte was like three, 400 bucks. Now it's like close to a thousand dollars, man. What the hell? Anyways, 80 megapixels or keep it at 61 megapixels with improved dynamic range, but give us the faster burst with pre-capture. Like, I don't know, 15 frames per second raw burst. A lot of sports and wildlife photographers would definitely appreciate that. But then again, why not just buy an A1 or an A1 Mark II? I mean, 51 versus 61 megapixels is just a 10 megapixel difference, which is why I think the 80 megapixel route makes a lot more sense. Or Sony could surprise us and do 80 megapixels with speed performance. Now that would really separate it from the current A1 Mark II. In the video department, perhaps we can get more options with 8K, maybe now up to 60 frames per second with proper 10-bit 422 options. It's not what people are asking for, but it's a good marketing bonus for Sony. However, I think this is their chance to finally give us a proper 6K option, which is a lot more reasonable than 8K. Keep the 8K, of course, but give us 6K 24, 30, and 60p options so that the other Sony cameras can finally get proper 6K. And of course, bump the 4K up to 240 frames per second. Why not? And maybe, Maiko, just maybe we finally get Open Gate. While Open Gate makes way more sense for a video-focused camera like the A7S and FX3, Sony has never shied away from giving the A7R series killer video specs in the past. I mean, it's one of the two cameras in their entire alpha line that is offering 8K. Not even the FX3 can shoot 8K. And if users really want this camera for the highest res possible, I mean, nothing says highest res possible than shooting with the whole freaking sensor, am I right? The next A7R is the prime outlet for Sony to finally give us the desperate video specs that we've been wanting, but that is way too much hope, so let's wrangle ourselves back down to earth. What makes the most sense for a high-res photo-focused camera like this is really all about improving image quality through the form of better low-light performance, either in-camera or pixel-shift composites, better in-body image stabilization for improved sharpness rate, and just better user experience overall. This is a high-megapixel camera. Give us the ability to do step-cropping in-camera, please, or at least give us a larger screen like the Nikon ZR so we can see what we're shooting, but a larger screen is doubtful. So if not a bigger screen, at least make it brighter. Bottom line is, if Sony isn't gonna wow us with specs, they can at least wow us with a better experience. So short answer, A7R Mark VI, Q3, Q4 of 2026. Let's freaking go! A7S Mark IV and FX3 Mark II. Man, it is crazy to think about this. The A7S Mark III came out in 2020. It's a six-year-old camera. The FX3 came out in 2021. It's a five-year-old camera. When it came out, the FX3 was basically a rehoused A7S Mark III, taking the amazing low-light sensor and wrapped it with a cinema body. It was kinda dumb, but over the years and many firmware updates later, it has become its own identity and has even surpassed the notoriety of the A7S Mark III, so much so that I don't think we'll actually see an A7S Mark IV. The FX3 Mark II will carry on instead, and it will get a viewfinder similar to the recent FX2. I just hope it could at least keep the mechanical shutter. Then I would be okay with no A7S Mark IV. So what upgrades will we see in the FX3 Mark II or the low-chance-in-hell A7S Mark IV? Now, rumors are saying that it would jump from 12 megapixels to 16 megapixels, which isn't much, but Sony is saying it's the low megapixel count that helps with the cleanest low-light performance. Now, people in the comments are gonna argue, oh, that's not true, that's just marketing bullshit. Whatever the case is, it's the insane low-light performance that primarily moves these cameras from shelves to customer hands. People here aren't gonna care how little the megapixels are so long as we get the absolute cleanest low-light performance at a ridiculously high ISO. And the current dual-base ISO for the A7S Mark III and the FX3 are 640 and 12,800, filming in S-Log3. Could we see the second-base ISO being as high as 25,600? Boy, I hope so. And it makes sense to finally move this bar up. Plus, 16 megapixels might be the bump that we need to expand as more video resolution options. It's been more than 10 years at this point with 4K, and six years with the 4K 10-bit 422 option. So maybe we'll finally see a proper 6K option, 6K 60p perhaps, with 4K up to 240 frames per second. But I doubt we'll get 8K. With 6K at least, it might help tone down some of that open gate heat that Sony is currently receiving. Open gate. Now, in case you don't know what that is, open gate means the camera's recording with the entire sensor, usually a square or close-to-square format. So there would be enough room for us to use the footage in either a horizontal or vertical orientation later. Perfect for pros who have to deliver in both because advertising on phone screens now have been increasingly popular, and open gate would save us from doing double the work. Shooting horizontally and then vertically or doing that awkward vertical crop from a horizontal footage. Just bleh, claustrophobic. Now, Panasonic had this for years now, from what I've heard. Canon is finally letting loose with it, so the community is pressuring Sony to follow suit. And if they won't relent, Sony's gonna really have to wow us with the other aspects of the camera to really convince people to buy their camera over a Canon C50 or R6 Mark III, or hell, even the Nikon ZR. Up until now, yeah, Panasonic Lumix has open gate, but people still went for Sony for the best-in-class autofocus. But now that Canon is offering open gate with comparable autofocus performance, Sony really has no excuse. And what about video raw? Here's where I think Sony will unfortunately not relent on. Open gate, yeah, maybe. Video raw, probably a no. Canon is doing it, Nikon is doing it, hell, even Apple is doing it. Raw video would allow users to change ISO and white balance in post, but at the cost of being an insane file size. For reference, the new Canon R6 Mark III records approximately 10 gigabytes per minute for a 7K 30p raw video. So if you wanna shoot an hour's worth of footage, you're gonna need a little more than 600 gigabytes of memory. And with the cost of storage being what it is today, good luck. So what can Sony do to wow us? Built-in ND. We've been asking this for years, but built-in ND filter. No one has done it for cameras in this size yet, okay? And this would definitely give them the edge. It would definitely soften up the open gate drama. Open gate. Next, what they could give us is even better in-body image stabilization. Trump Panasonic right here. Give us video creators less of a reason to bring a big gimbal around. How about the ability to record to an external SSD? Now that the A7 Mark V has two USB-C ports, perhaps the A7S Mark IV and the FX3 Mark II can follow suit with a dedicated port to output to an external SSD. In that case, Sony could then offer more codec support when an external SSD is mounted. ProRes RAW, eh, eh? I don't know if there's any sort of licensing agreement they would need to do with Apple to implement that, but hey, that could be one win if Sony can give us RAW video in some way. Bigger screen like the Nikon ZR, but I doubt we'll see that. At this point now, they likely have already finalized the design for the A7S Mark IV and the FX3 Mark II. And with how new the ZR is, it's kinda late for Sony to try to put in a bigger screen. That's probably gonna be an A7S Mark V or FX3 Mark III in 2033. That's a long time from now. Bottom line, it's gonna be a tough hill to climb, but ultimately, Sony needs to do more with improving user experiences if they aren't gonna wow us with cutting edge specs. Make the next camera so damn convenient that people would choose over having open gate and RAW video features. But hey, you know what? Maybe Sony could surprise us. Maybe they'll pull out all the stops, give the FX3 Mark II and the A7S IV the big guns and just blast the competition away with one fell swoop. Then, in that case, I, Jason Vong, will be happy to be wrong. Squarespace is an all-in-one platform to create beautiful websites. No coding knowledge needed. It's perfect if you wanna showcase your photos, sell prints, and run your business online all in one place. And with Blueprint, Squarespace's new AI-powered website builder, getting started has never been easier. Just answer a few quick questions and it instantly builds a custom site with layouts, colors, and even sample content. Plus, built-in SEO tools to help more people discover your site. Use my link down below for a 14-day free trial. And when you're ready to launch, use code Jason Vong to get 10% off your first purchase of a website or a domain. Thank you so much for watching. We'll see you guys in the next video. Peace. You can't go wrong with Jason Vong.