I hope it isn't DNG. Read at the bottom of the article: http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/conten ... -8739-8970 They also plan on bringing their CMOS sensor over to the P&S line to replace Sony's CCDs. I wonder if Sony is planning on using their new CMOS sensors in their new cameras as well (I noticed the new HD Handycams have CMOS sensors in them)
Ya'know.. I don't see Canon adopting a standard. I can only guess that if anything, it'll just be cr3. Or whatever. If they were to make anything open, you know what I'd want? I'd kill for them to release an SDK to allow end users to modify the firmware of their cameras. No, I'm not holding my breath.. recent history seems to have been a case of Canon dragging their feet as long as possible in adding in new features that end users have been screaming for for years. I just don't see them allowing the end users to add in all the new features that they want. Not to mention the obvious problem that it could result in many more people trying to do firmware flashing resulting in more failures. But in my opinion no flashable firmware hardware system should be lacking a failsafe option that would provide enough functionality to attempt another flash if the first one fails, such a thing can even be done on the Nintendo DS which was never supposed to flashed by end users in the first place. It's just that I've seen what can be done by the obsessive hacker fan community.. I can only imagine the sort of insanely feature rich operating system that could be developed for the cameras that are already on the market. As an example.. my common consumer grade cable modem router that distributes the internet connection throughout my house can be turned into a much more flexible tool with advanced security features and even the ability to act like an internet "hot spot" with start page redirects and the like. I haven't messed with it because it does everything I really want it to do now and I don't want to mess with success.. but I could sure use a bit more flexibility in my camera, like definable preset modes (so that in one click I could switch between different shooting styles instead of having to reconfigure many different functions) and the like. The router upgrades are mainly possible because Linksys (the manufacturer of the hardware) released an SDK for them.. I'm not quite sure why, since they too rely on proprietary feature sets, I'd think they'd have considered that allowing people to expand the functionality of the hardware they already own would reduce the demand for future products. But anyway.. interesting article, it's nice to see them expanding the use of their CMOS sensors. Dare I hope that that heralds a new generation of big sensor low noise P&S cameras? Eh.. probably not.. but one can hope.
interesting opinions... dan, don't forget about the russian firmware hack for the original d-reb that enabled iso3200, mirror lockup, and several other major features that were programmed (allegedly) in the d-reb's firmware but then crippled for marketing purposes. that firmware hack was HIGHLY unauthorized but it was still done and many folks on another photo site used it to great success. i never did for fear of damaging my camera, but it WAS possible and will probably be done again on other camera bodies. if canon was to go one way or another (besides the status quo) i would hope for openraw and then hope the other manufacturers go in that direction as well, rather than having a bunch of proprietary raw formats like they have now. the 20d/5d cr2's are way different from the rebel xti's cr2's and that is within the same camera family so i think a set standard would be a good thing.
Well I wonder which standard he is referring to. I really doubt he was referring to another Canon RAW format, since it changes EVERY TIME THEY HAVE A NEW CAMERA. While the basics are the same (embedded JPG), it doesn't really. That's why the portable card downloaders/viewers have to be upgraded for every new camera. It would be nice to have an open standard for RAW. Bibble supports OpenRAW. I don't like DNG probably because of the way Adobe basically forced the entry level Photoshop users into using it. (if you want to use RAW and have a camera that isn't that old, which means you can use the older version of Elements). I think Lightroom does the same thing, but I know ACR will let you pass through to a TIF/JPG if you want. Now as for firmware hacking et al...... wouldn't it be nice to reprogram that little print button that exists on the xxD series? Do you print directly from your camera? (Yeah, I'm making 16x20 posters on my PiXma printer in house straight from the field.....) Sometimes they haven't listened to their customers. Lately though it seems Canon HAS listened to their customers and has made changes. And those changes will filter down to the xxD and xxxD series cameras because the R&D is already paid for.
