Sony A77 replacement rumored to be announced in spring 2014

The Sony A77 replacement is rumored to have been scheduled for a release date in spring 2014 and its APS-C image sensor will come packed with Phase Detection AF technology.

Sony has put the 12 months of 2013 to good use, aiming to reshape its digital imaging series in order to come up with a better plan to restore the company’s success in the camera market.

The Sony A77 replacement rumors remind us of last year because this camera should have been released by now, along with the NEX-7 successor, sources have said. However, neither of them has showed up for the time being.

As the NEX brand is taking more steps towards its death, the Alpha will continue to live as the company’s brand for both E and A mounts. Now, we will focus on the latter, as the replacement for the A77 is in the works and it may be announced soon.

Sony A77 replacement might become official during spring 2014

According to inside sources, “soon” is actually spring 2014. The Sony A79, one of the A77 successor’s speculated names, will most likely become the first A-mount camera to be launched in a long time. The A58 has been announced in February 2013 and released two months later as an entry-level A-mount shooter.

The camera that will eventually replace the A77 will do so in June 2014. People familiar with the matter are reporting that the new device will go on sale at the beginning of summer, in order to make sure that travelers can have more buying options at their disposal before leaving for vacation.

The sensor found in the Sony A77 replacement is rumored to feature Phase Detection AF, which could mean that the camera is a mirrorless model. It is not the first time the company is rumored to shed its Translucent technology in favor or mirrorless.

The camera that replaces the A77 will feature on-sensor Phase Detection AF technology

The previously-rumored Sony A79 specs list no longer stands. Although it may be partially accurate, sources have said that the camera would launch last year, so it is a good idea to dismiss most of the previous gossip talk.

New information says that the upcoming shooter might be based on SLT (Single Lens Translucent) technology, as the company is not willing to go mirrorless with its A-mount, yet. Additionally, it will be a major change when compared to its predecessor.

Speaking of the sensor, the A77 successor will feature built-in Phase Detection AF technology, which means that the PlayStation maker is finally putting the Olympus partnership to good use.

What is Phase Detection AF and why you should care

Modern digital cameras usually come with autofocus support. This means that they can focus automatically on a subject. Now, they can do this in mostly two ways: phase detection or contrast detection.

The latter will focus by assessing the contrast within a certain area. Everything is done through the lens and focusing is not completed until the camera finds the biggest constant between proximate pixels because it means that this is where the subject is located. This technique is most common in mirrorless cameras.

Phase Detection is different from the contrast one. It is also done through the lens, but it uses a beam splitter that sends the light to an autofocus sensor placed somewhere beneath the image sensor. The two split beams are then measured by sensors which are looking for patterns, while calculating where the subject is located.

Phase Detection is more common in DSLR-like cameras and it goes by the name of AI Servo or AF-C, depending on who is the manufacturer. However, Olympus has found a way to put a PDAF sensor on the image sensor itself and this technology is found in its high-end mirrorless shooters.

If the A77 replacement has on-sensor PDAF, the camera might be a mirrorless model, since the AF sensor is placed on the image sensor, which would indicate the absence of a mirror. In other words, some sources may be wrong and others may be wright and the A-mount is going mirrorless.

We will find out more soon, therefore you should stay tuned! Meanwhile, Amazon is selling the Sony A77 for a price of $798, down from $1,399.