I tell people that Canon has six models (nowadays):


Rugged pro FF "high res" camera


Rugged pro "half-crop" "mid res, high rate" camera


Studio FF "high res" camera


"Prosumer" crop camera


Consumer crop camera


Entry-level crop camera


The line-up (with the exception of the newer entry-level series) has been the same since the release of the 5D. Features tend to insert in the prosumer camera and then drift up before they drift down, but video took a different route as we all know.


There's a fairly obvious (and I claim logical) price tag progression through this line. Any deviations from this structure probably need a real strong motivating factor, or there's risk that the new creation might dilute the market for one of the existing models. That's not to say that the structure is perfect or even right...and I am absolutely clueless about the Nikon lineup.