Will the price drop Mk III -

[DMemory]

Desperately want a Mk III but the £3,000 (UK) price is too much for me.

Can anyone elaborate on the history of Canon pricing with new releases. How soon and to what price levels do people think it will fall?

Dean

[Daniel Browning]

It depends on how well the camera sells. The original 5D sold terribly, so Canon broke all sorts of records for discounts and rebates, with the price plummeting from $3300 to $2000 within a year, and $1700 before the 5D2 came out. But the 5D2 was just the opposite: it sold so well that Canon held the price very well for a long time. I think the 5D3 will sell well too, so I would expect it to drop only 10% in the first year.

[Steve U]

Take this advice to the bank everyone. You've been singing karoake again with that Canon R&D CEO in the teppanyaki bar again haven't you Daniel?
Any news on a 3D? What about a 50/1.4MKII? Anything? Don't keep it to yourself.

[Daniel Browning]

I'm starting to wonder if my guy is so reliable after all. A while back I predicted that that the 1Ds4 would be released within 30 days, but in fact an entire year passed before there was any news, and then it was the fact that the entire 1Ds line of cameras was effectively discontinued (though the 5D3 is the spiritual successor in a lot of ways).

[Steve U]

Accuracy, reliability and scheduled delivery is not the point here, Daniel. We believe, we just want the story. Any story.

[HDNitehawk]

Steve; this is the original post that I first saw Daniel revealing his sources. I still think you need to be careful what you hear at Sushi bars.

http://community.the-digital-picture...ead.php?t=4293

I think we need to ask Roland what comes next. He had it right a year ago, and we didn't take him serious.

@DMemory; I think this is the answer to your question. Watch the forums and when you see the first person ask if he should buy the 5D III or wait until the 5D IV is released, add 2 years to that date and you will see the first discount price of the 5D III.

[jrw]

It will be a gamble playing the waiting game. The 5Diii seems to be offering a lot of features that are/were wanted in the 5Dii. Big question on some people's minds who are waiting to see reviews before making purchasing decision is whether the AF system has been crippled in any fashion to prevent it from working as well as it might.

I expect sales will be brisk on it for the first few months before slowing down so no real chance of price drops for likely the rest of the year. Only contraindication is the never ending lens/body rebates that started in August I think and have just been extended for month after month from the initial end date. I do expect the price will come down some from the launch price, I just think it will take a while for the pentup demand to be filled first.

[Steve U]

All very learned opinions expressed above but I still prefer to put my faith in the shared drunken choruses of the karaoke bar experiences of Daniel and his knowledgable friends.

[Alan]

@DMemory; I think this is the answer to your question. Watch the forums and when you see the first person ask if he should buy the 5D III or wait until the 5D IV is released, add 2 years to that date and you will see the first discount price of the 5D III.

Good one, Rick. It's not far off, to use this metric.

So, should I buy the 5D III now, or wait til the 5D IV is released?

The countdown begins......put it on your calendars!

[btaylor]

So, should I buy the 5D III now, or wait til the 5D IV is released?

I think they'll release a 1Dxxx before the 5D IV Alan, the adult film industry is pushing for it repeatedly

Dean - I wouldn't bank on a price drop within 12 months, I suspect the 5D3 will sell like hot cakes and Canon will be enjoying the revenue too much to drop the price. After 12 months, maybe the sale volume will slow and they'll have to reconsider the price.