Who is kidding whom?
The camera companies thinking there’s a big market for their dedicated cameras? I think they’re well aware of the market size.
Or did you mean we’re kidding ourselves thinking that there’s a big market for the kinds of cameras we want? Again, I think most hobbyists and professionals are well aware that it’s a niche, albeit quite a big one.
The smartphone is by far the main device used for photography these days, yes, but it’s in its own segment. It’s a personal computer designed to be carried everywhere, all the time, and for every reason. That means it is unlikely to fulfill the needs of photographers who take the hobby/job seriously. For the latter group, a dedicated device will always be better. Image quality may one day be virtually indistinguishable, but there will always be ergonomic differences between a phone and a camera.
Not to mention, we’re starting to see signs of a rebellion against phones. Dumb phones are making a comeback, gen Alpha are looking to analogue for creative inspiration, and there’s a movement to leave the phone off or at home to completely “switch off”. Compact cameras and point&shoots are therefore making a comeback.
I wouldn’t be surprised if a company like DJI is deliberately avoiding the phone market because it’s saturated and fiercely competitive, especially in China. But I’m not convinced that going for the full frame segment is its best bet. I think the compact / mid-compact market would be a good place to start.
It’s because of the former that it fails at the latter. My phone represents everything that I find the worst about modernity. Always on, always connected, always available. I recently moved and took a new job, so I carry one (or two) all of the time. As soon as we’re in the house that we are fixing and I can get some of my time back, my phone(s) will again be relegated to the table by the bed when I am not on the clock.
It’s also possible that DJI wants to hedge against regulatory and legal barriers that are only likely to increase in Western markets for drones, not just because of concerns of “espionage” but public safety and privacy.
In a technical sense, you are correct: a sensor records an image through a lens, so smartphones indeed perform photography.
But smartphones are designed to remove all thought from the process of taking images. They lack even the most basic controls (shutter speed, aperture), and all that is left to the user is composition. An experienced photographer can still accomplish good images on a smartphone in ideal conditions, but for the inexperienced user the ultrawide focal lengths make this very difficult, as they are the hardest to compose for (elongated heads of people on the edges are an extreme, though very common example).
What smartphone manufacturers sell is the illusion of photography: by buying the latest gimmick, the user will take images like photographers. But somehow this is not happening, >99.99% of smartphone images are ill-composed, ephemeral snapshots, made for “sharing”, and then forgetting. They do not make memories, in the sense that a [then] cheapo zone focus travel camera like the Olympus Trip 35 did on film.
People are recognizing this, hence the demand for cameras. Since there is a learning curve for photography, this demand will probably never be overwhelming because not everyone wants to invest the time, but it is there. Cameras are distinct products from smartphones, intented for a very different approach to photography.
A funny anecdote: I just learned about the existence of the A7CR. It looked quite nice, compact, high megapixel, sony software and lenses etc. I was awestruck by the price though at 3500€. If DJI could make a similar camera for 2000€ or less, it would be an extremely good value in that market, even with their “limited” mount options.
Although I may be a bit disconnected from the prices. I just looked up and even the X-T5 is 2000€? I bought my X-T3 for 1500€ with a kit lens and improvements have only been “gradual” as in IBIS and a new sensor. A sensor which isn’t even superior to the X-T3 when it comes to some forms of video. I guess I will baby my X-T3 until it dies because a new body seems like a serious predicament at the moment.
I think you’re romanticizing the past a bit here. You don’t think people will look at photos from their phones and have fond memories?
The demand is there for point and shoot film cameras, early digital bridge cameras, and similar. Those are not different than a smartphone: point it and press the button.
Sure they’re different products, but the result is the same: photographs.
Hard to beat Sony, they make most of the sensors. Plus in the time between the x-t3 and x-t5, there was crazy inflation, like 40%
There is always some demand, but not enough to justify keeping product lines alive. As for new cameras, we have a few premium compacts like the GR iii, enthusiast MILCs practically died out, and there are mid tier and high end bodies. An entrant like DJI would be great if it lowered prices.
