You would think that the company would have gotten the hint by now, but it appears that global joke regarding Hasselblad and their overpriced Sony rebrands will get another punchline really soon.
According to several rumors reports, Hasselblad will be releasing a new ‘luxurified’ Sony rebrand, this time based on the Sony A7R. Though, this time the joke is even more painful if you are a Hasselblad fan because Sony just announced the a7R II, making this yet-to-be unreleased camera already old news before it is even released.
The new camera will be called the Lusso, and will – as with the other rebrands – feature a Hasselblad designed exterior with Sony guts. I will say, that for once, the design isn’t absolutely terrible. I can’t say for sure without having held it, but it even looks to feature a much nicer grip than the actual A7R.
Too bad it is a moot point with the a7R II coming out soon.
What are your thoughts on the upcoming Hasselblad Lusso? Do you think Hasselblad will ever get the hint that these rebrands are likely the biggest joke of the photography world? Leave a comment below and let us know what you think!
[via Sony Alpha Rumors]
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Read an update of this. Apparently, these were requested for the Asian market — same reason there was a gold color iPhone from Apple, and maybe one way to explain $15,000 Apple watches. Supposedly, the Stellar — based on the original Sony RX100 — did very well for Hasselblad. These are currently $895 on B&H — there are a total of 8 SKUs for this thing… and the special carbon fiber edition is $3299 (I dunno, I paid less than $2500 for a whole guitar made of carbon fiber). The original RX-100 is around for $448.
The one featured here, the Lusso, is limited to a production run of about 100 units, which is also seen as an Asian market thing.
So I guess I understand this a little better now. There is a demand for these, expensive items basically just made expensive to be exclusive. And yet, basing them on Sony gear, there’s compatibility with off-the-shelf hardware. Though, of course, if you buy the Lusso, you can only buy Zeiss lenses :-)
In the same article, Hasselblad CEO Perry Oosting says that this is the last of their Sony rebrands.
I’ve used these Hassy rebrands a few times. And they do have differences in processing and UI. Not to mention although they may look garish they are much more comfortable and ergonomic than the Sony counterparts. Would I buy one? Probably not. Is it a shitty camera? Absolutely not.
I know you people love to hate on luxury brands, but at least TRY to be objective.
No offense here Anthony, I’m not 100% sure you’re as up on camera gear tech as you make out to be. Just the other day you mentioned something about Sony supplying the sensors for Nikon’s flagship D cameras and Sony has NEVER supplied a sensor for a Nikon D1-D4. I’ve noticed other discrepancies in your reporting as well.
Those cameras are a pretty easy mark, it’s true.
I’m going to glue an old Rebel 2000 to a tree stump and call it the Crepuscular or something. Look for the $1,200 luxury model at your nearest pro golf shop soon. $1,500 for extra pine cones.
Design sometimes catches peoples attention more than the value on the camera features!
Apple sure sells a bunch of stuff on that principle (ducking…)
This camera is like buying a VW GOLF and putting a porsche logo on it.
It’s kind of like the old Porsche 914.. Porsche on the outside, VW in the inside. Still drove like a VW.
At least Leica does this a little bit better with their rebranded Panasonic P&S models. You’re not even paying twice as much for that little red circle, depending on model.
The A7RII is such an epic camera and a big upgrade.. but I guess they’re not selling these to people who know cameras. Golf shops indeed. Maybe some shops in Vegas casinos (A.C. is too close to NYC, everyone knows you buy your cameras in Manhattan)… too bad Sky Mall is closing down!
I would be interested in knowing what the actual sales figures are for these Pimp-My-Sony cameras.
So ugly…
Awful concept and execution.
“Awful concept and execution” These are the exact words, used by a dude whose portfolio looks like 10k other Wedding Photographers, to describe my current photo project. These words were uttered just yesterday. What a coincidence! :-)
Regarding the camera…. I agree. Why would they think this is a good idea?
I had a conversation with someone at Hasselblad and apparently the marketplace for the previous stellar cameras is golf pro shops. Makes sense.
Why should we care?
They’ve already gotten the hint, I think. The stupid came in with the 2011 financial team (Ventizz Capital Fund) and the direction (probably) changed with the January management change. The money saw a brand to exploit and didn’t have Clue #1 about WHY it was a brand. They’re just not big enough to eat all of the costs that went into making those (glaring) mistakes. There were probably a lot of meetings about which would do more damage: additional brand harm done trying to recoup costs; or burning everything and pretending it didn’t happen. This camera, though, should mark the end of that story. Except for one thing: if they’re still around in 2019, what are they going to do about a REAL lunar commemorative model, having blown that on a NEX?
Definition?
Don’t get this, there are plenty of better ways to spend $$$ on photography gear
I totally agree. Spend os some great lighting equipment to make photography really pop!.
If you haven’t realized many people choose their gear based off how it makes them LOOK as a photographer then you haven’t been paying attention. ;)
Some even outright admit it, “I like this camera but I don’t know if anybody would respect me as a professional with something so small.”
I would like to see one first hand