The new mirrorless Sony A9 has all it takes to change the photography market and to further derail the two leaders Canon and Nikon:

• 24 MP sensor with back side illumination
• 20 fps
• Buffer of 241 RAW images
• 693 on-sensor phase detection autofocus points covering nearly the whole viewfinder
• 1/16000 shutter speed (1/32000 for Manual and Shutter Priority exposure modes)
• 4K video from 6K dataset
• In-body image stabilization
• Weather sealed body
• Quite large battery capacity
• Dual SD card slots (but only one of it high speed UHS-II – why?)
• A suggested price of $4,500 – a whopping $2,000 cheaper than the D5

This new beast attacks Nikon D5 and Canon 1D X Mark II, the top-end cameras of Sonys biggest competitors (and still #1 and #2 on the market, despite Sonys marketeing). If Sony is able to add 400mm, 500mm, 600mm lenses, the A9 has the chance to dethrone its rivals. Let’s hope they are not sleeping…

BTW, we can assume XQD is dead when even its inventor Sony isn’t using it for their high-end camera.