The moment Sony took the step to take over the photo division of Konica Minolta, the photo industry was holding back to see which way the cat was going to jump. One was aware of the fact that Konica Minolta had a lot of in-house know-how and this know-how would not get lost with the take-over. It was only a question of time before Sony would bring out the first products under their own brand name.
With the introduction of the entry-level model, the Alpha 100, Sony established their name as D-SLR manufacturer. In my opinion, the timing was perfect, namely right before the DSLR market started to flourish. Sony Alpha 200 SLR camera The introduction of the Sony Alpha 700 of last year placed Sony a step higher on the DSLR ladder and they are slowly but surely establishing themselves as professional DSLR manufacturers. At least that is the general expectation of the industry. The CES 2008 offered the perfect moment to enhance the specifications of the entry-level model, the Alpha 100. And with the Sony Alpha 200 introduced now, we bid farewell to the A100 that will always be recognized as Sony’s first DSLR camera.
Sony Alpha 200 Digital Camera Review Introduction