Why the first Chinese mirrorless cameras will massively disrupt the market — and why that's a good thing

Almost all of the big names in cameras — Canon, Sony, Nikon, Fujifilm, Panasonic, OM System, Sigma, Ricoh, Pentax and others — hail from Japan, the birthplace of digital photography.

<![CDATA[ <article> <p>Almost all of the big names in cameras — Canon, Sony, Nikon, Fujifilm, Panasonic, OM System, Sigma, Ricoh, Pentax and others — hail from Japan, the birthplace of digital photography. </p><p>Want one of the <a href="https://www.techradar.com/news/best-mirrorless-camera">best mirrorless cameras</a>? Unless it's a Leica or a Hasselblad, right now it'll come from Japan. But a new superpower is rising up in the camera industry, and that's China. </p><p>Take DJI, which is headquartered in Shenzhen. It has surpassed GoPro to lead <a href="https://www.techradar.com/news/best-action-camera">action cam</a> sales, and dominates numerous other sales charts with its <a href="https://www.techradar.com/news/best-vlogging-camera">pocket vlogging cameras</a> and range of <a href="https://www.techradar.com/best/best-dji-drone">drones</a>.</p><p>Insta360, meanwhile, leads the way in <a href="https://www.techradar.com/news/best-360-degree-camera">360 cameras</a>. And within interchangeable-lens camera ecosystems, Chinese lens manufacturer<a href="https://www.techradar.com/cameras/camera-lenses/viltrox-is-changing-the-game-for-camera-lenses-with-its-latest-premium-prime-matching-sonys-best-for-half-the-price"> Viltrox</a> is a growing force, producing lenses for Sony, Nikon and Fujifilm cameras and, more recently, L-mount. </p><p>A string of recent reports and rumors suggest that certain China-based manufacturers are about to break new ground by producing their first mirrorless cameras — and I think this could be the dramatic shake up that the industry needs. </p><figure role="gallery"><figure><img src="https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/CMK8qksHAsy95m8CyVLdAP.jpg" alt="Insta360 Go 3S Retro edition, with the thumb-szied action camera slotted into the Retro Bundle's viewfinder case, held by a user" /><figcaption>In another nod to photography, Insta360 made a 'retro' kit for its 4K Go 3S modular action cam, which features an optical waist-level viewfinder<small role="credit">Insta360</small></figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QKhMfw7nMLqSiDh2uZ4o2H.jpg" alt="Viltrox AF 26mm F2.8 EVO 'pancake' lens attached to a Nikon mirrorless camera, photographer and TechRadar's Cameras Editor, Tim Coleman is holding the camera up to his eye" /><figcaption>Viltrox has a large collection of lenses for Sony, Nikon, Fujifilm and L-mount cameras. Could it's own mirrorless camera be next?<small role="credit">Tim Coleman</small></figcaption></figure></figure><h2 id="what-chinese-mirrorless-cameras-can-we-expect">What Chinese mirrorless cameras can we expect?</h2><p>First, there are the concrete reports. Insta360 CEO Jingkang 'JK' Liu revealed the 360 camera specialist <a href="https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/cameras/mirrorless-cameras/this-camera-has-the-potential-to-completely-change-the-way-we-take-pictures-with-a-camera-insta360-is-working-on-not-one-but-two-mirrorless-cameras" target="_blank">is making not one but two mirrorless cameras</a>. He described one of these as being "a shape no one thought of" that has "the potential to completely change the way we take pictures", while leaked pictures of the other point to <a href="https://www.43rumors.com/insta360-mft-camera-coming-in-september/" target="_blank">a minimalist Micro Four Thirds body</a>. </p><p>Liu's reference to a new camera shape, along with the Insta360 CEO's recent <a href="https://www.techradar.com/cameras/insta360-says-it-wants-to-replace-photographers-with-an-intelligent-photography-robot-that-will-become-imperceptible-and-it-sounds-like-a-nightmare-for-privacy-and-creativity">post about replacing photographers with "intelligent photography robots"</a> (remarks he clarified somewhat when <a href="https://www.techradar.com/cameras/exclusive-heres-what-insta360s-founder-and-ceo-told-me-when-i-asked-about-his-controversial-photography-robot-vision">I interviewed Insta360</a>) has me thinking that a completely new kind of camera could be on the cards. </p><p>And it's not just Insta360. Viltrox, which makes superb lenses for multiple camera systems — many of which I have reviewed, most <a href="https://www.techradar.com/cameras/camera-lenses/viltrox-af-26mm-f2-8-evo-lens-review">recently a superb 'pancake' optic</a> — is in an excellent position to disrupt <a href="https://www.techradar.com/cameras/digital-camera-sales-are-up-and-fujifilm-just-leapfrogged-nikon-heres-what-the-numbers-tell-us">Canon and Sony's 70%-plus share</a> of the digital camera market.</p><div><blockquote><p>For many, mirrorless cameras are simply unaffordable, and Viltrox could change that situation. </p></blockquote></div><p>Viltrox makes top-quality lenses for a fraction of the price of proprietary optics, though it's yet to produce a zoom lens (I'm expecting one soon enough, though). If it could apply that same value principle to an equally high-quality camera body, it could potentially dominate the beginner segment of the market, with its own lenses already in production. For many, mirrorless cameras are simply unaffordable, and Viltrox could change that situation. </p><p>Think about it: Viltrox might have already made the lenses for a future Viltrox mirrorless camera. Currently, it makes optics for the full-frame and APS-C formats (we're yet to see a Micro Four Thirds lens, despite <a href="https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/cameras/lenses/is-viltrox-the-new-sigma-popular-prime-lenses-are-coming-to-lumix-and-om-system-cameras" target="_blank">a teaser suggesting we should have some by now</a>). </p><p>If I were a betting man, I'd put my money on a beginner-level Viltrox mirrorless camera in the APS-C format, with an L-mount. Why so? We've seen reports of<a href="https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/cameras/lenses/is-viltrox-about-to-release-lenses-for-a-camera-mount-combo-that-no-longer-exists" target="_blank"> two new Viltrox APS-C format prime lenses for L-mount</a>. </p><p>Two new lenses don't mean much in isolation. But when you consider that there are no current APS-C format camera bodies using the L-mount, that begs up the question: why make lenses that no current camera can use, unless you're making that camera yourself? </p><p>I might be getting ahead of myself. But an industry that's long been dominated and shaped by the big three — Canon, Sony and Nikon, <a href="https://www.techradar.com/cameras/digital-camera-sales-are-up-and-fujifilm-just-leapfrogged-nikon-heres-what-the-numbers-tell-us">more recently joined by Fujifilm, which has wrestled third place from Nikon</a> after it sparked a surge of interest in retro cameras — could do with a shake-up. </p><p>I don't mean another AI-powered shake-up, along the lines of the Nano banana-equipped <a href="https://www.techradar.com/cameras/caira-camera-review">Caira camera</a>, which can make live edits to your photos in-camera based on word prompts, but a shake-up that makes mirrorless cameras more affordable, and in which the form factor / handling playbooks are ripped up. Those are the kind of changes I'd be excited to see. </p><div data-widget-type="multimodelreview" data-widget-title="Today's best drone deals" data-model-name="DJI Osmo Action 6,DJI Mavic 4 Pro" class="hawk-root"></div> </article> ]]>