Looking at the camera announcements to come out of the recent CES 2013 show in Vegas, you'd be forgiven for failing to get overly excited by the slew of compacts and relatively minor upgrades.
It seems that CES, which incorporates PMA, is the place for mass-market products to be announced.
However, it looks likely that CP+, the Japanese photographic trade show taking place at the end of January, will yield some exciting new photographic tech.
Here's what we could expect to see released at the end of the month, based on rumours and just a pinch of high hopes.
Canon at CP+
At CES, the most exciting product revealed by Canon was the PowerShot N. However, there are several other cameras in the lineup that haven't been updated for a while.
It's been rumoured that both a Canon EOS 7D and Canon EOS 60D replacement is on the cards for a while now, with some suggestions being that Canon will combine the two lines.
The introduction of a very high megapixel camera in the 1D line has also been suggested for some time. Since Nikon revealed the 36 million pixel D800 back in the early part of 2012, it's been rumoured that Canon would follow suit with a similarly, or higher, specced DSLR.
Last year CES saw the introduction of the Canon G1 X, a premium compact camera with a larger than average sensor. Perhaps the G2 X could be unveiled at CP+. We'd also like to see an entry-level DSLR with inbuilt Wi-Fi. As technology from top of the line cameras trickles down the line, will Canon be the first company to offer this functionality in a beginner model?
Nikon at CP+
Although Nikon introduced two new entry-level compact system cameras at CES, and despite the extremely busy 2012 the company had, there are still some products ripe for upgrade.
The Nikon D300s was announced all the way back in 2009, and it still hasn't been replaced yet. Although the D600 came along towards the end of last year, the D300s is still listed in its current lineup. This suggests that it's a camera that could be replaced in the future.
Another camera that has been around for a while is the Nikon D7000. With most of the rest of the lineup upgraded in 2012, we wouldn't be surprised if this was next on the company's hitlist.
Olympus at CP+
At Photokina 2012, Olympus updated the middle and bottom of its PEN range, placing the sensor from the excellent Olympus OM-D inside the smaller cameras.
However, the Olympus PEN E-P3, which currently sits at the top of the PEN lineup, was notably spared this upgrade. It's been suggested that the E-P3 replacement, most likely called the E-P5, will feature an inbuilt viewfinder. If that's the case, it'll be interesting to see how Olympus manages to distinguish it enough from the OM-D.
Panasonic at CP+
Like the other electronics giants at the show, Panasonic used CES to unveil its latest compact camera refreshes. However, it's a company known for its quick turnaround times when it comes to releases and we expect a new CSC or two soon.
The Panasonic GF5 was announced in April last year, but as that was announced just 10 months after the Panasonic GF3, we wouldn't put it the past the company to issue another upgrade at CP+.
It's also possible that the Panasonic GX range will see an upgrade. The Panasonic GX1 has been on the market since December 2011, which in Panasonic terms is a relatively long time.
Fujifilm at CP+
Fuji was one of the companies to announce relatively major new products at CES in the shape of the Fuji X20 and the Fuji X100S, both upgrades of previously popular products.
However, that's not to say that the Japanese photography giant couldn't have something else hidden up its sleeve. Although it's not been around that long, the Fuji X-Pro1 could be next on the list for an upgrade, perhaps taking on board some of the features the company's learned from customer feedback after its re-entry into the interchangeable lens market.
If we don't see any new cameras, we might get the full specs on new lenses to be added to the range. We've been promised an increasing X-range lineup in 2013, so CP+ could be the place that new optics are officially revealed.
Sony at CP+
Sony used CES as an opportunity to refresh its compact cameras lineup. The company had a pretty busy 2012, unleashing new NEX compact system cameras on us, along with the eagerly anticipated Sony Alpha a99 and the pretty much unexpected RX1, both with the same full-frame (35mm) sensor.
Now many suggest that that sensor will make its way onto an NEX camera. If so, that will be a very interesting addition to the premium CSC market, and will surely make the likes of Nikon and Canon sit up and take notice.
If it does happen, it seems likely that the company will have to introduce a whole new range of optics as well, so watch this space.
