A model displays a "Nikon 1 J1" interchangeable lens camera in Tokyo on September 21, 2011. Nikon unveiled two models of its new compact camera equipped with a 1-inch sized CMOS image sensor a focusing unit with 73 focus points, and four new lenses.YOSHIKAZU TSUNO
Nikon unveiled its first mirrorless cameras on Wednesday, beating its arch rival Canon to the nascent market for small, interchangeable-lens cameras, where other manufacturers have met with mixed success.
Priced at around $915 U.S., the long-rumoured Nikon 1 J1 and Nikon 1 V1 will go on sale on Oct. 20, the company said at a launch at an upmarket hotel in Tokyo's Roppongi, with models, actors and Japanese TV star Takuya Kimura on hand.
"A new market is developing among people who feel a compact camera is not quite good enough," Yasuyuki Okamoto, head of the company's imaging division, told reporters, adding that he saw the camera's small size as one of its main appeals.
Nikon and Canon dominate the market for the hefty single-lens reflex cameras used by professional photographers and enthusiasts, and mirrorless cameras pack many of the benefits of those high-end models into smaller bodies.
They have large sensors, giving good picture quality, but no optical viewfinders, enabling manufacturers to keep the camera body smaller and lighter by leaving the mirror out of the structure.
The new format is popular in Japan, where consumers tend to value easily portable products, but has so far sold less well in North America and Europe.
Mirrorless cameras accounted for 31 per cent of all interchangeable lens models sold in Japan in 2010, but only 10 per cent in the United States, according to research firm IDC.
Global mirrorless shipments reached 2.1 million units in 2010, but IDC is revising its forecasts for 2011, which it says will depend on new entrants and economic conditions.
"This is turning into a tricky market trend," said Chris Chute, research manager in charge of digital imaging at IDC. "It is clear that while the mirrorless segment is doing well in Japan and a few other countries, it is facing hurdles in the West."
He added that the entry of a big name such as Nikon could lift the whole segment, but said price would be an important factor, specifying the $500-$800 range as most likely to sell well.
"We do not see a high-priced mirrorless model having as great a chance of success," he said.
Sony's NEX 5-D is available online for about $576, including two lenses.
Shares in Nikon were up 1.2 per cent by late afternoon, outperforming Tokyo's electrical machinery subindex's 0.7 per cent rise. Rumours about the mirrorless launch have helped lift its share price about 10 per cent since Sept. 1.