Sony Hybrid Cam Offers Swappable Lenses in a Tiny Body

Swappable lenses aren’t just for the pros any more. Sony’s new hybrid camera will introduce the flexibility of interchangeable glass to a compact form factor.

Tempted by the allure of multiple lenses for your favorite shooter, but don’t want to hoist a brick of a DSLR to get there? Sony feels your pain. At the opening of the PMA 2010 trade show on Sunday, Sony showed off a new compact concept camera that handles interchangeable glass.

Like the growing Micro Four Thirds format pioneered by Olympus and Panasonic, the cameras will use high-end DSLR sensors (Sony says the mockup uses an APS-C sensor, which is larger than those used by Micro Four Thirds cams), but forego the mirror assembly that typically lends a DSLR much of its size. Instead, owners will rely solely on an electronic viewfinder, coining the unfortunate acronym EVIL for this class of camera: Electronic Viewfinder Interchangeable Lens.

Sony’s mockup, which wears the same Alpha logo as its DSLR line, appears thicker than a typical compact Cyber-shot, but far smaller than a true DSLR. Also unlike those utilitarian supercams, it comes in blue, silver and red. Besides the sensor, Sony hasn’t released any specs, or even a name, for the upcoming model.