Minolta RD-3000 (1999)
The Minolta RD-3000, introduced in 1999, was Minolta's attempt at a digital SLR built on the company's Vectis S-1 film body. It didn't use one large sensor. It used two 1/2-inch CCD sensors, each 1.5 megapixels, and their combined output made a 3-megapixel image. It was a real SLR with full lens interchangeability, took the entire range of Minolta Vectis lenses, and shipped with a 28-100mm Vectis zoom. The 1.76x focal length multiplier made those lenses behave considerably longer than their marked focal lengths. Images went to CompactFlash cards, and the viewfinder was the standard Vectis SLR one.
Reviewers of the day saw the RD-3000 as the best of both worlds for photographers moving to digital: SLR handling and interchangeable glass. The price did not help. It ran roughly £3,000 in Britain for the body alone, or about $4,500 in 1999 dollars with the zoom lens. That put it in serious professional territory, and the image quality did not justify the premium.
The RD-3000 also appeared under the Agfa brand as the Agfa ePhoto 1680. It was one of only a few digital SLRs of its time to offer true lens interchangeability. Its compromises, and the rapid advance of single-sensor designs, meant demand for interchangeable-lens digital SLRs largely evaporated for a while afterward. Surviving documentation on shutter speeds, ISO range, battery type, and dimensions is thin. The accessible record focuses on the sensor design, the Vectis mount, and the pricing.
- Type: digital SLR
- Sensor: two 1/2-inch CCDs, 1.5 megapixels each, effectively 3 megapixels combined
- Lens mount: Minolta Vectis
- Kit lens: 28–100mm Vectis zoom
- Focal length multiplier: 1.76x
- Storage: CompactFlash
- Also sold as: Agfa ePhoto 1680
- Introduced: 1999
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