18 Facts About Minolta

On 19 January 2006, Konica Minolta announced that it was leaving the camera and photo business, and that it would sell a portion of its SLR camera business to Sony as part of its move to pull completely out of the business of selling cameras and photographic film.

In 1950, Minolta developed a planetarium projector, the first-ever made in Japan, beginning the company's connection to astronomical optics.

In 1958, Minolta introduced its SR-2 single lens reflex 35mm camera which was equipped with a bayonet mount and instant return mirror.

In 1966 Minolta introduced the SR-T line which included TTL metering.

Minolta SLRs lacked important professional features such as a motor drive, removable pentaprism, and removable back.

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Minolta cameras appealed to amateur photographers with their lower prices and high-quality optics.

Leitz needed expertise in camera body electronics, and Minolta felt that they could learn from Leitz's optical expertise.

Minolta purchased the patent rights to autofocus lens technology from Leica Camera in the 1970s.

The round Minolta logo was developed by Art Director Herbert Clark with internationally renowned designer Saul Bass.

Minolta invested in APS film-format cameras, most notably with the Vectis line of SLR cameras beginning in 1996.

Minolta introduced features that became standard in all brands a few years later.

Standardized features that were first introduced on Minolta models included multisensor light metering coupled to multiple AF sensors, automatic flash balance system, wireless TTL flash control, TTL-controlled full-time flash sync, and speedy front and rear wheels for shutter and aperture control.

Special features introduced by Minolta are interactive LCD viewfinder display, setup memory, expansion program cards, eye-activated startup, and infrared frame counter.

Minolta made one last attempt to enter the amateur and professional market with the Maxxum 9 in 1998, followed by the Maxxum 7 in 2000, which used a full LCD readout on the rear of the camera.

Minolta had a line of digital point-and-shoot cameras to compete in the digital photography market.

Minolta created a new category of "bridge cameras, " with the introduction of the DiMAGE 7.

Minolta later innovated in this line by being the first manufacturer to integrate a mechanical antishake system.

In January 2002, Minolta again created a new category of camera, introducing the Minolta DiMAGE X, an ultracompact digital with a 3x folded zoom lens.