DJI acquires majority stake in Hasselblad, the iconic Swedish camera company | Hacker News Reader

DJI acquires majority stake in Hasselblad, the iconic Swedish camera company

techcrunch.com

59 pointscocoflunchy21 comments

This article covers the topic much better:

https://luminous-landscape.com/hasselblad-acquired-dji/ __

Hasselblad has been in financial trouble since the late 90s and it has been sold a number of times; see this press release for info:

http://photorumors.com/2011/06/30/hasselblad-set-for-growth-...

And recent cameras[1] have been a joke ("Sonyblads") to some:

http://photorumors.com/2012/09/19/hasselblad-goes-into-damag...

The cameras used on the Apollo 11 mission were Hasselblads, model 500EL [0]. There were three of them, and they generated pretty impressive photos.

[0] https://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11-hass.html

It's worth noting that the LL history and report are written by a former employee of, and current shareholder of, Phase One, one of Hasselblad's major competitors. It's entirely possible the report is accurate, but failing to discolse that seems very pooor form.

Fingers crossed for less racist discussion of the possible aquisition than on most photography sites!

I have to admit I am throwing anxious glances at my Hasselblad kit as I type this (No, I am not a gazillionaire; I have a 501C/M film body and a couple of lenses.)

However, I am somewhat puzzled as to what DJI stands to gain from this apart from the obvious 'camera by Hasselblad' marketing blurb.

Hasselblad aren't exactly known for making compact, lightweight cameras.

And they don't make their own lenses - that is being handled by Carl Zeiss (V system) and Fuji (H system) They aren't exactly drone material, either. (According to my kitchen scale, the 80mm f/2.8 lens is just a tad shy of 500g (In excess of 1lb).)

So - what will happen to the medium format camera line now? I cannot see how any development here can be beneficial to a drone manufacturer, which would require smaller sensors, smaller lenses.

Exciting times.

> Hasselblad aren't exactly known for making compact, lightweight cameras.

Well, except for their new mirrorless system, which is smaller than most small format DSLRs.

> However, I am somewhat puzzled as to what DJI stands to gain from this apart from the obvious 'camera by Hasselblad' marketing blurb.

While DJI's most popular drones are 1" and m43 sensors units, they do have a medium format drone, too. Given aeriel photography was traditionally large format film and super expensive lenses, there's arguably a gap in the market there that DJI may be looking to exploit.

Also, Hassleblad have been badly managed for a long time. Jaguar (Tata) and Volvo are both examples of companies having a terrible time of it under US ownership and enjoying a renaissance under Indian or Chinese ownership. It would be hard to do worse than the Sonyblads.

In my ignorance, I had no idea DJI made a MF drone. Thanks! (What did they do? Put a remote in a Cessna 172? ;-) Off to Google I go)

And don't even get me started on the Sonyblad. That was beyond embarrassing. I'd like to think that some of the craftsmen at the factory exclaimed "Over our dead bodies!" in aghast when the idea surfaced - only to have some icy venture capitalist suggest that that could be arranged, yes...

They were, but it's interesting how much shit Hassleblad get compared to, say, Leica: the Leica D-Lux cameras, for example, are much the same thing; a Panasonic compact camera, stick the red dot on the front, charge three times as much. Leica someohow manage to have navigated that kind of thing with much less opprobrium (along with the S-series bein broken-as-shipped and so on).

A flying XD1 would be incredible, and is probably already possible with the current airframes. Give it a few iterations and you'd probably be able to replace some very expensive cinema rigs.

It's the same sensor, yes: https://www.dpreview.com/news/5438453594/hasselblad-dji-medi...

Probably one of the few camera mgfrs that are available to buy Canon, Nikon or Sony probably cost too much and there's still things that a traditional camera company can bring to the table(even if lenses are made out of house).

Are we sure DJI is [only] a "drone manufacturer"?

> I am not a gazillionaire;

Haha, I couldn't have been the only one thinking the majority stake probably cost less than one of the cameras.

The lightweight drone company and the really good, really heavy camera company. Ought to be interesting.

It sounds like Hasselblad is dead. DJI is probably just buying patents and the brand name. Its too bad they weren't subsumed they way Minolta was with Sony or Mamiya was with Phase One. Cameras are a mature market with established players. I doubt DJI is going to make giant-sensor cameras when there are several other iconic companies doing the same thing.

its pretty ironic and unacceptable when Phantom 4 PRO delivers cheaper 4K@60fps recording than actual dedicated camera manufacturers.

Well, TBH, most people buy DSLRs for the stills not the movies.

If I want a movie, I'll pull out my iPhone - it has more memory and works great on a selfie stick or if I need to hand it to someone else.

Might be just Patent related; but to be fair to DJI, they DO make the best (and by far) cameras for that volume you can get anywhere -- getting their hands on Hassy with their knowledge of optics is clearly going in the right direction.

I just hope the brand/company doesn't get tossed in the ditch when the drone-bubble implodes in a little while. Hassy gave us the 'Earthrise' picture, and millions of other stunning images, it'd be as bad as loosing Leica.

On the surface, it's a pretty weird acquisition. Hasselblad is known for making high end, large format cameras for professional photographers. Their flagship products are large, heavy, and cost tens of thousands of dollars. How do you take a company like that and make it produce small, cheap, and lightweight cameras?

A nitpick, but worth clarifying: Hasselblad is known for medium format cameras, not large format.

Another important Swedish company bought by the Chinese, after Volvo and Saab.

It was bought by a Chinese firm...not "the Chinese".

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