On the contrary, my experience with buying new MFD cameras since I started using Phase backs in 1999 was their whole business model was to keep users in the upgrade loop and encourage upgrades to the next best thing with their favourable upgrade programme every new big development (2 years?) Jumping ship and selling privately has never been an option to recoup your investment as the kit loose so much money and you're left with the decision to stick with what you've got for good or continue to ride the wave....... Seems to have worked very well for Phase for many year.
So, you are a research poll of one.
I personally know a fair number of pros that have bailed on MFD, or are sticking with what they have because they see no real advantage in upgrades after they reached a certain point. And that doesn't even include many here on GetDpi that have moved on.
While the company trade-up programs do offer a bit less gouge to the pocketbook, they are still pretty steep compared to staying pat, or moving onto something else that gets the job done for a minuscule fraction of the price.
Granted, we all have different criteria, and there most certainly is a place for bigger and better MFD … but to think the MFD segment is raging forward unabated is simply not the case. Perhaps if the general health of paid photography recovers in future we'll see more interest … but I firmly believe that ship has sailed, and it'll only get worse, not better … again, "generally speaking". Okay for some, not okay for a lot of others.
While the whole concept of a large sensor is one I firmly believe in, the whole MFD camera gestalt has evolved at glacial speed. We don't need bigger, bad-boy backs, we need smaller, more modern cameras rather than some previous century devices with technological bandaids plastered all over them.
Hopefully that'll happen sooner than later. Maybe next month?
- Marc