On the the 25th anniversary of the EOS system, Canon finally has announced the 5D Mark III. It looks to overcome many of the shortfalls of the hugely popular Canon 5D Mark II DSLR camera with a much improved AF system, high FPS, better ISO performance and much more.

As more information is released, I will update this article. Below is a chart that compares a handful of semi pro and pro DSLRs from both Nikon and Canon to the 5D Mark III, a series of videos released by Canon’s very own Chuck Westfall that cover many of the new features of the camera and a series of press images from Canon of the 5D Mark III.

The camera itself is set to be released by the end of March 2012 and you can currently pre-order it at both Amazon and Adorama.

Spec Comparison

	Canon EOS 5D Mark II	Canon EOS 5D Mark III	Canon EOS 1Dx	Nikon D700	Nikon D800
Sensor	21.1-megapixel CMOS 4-channel readout 14 bit	22.3-megapixel CMOS 8-channel readout 14-bit	18-megapixel CMOS 2-line, 16-channel readout 14-bit	12.1-megapixel CMOS n/a 14 bit	36.3-megapixel CMOS n/a 14 bit
ISO Sensitivity Range	ISO 50 (exp)/100 – ISO 6400/25600 (exp)	ISO 50 (exp)/100 – ISO 25600/102,400 (exp)	ISO 50 (exp)/ 100 – ISO 51,200/204,800 (exp)	ISO 100 (exp)/200 – ISO 6400/ 25,600 (exp)	ISO 50 (exp)/100 – ISO 6400/ 25600 (exp)
FPS	3.9 fps 14 raw/310 JPEG	6 fps	12fps	5fps 17 raw/100 JPEG	4fps n/a (5fps with battery grip)
Viewfinder Coverage	100% coverage 0.71x/0.71x	100% coverage 0.71x/0.71x	100% coverage 0.76x/0.76x	95% coverage 0.72x/0.72x	100% coverage 0.70x/0.70x
Autofocus	9-pt AF 1 cross type	61-pt High Density Reticular AF 21 center diagonal to f5.6 5 center to f2.8 20 outer to f4	61-pt High Density Reticular AF 21 center diagonal to f5.6 5 center to f2.8 20 outer to f4	51-pt 15 cross type	51-pt 15 cross type; 11 cross type to f8
AF Exposure Range	-0.5 – 18 EV	2 – 20 EV	2 – 20 EV	-1 – 19 EV	-2 – 19 EV
Shutter Durability	150,000 cycles	150,000 cycles	400,000 cycles	150,000 cycles	200,000 cycles
Metering Range	1 – 20 EV	0 – 20 EV (est)	0 – 20 EV	0 – 20 EV	0 – 20 EV
Video	H.264 QuickTime MOV 1080/30p/ 25p/24p; 720/25p/24p	H.264 QuickTime MOV 1080/30p/25p/24p; 720/60p/50p	H.264 QuickTime MOV 1080/30p/25p/24p; 720/60p/50p	n/a	H.264 QuickTime MOV 1080/30p/ 25p/24p; 720/60p/50p/ 25p/24p
Audio	mono; mic input	mono;mic input; headphone jack	mono;mic input; headphone jack	n/a	mono;mic input; headphone jack
Memory Slots	1 x CF	1 x CF + 1 x SDXC	2 x CF	1 x CF	1 x CF + 1 x SDXC
Battery Size	1,800mAh	1,800mAh	2,450mah	1,500mAh	1,800mAh
Launch Price (Body only)	$2,499	$3,499	$6,800	$2,199.95	$2,999.95/$3,299.95
Ship Date	November 2008	March 2012	April 2012	July 2008	March/April 2012