General Sony A7III questions for Nikon user

[ejg1890]

Hello All

I just joined the forum at this point more for information as I am close to making a switch from Nikon to Sony primarily for the mirrorless options. Yes I understand Nikon has announced their Z series mirrorless but as a hobbyist there are some things i like about Sony rather than Nikon, however, there are still several items with Sony that I am concerned with and looking for feedback.

1. Does Lightroom convert the Sony uncompressed file to a dng format without issues or loss of quality? The biggest concern is the RAW uncompressed file size. Nikon offers and I shoot 14 bit lossless compressed in Nikon. I later convert the .nef format to dng in Lightroom. Sony does not offer Lossless compressed option so the files for a 24 mb photo will be about 2x the size. So my workflow is to convert the Sony RAW format to dng after importing to Lightroom. Will Lightroom convert the Sony RAW format to dng? Is there any degradation to the file quality in doing so? Also if convert what is the file size of the dng? I have not seen a change in the file size in .nef files converted to .dng. 
2. Any rumors, road maps or comments from Sony on firmware/software upgrades for additional functionality such as lossless compression, time-lapse video or other items. From what I have read Sony discontinued an app store that a number of these functionalities were available for purchase. Or I have I understood incorrectly and the app store is still available to purchase additional functionality?
3. Durability in weather - how does this camera stand up to light rainfall? I do not make a habit of shooting in the rain with my Nikon D750. However, I do travel and take it with me. I don't always have the luxury of coming back some place at a later time. So I have used the camera in very (very) light rain. I have heard stories of the Sony A7III failing in even the slightest rain. Not sure if those are one off/infrequent occurrences.
4. Finally any issues with dust or dirt on the sensor from changing lenses due to the fact the sensor is uncovered for a short period of time? I do clean the Nikon sensor myself but doesn't require it frequently.

Thanks all appreciate any feedback

Jim  

Edited September 13, 2018 by ejg1890

[LiveShots]

3. Shot my A9 in a light rain a few times, not had any issues with it. I do have a rain cover that I use if I suspect that bad weather may be imminent.

4. I've had a few issues (2-3) with dust, typically I point the camera downward when changing lens. There is a Cleaning mode which vibrates the sensor to remove loose particles and a blower brush takes care of the rest. I don't see it as a problem really.

[thefsb]

2. Sony doesn't announce roadmaps for firmware updates and seldom says anything about what's going to be in an update in advance. And, unlike, for example, Fujifilm, Sony doesn't put anything more than strictly necessary into updates.

The feature to run Sony's Android apps on the camera is gone. I don't expect it to return.

So for the most part you can expect a Sony camera to remain basically as it is. I may be proven wrong and that would be nice but it's ok with me wither way. My µ[mju]-2 never got firmware update and still works fine. Same with the Trip-35 for that matter. Hm.