No, you're not imagining things, it's been a bit slow this summer gear wise.
Summer usually is. Things that are going to be sold for summer use (e.g. vacations) really needed to already be out before July. Once people are out and about on vacation, they're not as interested in new gear. Moreover, this year we had the Olympics, which diverted so many employees from the camera companies that it's difficult to make a significant launch that gets noticed when no one's home ;~).
So, for July and August:
- 2024: 6 significant launches (GH7, Z6 III, D-Lux 8, ZV-10 II, R5 Mark II, R1)
- 2023: 6 significant launches (Z8, ZV-1 Mark II, R100, X-S20, Q3, A6700)
- 2022: no significant launches (though the very late June Z30 launch might qualify)
- 2021: 2 significant launches (E-P7, Zfc)
- 2020: 6 significant launches (G100, R5, R6, M10-R, Z5, A7S Mark III)
Six seems to be the current expected number of summer launches (2021 and 2022 were pandemic impacted).
We also didn't see that many lenses from the major players (6 in 2024 versus 9 in 2022 and 10 in 2021).
Things should start to heat up again as the temperature starts dropping. Mid-September through end of October is the next big launch window.
I took my month off from the Internet this year in April/May instead of my usual August/September, but even I'll be quiet for the next couple of weeks, since I'm in the middle of working on some big projects and the camera makers aren't yet distracting me again.
