New Nikon products, but no DSLRs

<p>Based on the announcement , today, of a handful of point and shoot and CoolPix cameras, is it safe to say that any DSLR release won't be until the fall trade show ?</p>

<p>John, as we constantly remind everybody, those who have insider information about what Nikon will release are under non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with Nikon and will not post such information to public forums such as this one, or they would get into legal trouble. Those who keep on speculating about what Nikon will release do not know any more than you and me; the various dedicated rumor web sites fall into that category.</p>

<p>For example, Nikon only announced two new DSLRs in all of 2010: the D3100 in August and D7000 in September. If someone had told me a year ago in the beginning of 2010 that Nikon would have no DSLRs to announce in the first 7 months of 2010, I would have said that was definitely nonsense. That tells you how much I know.</p>

<p>John,</p>

<p>For now we may have to do with these "Just Coolpix"cam's, but taking a closer look at the P500 may show some intresting new ( for nikon) applied technology, that may well be used in future DSLR's i think, like VR by a moving sensor combined with electronic! VR ( Hybrid VR), automatic combining of multiple quick after eachother taken shots at low light for better detail , and for people who like to make movies : High speed filming as wel as slow motion filming etc. etc.<br>

So i think there's more to it than "Just a few Coolpix camera's" when reading between the lines... </p>

<p>I may wel get some comments on this, but its just how I read those anouncements...</p>

<p>Yeah, disappointing. I guess nikon wants to sell more D3x's, this is why d7000 has tepid 16 megapixels and there is nothing else at 20 or above.</p>

<p>16MP is not "tepid" in a DX camera. There comes a point where you run the pixel density up too high, make the pixel areas too small, and the image quality features you love in a D7000 - DR, color quality, high ISO quality - fall off, and you're just making over large files. Even Canon maxes out their DX cameras at 18MP.</p>

<p>I feel 12mp is plenty, even 10mp is really. Unless you need to make huge prints.</p>

<p>I would say that 10MP isn't quite large enough, from my experience. Anything above 12MP on DX is supposed to have issues with lenses, from what I have read. So I would say the 12-18MP range is about where it will max out, unless we somehow get lenses that are designed much better optically than anything we have presently.</p>

<p>As for announcements, Nikon has announced DSLRs in March, if I'm not mistaken. So yes, it is possible, but I wouldn't hold your breath. Only Nikon and it's peeps know at this point. There are signs of things coming, but nothing concrete enough to say that it is.</p>

<p>Still Jonesing for a 24MP D800 with HD video goodness and a $1999 price tag.</p>

<p>I can dream...</p>

<p>I'm actually at the point where I'm ready for FX. I'm holding out for the D700 replacement, but I don't need 24MP - 16 or 18, D7000 tech but with the pixels areas twice as large, would be pretty darn powerful.</p>

<p><em>" There comes a point where you run the pixel density up too high, make the pixel areas too small, and the image quality features you love in a D7000 - DR, color quality, high ISO quality - fall off, and you're just making over large files."</em><br>

<em> </em>Yes we have been told that many times before. But in last few years DSLR's have gained more resolution AND improved noise control, dynamic range and color acuracy within same sensor size. My 4 megapixel D2h had huge photo sensors and they were full of noise at anything above iso 400!<br>

Just annouced Coolpix P300 has 12 megapixels squeezed on a 6.16x4.62mm sensor!!! And I'm sure that at base sensitivity image quality is excellent.<br>

Hey Nikon, make for me a 36x24mm sensor with pixel density of your P300 - that would be well over 100 megapixels!</p>

<p>I wasn't asking to learn secrets about product releases, I just wanted to know if they generally only made announcements in the spring and fall. Apple announces things at specific times every year. It used to allways be at MacWorld and one other. Now, they skip MacWorld, but still reveal things one time in the spring and one show in the fall.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>John, you are still trying to get proprietry information that is not provided to the general public. Regardless of how many times you ask and how many different ways you ask, you will never get any useful answer due to the reasons I stated earlier.</p>

<p>You can take a look at Wikipedia's page on Nikon: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikon">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikon</a><br>

Towards the bottom of that page, they have listed all Nikon DSLRs (so far) and their introduction dates. I see Nikon has announced DSLRs in January, February, March, April, June, July, August, September, October, November, and December. In other words, so far only in May that Nikon has never introduced a new DSLR, but who is to say that Nikon will not do so this coming May?</p>

<p>Moreover, typically Nikon introduces 3 to 4 new DSLRs a year. For example, in 2009 there were the D3000, D5000, D300S and D3S. 2010 was a surprisingly slow year with only 2, D3100 and D7000 in consecutive months. In other words, I would expect perhaps more than normal new cameras this year to pick up the slack. All of those introduced prior to 2010 are due for upgrades.</p>

<p>But of course I haven't really told you anything new that you cannot figure out yourself.</p>

<p>Good Grief.</p>

<p>I am NOT trying to sneak some "proprietary information" out of posters. I never really paid much attention to their releases. I know they often do something in the fall, before the holiday season. Other than that, I figured it was at big Photo Shows. I don't hang on their product announcements like some posters must.<br>

All you had to do was say they seem to have no particular pattern and leave it at that. I don't appreciate you insinuating I am trying to get anyone to break Nikon rules. </p>

<p> </p>

<p>John, check your PM inbox. Cheers.</p>

<p>Thomas, there are a lot of factors to this. But per-pixel quality and pixel count increase at the same time because the technology improves enough to account for both; it doesn't mean you can take the sensor technology of any given year, subdivide the pixels further and expect an increase in per-pixel quality. Then there's the diminishing returns because lenses aren't perfect.</p>

<p>Anyway, for each generation of sensors there's going to be some pixel density that the engineers believe optimizes for a balance of all their design goals. What I'm saying is that I've been happy with Nikon's lower-density, higher-per-pixel-quality approach than the other big company's megapixels, and ideally I'd like to see them continue that.</p>

<p>Hey Shun, take a chill pill man! Wow!<br>

John wasn't asking about rumours, or inside information, he just asked if Nikon only announce DSLR releases in spring and fall.<br>

The guy asked a simple question that can be answered simply by saying that in your experience, and from history, Nikon seem not to have a set time to make announcements. DSLRs can be announced at any time. No need for the lecture!<br>

Of course we could all research our answers from elsewhere on the internet, but then we wouldn't contribute to this forum would we?</p>

<p>On the subject of pixels, personally I would rather a D300 replacement have the same pixel count, but much better high ISO performance, than more pixels and slightly better ISO performance. One reason I'm not interested in the D7000. I live in the UK where the sky always seems to be dark grey!</p>

<p>It's a long year ahead and I am sure Nikon has new products to offer. If I were Nikon I would wait until the D7000 sales slow down and then hit the market at that time to generate another upgrade frenzy. I am not going to buy another DSLR myself so it matters little to me.</p>

<p>There are a lot of questions posted here about future Nikon releases. Shun explains the case to most if not all the posts. Patience is the key and no one here can say if they know or else like me they just don't know. I very much like to know what is coming and would love to see some more primes become available. I have been waiting for years now. It is just not a good question to ask to begin with as the only answer is always "only Nikon knows". Historically new bodies are released every 18-24 months for a series and sensors get more megapixels and better preformance. Personally I am pretty happy with the results of 12 megapixel printed to 12x18. I need more improvement then my equipment.</p>

<p>Chewy rumors threads. They're like Mary Janes, the world's worst candy: tough and tasteless on the outside with an insubstantial center that tastes awful. Leaves you with loose dental fillings and wondering "Why did I gnaw on this thing?"</p>

<p>I don't have any facts or figures but I would think that Nikon is losing a ton of camera sales to the Canon 5DMII because they have not replaced the D700 with something like a D800 (more MP and good video, reasonable price._</p>

<p>I have a D700 since July, 08. Love it. But do look forward to replacement with no more than 12mp. Have made really excellent 20x30 prints with this & 24-70 & 16-35 lenses. Many more mp would only slow down the processing.</p>

<p>I agree with C.P.M. I sort of read these announcements to get ideas as to where Nikon might be taking their technology/capabilities. I, like many people, would love to see the next gen of the D700 as well as their mirrorless camera. I had tried shooting the NEX-5 (Sony's mirrorless camera) and was pretty impressed with its ability in the presence of sufficient light. Sure it needs better lens and a better strategy for strobe work, but it is a consumer camera. I posted a few notes on my experience on my blog. <br>

BUT, as I was shooting with it a few weeks ago, I had to wonder to myself whether Nikon would come out with a prosumer or pro version of a mirrorless camera. This would be a major technological shift and as such might take longer to get done... hence limited number of DSLR in 2010. Just a thought.</p>

 

<blockquote>

<p ><a name="00YBmo"></a><a href="http://www.photo.net/photodb/user?user_id=586046">Thomas Kiss</a> <a href="http://www.photo.net/member-status-icons"></a>, Feb 09, 2011; 04:35 p.m. Yeah, disappointing. I guess nikon wants to sell more D3x's, this is why d7000 has tepid 16 megapixels and there is nothing else at 20 or above.</p>

</blockquote>

<p > </p>

<p >"Tepid" 16 MP? I have a D700 with an even more "tepid" (perhaps downright "cold" by your measurement stick) 12 MP and I have printed 20 x 30" prints from it, and have had professional commercial work posted on billboards.</p>

<p > </p>

<p >The digital era has turned so many photographers into <em><strong>techno-nerds</strong></em>. So many of them get so wrapped around the axle about MP this, or Video that, that they completely lose sight of the fact that the camera is but a <em><strong>means to an end</strong></em>. It is what the photographer <em><strong>DOES WITH IT</strong></em>, not how many MP it has, that determines the impact of the final image.</p>

<p > </p>

 

<p>I'd much rather have a 10 megapixel dslr with high sync speed. 16 megapixels is really overkill for facebook.</p>

<p>Alvin</p>