Nikon Introduces D300s, D3000, New Versions of 18-200 and 70-200

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<li>D300s: <a href="http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25464/D300S.html">http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25464/D300S.html</a></li>

<li>D3000: <a href="http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25462/D3000.html">http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25462/D3000.html</a></li>

</ul>

<p>See the following page for all news articles: <a href="http://www.nikon.com/about/news/index.htm">http://www.nikon.com/about/news/index.htm</a></p>

<p>Very minor refresh of the D300, virtual horizon feature is eye candy, never used it on my D700. Video is useless unless they have an external mic jack and full 16 bit sound compatibility (most likely 14 bit). D3000 should sell well, a replacement for D60?</p>

<p>finally - the 70-200 upgrade :-)</p>

<p>Dave - they do have an external mic jack, btw. </p>

<p>Makes Canon look like they are asleep at the switch again. All of us using digital can only benefit by the competition as these improved models make it nicer with every new model. Looks to be a shot across the bow of the 5DMkII as well as the 1DMkIII/50D. Nikon has someone paying attention to photographers requests.</p>

<p>Two areas of surprise for me.</p>

<p>One is the continuation of the CCD sensor in the new entry level D3000 model. I thought Nikon might want to comonalise around their DX CMOS sensor so as to keep costs down / production runs high for these parts.</p>

<p>Second is the evolved 18-200VR DX zoom. Sure a few things like the zoom lock fix obvious things like this lenses propensity for barrel creep, but I thought this lens was one of Nikon's cash cows and therefore would be left alone - especially as it is definitely aimed at a segment of the market who can bear some compromise and look for overall utility, rather than wanting every last little detail and specification right.</p>

<p>Additionally, photo.net has previewed both new DSLRs:<br /><a href="../equipment/nikon/D300s/preview">http://www.photo.net/equipment/nikon/D300s/preview/</a><br /><a href="../equipment/nikon/D3000/preview">http://www.photo.net/equipment/nikon/D3000/preview/</a></p>

<p>We are looking forward to having a hands on short review of the D3000 very soon. Its 10MP CCD sensor is merely a variation of the one previously on the D200, and it also uses the same AF module as the D200. In other words, some major "prosumer" components have now made their way into entry-level models.</p>

<p>Shun / Hannah - preview links don't work.</p>

<p>Bernard, those links work for me.</p>

<p>So bad the D3000 still has a D200/D80/D40X/D60 generation 10 mp CCD sensor. Probably even with better image processing, its high ISO performance still won't be up to the standard of the D300/D90/D5000 generation of DX bodies. </p>

<p>One woks one does not. Go to NikonUSA and there it works.</p>

<p>Shun - I mean these ones...</p>

<p><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.photo.net/equipment/nikon/D300s/preview">http://www.photo.net/equipment/nikon/D300s/preview/</a><br /><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.photo.net/equipment/nikon/D3000/preview/">http://www.photo.net/equipment/nikon/D3000/preview/</a></p>

<p>I get a "404 - page not found" error from the hyperlinks.</p>

<p>Sorry for this little aside from this fascinating set of announcements. Aside from the 2 areas I touched on above, maybe others are surprised at no D700x?</p>

<p>Bernard, both links work for me - did you trying clearing your browser's cache?</p>

<p>It is nice to see, but I am not buying. </p>

<p>I have a 18-200mm already and no complains incl lens creep hasn't witnessed by myself. I have a 80-200/2.8 AFD which I am happy with. I am actually looking for a 2nd hand body and lenses in particular maybe a D2h for sports cos I only do photography club stuff or hobby stuff, for most of my work I have a D70 for my still images on a tripod, I don't do candids or portraits. I may look into a Tamron 17-50 the digital lens, maybe a Nikon DX fisheye and maybe a 24/2.0 manual for my manual focus film body, maybe medium and large format for a diff style of photography. I am actually wanna get a Gitzo traveler to streamline my weight and a Markins Q3 head and studio lights at home to do some family shots and learn about lighting. Pixels and noise has never been an issue for me.</p>

<p>But for travel which is my dominant photog for landscapes and cityscapes, I find that my 18-200 is large so the 18-70 is great that I have, may even consider a 18-55, I am sure Galen may consider that too given that he used 28-70/3.5-4.5 and the 80-200/4.5-5.6. </p>

<p>As a side note I would love a dSLR to be as light and small as the N75 at 380g :)</p>

<p>Nice Can't wait to meet this guy<br>

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0907/0907300370mm200mm.asp</p>

<p>I would have loved to see a D700X. Is it possible that it will be released by itself later in the year, or do they typically release them in unison?</p>

<p>The new 70-200 doesn't <em>look </em>as nice, but the specs are impressive.</p>

<p>Shun, does the new D300s drop to 2.5 fps when set to 14Bit NEF mode? The spec doesn't mention this.</p>

<p>The D3000 is a little disappointing. I was hoping that it would have the 12Mp sensor, but I can understand Nikon's for not choosing to put that on their entry-level camera. I have a D80, and for some time I've been pondering the possibility of getting a smaller body for travel. I was hoping, however, that given the passage of time I could not only get something smaller but also something updated, e.g with the 12 Mp sensor. But that hasn't happened so I won't be buying. (I have no interest in video.)</p>

<p>D80 users are in a bit of a bind, actually: while the D90 is a better camera, it's not really better enough to merit the cost of the upgrade (IMHO). I remember that I was somewhat underwhelmed when I went from D70 to D80, and I determined not to do the same again. The D300s is an even better camera, of course, but the cost of upgrade is even higher. So I think I shall wait out the current generation and see what comes along in 2010.</p>

<p>Or go to m4/3: if you can find them, there are some good prices on the Panasonic G1.</p>

<p>The D3000 is very interesting if it can be modded to be a good IR camera.<br>

The 70-200/2.8 upgrade is very welcome, but I really need a 70-200/4 that costs less than 1000 euros. Still if my shooting habits would change and the price would drop, I would consider the new 70-200/2.8.<br>

The 18-200 is a waste of time, but Nikon probably makes money on that. Yawn.</p>

<p>70-200 II - very nice. It has 70 grams of extra weight compared to the original 70-200; this doesn't sound too bad if the image in the corners is good and there is less vignetting. The corner MTF at 200mm has clearly been improved, but not is still not at prime lens level; presumably it picks up when stopped down. The center MTF has gone up too, so DX users have not been left out. 2430€ is expensive though, hopefully street prices settle for a lower level. I imagine I will pick this lens up some time in the winter and have it available for next summer's events.</p>

<p>D300s now has contrast-detect autofocus in movie mode and external audio support. But no mention of manual exposure control, which is disappointing.</p>

 

<p><strong>Dual memory card slots on the D300S - YAY!!!<br /> </strong></p>

<p>Dual card slots is good. But if you want to use it for backups, you have to replicate your CF cards with SD cards, adding to the cost. Odd decision, to use a mixed combination of card slots. But any two slots is better than just one slot, so I'll shut up.</p>

<p>While I've been waiting for a version of the D300 with video, the lack of full manual exposure control makes me wonder. They're playing with us, and already planning on selling the next model. I'm unsure if I want to invest at this point.</p>

<p>Waiting for the D700X (some say christmas?) and 85mm f/1.4 AFS</p>

<p>Bernard, earlier I tested those links from my wife's computer, and they worked fine. I wonder why you have problems.</p>

<p>Nikon USA has no sample D300s or the new 70-200mm lens yet. I assume the D300s uses the same sensor as the D300 so that I would expect its frame rate to drop to 2.5 fps in the 14-bit RAW mode. That is why I always use the D300 in the 12-bit mode. I have a hard time telling the difference anyway, although on the D700 there is no such penalty so that I use 14 bits all the time.</p>

<p>The dual card feature is nice. There is probably not that much space on the D300 for dual CF cards. Note that like the D700, the D300s is no longer compatible with the thicker Type II CF (e.g. microdrive). as the D300 does Therefore, Nikon manages to get some room for the SD card. It also makes it easier for D40, D60, D80, and D90 ... owners to upgrade since they can continue using their SD cards.</p>

<p>I pointed out to our Nikon contact about the large number of complaints about the corner performance on the old 70-200, but they don't have any info about corner performance on the new version yet. Hopefully they'll have some sample images soon, or better yet, samples we can test. However, photo.net should be receiving a D3000 any time for a quick test.</p>

<p>Speaking of the D3000, for US$600, you get the D200's CCD sensor and AF module plus a 3" back LCD and a 18-55mm kit lens. IMO that is a pretty good deal. If you want the 12MP CMOS sensor, spend more for a D5000.</p>

<p>Shun<br>

When did you have time to write those reviews? Dont you have to sleep. I mean I dont know but it seems pretty fast.<br>

OTOH I don't care for Nikons video mode on D300s dual card is nice but I will be staying with my D300 untill it no longer does what I need it.<br>

I guess Nikon sees a market for this camera and I wish them nothing but sucess I am a Nikon lover .</p>