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

[aaron l]

<p>Wow, coming from a D200, this looks pretty good. The silencer mode looks really intriguing. The ability to AF during video is awesome compared to the D90. I'd rather have an SD slot rather than nothing for backup. Hopefully they retained the same body feel as the D200/300?<br>

I'd have to disagree with Shun on the swivel screen. Though it's nice for macro, overhead shots and such, the robustness of the camera would be impacted. After playing with the D5000 swivel a bit, I would see that getting broken off in the field, getting sand in it or otherwise.<br>

Ilkka - I agree on the video quality compared to a dedicated camcorder. I balance that with having to carry another camcorder around or a small digisnap to capture video at all vs having at all in a D300s. The 5 minute shoot time isn't much different from the Sony EX-1 with 8 minutes. Small, solid state storage still doesn't compete against tape or large disks for long recording. It's a space issue. And since the D300s records in AVI, I assume the it's the 4GB barrier that's the killer? Maybe Nikon can upgrade to open another file while recording and keep going, limited only by CF card size?<br>

Maybe there will be a D700s with 1080p video soon?</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>Aaron, my wife has been using camcorders with swivel screens since the mid 1990's. There has never been any issue with the mechanics of the screens. I have played around with the D5000 at Costco, and it seems ok. I am sure Nikon can do a better job on such screens on high-end DSLRs.</p>

[Dieter Schaefer]

<p>@ Lil re: CF - see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CompactFlash<br>

@Joe re: 1/500s flash sync: only achievable with an electronic shutter which apparently causes "blooming" - maybe it'll return as technology progresses.</p>

 

[benniehoff]

<p>Regarding the new camera announcements...I was expecting Nikon to add video capability to their cameras, now that Canon has. I would guess that within a year or so, we'll see video available on all models, but this is just speculation.</p>

<p>I was NOT expecting them to release a trimmed-down D5000 with video and swivel screen removed. That is a complete surprise, and a little confusing. Doesn't this D3000 now compete more or less directly with the D60?</p>

[williamting]

<blockquote>

<p>And since the D300s records in AVI, I assume the it's the 4GB barrier that's the killer? Maybe Nikon can upgrade to open another file while recording and keep going, limited only by CF card size?</p>

</blockquote>

<p>4GB per file is a FAT32 file size limitation. It's unlikely that memory cards will ever move off FAT32 for compatability reasons.</p>

<p>Some alternatives would be to split it off into another file and join the files together on a PC (on NTFS or ext3, etc.) or better compression on the fly which would require a much better in-camera processor.</p>

[liljuddakalilknyttphotogra]

<p><strong>Dieter - thank you</strong> , basically this makes no difference to me I suspect. All my cards except for one are Extreme IV so I doubt this will affect me for the future.<br>

Still leaves me to make the final decision on the 70-200VR though.... and I see no reason to go to the D300s - video can be fun with a stalking bird...... But not something I really need.<br>

Lil :-)</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>As far as I know both the D40 and D60 are/will be discontinued. Essentially the D5000 and D3000 replace those two, but all the features have shifted upward. That is, the entry level has gone from the 6MP, 3-AF-point D40 to the 10MP, 11-AF-point D3000.</p>

<p>My D3000 preview has a table detailing all the major feature differences among the D5000, D3000, and D40: <a href="http://www.photo.net/equipment/nikon/D3000/preview/">http://www.photo.net/equipment/nikon/D3000/preview/</a></p>

[sandysocks]

<p>Not good or bad, just interesting updates. At least nobody will have to think about up-grading to these models for a couple of years.</p>

[williamting]

<p>This may seem a bit OCD, but I like the new model numbering system. 4 digit = consumer, 3 digit = prosumer, 1 digit = pro, 2 digit = old numbering system. It makes the distinction between tiers and features much more clear cut to the average consumer in my opinion.</p>

[john_newell2]

<p>Nothing compelling on the D300s...video is a big minus...dual card slot would be interesting, except that I've never had a CF card go south and I have had SD cards go south, so they seem a poor backup to me. This is going to put some pressure on buying a second D300 as a backup, however. Hopefully prices will fall, not rise, for the D300...</p>

[robin_barnes]

<p>Shun - thanks for the previews. <br /> Something is puzzling me about the D3000. In the comparison table (D60, D5000 and D3000) on dpreview the D3000 is shown as not having Automatic Chromatic Aberration Correction whereas both the D60 which it replaces and the D5000 do.<br /> I thought that CA correction was a feature of Expeed Image Processing which the D60 has (its predecessor the D40x didn't and consequently didn't have CA correction) as does the D3000. <br /> If the D3000 really does lack this feature then it is a step backwards. However I suspect that dpreview's table is wrong. <br /> Please can you throw any light on this matter? <br /> Thanks,<br>

Robin</p>

[williamting]

<p>If you look at DPreview's <a href="http://www.dpreview.com/news/0907/09073004d3000handson.asp">chart</a> again, the D60 does not have automatic CA correction.</p>

[tri-x1]

<p>I've got a D300.<br>

If I want to use SD cards I've got my D50.<br>

I got video out of my system in the 1980s.<br>

Why would I want to spend $1,800 on a D300S?</p>

[robin_barnes]

<p>William - must be something wrong with my eyesight! I guess I saw what I expected to see as it was my understanding that CA correction was something that came with Expeed Image Processing - which my D40x doesn't have.</p>

[adam zyto]

<p>I see nothing really interesting in today's news. The only way I'd consider upgrading is if/when Nikon offers a mid level ($1500) camera body with the ISO perfprmance of the D3. That would be cool.</p>

[andrew_kass]

<p>Just curious... why do you think nikon keeps the d300 on its website after it releases the new d300s, since they are both priced the same?</p>

[rossb]

<p>It should prove to be very popular with people that want vidio and such, and the D300 might come down in price and possibly putting the camera within range for a few people. It does seem that camera's have pretty much reached the peak of development as the new camera's are now focusing more on the extra gadgets. I am sure it will be a very popular model especially since the camcorder function will auto focus.</p>

[ivan_j._eberle1]

<p>Isn't the D300s the first video-capable Nikon compatable with the WT4(a) WiFi transmitter? I'm hoping to hear more about the D300s and CCP 2, especially whether the D300s with WT4a will transmit just small .jpgs while storing large RAW files in-camera. My D300 and WT4a don't facilitate this-- but my understanding is that the D3 and D3X with dual card slots do. (This feature alone might bet get me to trade up).<br>

Love the DX format for use with my 200-400VR.</p>

[bmm]

<p>rossb -</p>

<p><em>"it does seem that cameras have pretty much reached the peak of development"</em><br>

<em></em><br>

Nah. That's naive. Look at what the car industry does. They launch what they call a new model every 2 years but in reality the real leaps only happen every 3rd or 4th time.</p>

<p>I have no doubt that Nikon has developed new sensor, AF etc platforms that set up its product path for the next decade or more. But they won't launch them immediately as commercially there is still a lot of milking to do of the current platforms including through "bells and whistles" product extensions like we have seen with the D300s. Plus, its always good to have a few trump cards up the sleeve for if Canon flinches first and goes public with some new level of capability.</p>

[lex_jenkins]

<blockquote>

<p ><a href="../photodb/user?user_id=2398325">RL Potts</a> <a href="../member-status-icons"><img title="Subscriber" src="http://static.photo.net/v3graphics/member-status-icons/sub3.gif" alt="" title="Subscriber" /> </a> , Jul 30, 2009; 02:48 p.m. (<a href="../bboard/admin-edit-msg?msg_id=00U5FD">edit</a> | <a href="../bboard/admin-delete-msg?msg_id=00U5FD">delete</a> )</p>

 

<p>Not good or bad, just interesting updates. At least nobody will have to think about up-grading to these models for a couple of years.</p>

 

</blockquote>

<p>Optimism. I admire that.</p>

<p>But realistically, I'd give it 6 months, tops, before someone begins whining for an updated D3000XXX or a third generation 70-200/2.8 Mach V.</p>

[Sanford]

<p>If the current D300 eventually drops in price like the D200 did (around $600.00 at some places before it disappeared) I would certainly be interested in adding a second one to my collection. The D300 is a great camera and the D300S offers nothing in the way of improvements that interest me.</p>

[travishoover]

<p>@Ben - My local shop has the new 18-200 listed for pre-order on their site for $849. the D3000 with kit lens for $599, the 70-200 for $2399, and the D300s for $1799.</p>

[peter_k4]

<p>The lack of live view on the D3000 is in my opinion a tremendous mistake. I'm sure it's something related to the 10mp sensor not being able to work with it easily, but they still should have just made it work.</p>

[rossb]

 

<blockquote>

<p><em>"it does seem that cameras have pretty much reached the peak of development"</em><br /><em></em><br />Nah. That's naive. Look at what the car industry does. They launch what they call a new model every 2 years but in reality the real leaps only happen every 3rd or 4th time.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>You may be correct. But we shall see what happens. I wish the camera manufacturers would make a camera with a higher sync speed, a native ISO 100 and a wider dynamic range but they do not seem to be able to progress in area's that I am interested in.. As far as camera gadgets go I am not really interested in bothering with them. I just picked up a real nice scanner so I thought I would put my D200 away for a while and shoot a couple hundred rolls of film. I was scanning some of my old stuff tonight and I guess I must have forgot how nice whites that are not blown can look. My wife is very happy because I am scanning slides taken at our wedding 30 yrs ago. They look real nice. I think I am most likely headed towards a medium format and away from the sensor type camera. I think it will provide me with more enjoyment and the large negative will scan very nice for my landscape photography. I can always use the D200 for snapshots and such.</p>

[paul_aylett1]

<p>Can anyone offer more information on the quiet shutter mode? If the shutter can be made more quiet, why not have this on all the time? What's the downside - lower frame rate?</p>