where there’s smoke there’s forum fire
So I'm very much interested in the D300, but with the possible announcement of a D400 within the next few months, does it make sense to drop the cash on a D300 right now? Should I wait and see what the new body has to offer? Would it be that much better anyways? Also, when and if the new body comes out, can we expect a decent price drop on the D300?
I'd just hate to drop the cash on a D300 only to find that the D400 will cost the same and have more features. I'm just so damn impatient.
Cheers
oasisfan33, if you don't have a working camera at all right now, consider the D300. Personally, I'm determined to wait for the D400. (I've been saving for it since I got my wonderful D200) Given that the D300 is down to $1500 in some places, I think you can expect to pay at least $300-$500 more than that if and when the D400 finally comes out. Will it be better? Of course. How much better? Nobody knows. That's why we come to this website. :)
Yeah I'm hoping the D400 stays at or under 2000.00 USD. Don't feel like paying more than that.
My guess is that it will be $1700 and the D300 will drop to $1200. No one is going to buy a $2000 D400 if they can go FX for just a little more ala D700.
I almost snagged a <3k clicks D300 for $1175 this morning but someone may have beat me too it. If I don't get it then I'll be waiting for price drops via the D400 announcement.
Do you think they'll halt production on the D300? Do you think it will go the way of the SB-800 and you'll only be able to get it for a crazy price on ebay?
I almost snagged a <3k clicks D300 for $1175 this morning but someone may have beat me too it. If I don't get it then I'll be waiting for price drops via the D400 announcement.
I nabbed one with 4250 releases on it for $1200 just last month.
Body was mint, looks like it spent it's life on a tripod, indoors...there wasn't a bit of dust ANYWHERE in ANY of the body seams/buttons/etc.
Even came with original box/unused neck strap/charger, and a thoroughly read manual =)
-- Dave
I think that this is exactly what Nikon will do when they launch D400 (take all the d300 from the market, as it was with SB-800 and many other products). However, keep in mind that for sure the price of D400 will be at the beginning higher than D300 is right now. Also, You can always get D200 for +/- 650USD and wait till the price of d400 will drop (You will have two great cameras, for a price of one on the release day).
The D300 is Nikon's top DX-format camera - period. Just as there is never the right time to buy a computer, so there is never the right time to buy a camera in such a dynamic market. Even if the D400 is announced tomorrow, it won't be available for a few months. The D300, with 12mp, 51 focussing points and a great range of features will help you take great pics now, next year and in several years' time. If you have the cash, splash it and enjoy the Summer!
I like the idea of going with a D200 now and then a discounted D300 later. It really would be two execellent bodies for the price of one and I'd be a fool not to do it I think. Of course I'll wait until after the 14th before I decide. Maybe the new 400 might be cheaper than expected....that is if they announce the 400 and not a D60 replacement.
Well, the way I look at it, you can buy the D300 now and cry once, or you can cry twice by buying the D200 and then selling it/etc. to buy a D300/400.
-- Dave
Why a D300? The D90 is cheaper, lighter, and has better IQ according to the DXO charts.
Faster flash sync, Interval timer, Compatibility with all lenses ever made, better body, better vertical grip, programmable function buttons, etc...
I thought about a D90, but the better IQ (and only really slightly better) wasn't worth giving up the weather resistant body, fast frame rate, flash sync and the others mentioned above. I would rather have a D200 over a D90 I think.
Edit: I think the D90 is actually more expensive than a 200 right now anyway. At least on Amazon.
Regarding the price. I think it will definitly stay under 2000$ Nikon has decided to make their annoncement earlier to rain on canon's parade for the new 500D due may 11th (as per best buy web site) the posted price is 1,099$ CAD. I was about to go out and get the D300 this weekend, but upon reading the info on the press release April 14th, i'll wait a bit....hopefully for a price drop.
>>Do you think they'll halt production on the D300? Do you think it will go the way of the SB-800 and you'll only be able to get it for a crazy price on ebay?
The reality is that Nikon have more than likely already stopped production of the D300. One thing Nikon are very good at is managing their inventory levels so that when new products arrive on the shelves they have exhausted the supply of old model stock. In the past rebates have been available to assist overstocked resellers in moving their excess old stock. Many of those resellers are no longer in business and the rest have considerably reduced stock holdings so I would not be holding my breath for any rebates on D300.
The D400 on the other hand will be priced to reflect the weaker US dollar and the lower expected sales volume. Nikon will be upping the price to ensure that they get more income per camera sold as they know sales volumes will drop off during 2009.
I've noticed more aggressive price decreases on kakaku in the last couple of weeks. One camera store in Osaka dropped their price by 1 yen each time a competitor outbid them, to try to keep on top of the ranking. They did that consistently until the weekend until they stopped.
http://kakaku.com/item/00490711094/pricehistory/
check out: 大阪ボンバー
Were they trying to move their D300 stock ahead of an announcement? They only show the D300 18-70 kit available on their site now, and kakaku shows them aggressively trying to get rid of those also
http://kakaku.com/item/00490711095/pricehistory/
Question for me as a prospective D300/D400 buyer, is should I get a D300 at the reduced price since the D400 will debut at at least 200,000 yen probably (current best price is ¥123,800 or $1,269.57) or bet that the D400's features will be worth the step up, and then more? I think it's probably the former. I think the D300 is a steal at the moment and Nikon are encouraging retailers to sell out so that they can reposition the brand as more high-class than Canon (and thus charge more). I also don't care about video and nobody seems to have an idea about improvements on the D300 other than MP and video. D700 after all was 'only' an FX sensor IIRC, plus the ability to recognise gels on flash (plus a lot of other tweaks of course, but basically it's just FX, correct?) Opinions?
I hope they release a new flash alongside that new body. I would love to get an update to the SB-600.
If I had to guess, this announcement will be the D40 replacement, with the D400 coming later this summer. That is of course, assumeing that there will be a D40 replacement. If there isn't, it will be the D400 for sure.
Well, beside all the things aforementioned, consider this thought also: With te maximum of 15 Mp, there are reasons to believe that D400 will offer the best performance that could be squeezed out of DX format sensor, so I think anyway. So if you're willing to stick with your DX lenses, if you have any, like I do, wait for the best DX format camera. It won't be long until it arrives, surely.
I am in the same boat and debating on waiting or to just buy and forget about it.
To me, once the announcement is done by Nikon, there will usually
be a lag time of about a month before they hit the stores. If the D400 is
way more than what I want to pay, then I will get the D300
either way the d300 wont be more expensive and you wont
have to wonder what if?
Soo NIKON if you are reading our posts announce it already!
i've got my D300 the day it was launch. Never looked back since then. It's a great camera that'll last me ages.
the D300 is $1449 at Adorama when I was at the actual store off of 18th and 6th yesterday. . .had so much fun playing with it!!
the viewfinder is something to behold!
As I wrote some time ago, I think that the option for today is either buy a d200 or wait for d400. With the first, You can get a decent lens for the price difference between d200 and d300, and if You don't use high iso and live view You'll don't see much difference. OTOH when You wait for d400 You'll get the newest nikon body, probably with even better noise performance (hopefully same or nearly same as in d700) - You will pay more, but for sure will be less pissed than buying now d300 and being able to get it for half it's price in nearer or longer future.
As for d90 and d200 comparison, this two cameras are on two different levels. One is amateur and second one is semi-pro. I agree that according to DXO charts d90 is even better in IQ than d300, but it doesn't mean that it's a better camera, as the AF is worst than in d200, not to mention the body construction and sealing.
So concluding, if I was going to get a new body in April/May I'll either buy the old and great d200 or wait for d400.
It is never a good time to buy a camera.
There will always be a better one after awhile and you will loose your money the minute you bring it out of the shop. It is the same as with a car.
On the other hand D300 is a great semipro camera, better then anything else in Nikon DX range.
So if you need something like this, and have enough money, I would say go for it. Otherwise you will wait for D400 for a year or so and it will not be good time to buy it again because it will be overpriced, and so on.
You must log in to post.
