The latest Nikon rumors

By [NR] admin | Published: March 18, 2010
  • A European Nikon reseller sent out a notification that the Nikon 85mm f/1.8D AF lens is taken out of Nikon’s catalog. The lens is currently available in all major US stores.
  • Another report from a store in Norway – they cannot order Nikon D700 from Nikon Norway any longer.
  • The new Nikon 24mm f/1.4 lens is shipping in the Middle East (source). It should be available in the US next week.
  • DigitalRev thinks that the next Nikon DSLR will have between 8MP and 10MP. I give 0.01% probability to this rumor:

“…but the latest information indicates a resolution significantly lower than the 16 to 18 megapixels range we predicted or even the 12 megapixels of the current models. Apparently in a move away from the expected, Nikon will be releasing a sensor with super high IQ and Dynamic Range but with a resolution between 8 to 10 megapixels. Completely sacrificing the higher megapixels expectations of some of the Nikon users, the new bodies with this sensor will be able to deliver unmatched results.”

  • Vincent Versace labeled one of his pictures on flickr as “This image was captured with a Nikon D-3 camera with a 70-300mm VR Nanocoated lens”. The rest of the pictures have the same comment but without “Nanocoated”. The current 70-300mm lens is not nanocoated. Could be a typo.
  • Nikon D90’s “out of stock” date in Best Buy is listed as September 7th, 2010. The Nikon D700’s out of stock date is August 3rd, 2010 – exactly two years since they got them in stock. Not clear if this is a standard procedure in Best Buy or they know when they will stop getting those models from Nikon:

Posted in Nikon Lenses| 154 Comments

Nikon D4 shown on Dutch TV?

By [NR] admin | Published: March 16, 2010

Update #3: On this image, the label clearly looks like a D3, on the next few frames it looks like a D4 (see other pictures below). Here is a hi-res version.

Update #2: I am not that far in the video yet, but a reader already took this screenshot from the 29:21 mark – hard to tell if this is D4 or D3:

Same image sharpened in PS:

click on image for larger view

Thanks Nick, Daniel and everybody else.

Update #1: here is the link to the video online (you will need to install Silverlight in order to watch it):

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Posted in Nikon D4| 211 Comments

Nikon Coolscan update

By [NR] admin | Published: March 16, 2010

Update: RobertWhite lists the Coolscan 9000 ED as discontinued.

In response to the numerous questions I received from readers about the Nikon Coolscan series in the past few months:

  • In their recent newsletter Grays of Westminster wrote: “Most Nikon Coolscans have been discontinued”
  • Nikon Germany lists the Coolscan IV, V, 4000 and 5000 in their archive section – they do not have any scanner listed as a current model.
  • Nikon Japan lists all but the Coolscan 9000 ED model as discontinued.
  • Nikon USA still lists the Coolscan 9000 ED as a current model.
  • None of the major retailers currently has any Coolscan products in stock (B&H, Adorama, Amazon has some in stock with 1-2 months shipping estimate):

The future of the Coolscan line is not clear – maybe, just like the Nikon SLR film cameras, the 9000 model will be the last version and Nikon will continue to make it in limited quantities. I have not received a single hint about a potential new Coolscan products.

Posted in Other Nikon stuff| Tagged , | 31 Comments

Nikon Rumors giveaway #7 (ThinkTankPhoto backpack)

By [NR] admin | Published: March 14, 2010

The giveaway is closed now. The winner will be announced shortly.

What can I win?

Today I have a ThinkTankPhoto Shape Shifter backpack valued @ $249 to give away (click on image for larger view):

More info on this backpack can be found here.

How do I win?

The rules are simple – just leave a comment to this post. Let’s be creative this time – tell me why do you need this backpack, what is your experience with other ThinkTank products (if any), what are you looking for in a camera backpack or just a funny story. Basically anything backpack related will be fine. One comment per person please. Don’t forget to add your email in the comment section – it will not be used for anything else but notifying you in case you are the winner. I will close all comments at the end of the week and will randomly pick the winner.

The best part?

Following our tradition, the good people of ThinkTank Photo agreed to ship this backpack anywhere in the world, so this is not one of those “US only” giveaways.

What if I don’t win?

You can always get a free bag from ThinkTank Photo with a purchase of $49.50 or more (follow this link, when checking out, you can make you free bag selection – currently the free bag list consists of Cable Management 20, Pixel Pocket Rocket, Modular Pouch, or Security Tag products and is subject to change).

TTP_FreeBag_468x60

What else?

While you are on thinktankphoto.com, you can register for their newsletter.

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Posted in Other Nikon stuff| Tagged | Comments closed

Nikon related news/links

By [NR] admin | Published: March 12, 2010
  • New discount for employees who work for Nikon camera dealers: Nikon D700 for $1,999. This offer is valid till April 30th, 2010.
  • Nikon Japan is introducing universal repair prices for its products starting March 1, 2010. Some examples: Coolpix S8000 will have a flat repair fee of 9,800 yen; Coolpix L series: 7,900 yen; Coolpix P series: 12,000 yen; D40 and D40X: 11,500 yen; D50, D60 and D3000: 13,500 yen; AF-S DX 18-55 F3.5-5.6G lens: 7,900 yen; AF-S DX 18-55 F3.5-5.6G VR lens: 8,300 yen, etc. It is not clear if this plan will be introduced in other countries.

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Posted in Weekly Nikon News Flash| 57 Comments

PocketWizard for Nikon being tested, no release date yet

By [NR] admin | Published: March 11, 2010

Pocketwizard posted an update on their Nikon version of FlexTT5. The good news is that prototypes are already being tested. The release date is still unknown:

“So the big question is when?  It all depends.  There will be surprises along the way. As we learned with the Canon system, it is IMPOSSIBLE to peg a date.  If things go well, it will be sooner.  If there are major surprises, it will be later.”

Via Photographybay

Posted in Other Nikon stuff| 78 Comments

Google found Nikon D700x, D800 entries on nikonusa.com

By [NR] admin | Published: March 10, 2010

Halcyon Habit from www.halcyonhabit.com sent me this interesting info: if you Google d700x site:www.nikonusa.com you will get two results (this search is looking for D700x keywords in all nikonusa.com pages):

This could mean that at some point of time Nikon USA had the following link online:

http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25442/D700X.html

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Posted in Nikon D800| 132 Comments

The last post on the “I am Nikon” campaign

By [NR] admin | Published: March 8, 2010

Update: IamNikon.com is now live.

“Nikon is launching a pan-European advertising campaign, called “I am Nikon”, which aims to connect the brand’s heritage of professionalism, authenticity and innovation to an audience of aspiring photographers. The campaign will appear throughout Europe and South Africa, with the first TV ad airing on UK television over the Easter weekend from 2 to 5 April 2010 on ITV, Channel Four and Channel Five.”

Read the whole article @ MarketingWeek. This campaign was created by by Jung von Matt/Spree advertising agency (the company that registered some of the IamNikon domain names). IamNikon.com still redirects to the default Nikon Europe site. No new products were announced today.

Update: The last card from France of course says “I am Nikon”. It contained also a second flyer about the new campaign (thanks Romain Heuillard for the pictures):

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Posted in Other Nikon stuff| Tagged | 318 Comments

Nikon related news/links

By [NR] admin | Published: March 7, 2010
  • Nikon D700 is no longer available through the Army, Air Force Exchange System (AAFES) – the camera is no longer listed as available (Nikon equipment purchased through AAFES is shipped directly from Nikon). We had similar reports in the past – see here, here and here. In addition, Best Buy company computers are showing a mid-August date as end-of-life for the Nikon D700 (not sure how this works, but this could mean that they would have to return unsold stock and couldn’t sell the product after that date).

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Posted in Weekly Nikon News Flash| 47 Comments

Card #1: “I am looking at the world”

By [NR] admin | Published: March 5, 2010

Update: a maybe better translation of this card would be “I am an eye on the world” or “I am a way to look at the world”.

Card #1 “Je suis un regard sure le monde” which should translate to “I am looking at the world” (thanks for the translation Mistral). This is it – the last card on Monday will probably say “I am Nikon”.

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Posted in Other Nikon stuff| 158 Comments