Nikon D90 rumors heating up ahead of Photokina as well
By Nilay Patel 
posted Aug 5th 2008 10:36PM
posted Aug 5th 2008 10:36PM
P.S.- Yes, that's another old, probably Photoshopped image that's been floating around, so don't get crazy -- like we said, these rumors aren't exactly new.
I want this. bad.
zerocalories:
Given that a D90 will be a good fraction of the price of a D300, it's probably going to be a better prospect for people without $1600 to burn on something they may not need.
Honestly I wouldn't hold my breath - the D80 had optional GPS too, you just had to get a hotshoe attachment from Sony. And it's not like Nikon to release 2 different D90 bodies.
Live View isn't the kind of feature you find in a prosumer DSLR like the D80. HDMI makes a little more sense considering the D80 had a composite video out, but I don't even want to think about the space/power/etc. requirements for that even if there was a dongle (which oh by the way is lame).
GPS is a nice feature though, so honestly all Nikon has to do to make a D90 is offer better ISO performance, add GPS for geotagging (hopefully not at the expense of too much battery life), and dust reduction systems a la the D60. 12 MP encroaches on D300 territory.
The Canon Rebel XSi and XS both have Live View, and they're price a little lower. Sony seems to be pushing Live View pretty hard, too, so I imagine they'd put it in just to get another plus mark in a review.
I still fail to see why Live View is such a compelling feature in, of all things, a DSLR.
Even an extremely high resolution LCD on the back of the computer still doesn't convey the same visual depth of information (even focus) as well as a real viewfinder has. Sure, you can zoom to 1:1 to see if you're focused, but that's cumbersome considering you have real optics and real glass a half inch away.
Eh, I don't have a DLSR with the capability, but I guess I could see it being useful on a tripod. Besides that one Sony, all the current SLR Live View modes work by contrast detection for focus, which is way, way slower than the normal phase detection system, so it'd not useful.
I hope that the manufacturer don't rush headlong into Live View while neglecting viewfinders. It sucks trying to use a rear LCD outside, and electronic viewfinders are nowhere near ready. And they consume power, whereas glass and mirrors work instantly, with no power needed.
Actually that's not completely true Perardi. Most badly implemented Live View systems do use contrast detection, and do suck. But the good ones (D300 and D3 to my knowledge, probably others) have a settable option to pause the live view when the shutter release is half-pressed for the mirror to come down, focus using the traditional sensor, take the shot, and restore the live view. This takes only a split second (similar to the blackouts during a high speed series with 'confirm focus before shutter release' set) - not long!
Personally, I have no use for such a feature since I only shoot in the field, but I see how some people might have a use for it.
Also, we're talking about a Nikon here. Nikon finders are pretty much the best in the business; I'm not sure where you are going with that comment, but throughout each D-series of digital SLRs the finders have only improved. I fully expect the eventual D90's finder to be equal or better than the D80's.
Sony's Alpha 700 has hdmi output already so that's nothing that brings any issues. I assume whatever video is fetched of a second sensor and the live view is in the same fashion as the Sony Alpha 300 / 350.
But I'm not sure if it is real or just someones imagination before Nikon put out a press release.
i love the way engadget editors write "P.S." and their warning for fake content :D
What about the actual press release of the micro 4/3 format?? You have a two paragraph mini blurb about nothing, while an actual, significant advance which may forever change P/S cameras into mini-DSLRs has *still* not been posted yet.
http://www.imaging-resource.com/NEWS/1217960634.html
You might want to actually read a blog before you criticize it.
http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/05/olympus-and-panasonic-launch-micro-four-thirds-dslrs-enter-a-ne/
Honestly, the new micro 4/3 is not that impressive.
The Sigma DP1 has already introduced the concept of a compact camera with DSLR sensor quality (albeit without interchangeable lenses). In addition, the Leica M8 uses a high end sensor in a compact design, includes interchangeable lenses, and most important of all, possess an optical viewfinder (albeit its a rangefinder, not TTL like SLRs.)
So its sorta all been done already, except better.
This new format means EVF instead of optical, which is a serious downfall. I personally wouldn't purchase a P&S without an optical viewfinder. Also, when Canon introduced the EF-S mount for the smaller mirror box of x00D/x0D DSLRS, the cameras remained fully backward compatible with the huge range of EF lenses. This new format needs an adapter for backwards compatability. As your linked article states 'other lenses will likely be reduced to "guided manual" focus', yet another serious downfall.
I think that'd be first for video on a DSLR.
Also, I wonder if this will (assuming this is at all real) use the CMOS sensor from the D300. I think that might put the D300 in a pinch; the D90 would have the same DX performance on the cheap, and the D700 is mighty attractive as a semi-professional body. I guess they can give it a smaller buffer/not as good autofocus/other.
The micro 4/3 will have video, and they will have at least one body in the event come September, but without all the mirror box nonsense.
I'm sure the Micro Four-Thirds system will have the same range of quality lenses, superb image quality, and overwhelming market dominance of the current Four-Thirds system.
I'm not sure it would pinch the D300. The sensor is one thing, the D300 would still have a metal weathered sealed body, better AF system, and better control layout when compared to the (rumored) D90. Those three things would get anyone who would seriously consider a D300 to pass on the D90.
@jollyllama: You're probably right. There's likely a market for a better-built semi-pro DX camera.
Since when don't prosumer cameras have live view? The 40D, K20D, L10 and E-520 all have Live View. Sony's A700 is the only prosumer that doesn't. The A350 has live view, so the D90 can and will as well.
The D80 was a D200 Lite, so I expect the D90 will be the same for the D300: 12MP, 51-point AF, new 18-something VR like they always do, Live View, anti-dust, 5fps, 14-bit, 95% viewfinder, HDMI, 1/4000 shutter. It's not really a leap to call any of these things. $999 body, $1199 kit.
Typo: A350 has HDMI, so the D90 will.
It's all pretty dry stuff, as the feature set of any D90 released in 2008 is going to be tightly bracketed by the D60, the D300, and the existing D80.
Still, there are always a couple of surprises.
Because the image quality is much higher?
Go to a store, try out an SLR and you might figure out why people use them.
Not for everyone, but they are for some.
GPS? What the fuck? How does that work?
A GPS accessory sits on the hot shoe of the camera and communicates over the 10-pin remote port.
Writes lat/long and altitude to the EXIF data of any file you shoot if the GPS has a lock. It works really well, I use them all the time for work.
http://www.dawntech.hk/di-GPS/products.htm
They are freakin' fast! And when you look in the viewfinder you see exactly what the sensor sees... and can focus on one point accurately.
Allowing it to use a cheap bluetooth GPS would be more useful than tying up the hotshoe.
Oh man, I really hope that this rumor would really turns reality!!
I'm waiting for the D80 successor for about 1,5 year!!
Oh man, I really hope that this rumor would really turns reality!!
I'm waiting for the D80 successor for about 1,5 year!!
If you had ever seen a head-to-head comparison between an exceptionally good point-and-shoot, and even the worst performing DSLR, you would see a huge difference in picture quality (sharpness, noise, tonal accuracy, dynamic range, etc.).
And that's just one of the many compelling reasons to go DSLR.
PROBABLY photoshopped?
Source:
http://whirlpool.net.au/misc/etc/d90fake2.jpg
Comparison:
http://whirlpool.net.au/misc/etc/d90fake1.jpg
Difference:
http://whirlpool.net.au/misc/etc/d90fake.jpg
Lame, Mk II.
DSLRs simply give better image quality(in many different ways) and speed than point and shoots.
your comment denotes a lack of intelligence.
what i really wonder is, how many midlife-crisis types in hawaiian shirts are running around with cameras 10 times more capable than what they need? i've taken 1000s of pretty decent pics on my 4MP canon point n shoot.
@ SuperSexyErik (^_^):
I'm, quite honestly, amazed by the number of SLR owners now, at least here in Canada. My fiancée and I went to Heritage Days in Edmonton this past weekend, and believe me there were plenty of average Joes carrying SLRs around.
The entry-level SLR market is a big one, which easily explains why that market is saturated with so many models.
Again, SLRs aren't for everyone, but it certainly appears manufacturers are doing good to their bottom line to pay attention to this market group.
If you aren't bumping against the capabilities of your camera then you prolly have the right one for you. You should be happy! =)
I know alot of gadget types get offended when some hayseed buys electronics beyond their understanding or capability. In the end it doesn't matter.
More people buying top tech lowers the price eventually for everyone else. So if a world of hobbyists buy D3s and rarely take them out of the camera bag it doesn't really matter to me =|
That was meant to be a reply to Yu ObNahp. Damn comment system =P
Yes, that image is probably photoshopped, but the general consensus is that this one (http://nikonrumors.com/2008/08/08/first-nikon-d90-picture.aspx) is real.
This camera is obviously made to compete with the 40D seeing as it's around the same price, has most of the d300 tech, and comes with a kit lense for in and around the same range as the 40D body itself.
But the do not compare this with the D300. I have one, and just the 51 point A/F sensor with 3D Matrix Metering and the 922,000 pixel screen (which the D90 has as well), is enough to justify its worth over the 40D. So perhaps this camera is well priced.
And Live View isn't all it's cracked up to be. It's fun, but I'd rather scrounge down and take a shot from a low body angle rather than a low camera angle, because of the the way the Live View shuts off and because you have to double-trigger the shutter release button, in essence.