New Canon and Nikon DSLR rumours

ElectronRun has already mentioned the new Sony 24.8 megapixel full-frame sensor being prepared for forthcoming DSLR cameras. Given that Nikon is a really good Sony sensor customer, rumours on a forthcoming Nikon D3x with a -surprise surprise- 25 megapixel full-frame sensor are nothing but perfectly logical. A new Nikon D90 to replace the Nikon D80 is also mentioned.

At the same time, Canon’s 5D has seemingly completed its life cycle and new things are expected pretty soon under the 5d Mk II name. Sites like Photography Bay and Crave have plenty of gossip to keep you busy, you could also be entertained by plenty of photographic forums where users not only take guesses as to what the new specs will be, but also openly present their wish lists if they were to upgrade (continued)

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Nikon D3 possibly the best DSLR ever made – Review by dpreview

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Built like a tank and ready to take any hardship coming its way, Nikon’s D3 is its first full-frame DSLR, a model awaited by Nikon fans for five years now. Dpreview is taking a full review and guess what, it concludes that the D3 is “possibly the most compelling, capable and well-rounded professional digital SLR ever made”!!!!

Now this is quite a heavy statement and a surprise for Canon that has been the king in the full-frame field up to now. So what makes the D3 so special? It is a full blown professional camera with menus and settings to satisfy any taste. Handling, focus, speed, choice of settings are top notch.

Samsung and Pentax to possibly join the full-frame DSLR race

ElectronRun covers DSLR developments and only last week I listed 7 reasons DSLRs are so important to manufacturers. From PMA 2008 it is becoming apparent that the reflex camera entry category is already incredibly crowded. Manufacturers respond with an increasing number of models and the inclusion of as many features as possible.

This however leads to more price competition and a distinct difficulty to achieve product differentiation. This time the safety valve seems to be full-frame sensors. Canon had them first, Nikon followed with the excellent D3 -that is surely going to cut a lot of business from Canon’s formerly exclusive domain- and Sony has plans to join the club with a 24.8 megapixel sensor.

Nikon Coolpix S52 and S52c compacts announced

Together with the Coolpix P80 superzoom, Nikon today also announced the Coolpix S52 and S52c compacts. Their main features are:

• 9 megapixel sensor.
• Sensitivity up to ISO 3200.
• Limiting to ISO 800 in auto to avoid high noise pictures. Limiting to ISO 2000 for high sensitivity mode.
• Optical stabiliser.

Nikon Coolpix P80 Superzoom announced

Nikon today announced new models. One of them is the Coolpix P80 superzoom. Let’s see what you get:

• 10 megapixels resolution.
• Massive 18X zoom, 27-486mm equivalent.
• Manual controls.
• 2.7 inch screen.
• Electronic viewfinder.
• In-camera D-Lighting picture fixing plus in-camera red-eye reduction.
• Face-priority AF.

Nikon DSLR share almost equal to Canon’s, Canon still world #1 overall

Source: CNET and IDC

The ripples of the digital camera revolution have not settled yet. CNET is reporting that according to IDC data on world camera sales, Canon is still number one overall, a lead it has retained continuously in recent years. However, in the most important DSLR category, Canon’s significant lead has all but been eroded by Nikon’s explosive progress.

In particular, the world DSLR pie of roughly 7.5 million units has gone by 42% to Canon, 40% to Nikon and the remaining to everyone else -with Sony being the most aggressive DSLR outsider. To get a feeling of Nikon’s progress, bear in mind that in 2006 Canon’s share was 46.7%, while Nikon was lower by one third at 33%. With the current trend, Nikon with its fast 71% growth will overtake Canon this year -Canon’s growth is stuck at 29%.

Nikon D300 review round-up

The Nikon D300 DSLR is D200’s replacement and currently the second most advanced Nikon after the full-frame D3. In non-full frame DSLRs it represents the current state of the art and is the best example of Nikon’s comeback after a very long and difficult period. For this reason, I have included after the break some links to D3oo reviews.

PMA 2008 DSLR wrap-up

This year’s PMA has been nothing but exciting for DSLR cameras. The great news is that Canon and Nikon are no more alone in the arena. Of course we have the issue of legacy lens and photographer resistance to change when they have been served by their cameras for year on end…

The show’s disappointment? For me the fact that Canon did not replace its 5D with a newer model, but of course it is their regular practise to only release one major model per show. We will have more chances for this later in the year. Full-frame sensors are Canon’s strong card as it has the longest history and a proven record. If the 5D successor comes in at a low enough price point to become competitive against smaller sensor DSLRs it will be the most exciting development I could expect this year…

New Nikon D60 DSLR coming to PMA 2008

In the build up to PMA 2008 we already know of the new DSLR cameras from Canon, Pentax and Samsung, for which you can read here. Of course Nikon could not be left behind and chose its official announcement time to be much closer to the PMA opening day this Thursday. The D60 is the new baby and it looks incredibly close to the older D40x that it will probably replace. It incorporates the following features:

• 10 megapixel sensor.
• A dust protection system that combines self-cleaning sensor shake-off and an airflow design to sweep dust away.
• 3-area autofocus.

New DSLR cameras coming in PMA 2008

Tired of CES and Macworld yet? Time for something more focused, because PMA is no generalist show but concentrates exclusively on imaging stuff. I am not going to deal with compacts at all, as models change with the the frequency of weather changes, I am going to concentrate on my favourite part of the show, DSLR cameras :-) There is already wind of new DSLR models for the show, the timing is quite critical as 2008 is going to be good for this segment and fierce competition is a certainty.

Canon is going to reveal its 450D/Rebel XSi that will replace its current 400D/XTi. With 12 megapixel resolution, a larger viewfinder, live view, spot metering, 3 inch screen, 14-bit processing and high ISO noise reduction it is a definite improvement but times are changing and the competition is not as weak as in previous years… A point to note is that resolution is higher than the 10 Mp of the more expensive and capable 40D, a case of dismay among Canon customers expressed vocally in the past with the 400D/XTi and the 30D.