New D3200 announced - 24 Mp.

[davidd]

Nikon's new entry level DSLR camera - D3200.

http://www.nikon.com/news/2012/0419_dslr_01.htm

Still no D400...

[Chris G]

The Nikon D3200 is a versatile all round performer that is so easy to use you can capture your special moments wherever life takes you.
Packing an incredible 24.2 Megapixels, DX CMOS sensor, the easier-to-use Guide Mode, Full HD movie recording and an 11-point AF system, the D3200 creates beautiful images in every situation.

More here: http://mynikonlife.com.au/gear/digit...-cameras/d3200


Quite a interesting camera giving its only entry..

edit: Oh and they come in Red... haha

Make me wonder what they have in store for the D400

[JM Tran]

YAY My new studio and fine arts camera!

*sarcasm*

the D3200 creates beautiful images in every situation.

even in low light? hehe

[arthurking83]

......

Make me wonder what they have in store for the D400

Yeah!! very strange move from Nikon.
The usual MO is to have the higher end cameras released first(with a particular sensor) and then filter that sensor down through the lineup.

Does this point to something else for the D400(or more accurately D300s replacement)?

Possibly a Sony A800 market level camera .. A cheaper Fx sensored camera, with a tweaked D3s sensor?(unlikely) but it'd have to have some kind of sensor advantage over a D3200 for it to sell in quantities.


EDIT: forgot to explain, that I merged the two parallel threads into one.

[Chris G]

Haha all good on the merge I'm pretty sure both David and I posted at the same time

Yeh my jaw kinda dropped when I read "24mps" to which even suppresses past even the D800's DX mode, but of course I don't expect the quality to be as equal as on the D800

If there starting here at entry, does this also mean we can expect a entire change down the line? like a newer D7000 range ??

[MattNQ]

Oh and they come in Red... haha

Make me wonder what they have in store for the D400

D400 might come in yellow perhaps....

[swifty]

The 24mp sensor's very likely Sony's unit from the NEX 7 and A77. So it should be a good performer.
What's interesting is the wifi unit.
Now why is Nikon selling that thing as an extra (I'll answer my own question, cos they can).
Not a lot of info on it but seem to only work with Android currently.
Where r the specs??

[arthurking83]

On a consumer level camera, the addition of WiFi as an optional extra accessory makes sense.

What doesn't make sense is Nikon's pricing of it .... something like $60-70!

Why so cheap? .. what 'hallucinogenic medication' are these Nikon marketing folks on?
A device like that for Nikon is generally a $400-$5K accessory!

Nikon are going mad!!

.. cheaper lenses, decently priced camera bodies, and now .. now we're getting good value for money accessories!

Is the End of the World Nigh, or something .. have I missed some news article relating to an impending cataclysm?

While this WU-1a may not be a patch on the more professional grade WT-6 .. you'd want the WT-6 to be 10x as good tho!


.. anyhow, it all looks quite good.

[Bear Dale]

I remember not so long ago all the D700 owners saying that no sane person needed more than 12 MP

[swifty]

Actually on a consumer model I'd argue even more so that wifi should be built-in. I see Samsung r catching on with their new NX series.
Of course it doesn't need to be very powerful, jz easy to use and fool-proof. And for pros, then an add-on beefed up unit as an optional extra makes sense but IMO a standard less powerful wifi unit should be standard on all models.

[mongo]

it would be a camera with features which Mongo would seriously consider - IF - it would operate non-CPU lenses in anything but "M" exposure. Even with that said , it still has reasonable possibilities of being acquired in preference to a D7000 (depending on price) as a light, cheap DX body.

Being perfectly cynical (but probably accurate) , the slight differential in design features and marketing by Nikon of its products is embarrassingly obvious to all but its shareholders. They are simply aware but not embarrassed.

[unistudent1962]

Call me a cynic, but the only reason I can see Nikon using this sensor in an entry level body is as a "more is better" marketing ploy to appeal/sway/confuse/tempt (use whatever word you think fits) newcomers to digital photography. Either that or they've bought a large stake in a hard drive maunfacturer!!!

[Bennymiata]

The reason they are using the Sony NEX-7 sensor, is probably because Sony is selling it to Nikon cheap.
I would imagine it is cheaper to sell them an already existing sensor, than developing a new one, and as Sony is in financial trouble, whatever it can save on tooling and development will make a difference to their bottom line.

I'm not saying this is not a good sensor, as I believe it is a very good one, but it smells of expediancy and may effect the saleability of Nikon's more expensive cameras.

What's Nikon going to use for their new D7000 etc.?
I don't think Sony has any other DX format sensors with more Mpx's.

[farmer_rob]

The reason they are using the Sony NEX-7 sensor, is probably because Sony is selling it to Nikon cheap.
I would imagine it is cheaper to sell them an already existing sensor, than developing a new one, and as Sony is in financial trouble, whatever it can save on tooling and development will make a difference to their bottom line.

I'm not saying this is not a good sensor, as I believe it is a very good one, but it smells of expediancy and may effect the saleability of Nikon's more expensive cameras.

What's Nikon going to use for their new D7000 etc.?
I don't think Sony has any other DX format sensors with more Mpx's.

I think you'll find they use the same sensor in the d7000 replacement, but with more body features, faster fps etc. + the Nikon secret sauce. (Consider the d7000 vs the d5100). The more expensive cameras are bought on body features, not sensor features only.

Btw, Sony is a very large company. Some areas are losing money (such as TVs and other consumer electronics), but other area may still be profitable. I suspect the sensor group is one, and I doubt the sensor is being sold at a loss to Nikon.

[arthurking83]

....... the only reason I can see Nikon using this sensor in an entry level body is as a "more is better" marketing ploy to appeal/sway/confuse/tempt (use whatever word you think fits) newcomers to digital photography......

This part is a given.

Nikon will always use whatever they believe to be the best sensor available, even in the cheapest class bodies.

What is surprising is that they chose to use this cheaper class D3200, which is clearly in a lower performance/price bracket to the D300/D7000 price/performance range.

Nikon's history has always been to filter he new sensor DOWN through the ranks.

it'll be hard for them to now filter it upwards, as 24Mp camera can be had for cheaper .. and lots cheaper.

D300 replacement is due soon .. is actually well overdue, and the carcass that was once the D300s has been rotting on the Nikon marketing floor for at least a good 2-3years! now....

D800 was a good year late(most certainly due to the disasters in Japan and Thailand), but the D300s is even older than the D700 was .. even tho it was released later, it's still a D300!! .. and hence very old tech now.

Surely they must have changed tack with the D300 replacement, which should have arrived before the D800 did.
They were probably about to announce or release it just as the quake hit Japan, and held back .. and then delayed again due to the Thai floods.

It got so delayed that they probably re engineered it again as the delay could have been a year or more, and with a theoretical 2-2.5 year lifespan .. well, they may as well bring out the next next-gen gear instead!

Dunno? .. either way everyone was expecting the D400 to have this 24Mp sensor.

FWIW: I'm not a big fan of this sensor so far, judging from the sample images seen from the A77 and NEX7 .. Both D7K and 600D/7D still look as good or better! And I reckon the Sigma SD-1 looks better again in many ways too(ie. at lower ISO).

Also, Nikon have been using Sony based sensors for a long time now.
(most pundits believe that the D3/D700 and possibly D4 sensor are made by Sony .. exclusively for Nikon to Nikon's design specs)
Nikon supply a lot of the silicon chip manufacturing technology to Sony .. I'd say it's a kind of two way street kind of relationship .. Nikon knows the tech behind the tech and feels comfy with what Sony is doing, and will be doing in the future.
If Nikon are subtly helping Sony to design and manufacture the underlying technology that is a 'digital camera', then it makes sense that Nikon would use the end product for their own purposes too.

[farmer_rob]

Slightly OT, but i can't help thinking there won't be a d400. I'd punt instead on a d7000 replacement filling the gap to the d800, and using a 24mp sensor.

[wolffman]

20 mb RAW file size = madness in a entry level camera

[swifty]

Hmm... it appears the sensor may not be a Sony afterall but from the emerging samples I think its still a good performer. Pity about the file sizes. I still say camera companies aren't exploring in-camera binning of pixels for smaller RAW files enough but then again, its an entry-level camera so RAW's probably not so important in this model anyways. Small jpegs or higher compression will probably suffice for those that want smaller files.

The sensor game is becoming increasingly complex. Actually I don't think any of D3/D700/D3s/D4 sensors are Sony's but possibly Renesas or Aptina.
But what does that mean anyways since many of these companies are design companies and don't fab their own sensors so you always have multiple manufacturer's hand in each end-product.
Who knows how much design expertise Nikon plays in each final sensor even if its understood to be another's manufacturer's sensor eg. Sony's.

[tjandjs]

I have recently purchased a D3200 and picked up the WU-1a adapter. I must say the WU-1a is a great unit, connects everytime, the range is good and is easy to use. It was one of the deciding factors for me for purchasing the D3200, being able to download photo's direct from the camera makes sharing so much easier. Haven't really used the remote photo capture much but the few times I have it's been easy as. I can't really comment on the features of the camera as it's my first DSL and I am still learning how to get the most out of it.

[arthurking83]

It's a good lil camera.
A mate of mine just got one himself, with a twin lens kit.

One day I'll pinch it off him and have a more serious peek at it to see how well it does it's stuff.

I tried to set it up for him to assist him in getting good images more regularly, but I noticed a few basic menu items that were missing that needn't have.
Not serious omissions, such as a lack of any choice in ADL settings ... you only get a choice of on or off(set to on by default) and none of the usual low/med/high/extra high settings seen in the higher end bodies.

Otherwise, it was pretty easy to get to grips with(not literally, as it's a very small camera physically).