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All posts tagged "nikon"


Friday, September 14, 2012

Nikon Announces D600 FX DSLR Camera, 18.5mm f/1.8 Nikon 1 Lens

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 11:46 AM

Well, after months and months of leaks, here it is. The Nikon D600. It is basically a D7000 with a 24 megapixel FX sensor, and the video functionality from the D4 and D800. So basically the rest of the camera almost reads like a D7000 spec sheet, with a 39 AF point system, 2016 pixel colour meter, a 5.5 FPS frame rate, a new 3.2" VGA LCD, a 100% viewfinder with 0.7x magnification, 1/200 flash sync speed, and a whole raft of manual features. On the video side, it does 24, 25 and 30 FPS at 1080p, and it can stream uncompressed video over the HDMI port. Nikon seems pretty confident that they will be able to deliver on September 18th (a local Nikon employee mentioned their Thailand plant has been fully restored), and the camera will be available for US$2100 for the body alone, or US$2700 with the AF-S 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 VR lens. Check out the DPReview link for more photos, and a preview of the D600. On a personal note, I am somewhat crushed that there is no D400 - I have been waiting for a D300 replacement for a very long time. Even if I were to not buy it, I wanted to see Nikon's continued dedication to issuing a pro-level DX body. I guess Nikon has given their intentions here.

On the Nikon 1 side, there is the new 18.5mm f/1.8 lens, which brings a fast prime to the 1 Series. On paper it looks like a decent lens, but there is still the issue of having some cameras that are decidedly not targeted at photographers who like to be in control of their camera. Ships in November for US$190. Photo of the lens at the link.

DPReview.com: Nikon D600

DCResource.com: Nikon 1 Nikkor 18.5mm f/1.8


Thursday, August 23, 2012

Nikon Announces Trio of Coolpixes, Including World's First Android-based Compact Camera.

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 10:00 AM

Quite a few cameras were announced in the past 24 hours. Let's start with the more interesting cameras: Nikon has announced a trio of Coolpixes, the first of which is probably the only Coolpix I might recommend - the Coolpix P7700. While the P7000 series started off as a Canon G-series clone, the P7700 is starting to become its own camera. The first deviation is in ditching the fairly useless optical viewfinder to accommodate a much brighter lens: An optically stabilised 7.1x 28-300mm equivalent f/2.0-4.0 lens. Pretty impressive in all. The sensor is now a 12 megapixel BSI CMOS 1/1.7" sensor, which looks pretty capable. Other features include a now-articulated 3" VGA LCD, 1080p videos at 30 FPS, lots of controls (including three dials) and RAW shooting support. My real complaint? Nikon should have used this template for the V1. Ships in September for US$500. More cameras and links after the break! Read more...


Monday, August 20, 2012

Engadget's Back to School "Guide" for Digital Cameras 2012

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 09:00 AM

http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/17/...igital-cameras/

"Your Facebook friends and future employers deserve an accurate account of those glory days, and you'll need a proper snapper to get the job done. College is as good a time as any to learn responsibility, but don't expect to walk out of the experience with all your gear unscathed."

What do you get when gadget editors pick cameras for students? You get US$3000 SLRs in the equation. I'm not sure what kind of college these people went to, but I am quite sure most students aren't going to be able to splurge that kind of money, especially in these times. In fact, there are a lot of high-end picks here, when there are plenty of cheaper but good cameras out in the market. Particularly for DSLRs - there're competent cameras like the Canon Rebel T4i/EOS 650D or the higher-specified Nikon D7000 that will take great pictures without breaking the bank. What are your own personal recommendations?


Friday, June 15, 2012

Nikon Announces AF-S 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G VR DX and AF-S 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5G VR Lenses; Reaches 70 Million Lenses Milestone

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 11:00 AM

http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/14/3...ce-release-date

Well, Nikon just announced that they have produced 70 million lenses, and they are celebrating it by releasing a couple of new lenses! The first is the fairly large AF-S 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G VR lens (27-450mm equivalent). I was not expecting anything like this, especially with a f/5.6 aperture at the long end. This means that this is not a small lens, with lens weighing in at 29.3 oz (or 830g) and using a 77mm filter thread. The lens boasts the largest zoom factor, outclassing the previous champ, the Tamron 18-270 lens. Ships in late June for US$1000.

The second lens is an update of an old favourite, which is the AF-S 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5G VR. The new lens gains VR, but other looks very similar to the previous lens. The lens will ship in late June for US$600. The privilege of VR is quite a bit, it seems.

Read more...


Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Digital Photography Review Reviews the Nikon D800

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 10:30 AM

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikon-d800-d800e/

"When the Nikon D800 was announced, the specification that got everyone's attention was - and to a large degree still is - the massive pixel count of its 36.3MP CMOS sensor. When a moderately-sized full-frame DSLR body aspires to go toe-to-toe with medium format cameras and backs at a fraction of their price, other attributes can seem secondary."

DPReview.com has reviewed the D800, and what can I say? It's a phenomenal camera. The 36 megapixel sensor is truly state of the art, and the camera built around it is no slouch either. If you ask me, this is the FX and DX camera of the moment. Shoot it at 36 megapixel for class-leading resolution, or downsize it to 12 megapixels to exceed the D700's performance. Shoot at 15.3 megapixel for a DX crop that beats the D7000. Now, if only I can find the money for it somehow. On a more curious note, I wonder why DPReview upsampled the Canon 5DIII files instead of downsampling the D800 files; usually that makes the image that is being upsampled look a lot worse. Still, great camera. Time to raid the piggy bank, I think.


Thursday, April 19, 2012

Nikon Announces D3200 DSLR Camera and AF-S 28mm f/1.8G Lens

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 08:38 AM

Nikon today unveiled the D3200, the replacement for the D3100 DSLR. What is most surprising is the sensor: It is a 24 megapixel CMOS sensor, in APS-C size. It appears to be similar to the one found in Sony's NEX-7 and SLT-A77, which also makes me wonder if the next refresh of all their DX-based DSLRs are going to use the same 24 megapixel sensor. If it is, I am going to be a little disappointed, as I was hoping that the D300/D300s replacement would use something like the awesome FX-challenging (in the high ISO noise department at least) 16 megapixel sensor found in the Fujifilm X-Pro 1.

The rest of the camera has a few upgrades, like a new 3" VGA LCD, 1080 video at 24 or 30 FPS (previously only 24 FPS) with manual exposure controls, a 4 FPS continuous mode (up from 3), and the ability to add the new WU-1a Wireless Mobile Adapter that lets you send images to your smartphone. In a first, Android support will come first, with iOS support coming later this year. The adapter looks rather clunky, being a small dongle that sticks out awkwardly from the side of the camera. Camera manufacturers, this is not how you build a connected camera. Until you get it, your compact camera sales will continue to dwindle in the presence of crappy smartphone cameras. The D3200 will ship in late April (isn't that a week away?) with the 18-55 kit lens for US$700, and the WU-1a for US$60.

In other news, Nikon also released a potentially nice lens for FX users: The Nikkor AF-S 28mm f/1.8. Given the FOV equivalent of a 42mm on a DX body, its neither here nor there status means it is better to use the cheaper AF-S 35/1.8 on a DX body, as the 28mm is going to be US$700. Ships in end of May.

Press releases and photo of the Nikkor after the break.

Read more...


Wednesday, March 28, 2012

DxOMark Declares D800 for Best Camera Imaging Sensor

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 02:00 PM

http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Pu...sor-performance

"The two Nikon full-frame cameras, the D800 and the D4, occupy the top two places in the full-frame category. Simple and efficient. Still, be careful: as ever, in this review we are discussing only the D800’s RAW-image-based sensor results."

Before I continue, bear in mind that DxO tests camera sensors at a very technical level, and is weighted accordingly to their own system, which you may or may not disagree with. Regardless of the actual "score", the D800 has been rated very highly by the team at DxO, and comes close to $30,000 medium format camera backs! This is an impressive feat, regardless of how you look at it. I expect one heck of a rush for this camera, despite its price. I am now tempted just a little bit...


Monday, February 6, 2012

Nikon Announces D800 and D800E FX DSLR Cameras

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 10:27 PM

http://nikonrumors.com/2012/02/06/n...ouncement.aspx/

Alright, here we go! Nikon has just announced not one, but two cameras. The D800 and its sibling, the D800E. Both D800s feature a number of changes from the D700, the main difference being that 36 megapixel FX sensor. I am not sure if that many people need all those megapixels, but I guess Nikon is trying to woo the affluent amateur in addition to the thrifty professional with this camera. The sensor has a base ISO range of 100-6400, and an extended range of 50-25,600. No super high numbers like the D4 here. Still, a number of changes do carry over from the D4, including the new 91,000 RGB matrix sensor for determining exposures, the improved CAM-3500 AF module, and the 3.2" VGA LCD screen. There is an ambient light sensor for the LCD screen to boost its brightness levels, just like a smartphone, which is a nice touch.

The D800 also inherits the D4's video capabilities. That means the D800 does 1080p videos at 30, 25 and 24 FPS, with B frame compression in h.264 codec, HDMI pass through with uncompressed video data, a microphone jack, fine control of audio levels with visual indicators, a headphone jack to monitor said audio levels, and built-in time lapse recording. Each video clip is limited to 29m 59s (in other words, a second shy of 30 minutes, presumably for tax reasons in certain countries).

Back to the stills side, the camera has a maximum frame rate for 4 FPS at FX, and 5 FPS in crop mode. With the MB-D12 battery pack using other batteries than the default EN-EL15 (which replaced the EN-EL3e), the camera can do 6 FPS in crop mode. Shifting all those megapixels has made the D800 slower than the D700 in that aspect. Improved over the D700 however, is the viewfinder. It is now a 100% affair, unlike the D700 slighty cropped 95% coverage. Other improvements include faster contrast detect autofocus for live view, faster shutter response times, the addition of a SD card slot alongside the CF card slot, dual-axis virtual horizon (great for eliminating converging vertical lines), built-in two shot HDR, and overall changes to the UI. I particularly like the new frame advance setting dial on the left side of the camera. Finally one no longer has to peer at the top of the camera to confirm that self-timer mode has not been engaged. A dedicated bracketing button also means that the right function button next to the lens mount is no longer the only way to access bracketing. I hate it when camera manufacturers make features only accessible to custom function buttons, forcing you to pretty much set the custom function button to that feature anyway. It really doesn't leave much choice in setting the custom function!

Now, on to the D800E. It is essentially the D800, but with the anti-aliasing filter removed. Sounds pretty tasty. To compensate for potential moire, Nikon has added a moire removal feature in an upcoming version of Capture NX2.

The Nikon D800 will go on sale in late March for US$3000. The D800E will go on sale in mid-April for US$3300. That is right. Take away a part, promise higher image quality, charge US$300 more. More coverage at the link. Coverage of the D800 seems a bit sparse this time; DPReview even got the battery information wrong!

Update: DPReview has a preview up! Loads more information, especially on the new features.


Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Nikon Announces New Coolpix P-series Cameras; 42x Zoom Lens for Maximum Compensation

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 09:56 AM

http://www.dcresource.com/news/news...tem.php?id=4453

"For those whom 24X, 30X, and even 36X zooms aren't enough, the Coolpix P510 has a whopping *42X* optical zoom lens. And no, it doesn't come with its own tripod."

24-1000mm equivalent zoom lens. That's right. 1000mm equivalent. That is what the P510 packs. The lens is not too slow at a f/3.0-5.6 maximum aperture, and it comes with Nikon's VR optical stabilisation to help stabilise that really long focal length. I still recommend a tripod, and a bright sunny day to make use of that range! The rest of the camera is pretty much a current superzoom (or should it be ultra-mega-superzoom now?). It is equipped with a 16 megapixel backlit sensor, a tilting (as opposed to fully articulated) 3" VGA LCD, 1080p videos at 30 FPS, and includes a GPS sensor. The camera's UI means serious business: Two command dials grace the camera to accommodate the camera's manual controls, along with two zoom controllers to handle that monster zoom range. Ships in February for US$430.

Next up is the P310, an update of the P300. Like the P300, it is not quite a Canon Powershot S100 (or similar) challenger. While it offers a bright (at the wide end at least) 4x 24-100mm f/1.8-4.9 zoom lens, the 16 megapixel backlit sensor is the same 1/2.3" affair as the P510, which is almost half the area of the S100's 1/1.7" sensor. It also lacks the S100's RAW file recording capability. The rest of the camera is almost tantalising, which makes me wonder what Nikon is trying to do here. Like the P510, there is Nikon's VR optical image stabilisation, a 1080p video mode at 30 FPS, a 3" VGA LCD (but fixed here), and a number of nice touches to the UI (like a full rear command dial and a customisable function button on the front, like Nikon's DSLRs). Ships in February for US$330, which is cheaper than the Canon S100, but I really would rather have the bigger sensor and RAW capability for US$100 more. More details and photos at the read link.


Nikon Introduces Four S-series Coolpixes

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 09:55 AM

http://www.dcresource.com/news/news...tem.php?id=4452

After the excitement (or disappointment) of the P-series cameras, here are the more standard releases. Let us start with the S9300 travelzoom camera. It has an 18x optically stabilised 25-450mm equivalent f/3.5-5.9 zoom lens, a 16 megapixel backlit sensor, 1080p video at 30 FPS, a 3" VGA LCD, and built-in GPS. Ships in March for US$350.

Next up is the S9300's little brother, the S6300. It has the same 16 megapixel backlit sensor, but a shorter 10x optically stabilised 25-250mm equivalent f/3.2-5.8 zoom lens. The LCD is a smaller one, at 2.7" with just QVGA resolution. GPS is also not present, but at least the same 1080p 30 FPS video is still present. Ships in March for US$200.

After that are a pair of budget compacts, the S4300 and S3300. Both use a standard 16 megapixel CCD, a 6x optically stabilised 26-156mm equivalent f/3.5-6.5(!) zoom lens and 720p video. The main difference between the two is that the S4300 uses a 3" HVGA touchscreen, while the S3300 uses a 2.7" QVGA screen. The S4300 will ship in March for US$170, while the S3300 will go for US$140. More details and images at the read link.


Nikon Announces Three Budget Coolpix Cameras; One is Actually Interesting

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 09:53 AM

http://www.dcresource.com/news/news...tem.php?id=4451

It is not every day a US$120 camera is interesting, but I think Nikon has done it. The S30 is a camera with unremarkable, even mediocre, specifications: A tiny 1/3" 10 megapixel CCD with a 3x 29-87mm equivalent f/3.3-5.9 zoom lens, a 2.7" QVGA LCD screen, and 720p video mode. What makes it interesting is that the camera has been given a slightly rugged shell that is waterproof to 9.8 feet (3 metres), shockproof to 2.6 feet (0.8 metres) and dustproof. It also takes common AA batteries. Together with the price, I think this might be a great camera for the children, or for slightly more adventurous activities where a cheaper camera is good enough for to capture the fun. Ships in February for, as mentioned, US$120.

Next up are the L budget cameras. The L810 is a budget superzoom, packing a 26x optically stabilised 22.5-585mm equivalent f/3.1-5.9 zoom lens, a 16 megapixel CCD, 3" VGA LCD and 720p video mode. The camera uses four AA batteries to power it. The specs are pretty decent for a budget zoom. One can hope the photos match the specs. Ships in February for US$280.

Finally there is the L26. This budget shooter has 5x 26-130mm equivalent f/3.2-6.5 lens, 720p video mode, and a 3" QVGA LCD screen. The camera will ship in February for US$120. More details and photos at the link.


Friday, January 6, 2012

Nikon Announces D4 Flagship DSLR Camera and AF-S 85mm F/1.8G Lens

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 08:30 AM

So here it is. I hope the rumours have not totally spoilt it for you. The Nikon D4 is the latest flagship, and will replace the D3S. The specs look good, but most of the upgrades seem geared towards video. Let us take a look!

On the photo side of things, there is a new 16 megapixel FX sensor that does ISO 100 to ISO 12k, with ISO 50 on the low end and ISO 200k on the high with boost (I feel silly saying ISO 204,800; does this kind of precision really matter?), an upgraded CAM 3500 module that boasts fifteen cross points out of the 51 AF points, and nine that will work with the Nikon 1.4x and 1.7x teleconverters, and one (just the one?) point that will work at f/8 with 2x teleconverters. I distinctly remember my F100's AF working with a third party lens and a third party teleconverter at f/8, so this does not feel totally new, but I could be mistaken. The camera boasts a frame rate of 10 FPS, with 11 FPS if the AF tracking is disabled. The 1005 pixel RGB Matrix meter is now a 91000 pixel sensor, and is also used for other tasks like face detection and dynamic range manipulation (what Nikon calls Active D-Lighting).

There is a new bigger VGA LCD at 3.2", along with a few upgraded controls. The buttons are now backlit, which is a very nice touch, coming a few years after Olympus did that with the E-620 (a consumer DSLR, no less!). The AE-L/AF-L button is gone however, replaced by a joystick nub that looks suspiciously like Canon's one, which is also replicated in the vertical grip. Also, get ready for a new battery: the new EN-EL18 is rated for 2600 shots. Err, that does seem lower than the D3S's 4200 shots. Change in methodology? XQD support is now added, with one slot for it, and the other for the old standby CompactFlash. There is also an Ethernet port, along with a new WiFi transmitter for connectivity, which also allows remote access via the Internet. Yes that's right, the D4 can be controlled from a tablet!

Most of the big upgrades however, are in the video portion. In fact, Nikon bills this as a "multimedia SLR". See that little record button behind the shutter release? The D4 does 1080p video at 24/30 FPS at 24 Mbps bitrate, but also allows uncompressed video to be streamed out of the HDMI port. This allows a monitor with a recording device daisy-chained to it if maximum quality is desired. B frame compression is now supported, along with microphone and headphone jacks. No word if gain on the microphone jack can be controlled. Both AF and exposure can be controlled while recording, and there is a neat trick to use the FX, DX or CX (that's 1x, 1.5x and 2.7x respectively) crop for videos.

It is a nice upgrade in all, but I am not sure if current D3S owners who use their cameras for stills will be upgrading. I think most might still stick with the D3S. The D4 will be released in February 2012 with a price of US$6000. More photos and press release after the break.

There is also a new lens, the AF-S 85mm f/1.8G lens. It is, depending if it is mounted on a FX or DX camera, a nice short or medium telephoto, and an AF-S update to the older AF 85mm f/1.8D lens. Good for those using cameras like the D5100, which lack the internal AF motor. If this is like most of the AF-S primes released so far, expect the AF-S motor to be more on the slower side of fast. The lens will be available for US$500 in March 2012. Photo and press release after the break.

Nikon D4 Overview - DPReview

Nikon D4 and AF-S 85mm f/1.8G - DCResource

Read more...


Wednesday, November 23, 2011

PhotographyBLOG Reviews the Nikon Coolpix AW100 Camera

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 03:00 PM

http://www.photographyblog.com/revi...ix_aw100_review

"The AW100 is Nikon’s first foray into the weather-proof camera market and is is waterproof to 10 meters, shock-proof to 1.5 meters, and freezeproof to as low as -10°C (14°F). The Coolpix AW100 also has a 16-megapixel back illuminated CMOS sensor, a 5x, 28-140mm equivalent zoom lens with lens-shift vibration reduction, 3-inch 460K-dot LCD monitor, full 1080p HD video with stereo sound, 3fps burst shooting, built-in GPS, a world map display and an electronic compass."

Once again, does anyone really like Nikon compacts? Image quality on the Coolpixes in the last seven years have ranged from average to downright terrible, and the cameras themselves are rarely a joy to use. The AW100 does not do much to shake off this reputation, but at least it as less competition since it is one of the few waterproof and shockproof compact cameras in the market (it seems only Panasonic, Olympus and Pentax have updated theirs). Still, at least it will survive a drop where most cameras will not!


Monday, October 10, 2011

Nikon J1 Reviewed by Digital Camera Resource Page

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 08:00 AM

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/nikon/j1-review

"The Nikon 1 J1 (priced from $649) is the entry-level model in Nikon's brand new line of mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. The 1-System cameras feature a new 10 Megapixel CX-format sensor, which is smaller than Micro Four Thirds and APS-C, but larger than what you'll find on compact cameras and the Pentax Q. It also uses new CX-mount lenses, which have a 2.7X crop factor. Image stabilization is built into select lenses, rather into the body itself."

DCResource.com has a review of the Nikon J1 up, and the samples here look much better. Image quality is quite close to a Micro Four Thirds camera, but dynamic range seems to suffer a bit. The "small" sensor does not look so bad now, does it? The camera really is quite small, as you can see. Nikon really needs to release a set of zoom lenses that can match the size of the camera, just like what Panasonic has done. Read the review for all the details, including the performance of the hybrid AF system built in to the imaging sensor!


Nikon J1 Reviewed by Digital Camera Resource Page

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 08:00 AM

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/nikon/j1-review

"The Nikon 1 J1 (priced from $649) is the entry-level model in Nikon's brand new line of mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. The 1-System cameras feature a new 10 Megapixel CX-format sensor, which is smaller than Micro Four Thirds and APS-C, but larger than what you'll find on compact cameras and the Pentax Q. It also uses new CX-mount lenses, which have a 2.7X crop factor. Image stabilization is built into select lenses, rather into the body itself."

DCResource.com has a review of the Nikon J1 up, and the samples here look much better. Image quality is quite close to a Micro Four Thirds camera, but dynamic range seems to suffer a bit. The "small" sensor does not look so bad now, does it? The camera really is quite small, as you can see. Nikon really needs to release a set of zoom lenses that can match the size of the camera, just like what Panasonic has done. Read the review for all the details, including the performance of the hybrid AF system built in to the imaging sensor!


Nikon J1 Reviewed by Digital Camera Resource Page

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 08:00 AM

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/nikon/j1-review

"The Nikon 1 J1 (priced from $649) is the entry-level model in Nikon's brand new line of mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. The 1-System cameras feature a new 10 Megapixel CX-format sensor, which is smaller than Micro Four Thirds and APS-C, but larger than what you'll find on compact cameras and the Pentax Q. It also uses new CX-mount lenses, which have a 2.7X crop factor. Image stabilization is built into select lenses, rather into the body itself."

DCResource.com has a review of the Nikon J1 up, and the samples here look much better. Image quality is quite close to a Micro Four Thirds camera, but dynamic range seems to suffer a bit. The "small" sensor does not look so bad now, does it? The camera really is quite small, as you can see. Nikon really needs to release a set of zoom lenses that can match the size of the camera, just like what Panasonic has done. Read the review for all the details, including the performance of the hybrid AF system built in to the imaging sensor!


Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Engadget (Sorta) Reviews the Nikon J1

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 01:00 PM

http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/03/...1-review-video/

"Nikon isn't targeting pros or even advanced amateur shooters with its latest addition to the interchangeable lens camera family. Instead, the company is marketing its J1 to soccer moms (and dads), fashion-conscious young folk, and casual shooters who want some of the versatility of a DSLR, but are willing to sacrifice excellent image quality for a more compact design. But what about the rest of us? Will Nikon one day reward our patience with a true class competitor? Perhaps, but that's definitely not what we have here."

Well, I have ranted before that Engadget may not do the best camera reviews, and I am sure you guys have read my thoughts on the Nikon 1 system, so I will just skip those and say that this time, I have discovered that Engadget does post full size samples, bundled in a zip file located at a link at the bottom of the review, that goes to... Megaupload. After struggling with that abomination of a download site, the samples are not encouraging. Instead of images that look better than its sensor size would suggest, it is the complete opposite: They look more like something from a much smaller sensor. I will be looking out for other reviews as well, but the early signs are not looking good.


Friday, September 23, 2011

Thoughts on the Nikon 1 Camera System

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Talk" @ 08:00 AM

Nikon's latest mirrorless system is notable as it marks the entry of one of the Big Two into this area. Panasonic and Olympus, who started the trend, were after all failed DSLR manufacturers whose original Four Thirds system hardly made a dent against the combined market stranglehold by Nikon and Canon. Nikon's entry in a way shows that the mirrorless system camera is here to stay (for several years at least), but will it be successful in its own right? I have my doubts, but surprise: they are not based on the one thing most people are complaining about.

Read more...


Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Nikon 1 Promo Videos

Posted by Jason Dunn in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 04:34 PM

Reading through comments about the Nikon 1 on other sites, it seems to be getting universally panned...I wonder if this is what Nikon was expecting? To be lambasted by the photography community, but still sell a lot of them to consumers at retail? Some of the features - such as the Smart Photo Selector, which takes 20 photos in rapid succession then analyzes them and allows you to pick from the best five - are interesting and could be very appealing to consumers. Heck, I'd like to see that feature on my next camera! The 10 fps full-resolution capture is also intriguing because it includes auto-focus tracking; with focus locked it will capture a blistering 60 fps. So is a Nikon 1 on your wish list?


Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Nikon Announces Four Lenses for Nikon 1 Cameras

Posted by Lee Yuan Sheng in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 10:59 PM

http://www.dpreview.com/news/1109/1...nikonlenses.asp

Nikon has announced the three lenses for the Nikon 1 cameras. The three lenses are the 10-30mm (27-81mm equivalent) f/3.5-5.6, the 10mm (27mm equivalent) f/2.8 pancake, the 30-110mm (81-297mm equivalent) f/3.8-5.6mm telephoto lens, and the 10-100mm (27-270mm equivalent) f/4.5-5.6 VR power zoom lens. Looking at the designs, they will be similar to the Micro Four Thirds lenses, in having purely electronic focusing, with the zooms doing away with a dedicated focus ring altogether. The zooms also appear to be collapsible lenses, like some of the Olympus lenses. More images at the link.


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