D40x

[lifeisfullofgooddives]

well looks like the D50 was short lived...Just got an e-mail from nikon telling me about the new d40x, so I went to their website to compare what it could do. Only to not see anything on the d50...anywhere.

unless I am mistaken it looks like they will not have that body anymore.

The plus side is you can get a d40x body for under $800 which is damn good...seeing as how this is a 10.2 megapixal camera.

What do you think?

 

[AUTiger]

Its not all about the megapixels. Look at the other things that you are missing. Only three focus spots. No motor for the lense (adios 60mm macro). The D40(x) is to small for my hands. I'm sure that there are other differences that might be important.

David
D-80 owner

 

[Mo2vation]

I saw this at PMA last week in Vegas. Nikon was pushing it hard.

Nice little cam. It would be a step back from my D70, but I will likely be getting one (the D40, not the D40X) for my wife. She loves the form factor, the simplified menus and the simplicity of it.

It has its place.

---
Ken

 

[Mariozi]

I still prefer the 6Mp D50 over the 10Mp Motorless D40.

 

[HMan]

No matter what your opinion is on it, it is a great entry level DSLR with an excellent price point. We hope to have the FD40X housing out next month at under $1000
with port and flood insurance http://www.fantasea.com/downloads/FD40X_logo_reference1.jpg

keep up with the news at www.fantasea.com

 

[lifeisfullofgooddives]

I would never buy this camera since I have older lenses that don't have the AF motor in the lense so the af wouldn't work on this camera.

However if you are starting out, and don't have old lenses that won't work, then this is a very attractive camera.

And a Housing for said camera including port for under $1000 is awesome!

 

[alo100]

Guys, it may not be as bad as you might have thought.
You may actually feel a lot better after reading this report (overall image quality comparing to other Nikon models):

http://www.pbase.com/andrease/noisetest

You may notice that the overall image quality is quite promising.

The main draw back could be, there is no internal AF drive, so cannot choose non-AF Nikon lens, or similar non-AF lens (Tamron etc).


p.s. For all DSLR users, I think we just want to take it easy. Many DC's or DSLR's used today are going to become obsolete faster than the days when cameras were still using films.

 

[Parrothead_Diver]

Pop Photo has an article on the D40X in the May issue. Which covers some of the specifics about the camera and differences between it and the standard D40.

Nikon has slated this camera (D40 series) as an entry level DSLR or as an upgrade for those currently using a digital point & shoot. I don't think that they are looking at marketing this to current SLR users.

They would rather see those of us who have already invested in lenses upgrade to the D80, D200 or pro series cameras.

 

[JackConnick]

I think the only problem with this camera right now is the lack of macro lenses. There is no 60mm AIS macro lens available. There is the 105VR, but that lens is more than the body! Not a bad set up, but the housings all cost the same, so I guess I'd vote for a D80 that can accept all past and current lenses.

One positive is that it has the control readouts on the large LCD which is much easier to see than on the small top lcd on the D80.

There are lots of rumors of Nikon overhauling more of their lens offerings, certainly the 60mm macro is getting long in the tooth. Sigma HSM lenses are compatible. Several good W/A options plus the 18-55/18-70.

I guess my call is that if you're going to shoot W/A or just use the kit lens UW it's fine. Otherwise you are betting on the future offerings of Nikon, never a sure thing, but certainly the direction the company is taking.

Jack

 

[tx51210]

Sorry if this is slightly off topic. I have wondered about how some of the lower end cameras without much weather sealing are going to hold up in the dive environment. Even if you keep the camea dry, the high humidity around most vacation and live aboard spots dumps a lot of moisture on your camera. I have not seen anyone reporting issues with stuck contacts or similar threads, but figure this has to be harder on the Nikons not sealed like the D200, D2h and D2x series.

More desicant all around.