[treebeard]

I don't mean to be a Nikon basher but this is ridiculous. I mean come on....how many cameras are they going to announce this year?! Funny thing is that according to Nikon's own website the D5300 is the same price as the D5200?! That's funny.

[pinholecam]

Nikon looked to be moving strongly when they launched the D7000 and then the D800, perhaps the D600 as well, but it seemed to go downhill rather fast with the unresolved D600 stain non-admission then the D610 and now the uninspiring D5300 launch.

Sony looks like its getting all the attention now with the A7
I still think the devil is in the details (or rather lenses; esp, whether it can really do fast f1.4, f2 and UWA due to its very short flange distance)

Oly, Panny, Fuji's time in the spotlight seems to have been rather short.
Maybe Pentax's too this round, despite launching the best APS-C DSLR at this moment.

But I believe that Pentax has a focus on doing things right (esp when Ricoh has the same philosophy), even if it will be slower.

[LowVoltage]

Oh, just wait, I'm sure the Canon T6i and T6 will drop in the next 24 hours. Reorganized button layout. Woo!

[treebeard]

I find the whole D600/D610 thing a real slap in the face to Nikon users. I hear more and more complaints about Nikon's service being horrendous, especially when it comes to their "impact damage" claims. I guess I just don't understand it when a camera company puts out a new DSLR every 4 months (at least it seems that way!), but then again I am a happy Pentax user so I don't need an entry level Nikon camera. I think Pentax/Richoh is going in the right direction....they just seem to move very slowly! LOL

[Spodeworld]

The new Nikon lens though looks really interesting: 58mm f1.4. That's a nice length for portraits on a DX body. It's going to be about $1,700 though!

[Franky2step]

The new Nikon lens though looks really interesting: 58mm f1.4. That's a nice length for portraits on a DX body. It's going to be about $1,700 though!

you can buy a Voigtlander 58mm f1.4 Nokton for Nikon and Pentax, manual focus, but its rendering is sublime...

[Nesster]

At the low end (and maybe this includes the D600) perhaps the Nikon strategy is to keep cranking out new models to (try to) sell at close to list, while discounting all that unsold old model inventory?
Then again, maybe not. Nikon's top sellers at B&H seem to be some of their pricier ones (body only): D7100, D800/800E, D610, D5200, and so on....

[treebeard]

One of the best camera I have used in years was the D700. I sold it because I just didn't feel like I was using it's full-frame potential enough and I really wanted the K-5. I was thoroughly impressed with the DR of the K-5 and there are times when I think of selling my K-30 to go back to the K-5 or a K-5II. The old benefit to new cameras is the price of the old model inventory get's cheaper. It's funny how camera sales work!

[JinDesu]

you can buy a Voigtlander 58mm f1.4 Nokton for Nikon and Pentax, manual focus, but its rendering is sublime...

I think I'll prefer the DA*55 in comparison...

The 18-140 kit lens looks pretty cool - good range, and supposedly very good performance. Really expensive though, not sure how it compares vs the DA 18-135...

[Adam]

I don't mean to be a Nikon basher but this is ridiculous. I mean come on....how many cameras are they going to announce this year?! Funny thing is that according to Nikon's own website the D5300 is the same price as the D5200?! That's funny.

Same price and the first cheap DSLR to have built-in Wi-Fi: not a bad move IMO. Nikon makes most of their money from the D3000 and D5000 series, after all!

[kricha6431]

Nikon looked to be moving strongly when they launched the D7000 and then the D800, perhaps the D600 as well, but it seemed to go downhill rather fast with the unresolved D600 stain non-admission then the D610 and now the uninspiring D5300 launch.

Sony looks like its getting all the attention now with the A7
I still think the devil is in the details (or rather lenses; esp, whether it can really do fast f1.4, f2 and UWA due to its very short flange distance)

Oly, Panny, Fuji's time in the spotlight seems to have been rather short.
Maybe Pentax's too this round, despite launching the best APS-C DSLR at this moment.

But I believe that Pentax has a focus on doing things right (esp when Ricoh has the same philosophy), even if it will be slower.

Did you say uninspiring? Perhaps you didn't read the specs! this is a first for Nikon's mid range, a mid level camera with no Filter, and you call it uninspiring? Now that's funny!

[Rondec]

Nikon's problem is that they have too fast a release cycle and that they produce too many cameras. I can only imagine how many D5100s and D3100s are still sitting in shops around the world waiting to be sold. In the end, they will probably be heavily discounted and not sure if Nikon comes out ahead.

[Clavius]

Nikon's problem is that they have too fast a release cycle and that they produce too many cameras. I can only imagine how many D5100s and D3100s are still sitting in shops around the world waiting to be sold. In the end, they will probably be heavily discounted and not sure if Nikon comes out ahead.

Such a fast release cycle seems like a luxury-problem to Pentaxian eyes. Oly, Panny and Fuji's still have very exciting products though. Especially Fuji who is rumored to be working on a 135mm sensor format camera. They have to, because Sony is going in for the kill: http://www.mirrorlessrumors.com/yes-there-will-be-even-cheaper-and-smaller-s...mount-cameras/ So, there will be FF cameras that are both cheaper and smaller then the A7. That means that the price of an FF camera will be moving into flagship APS-C DSLR pricing territory. In its turn moving APS-C flagships into the expensive M4/3 flagship category: "Nice, but why?" And the compactness of an APS-C DSLR will have no added value, because such an FF MILC with a pancake will be many times more compact.

[rbefly]

Such a fast release cycle seems like a luxury-problem to Pentaxian eyes.

Well, I don't agree. The choice of a dozen APS-C bodies ranging between $500 and $1,500 (roughly) isn't an advantage to anyone. Four new releases per year over three years? What for? New button placement, an occasional innovation like WiFi or no-AA filter, sure, but why not discontinue the previous model?
A dozen models per brand only confuses buyers, adds vast inventory (both stocking and financial) problems for the small-medium shops, dilutes the slight improvements of each choice and ends up sticking the retail outlets with vast stocks of outdated bodies, which can only be sold at fire-sale prices, or perhaps, returned, if possible. Everybody loses.
Pentax, on the other hand, has five bodies in the above-mentioned price range. With the exception of the K-5II and IIs, which presents a choice (perhaps) not easily understood by newer buyers, there are clear differences in price, features and user-skill level. The K-3 is not a mere upgrade of the K-5, it has many features unique to the brand and several that could be described as 'long-awaited'.
In other words, they waited until there was something worth releasing, before releasing it.
A luxury to have 12 APS-C bodies available? Quite the opposite.
JMO
Ron

[Rondec]

Such a fast release cycle seems like a luxury-problem to Pentaxian eyes. Oly, Panny and Fuji's still have very exciting products though. Especially Fuji who is rumored to be working on a 135mm sensor format camera. They have to, because Sony is going in for the kill: Yes, there will be even cheaper and smaller Sony Full Frame E-mount cameras! | Mirrorless Rumors So, there will be FF cameras that are both cheaper and smaller then the A7. That means that the price of an FF camera will be moving into flagship APS-C DSLR pricing territory. In its turn moving APS-C flagships into the expensive M4/3 flagship category: "Nice, but why?" And the compactness of an APS-C DSLR will have no added value, because such an FF MILC with a pancake will be many times more compact.

I am not sure what you are arguing. Are you arguing that Nikon is dying? That Fuji and Sony are stealing business away from them? That the D5300, which will sell for 650 to 700 in a month or two, will be threatened by the a7, selling for 1700? Or, arguing that Nikon should actually release more cameras in the entry to mid level range to counter the onslaught of mirrorless cameras coming from all directions?

I understand the need to turn every thread into a full frame thread. But Nikon is a camera company that makes lots of full frame options and has a full line up of lenses for those full frame cameras, from very nice wide angles to super-telephoto. The A7 will not truly threaten Nikon until the glass is there for the e mount.

What I am saying is that Nikon has difficulty remaining flexible in the current market. They have to judge the market based on whatever tea leaves they read and then release a certain amount of full frame, mid level, and entry level cameras. But they haven't been selling enough of their old inventory before they release their next camera. This leads to discounting, which hurts the brand in multiple ways. Either making less inventory or, spacing out the release of cameras is the correction that is needed from Nikon's standpoint.

Ideally, you want 100 percent of the inventory of your old cameras sold within a month or two of releasing the replacement cameras. Otherwise you end up competing with yourself.