Nikon's D90 To Be Announced Tomorrow

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://nikonrumors.com/2008/08/25/enjoy--official-d90-pictures.aspx' target='_blank'>http://nikonrumors.com/2008/08/25/e...0-pictures.aspx</a><br /><br /></div><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/dht/auto/1219762586.usr1.jpg" border="0" /></p><p>Those of you who have been waiting for this camera, your time is almost over - Nikon is expected to officially announce it tomorrow. The specs? A 12.3 megapixel sensor (I presume CCD, there's no mention of CMOS) capable of ISO 200 to 3200, with a Low (ISO 100) and Hi (ISO 6400) setting. A three inch, 900,000 pixel screen (similar to the D300 I believe), 11 AF points, Live View, face detection, Matrix metering, and...video capture! Yes, Nikon is finally going there with a DSLR. The camera is going to have video capture, and has a built-in speaker for playback, but there's no mention of the resolution or format of the video capture. I really hope Nikon doesn't use their lame 640 x 480 video capture here; I hope to see 720p video, hopefully in h.264 format. Now that would be impressive! If the pricing makes sense, this looks like it could be a real winner for Nikon (and Nikon shooters).</p>

[ptyork]

You know, I absolutely love the idea of having video built in to my SLR because I always have my SLR around and never even have my video camera charged. Thus, lots of pictures of my baby and basically NO videos. I have two reservations about this, though. First, I really want a larger sensor. The D700 looks awesome, but of course lacks the video recording (and is also a bit out of my budget range, unfortunately). Second, I'm a bit concerned about the lack of IS and anti-shake for video. Yeah, you could get an IS lens, but I'm not convinced it would provide the same degree of anti-shake that a video camera does. Still, very interesting. I anxiously await the reviews...

[ptyork]

Oh, and according to the leaked CircuitCity ad that just posted on the other tech blogs, it looks as though this has "HD Movie Mode." Nice! Definitely NOT 640x480. Not sure about h.264 yet, though.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

I really hope there's a mic-in jack on this one...

[ptyork]

I really hope there's a mic-in jack on this one...
I can understand the desire for this somewhat, but I'm not sure this will be a mainstream need. This is unlikely to replace dedicated video equipment. It is likely just going to be like the P&S video capabilities, meant only for those "oh man I wish I had my video camera" moments. Seeing as though a large portion of the dedicated video camera market has neglected to include mic-in, I'm going to be surprised to see it here.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Yes, I'm thinking it's going to be marketed that way too. Not too thrilled about that.

I suppose I should see how the video quality is. If it's MJPEG compression whatever HD video it has it is going to be not great.

If it's great maybe I'll just find a way to graft an external recording solution to the hotshoe... =P

[Jason Dunn]

The D700 looks awesome, but of course lacks the video recording (and is also a bit out of my budget range, unfortunately).

This represents a pretty significant change for Nikon: they're introducing features into a lower-end model that a higher-end model lacks. I really dislike that approach, because I don't like looking at my D300 and thinking "Gee, I wish I had the D90 with me right now so I could take a video". I was surprised when the D300 was announced and it had no video capabilities.

Second, I'm a bit concerned about the lack of IS and anti-shake for video. Yeah, you could get an IS lens, but I'm not convinced it would provide the same degree of anti-shake that a video camera does.

That's a very interesting point - I hadn't thought of that. The idea of video without any IS is making me queasy...:D

[Jason Dunn]

I really hope there's a mic-in jack on this one...

I seriously doubt that, although it would be a neat feature to have...I've never seen that on a digital camera that captures videos, not even that crazy Casio! :)

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Bollocks. MJPEG, no Mic-in. The latter is not surprising, but MJPEG? Limited to 5 minute clips. May or may not be enough.

No AF at all whatsoever. Stinks. Probably because Nikon's contrast AF in their live-view is just not good enough.

I'm not sure there'll be VR. I have no idea how big the differences between video and still IS will be like.