The Nikon D400

2013 May

• 31st Suggestions of a September announcement for a 24MP D400 - maybe pushed back to the start of 2014 if the 7D2 isn't appearing [PL]

February

• 25th Nikon Europe says that the D7100 is not a D300S replacement.
• 21st Nikon announces the D7100 - 24.1MP 6/7fps.
• An update over the D7000, any D400 later in the year needs a bigger jump in specs than we've seen in the lengthy D7000-7100 interval.
• It's worth noting that Nikon Europe describes the D7100 as the company's 'flagship DX model'
• 20th At Pentax forums [PF], there's a supposed copy of a page from Japanese magazine “Camera Japan”, there's a slew of 'predictions' for 2013: Nikon D7100 in March, D400 in June and a D4X in October. September is slated for the Nikon 2 - presumably another mirrorless...
• A scan of the page is on the main rumours page

2012 December

• 28th As Thom Hogan points out [TH], only the D3200 is 'current' in the DX range.
• Nikon's DX range may outsell FX by quite a margin, but you'd never know it from the emphasis given to FX in 2012 (lenses too).
• We've the CES show is from January 8th to the 11th this year, with in PMA running at the same time, so I'd expect something a bit more than a few compacts and a few Nikon CX trinkets.

September

• 13th With the launch of the full frame D600, it raises the question of whether Nikon wants to quietly drop the 'high end' DX? and encourage people to move 'up' to FX?

April

• 18th With a 24MP D3200 due tomorrow, how much longer till the D400 appears?

February

• 8th D800 looks good, but what about DX?

January

• 26th The D700 and D300S are marked as 'discontinued' [Nikon via NR]
• • How about a triple launch for Nikon - D3200/400/800 ;-)

2011 August

• 25th Nikon announced some compacts in yesterday's announcements, so DSLR expectations have been moved back to September.
• In the UK, there is a D300s offer running to the end of October - buy one and get a free 750G external drive.
• 1st Thom Hogan modifies his predictions, upgrading the likelihood of a D800 (FF/'FX') to come out with a D4 this month [TH].
• The D300s replacement is moved to next February.

July

• 19th Two FX cameras by the end of August? - via a Nikon rep [NR]
• 11th A German camera store has Nikon event in Germany in September [NR]
• More speculation from Thom Hogan [TH] puts a D4 and D400, announced in August, as what people will see.

June

• 28th Second half of August is still a strong suggestion for D4/D400 [NR]

May

• 30th Some $250 Nikon instant rebates in the US [NR] - only a few lenses and DX bodies...
• 26th Nikon have said their launch schedule is unaffected [NR] and a major Nikon announcement is supposedly due for the end of August.
• 11th We're hearing (thanks) of Nikon reps downplaying any new product announcements. Whilst not referring to any particular camera, the suggestion was:
• '...if you need a new camera, buy one, don't think something new will be available any time soon'
• This matches up with shortages of pro level cameras we're hearing of from many Nikon and Canon sources - of course finding one in stock is another matter...
• 4th There are suggestions that an August announcement is still expected [NR] - also, the D300s is getting a bit long in the tooth, announced in July 2009 (D300 Jan 2008)

Nikon DSLR timeline

D300s

Features

The D300S brings HD movie capability, a faster frame advance rate of 7fps and dual CF and SD memory card slots. Built upon the D300, the D300S incorporates the same DX-format 12.3 megapixel CMOS sensor, professional 51-point autofocus system and EXPEED image processing in a discrete compact body.

Virtual Horizon that is available in Live View shooting.
3-in., 920-k dot high-resolution LCD monitor.
Highly efficient energy-saving design allows as many as 950 images on a single charge of the Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL3e. (CIPA Standards)
Nikon’s Integrated Dust Reduction System including Image Sensor Cleaning function that provides effective dust reduction.
Versatile in-camera Retouch Menus let you enhance your images without using a computer.
Compatible with HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) output. Type C connector (mini size) is employed.
With the optional GPS Unit GP-1, location information such as latitude, longitude, altitude and time are automatically recorded to each image’s Exif data.
Exclusive Nikon Software — Nikon Transfer and ViewNX software packages (supplied) for a range of basic photo browsing and editing operations; Capture NX 2, Camera Control Pro 2, and Image Authentication Software (all optional) enable more advanced operation and image editing.

More @ DPR

D300

2008 October 28th

Firmware update: D300 firmware v1.10 can be downloaded.

Modifications enabled with upgrade of A and B firmware from Ver. 1.03 to Ver. 1.10

The Highlights playback display option has been moved from Display mode>Basic photoinfo>Highlights in the playback menu to Display mode>Detailed photoinfo>Highlights.
The size and color of “Demo” displayed in the monitor with playback when No memory card? in the Custom Settings is set to Enable release, have been modified.
The range of settings available for ISO sensitivity settings>ISO sensitivity autocontrol>Minimum shutter speed in the shooting menu has been increased from 1/250–1 s to 1/4000–1 s.
When shooting in hand-held live view mode and the frame is magnified prior to autofocusing, operation has been modified so that display returns to the magnified display rather than full-frame display.
Images captured with Rotate tall, in the playback menu, set to On are not automatically rotated for display immediately after capture (image review).
A Copyright information item has been added to the setup menu. When Copyright information is enabled, the copyright symbol (©) is shown in the shooting info display.
Recent settings can now be displayed in place of My Menu.
Custom Setting e3 Flash cntrl for built-in flash (e3 Optional flash when an optional Speedlight is mounted on the camera) can now be added to My Menu using the Add items option in My Menu from Add items>Custom settingmenu>e Bracketing/flash.
The degree of the High ISO NR setting can now be confirmed in the shooting info display while the High ISO NR setting item, in the shooting menu, is being applied.
Ankara, Riyadh, Kuwait, and Manama have been added to the Time zone options for the World time item in the setup menu.
When a GPS device is used and no heading information is available, —.–° is now displayed for the Position>Heading option in the GPS item in the setup menu.
When shooting in live view mode using Camera Control Pro 2 (Ver. 2.2.0 or later) with a PC-E lens, the aperture setting can now be adjusted from the computer.
Focus acquisition performance in dynamic-area AF mode has been improved.
Focus acquisition performance with contrast-detect AF has been improved.
Auto white balance performance has been improved.
The fourth digit in seconds display for GPS latitude and longitude information is now rounded off rather than omitted.
The current MB-D10 battery type setting can now be confirmed in the shooting info display when R6/AA-size batteries are used with the Multi-Power Battery Pack MB-D10.
An issue that caused an increase in noise with shooting in [M] exposure mode at a shutter speed setting of bulb with the shutter held open for less than 8 seconds and Long exp. NR enabled has been resolved.
An issue that prevented shutter release at the specified shutter speed when no operations were performed for 30 seconds in mirror up mode has been resolved.
An issue that caused abnormal image display when Image review was set to On and the playback zoom in button was pressed immediately after shooting at the following settings has been resolved.
Image quality: NEF (RAW ) + JPEG
NEF (RAW) recording: Lossless compressed or Compressed
Image size: S or M
When the Speedlight SB-800 was mounted on the camera with flash mode set to distance-priority manual (GN) mode, and the camera recovered from standby mode triggered by the auto meter off function, the distance information displayed on the SB-800 changed. This issue has been resolved.

For further information regarding the new firmware, download the supplemental document for the new firmware, D300_FirmUp_(11)En.pdf.

Nikon D300 Key Features

12.3 megapixel DX format CMOS sensor
Self-cleaning sensor unit (low-pass filter vibration)
ISO 200 - 3200 (6400 with boost)
14-bit A/D conversion
Nikon EXPEED image processor (Capture NX processing and NR algorithms, lower power)
Super fast operation (power-up 13 ms, shutter lag 45 ms, black-out 100 ms)
Shutter life 150,000 exposures
New Multi-CAM3500DX Auto Focus sensor (51-point, 15 cross-type, more vertical coverage)
Auto-focus tracking by colour (using information from 1005-pixel AE sensor)
Auto-focus calibration (fine-tuning) is now available (fixed body or up to 20 separate lens settings)
Scene Recognition System (uses AE sensor, AF sensor)
Picture Control image parameter presets (replace colour Modes I, II and III)
Custom image parameters now support brightness as well as contrast
Six frames per second continuous shooting (eight frames per second with battery pack)
Compact Flash UDMA support
3.0" 922,000 pixel LCD monitor
Live View with either phase detect (mirror up/down) or contrast detect Auto Focus
HDMI HD video output
'Active D-Lighting' (adjusts metering as well as applying D-Lighting curve)
Detailed 'Control Panel' type display on LCD monitor, changes colour in darkness
New MB-D10 vertical grip fully integrates into body, multi battery type compatible
Buttons sealed against moisture
Available November 2007

Nikon D300 specifications

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