If there is one company other than Canon that we want to see do well and improve their marketshare, it's definitely Nikon. There is so much amazing heritage with the company, and it appears they have fixed the financials of the business and now it's just time to get back to making great cameras and lenses.
It looks like Nikon will shake things up on May, 2023 with the Nikon Z 8. After the remarkable Z 9, we expect a top end awesome camera in the Z 8.
Below are the rumored specifications of the Nikon Z 8 compared to the current Nikon flagship, the Z 9
Nikon Z 8 | Nikon Z 9 | |
Sensor | 45.7MP (stacked) | 45.7MP (stacked) |
ISO | Lo1, 64-25,600, Hi 2 | Lo1, 64-25,600, Hi 2 |
File formats | RAW (including high efficiency), JPEG, HEIF 10-bit) | RAW (including high efficiency), JPEG |
AF points and coverage | 493 points, 90% × 90% coverage area | 493 points, 90% × 90% coverage area |
AF detection range | EV -7 to 19/EV -9.0 with starlight view | EV -7 to 19/EV -9.0 with starlight view |
Subject detection | People (upper body, head, face, eye), animals (dog, cat, bird), vehicles (car, bike, bicycle, train, airplane), dedicated airplane | People (upper body, head, face, eye), animals (dog, cat, bird), vehicles (car, bike, bicycle, train, airplane), |
AF modes | Pinpoint (in photo mode only), single-point, dynamic-area (S, M, L; in photo mode only), wide-area (S, L, C1, C2), auto-area AF, 3D-tracking (in photo mode only), subject-tracking AF (in video mode only) | Pinpoint (in photo mode only), single-point, dynamic-area (S, M, L; in photo mode only), wide-area (S, L, C1, C2), auto-area AF, 3D-tracking (in photo mode only), subject-tracking AF (in video mode only) |
AF speed | Slow, normal, fast | Slow, normal, fast |
Continuous shooting | 20 fps, High-Speed Frame Capture+ (30fps/ 120 fps in JPEG only, Pre-Release Capture) | 20 fps, High-Speed Frame Capture+ (30fps/ 120 fps in JPEG only, Pre-Release Capture) |
In-body VR | 5-axis image sensor shift | 5-axis image sensor shift |
VR effect | Up to 6.0 stops (Synchro VR) | Up to 6.0 stops (Synchro VR) |
Battery life | 275 shots (CFexpress Type B, EN-EL15c) | 700 shots (CFexpress Type B, EN- EL18d) |
Shutter range | 1/32000 to 30s, up to 900s, electronic shutter | 1/32000 to 30s, up to 900s, electronic shutter |
Portrait impression balance | Yes | No |
Skin softening | Yes | No |
High-frequency flicker reduction | Yes | Yes |
Preset white balance w/smaller area | Yes | Yes |
USB charging | Yes | Yes |
USB terminal for com | Yes | No |
LAN terminal | No | Yes |
10-pin terminal | Yes | Yes |
Synchro terminal | No | Yes |
LCD screen | 3.2-in. 2100k dot vertical/horizontal 4-axis tilting | 3.2-in. 2100k dot vertical/horizontal 4-axis tilting |
EVF | 3690k-dot OLED (high brightness 3000cd/m2), Lo1, Lo2 | 3690k-dot OLED (high brightness 3000cd/m2), Lo1, Lo2 |
Warm display colors | Yes | Yes |
Button illumination | Yes | Yes |
Sensor shield | Yes | Yes |
Sensor dual coating | Yes | Yes |
VR lock | Yes | Yes |
Memory set and recall function expansion | Yes | Yes |
Motion blend | Yes | Yes |
Prioritize viewfinder monitor mode for D-SLR-like shooting flow | Yes | Yes |
Prefer sub-selector center | Yes | Yes |
Recalling shooting functions | Yes | Yes |
Counter display in bulb/time | Yes | Yes |
Switching between focusing and control ring | Yes | Yes |
Viewfinder refresh rate | 120 fps, 60 fps | 120 fps, 60 fps |
Memory cards | CFexpress Type B (XQD) + SD (UHS-II) | CFexpress Type B (XQD) × 2 |
Network | Wi-Fi (2.4GHz, 5GHz)/BT/USB-LAN | Wi-Fi (2.4GHz, 5GHz)/BT/LAN/GPS |
SnapBridge 8-MP image transfer | Yes | Yes |
Voice memo mic | No | Yes |
HDMI out | 10 bit | 10 bit |
Dust and drip resistantance | Same as the D850 | Same as the D6 |
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It will be interesting to see the flippy/tiltly screen in a smaller body.
The price difference will be fascinating of course being 3 years behind the R5 and the relative cheapness of the Z9 vs R3
I can't understand the dual CFe type B/USHii implementation though. CFe cards aren't new now and the space volume consumed and price are almost the same. It will impact dual recording for video and buffer clearance.
Yes, running dual CFe could be hotter.
Yes, SD cards are fully backward compatible and helps to import to PCs without a card reader but you need the card reader for any high bit rate video anyway. At this pointy end it seems just to be product segmentation rather than cost/functionality.
Does the Z9 suffer from banding indoors?
Even Apple folded and added them back to their laptops.
I still think it the Z 8 will cost a bit more.
Nikon has the Z 7 to compete with the R5 and a7R V.
The R5 price might drop a little more as well.
Now would be a good time to announce or at least leak the R5 S.
Nikon could then make a development announcement of a Z 7x.
Sony seems to have no problem introducing new models with new names.
10-12 years ago, Nikon had sensors (sourced from Sony) with better low ISO DR than Canon, Nikon was a close second in the market, and Canon had to increase low ISO DR. They did, it just took 6 years. So I’d say look for a stacked sensor in the R5III.
Do not expect R5II to have a stacked sensor. I bet it will have BSI no stack, but a faster readout speed such that rolling shutter is very limited or non-existent.
-Brian
It hasn't failed me yet, with the LED lighting at home and the energy saving (fluorescent?) bulbs in the hotel this week.
I can dual record 4K Fine.
Apart from that, the rumoured specs sound very impressive, but nothing significant enough to tempt me away from Canon, even if I could afford to switch systems. Hopefully it won't encourage Canon to rush out the "R5Mkii" though - better to take their time and get it absolutely right. Meanwhile the R5 will do me just fine - and hopefully a couple of nice new features will still arrive with new firmware.
***Well said***