New digital P80 Arrives

Sorry, I wrote wrong, it is 10.1 effective megapixel rather 12...

"if this camera fullfills more than our needs than why to buy a DSLR" Easy. Because even if you only use autofocus and auto-exposure, the DSLR still has a larger sensor and therefore potentially better image quality, plus the DSLR will be cleaner at higher ISOs.

Look thru an electronic rangefinder. It looks like a television screen up close. Plus there is a time lag from what the lens sees to when you see it.

You are better off with a D60.

I will repeat what the first answer was a bit more bluntly. MP is an advertizing number that is supposed to mean their camera is better than one one than has a smaller number. It is a lie. It is all about sensor size not MP count. It gets more complicated, but all things being equal, bigger is better so long as you have 6MP or more.

Furthermore to double the quality, there needs to be 4x the MP count. The change from 8 to 10 is insignificant.

Thanks Peter and Ronald for contributions.

You both and others and me too, will always prefer SLRs or DSLRs, but we all know, today with digitals only the picture quality matters, it doesn't matter that with what camera the picture was taken.

So supose if this camera performs as what the specifications say, than why this will not start a new trend in photography equipements.

Because digital shooters always say one common point in favour of digitals, and that is time factor of output. this camera will save more time, how...? This will save the time of interchanging the lenses, this will perform its best with fully autometic, no need to spend time in a small hole viewfinder.

This is well known that the quality of picture taken on digital and film are totaly different. many film cameras produce same results in film category while good digitals get similar results in digital category. some other cameras are also in the market with similar specification with brands like canon.

I think this is the best for the amatures and shooters who shoot when they go on holidays, or weekend or family memories.... but this this might be best for pros (Many of those blindly switched on digitals) also...

The most benificial point of this camera is its 18x zoom with highest zoom of more than 400mm,

Pankaj,

And I GUARANTEE that a photographer who knows what he is doing will get a better image out of a 6MP D40 with the kit lens every time, because sensor size matters. And that leads to better picture quality.

18x zoom? I have an 11x zoom for my D50. There are compromises in that design, so you know there's more compromises in the 18x zoom (I shudder to think what the distortion might be like). I'm not disputing that it might be a great camera (although currently Canon Point-and-Shoot cameras are way better than Nikon). A P&S Camera is the right tool for the job often. "I think this is the best for the amatures and shooters who shoot when they go on holidays, or weekend or family memories...." I agree wholeheartedly, it might be, although I will stick with my DSLR.

"but this this might be best for pros" Absolutely not, and you won't find a pro who will believe that.

Peter, I do agree with you and I am far backward than you and still love my film SLR than DSLRs, so just think why I like this little cam...?

You can not totaly refuse the chances of switching of pros on these kind of point & shoot, If there were not any chances, than why so many pros have already switched on DSLRs while their film SLRs were doing way much better job for those than their DSLRs..........????

I know personaly the "pros" in my town who use their D70 or D300 like point & shoot, and they don't know the functions, even they don't know what their small censors produce with their 28-80 or similar lense at the widest and they don't know what is RAW or JPEG, they shoot only JPEG.

All digital pros (Who became pro with digitals and not used films earlier) just know working behind computer screen they don't know how to perform behind the small hole viewfinder...

...So why this (P80) will not change the trend.....??????????

We now only and only see DSLRs or compact digital cameras everywhere, and this happened in just last three four years.

Things are changing so quicky, like the instant results coming out from digitals where no place for wasting time for composing, metering, developing, printing and seeing....

Now everybody wants to be faster than other faster one....

No place for slowers........

Just think twice before answering (If you do have time)........

Pankaj,

Pros have switched to DSLRs because their clients demand it and the economies of shooting with digital versus film have made it cheaper even if the gear costs more at the outset.

What if I bet you one billion dollars that the P80 won't reverse the "trend" of pro photographers using serious cameras such as DSLRs. Would you take that? I bet not.

Nope, sensor size is just one problem (strobe compatibility, lens distortion -i suspect-, low-light ability, hand-hold-ability are others), but "pros" and even serious amateurs are not going to dump their DSLRs for P80s any time soon. It looks like a great camera (useless to me without a hotshoe for a SB600 though) but pro? No way. Somebody tells me they're going to shoot my wedding with this and I'm going to pay them? No way.

Again... a 6MP camera will make better 8x10s and even 11x14s than this camera (both in the same hands), even if this camera had 20MP.

The sensor might be 10 mp but it's a small sensor and technology still has not solved the noise problem on small sensors at higher ISOs. Above 200-400 ISO the picture turns to cr@p quickly. As others have pointed out, a 6 mp- D40 is going to give you A LOT better inage than a 10 mp P80