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Expert Rating:
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Price When Reviewed: 470 . 595
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Pros: D50: Compact body with responsive AF, 1/500 flash sync and bags of auto and manual control. Impressive buffer and file handling allow extended burst depth.
D70s: Super durable body with ultra-fast handling, plus there’s low-noise and great colour from raw files. Sophisticated metering works well to preserve dynamic range. -
Cons: D50: Some handling quirks due to a single-command dial to the rear. Kit lens not a patch on the 18-70mm supplied with the D70s. Still only six-megapixel resolution.
D70s: cons Pricey for a six-megapixel digital SLR, but the kit lens is by far the best of its type. Picture Project software has limited raw processing options.
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Nikon’s latest brace of digital SLRs lower the entry-price into the professional camera market still further. Both will challenge the wave of high-end, closed-system prosumer models, such as Sony’s Cyber-Shot DSC-F828 and Nikon’s own Coolpix 8800.
While the D50 is a completely new model, the D70s is a makeover of the popular D70, previously Nikon’s entry-level offering. Surprisingly, both eschew eight-megapixel sensors found on the likes of the recent Canon EOS 350D, and Olympus E-300 in favour of a six-megapixel CCD. If either one had matched the resolution, it would have been a first for an APS-C size CCD, as the Canon utilizes a proprietary CMOS chip, while Olympus’ E-300 features a smaller Kodak-sourced CCD sensor based on the new digital Four Thirds standard.
So, there hasn’t been an eight-megapixel CCD nor CMOS sensor at Nikon’s disposal. Nevertheless, while there’s a third increase in pixel count, the extra two million pixels equates to just a 15 per cent boost in image size. Most users looking to print A4 at 300dpi are unlikely to notice the difference.
If it ain’t broke
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