Review based on a production Nikon D600 with firmware v1.0
Nikon officially announced the long-rumored and much-leaked D600 a week before the Photokina trade show in September. The D600 is a full-frame DSLR aimed at enthusiasts, with a price to match. At a body only price of $2099/£1955, the 24MP D600 is significantly cheaper than its big brother the D800, and on a par with Canon's recently announced 21MP full-frame EOS 6D.
The D600 - which offers similar build quality and operational ergonomics as the popular DX-format D7000 - is a significant camera, even with the Canon EOS 6D arriving hot on its heels. The D600 matches or exceeds the pixel count of every other full-frame DSLR bar one (the D800) at a pricepoint which puts it within the reach of many enthusiasts. For those of us who've been covering the industry for a while, it's sobering to remember that the first full-frame DSLR, the Canon EOS 1Ds, was announced almost a decade ago. It doesn't seem like so long ago that full-frame was the holy grail of consumer digital imaging, promising liberation from crop factors once and for all, and a return to a simpler time where a 24mm lens actually was a 24mm.
A lot has changed since the 1Ds went on sale though (at an eye-watering $7999) and these days, if you want a full-frame camera, you don't have to remortgage your home. Cameras like Sony's Alpha 850, Nikon's D700 and Canon's EOS 5D brought full-frame sensors within reach of enthusiasts, and the more recent D800, Canon's EOS 5D Mark III and EOS 6D have continued that trend, offering more and more advanced specifications at prices much lower than top-flight equipment like the Nikon D3X and Canon's flagship, the EOS-1D X, the former of which, at least, is looking increasingly anachronistic. It's interesting to note, too, that with the D600, Nikon significantly undercuts the price of Sony's recent full-frame offerings - the SLT-A99 and Cyber-shot RX1.
At its list price at launch of $2099 the D600 is one of the most affordable full-frame cameras yet, and although Nikon insists that there are still good reasons to buy the D300S, it seems very likely that the D600 will finally supplant the older DX-format model as the 'upgrade of choice' for users of the D3200, D5100 and D7000. But despite its relatively low cost the D600 is very far from a 'no frills' model. Features like 5.5fps shooting at full-resolution, 100% viewfinder coverage, full HD video capture with an option to record uncompressed footage via HDMI and a customizeable 39-point AF system would be pretty impressive in a camera costing much more.
Ergonomically, the D600 will feel to some extent familiar to both of these constituencies. The D600's UI is very similar to the DX-format D7000; it even shares the same 39-point AF array. In terms of functionality though, the D600 also has a lot in common with its big brother the D800, particularly when it comes to video specification. Something that came as a surprise on the D600 was the ability to shoot uncompressed video footage via HDMI output. On paper, this, plus a mic socket for an external microphone and a headphone jack should make the D600 very appealing to videographers. The only real difference in specification between the implementation of the D600's video mode compared to the D800 is that you can't adjust aperture during movie recording on the new model (unless you use an older manual focus lens with a mechanical aperture ring).
If you're new to digital photography you may wish to read the Digital
Photography Glossary before diving into this article (it may help
you understand some of the terms used).
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Conclusion / Recommendation / Ratings are based on the opinion of the reviewer, you should read the ENTIRE review before coming to your own conclusions. Images which can be viewed at a larger size have a small magnifying glass icon in the bottom right corner of the image, clicking on the image will display a larger (typically VGA) image in a new window. To navigate the review simply use the next / previous page buttons, to jump to a particular section either pick the section from the drop down or select it from the navigation bar at the top. DPReview calibrate their monitors using Color Vision OptiCal at the (fairly well accepted) PC normal gamma 2.2, this means that on our monitors we can make out the difference between all of the (computer generated) grayscale blocks below. We recommend to make the most of this review you should be able to see the difference (at least) between X,Y and Z and ideally A,B and C. |
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This article is Copyright 2012 and may NOT in part or in whole be reproduced in any electronic or printed medium without prior permission from the author.
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| $2,718.98 | Buy on GearShop | |
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| $2,216.93 | Buy on GearShop |
Nikon D600 24.3 MP CMOS FX-Format Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) | $1,849.99 |
Nikon D600 24.3 MP CMOS FX-Format Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) | $1,849.99 |
Nikon D600 24.3 MP CMOS FX-Format Digital SLR Camera with 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5G ED VR AF-S Nikkor Lens | Too low to display |
Nikon D600 24.3MP CMOS FX-Format Digital SLR Camera Bundle with 24-85mm and 70-300mm Nikkor VR Lens and 3.2-Inch TFT LCD Screen (Black) | Too low to display |
Nikon D600 24.3 MP CMOS FX-Format Digital SLR Kit with 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED Nikkor Lens | Too low to display |
Nikon D600 Digital SLR Camera with 24-85mm & 70-300mm VR Lenses, WU-1b, Bag & 32GB Card with 64GB Card + 2 Batteries + Charger + Battery Grip + Flash + Filters + Remote Kit | $2,699.95 |
Nikon D7100 24.1 MP DX-Format CMOS Digital SLR (Body Only) | $1,146.95 |
Nikon D800 36.3 MP CMOS FX-Format Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) | $2,796.95 |
Nikon D7100 Digital SLR Camera & 18-105mm VR DX AF-S Zoom Lens (Black) with 32GB Card + Case + Filter + Remote + Tripod + Accessory Kit | $1,449.95 |
Nikon D70 Digital Camera (Body Only) | $68.00 |
Nikon COOLPIX L820 16 MP CMOS Digital Camera with 30x Zoom Lens and Full HD 1080p Video (Black) | Too low to display |
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