dpreview Camera Reviews Are So

slow, they actually have lost their relevence. With every other respected lab having completed a quality D300 review (and given it raving praise), the delay from dpr almost makes for "here's yet ANOTHER review... "

dpr has become a reference for down-the-road buyers and is no longer a reference for early buyers.

I seriously doubt anyone is hanging on to their seat waiting on dpr to give their recommendation. Too much praise has been leveled by the other labs. Early buying decisions have been made.

--
David

I don't think anyone puts out a review nearly as thourough as Phil. It's no secret the D300 is the best camera in it's class, and every review so far has said it beats the 40D (the thing everyone was waiting to hear). There isn't going to be any surprises in Phil's review, I wouldn't sweat it.

Mark

I have to agree with this one. At this point who cares what dpreview has to say.

I firmly take the middle ground on this issue.

DP Review reviews are the most reliable and authoritative I can find, so they always have value, even if they are published later than others.

On the other hand, so many rave reviews and comments have been published by respectable sources over the past few months that I have no doubt that the D300 is a remarkably useful camera, so DR Review is likely to add little that we don't already know.

My final assertion on this subject was made about 5 weeks ago, when I got tired of waiting for Phil's review and bought my own D300.

MarvinK

dan.carter said:

I have to agree with this one. At this point who cares what dpreview
has to say.

Click to expand...

betterliving said:

slow, they actually have lost their relevence. With every other
respected lab having completed a quality D300 review (and given it
raving praise), the delay from dpr almost makes for "here's yet
ANOTHER review... "

Click to expand...

Some people don't rush out to buy a camera the week it comes out - so the review when it comes is still relevant for the (like you said) down the road buyers.

betterliving said:

dpr has become a reference for down-the-road buyers and is no longer
a reference for early buyers.

Click to expand...

Reviews have NEVER come out that quickly for any DSLR on dpreview.

--
'87.6% of all statistics are made up on the spot'

ShutterBugin
http://www.exposureproductions.smugmug.com

Shutterbugin said:

Reviews have NEVER come out that quickly for any DSLR on dpreview.

Click to expand...

If they ever come at all. There's no way the site could review every camera released and it's easy enough to see this simply by browsing the manufacturer model lists and seeing how few actually have reviews or even previews for that matter.

The DPReview full-length reviews are more extended previews than anything else. They generally haven't been very critical but give a very good and in-depth look into a camera's features and settings. The next best thing to hands-on with the actual camera and in-depth read of its manual.

I think the full D300 review is going to get as many page views when it's eventually posted as it would have one month ago.

If someone needs Phil's opinion to decide whether or not to get a D300, then I really don't know what to say to them. Maybe they should forget about photography though.

--
Save pixels, please trim your follow-ups and don't quote attached images.

This sounds like:
PHIL, PUT OUT YOUR REVIEW NOW AND IT BETTER BE GOOD!!!!!!!!!!

Slow down, sounds like you have enough reviews to read for now, especially ones prising the D300. Most of the reviews come out quick, simply to support the manufacturer in promoting their new stuff. I think Phil is intentionally releasing his after initial hype dies down.

BTW I have D300 and like the camera and will read his review whenever it is released. Don't really need confirmation I bought the best camera in its cathegory.

Best regards,

betterliving said:

slow, they actually have lost their relevence. With every other
respected lab having completed a quality D300 review (and given it
raving praise), the delay from dpr almost makes for "here's yet
ANOTHER review... "

dpr has become a reference for down-the-road buyers and is no longer
a reference for early buyers.

I seriously doubt anyone is hanging on to their seat waiting on dpr
to give their recommendation. Too much praise has been leveled by the
other labs. Early buying decisions have been made.

--
David

Click to expand...

...but I find them very useful; I'm sure many do.
--
Ron
CP 5700, D70, D300
http://www.pbase.com/ronhrl

Every man has a right to his opinion, but no man has a right to be wrong in his facts. --Bernard Baruch

Imaging resource has much more detailed testing, IMO.

RonHrl said:

...but I find them very useful; I'm sure many do.
--
Ron
CP 5700, D70, D300
http://www.pbase.com/ronhrl
Every man has a right to his opinion, but no man has a right to be
wrong in his facts. --Bernard Baruch

Click to expand...

True, the dpr reviews are a good resource for a current user and down-the-road buyer, but they are not fast enough to be anything useful for early buyers of newer products. No matter how good dpr is, faster reviews would greatly increase good will with site users.
--
David

breivogel said:

Imaging resource has much more detailed testing, IMO.

Click to expand...

I have come to really appreciate IR reviews. They are well-designed and reliable. And... they are quick.
--
David

Shutterbugin said:

betterliving wrote:
Some people don't rush out to buy a camera the week it comes out - so
the review when it comes is still relevant for the (like you said)
down the road buyers.

Click to expand...

I agree. My first real DSLR was a D50, purchased long after it was out and the review from DPReview was out. I read many reviews on many sites. The review on this site was by far the most valuable, complete and accurate. And there is more to it than that, the compare features setup for side by side comparisons.

Quality over quickness anytime.

And that review and the info in it is what brought me to this site.

For the record, I bought my D300 the day it came out, and the pre-review was more than enough to answer what I needed to know. The early adoptors are for the most part going to be people like me who know a company, know the shortcomings of the model they have and can figure out if the new model fills those needs.

DPreview's system works, no need to fix it.

The only question I have is why do we need a third thread on this subject and more importantly why did I respond to it?

betterliving said:

slow, they actually have lost their relevence.

Click to expand...

I really don't think so. This is still the definitive place to compare small differences in detail rendering, colour, noise pattern and so on, mainly because the tests are so standardized that it makes it easier to compare new products to older ones.

There are, however, a lot of new ideas I could come up with that would improve the reviews. Using more than one raw-converters, for example, and comparing results between them would be the number one improvement. More side-by-side comparisons in real world shooting situations would be equally welcome.

But I digress...

betterliving said:

dpr has become a reference for down-the-road buyers and is no longer
a reference for early buyers.

Click to expand...

Actually, I fail to see the huge downside to it. Early adopters will find the information in small fragments if they choose to go down that road. People who wait half a year until the early defects and rough edges have dissappeared will get to read reviews from people like Phil, Thom Hogan and Björn Rörslett...

And what's in common with all those three reviewers? They all have yet to review the D300. Maybe it has to do with how tough it is to really find all the pros and cons of a camera in day-to-day shooting?

betterliving said:

I seriously doubt anyone is hanging on to their seat waiting on dpr
to give their recommendation. Too much praise has been leveled by the
other labs. Early buying decisions have been made.

Click to expand...

What's with the haste? Too many bad choices have been made because of too little consideration, I think. I just had to get the D80 the moment I saw it here in Finland and I paid the price... Little did I know that the matrix metering was much worse (for me, that is) than to what I had accustomed with my D70. And the slight amp noise issue... And the abundance of dead pixels... I could go on but I really do like my D80, in the end, and I don't want it to get upset. ; )

--
regards
Janne Mankila, Finland

6.1.08
My new year experiences and a bit of
what's to come regarding my web diary.
Controversial topics, that's for sure:
http://jannemankila.googlepages.com

--
Stubborn and ardent clinging to one's opinion is the best
proof of stupidity.
Michel de Montaigne

http://public.fotki.com/borysd/

I think dpreview seems to be putting out more P&S reviews lately, which may not make D300 fans happy, but most likely makes the majority of camera buyers happy.

When dpreview publishes the D300, I'm sure I'll read it even though I have the camera already. And I'm sure that many people without the camera will read it as well. I think that dpreview's reviews are very consistant, detailed, and accurate. Other sites may offer good reviews as well, but I usually don't find them as useful.

If the site where called 'NikonReview.com', or we where actually paying something for membership, then I think we'ld have a reason to complain.

--

Everything I write is a personal opinion. Even when I quote facts, they are the facts I personally choose to accept.
http://www.pbase.com/mariog

betterliving said:

slow, they actually have lost their relevence. With every other
respected lab having completed a quality D300 review (and given it
raving praise), the delay from dpr almost makes for "here's yet
ANOTHER review... "

Click to expand...

dunno for sure, but seems to me that Phil's reviews are the most comprehensive reviews, which sets them apart from the others. Given the complexity of the modern dslr, I don't see how anyone could expect Phil to do all of the stuff that he does and put out a quality review, in a few days time. I've had the d300 for almost 2 months now and still have a lot of stuff to learn about its capabilities. It's going to take quite a while, just to nail down the best way to use the AF system in different situations, for example.

betterliving said:

dpr has become a reference for down-the-road buyers and is no longer
a reference for early buyers.

Click to expand...

I don't recall that it has ever been different for dslrs. IIRC, it took about 2 months for the d70 review and the same for the d200, for example. In both cases, lots of users had the cameras in hand before the big reviews came out. I had cams from the first batch, in both cases. So, I guess it depends upon your definition of "early buyer".

betterliving said:

I seriously doubt anyone is hanging on to their seat waiting on dpr
to give their recommendation. Too much praise has been leveled by the
other labs. Early buying decisions have been made.

Click to expand...

I agree. I find Phil's reviews interesting, but I don't see how they'd make or break a sale for me. I've yet to see a review, from anyone, that covers all of the points, such as AF capability, that is pertinent to the needs of any given user. I do my own tests on cameras, as do a lot of people. That's the only way you'll really know the full capabilities of the camera as to how it will work for you. Of course, you can get a good feel for the cam from other users that you trust, but that still doesn't replace testing it for yourself.

--
my gallery of so-so photos
http://www.pbase.com/kerrypierce/root

The whole point of the review would be to help users decide if they want to purchase a camera. That is how this site makes money! I dont underestand what these people are thinking.

Mario Giannini said:

I think dpreview seems to be putting out more P&S reviews lately,
which may not make D300 fans happy, but most likely makes the
majority of camera buyers happy.

Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure than when dpreview started many, many moons ago, they did nothing BUT p&s reviews as there were only two or three DSLR's being introduced in a year.

All the reviews are pretty thoroughly and take time.

If anything, it would be nice if cameras would show "Under review" - although a preview is indicating in that direction, you can never be sure of it.
--
Cheers,
Bart

betterliving said:

slow, they actually have lost their relevence. With every other
respected lab having completed a quality D300 review (and given it
raving praise), the delay from dpr almost makes for "here's yet
ANOTHER review... "

Click to expand...

You are absolutely right.

Dpreview has become the slowest in the industri. This could be warranted if they where also the best, but honestly there is nothing that distinquish them from the other bigger players like imaging-resource.com .

But if you look at it its quite clear whats going on. Since the Amazon takeover the preference here is to review digicams. There is a bunch of almost identical reviews of the "consise form".

Apparently this is what the owners want, i think that will be the beginning of the end.

Best wishes

Jakob

AllOtherNamesTaken said:

It's no secret the D300 is the best camera in it's class, and every
review so far has said it beats the 40D (the thing everyone was
waiting to hear). There isn't going to be any surprises in Phil's
review

Click to expand...

So we reallly don't need Phil's reviews at all then??