I have not seen a camera with DX or larger sensor in Costco / Sam's in almost two years. They both used to sell Canon and Nikon products - I even saw FX sensored cameras in Sams once (D610). But - no longer.

And - Nikon does not yet have an entry level Z mount body. I have thought this for years - 'the camera 'bubble' was new retirees in the early 2000s to about 2010 who thought to have a good image you had to have a big black box camera'. Well - that bubble is over now as those people have now realized that it isn't as simple as buying the big black box - you actually have to know how to use it. I can't tell you how many of those bodies are now collecting dust.

I agree, but they are taking more time with the higher-end cameras. If those flop because they fail to meet expectations, that could spell problems for Nikon down the road. If this flops, not so much. It's just recycled Z50 parts, so the loss (financial) would be minimal to Nikon and if anything, and the loss of face (reputation) would be less. If their Z8 or Z9 flops, they are big trouble then. So they are taking their time most likely with those bodies.

@brownie314 the Z50 is basically their entry-level body. Some companies don't need to produce an entry level body. Maybe Nikon has determined that the $500 bodies don't pay the bills and have very little profitability for them, because while you may sell millions, may only be making $50 per body, whereas on a Z50, for example, you might sell 3/4 of what you would on a $500 cameara, but you might be making $200 per body. So they probably determined that a cheaper entry-level body is a waste of time with little/no profit left in the end.

The other thing is that I think fewer people are buying the entry level cameras, because their $1000+ smartphone, like an iPhone 12, can take better photos, and they already have one in hand. The entry-level bodies are starting to go the way of P&S. People aren't buying as many these days because smartphones have gotten even better.

And the bulk of people who bought entry-level DSLRs at least, were parents who probably didnt intend to buy anything beyond that.... they aren't really Nikon's target market, which is enthusiasts and professionals, who will work their ranks up through the ecosystem to (hopefully) a pro/pro-sumer FF system.

I'd say most of the people I Know who bought a D3500 kit, for example, their camera is on a shelf in their closet, with dust on it. In fact, at least a few, have told me that their phone does the same thing, and they have that with them at all times.... So personally I think it 's probably good that the Z50 is their entry level, because anything less than that would likely be a waste of their time and money.

sirhawk - I hope Nikon was not counting on selling all of those D3300s and D5600s at best buy and Amazon. My gut tells me they sold a LOT. If that goes away - things look different.

I'm sure that BestBuy and Amazon were big avenues for sales, but probably not the only ones. Amazon, isn't going anywhere anytime soon. BestBuy, probably not likely, but still possible within the next 5-10 years. Look at what happened to Frys (although they were on the decline for the past 5 years based on my experience at the local one).

Well - no, the retailers are not going anywhere. But - have you been to a Best Buy recently? I have. They have, maybe, a few canon DSLR bodies and a glass case with a few lenses and a flash or two. Compare that to 10 years ago - when they had every Canon and Nikon body up to and including the lowest FF offerings. They had a lot of lenses and flashes. Today - it is a husk of what it used to be for cameras. But - the smart phone area - that has grown 5 or 10 times as large as it was in the past.

To me - that means - people are just no buying the low end cameras like they used to. It was always a sucker buy anyway. My guess is that it was a lot of recent retirees with some money in their pocket, some time on their hands, and wanting to get some really good images of their grandkids. Well - turns out - it isn't as easy as buying a big black body camera. If you don't know anything - and are not willing to put in some time to learn - you are really better off with a smart phone. And the digital jump probably turned out to be a lot more IT intensive than a lot of the buyers were willing to put up with.

The reason they have fewer DSLRs on display is that Nikon is winding down production. They also have fewer Sony's and Canon's on display too, at least at the BestBuy's I've visited. One of the ones I do visit has a full array of Nikon cameras (from their D3500 to the Z7 II, and many of the mid-range DSLRs) so I don't think your assessment that just because retail stores don't have physical displays means much. My local camera shop also doesn't have many on display either, but I saw three or four people walking out with new Z cameras.

The reality is that people don't buy stuff from stores anymore, like BestBuy. They buy online from Amazon, or B&H or Adorama. And only until more recently (like the past year) has this really had been an advantages (no sales tax in some cases, which could have been substantial on an expensive body). I personally don't use the lack of in-store display units as a judgement for camera availability or what's going on with a particular brand.
I would even venture that most people don't even bother to hold a camera before buying. HOw many people held the Z fc before pre-ordering? Probably none since it hasn't started shipping, but they ordered one anyway.

Don't you use instadamn? You can choose any sky colour you want with the help of those filters

Thank you for advice to use my 20D ) Its my first digital camera that I got 13 years ago and I keep it still as memory, and yes its still works fine. But I owe at some point and have tested all Leica lineup, almost all Fuji X-series lineup, I was Canon shooter for long time using everything but M series, and only in 2019-2020 I put my hands on Nikon, because I never like Nikon menu. Done few weddings with Z6, tested Z50, was absolutely impressed with D800 . So what? I can't say anything bad about Nikon jpegs)) Maybe this page for fan boys only? Ok. Then Im very sorry that I touch your feelings. I know how colours should look like on jpegs even with default setting. And this... "I don't see why people feel the need to criticize something they probably don't intend to buy anyway" How do you know if Im going to buy it or not? I criticize jpegs only. Its my opinion. With same logic I can say "If You don't like what I was saying, than don't reply, just skip it. Whats the problem?"

In case you have forgotten, a brilliant blue sky that have already reached Blue 255 shows up as middle gray -2EV in histograms. So yes, there’s no way you get correct sky color without involving the precious Color (Forgery) Science because ‘proper exposure’ for flora will overexpose the sky no matter what.

No but to say they look like garbage without justifying your opinion is part of the problem. If you said something like they lacked contrast or were otherwise flat, that would have been different than just saying "they look like garbage". I could say the same probably for others.... but the difference is I will usually explain my reasoning for saying something was garbage. That's really the big thing. Yes the aren't the best, but I think they are far from garbage. I've seen some pretty bad stuff come out of some otherwise great cameras.... most of that fell on the photographer though who took those photos...

The thing is every camera sees and interprets color differently. Find the one that you like the best (if you're shooting OOC JPEGs as your workflow). And again, not being sarcastic here again, but use your 20D. It seems that it produces the colors you like. For me OOC JPEGS with Nikons are a hit or miss, depends on the subject and the scene/lighting.

I can explain all images which lack of contrast/shadows/colors. But its going to take too much time.
But I will give you two. Image 4 (Trees with sky and airplane). Looks like its exposed fine. Sky is not white, so its not overexposed. But what this thing flying in a sky? UFO? Because I don't see a single window on fuselage. Its just all white. Now you tell me the truth please, did you ever see any jpeg like this before from any camera, when not just one detail, but all windows on airplane just gone? And thats what i called a garbage jpeg and thats what I said in my first message its not a sensor but problem with processor. Look at image 7 (Hallway). - Its SOOC, no editing done. Shadows was not recovered. Settings shows its shot with ISO 100. 100!!!! But look at dark areas on right and left side of the image. Tons of noise. Why?
Wrong setting? D-Lightning set on high? I don't know. But what I know for sure for ISO 100 its absolute garbage quality for jpeg for APS-C camera in 2021.

Sir - well partially. Those sensors are great for still images when the focussing is done by an off sensor mechanism. But - it is now 2021. Great video specs are basic - even on low end bodies. Fast on sensor AF is required. Have you ever tried to focus a Nikon body in Line view? It is ugly. Worse than a compact camera from 2003.

Regardless, back to your original comment...

The sensor in the Zfc is the same as that found in the Z50, which is a BSI sensor. The D500 and D7500 use the same resolution sensor but it's not a BSI design, so it's different than what is found here (with the Z50 and Zfc). In fact Nikon's first used a BSI sensor in the D850 in 2017 and from then on, so it's not a design from 2015.

The only camera we can maybe say is an older sensor design is the Z5, which may very well use the same sensor found in the D750 (although I don't think anyone has confirmed for sure yet).

In reality, sensor design and specifically age is less of a factor these days. Most cameras on the market today use modern BSI sensors and really it then comes down to processing of the images by the processor.

Sir - the sensor does matter. The read speed has a lot to do with video performance and autofocus performance.

The sensor is one of the better DX sensors available. And it's 4k video compatible as well as supporting 11 fps. To develop a new sensor that improves on those numbers for this camera would make the cost prohibitively expensive.

The kit 16-50 is reused, but the 28mm is new.
But yes the Z fc is basically a Z50 in a retro shell with dials... and more importantly (IMO) an articulating screen. Something Nikon fogot on all other Z models.

@NikonD800E Um... Go back 2 days and count. Oh wait, you can't. Did it ever occur to you that maybe they added photos since i Made the post 4 days ago??? I mean it's very rare that DPR adds photos to a gallery after posting it, though...