Stolen from other site:Interview with Mr. Goto of Nikon

[birddog114]

The original article in Japanese:
http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/cda/other ... /1038.html

Translation by Google:

http://translate.google.com/... ...-8&oe=UTF-8&prev=%2Flanguage_tools

Scoops are:

- Will introduce an entry level DSLR (i.e. D50) for first time DSLR
buyer (didn't say when).

- It won't be just cheap. It will satisfy those customers' needs.

- We are working on the successor of D100. Please wait for a
little more (didn't say how long more .

- The D100 successor is expected to be better than D2X in some area.
Just like D70 comparing to D100.

- Nikon should introduce more affordable DX lenses.

- We are asked for PC lenses in DX format. Would like to add it
to the product line in future.

- We know there are demands for FF. At the same time, we have
archived very high quality results with DX format.

- DX format will remain competitive even 10 years later from now.
DSLR doesn't use films. It doesn't need to stick to 135 film size.

- Nikon will capture 40% of world wide DSLR market.

[Nnnnsic]

That last one is a pretty bold statement, even for Nikon.

[johndec]

Going to stick to DX sensor size if I read it right.... Personally I'm happy with that. I think the megapixel race will end when they get to the equivalent of film, which is generally agreed to be around 22 to 24 MP, which is double the resolution of the D70 (6 x 2 = 24 in the digital world )

Of course squeezing 24 million pixels on a DX sized sensor without having BIG noise problems is going to be a technical challenge that Satoru-San and his collegues are hopefully well on the way to solving, otherwise he's going to have 4% not 40%.....

[porlypopz]

How to waste time on a calculator; part 1

Sony make the Nikon sensors, right?? and the Sony F828 running a 2/3rds format sensor packs 8.3 Mp on 58mm^2 so using the same construction would mean that the 369mm^2 of the D70 DX sensor could carry an equivalent 52.8Mp!!. I know there is a whole buch of other stuff (processing, filing, hardwiring and NOISE) to get between it and the stuff you finally mess with on your pc but you'd like to think that they've already got something like that smokin' on a lab bench somewhere!

Any bets on what month/year for the first 20+ Mp sensor in a proper (god I'm a snob!)production camera?

[Glen]

Porlypopz, I read a similar thing by a Canon guy that said 100mb FF cameras were possible now, just no one would want the cost or file sizes they produced. Not sure when the first 20mb back appeared in a production back, but I have seen the ads for some time in the magazines. Cost is a bit high in Aus, about $28k from memory. That is for medium format of course, if you count them as proper cameras.

[Nnnnsic]

I'd count them as proper cameras... but one of the main problems with the larger MP backs is that because the sensor size is so huge, the amount of problems that can happen to them becomes large too.

I'll be interested to see how the digi Mamiya and the Hassleblad / Imacon joint-effort work out in terms of quality and durability.

[Glen]

Leigh, I think I would be very careful cleaning a $28k sensor I can imagine they could be prone to all sorts of problems beyond that too

Should make sales slow for the phase one backs with those two joint ventures

[Nnnnsic]

Beyond it was exactly what I meant.

Think about when PHDs lose a pixel. Now think about how small those sensors are.

Now think about what happens if one of these lose a pixel. Or two. Or three. Sensors built to this size are, besides being more costly, also more prone to hardware problems, as I understand it.