Well, I hypothesized that Nikon must be getting ready to ship a new consumer DSLR when I saw Nikon's estimated shipments of DSLRs for the first half of their current fiscal year. And it seems that I was right. Just in time for my birthday, Nikon is teasing a new consumer camera with a Flash animation on their Web site. Salient information: "More power. More control. More versatile. More excitement. New 10.2 megapixel D-SLR addition to the lineup." (The Japanese version is a little different, and seems to suggest that the camera is "faster," as well.)
A couple things to note: "addition to the lineup." That means it isn't a D70s replacement, but likely a D80 (or whatever number they come up with) that slots between the two existing 6mp cameras and the 10.2mp D200, both in features and price (best guess, US$999 body). "Details will be announced [in] 20 days." Given when the teaser first appeared, that means the target announcement date (not ship date) is August 9th or so.
The more interesting thing than the camera, whatever it turns out to be, is that this is the first time in my memory that Nikon has clearly executed a marketing campaign targeted at a competitor. The teaser appears just as the 10.2mp Sony Alpha 100 is about to appear in stores here. Hmm. Can Nikon marketing really be stepping up to the plate for a change?