Looking at the long list of things I need to get done to keep the faithful happy (thanks for your continued support, by the way), I've decided not to do a full prediction article this year. The short version for Nikon afficonados only:
- A D3h (as early as PMA, as late as summer). Expect a big surprise with the next generation pro Nikon body. Big surprise. Big. (Did I say "big"?).
- A D65 (probably another December surprise). Yes, there's room and need for a tweener consumer camera, especially once the D50 and D70s supplies vanish. The big question: is it a D40 with an enhanced feature set, or a D80 with a reduced feature set? I'd say the former is more likely.
- A D200s (probably announced with the D65). A minor tweak, with the D80/D40/D65/D3 firmware changes/additions and perhaps a slight hardware modification, such as in-body VR.
- The big question: will the D3x be announced in 2007? I'm guessing yes, though it may not ship in 2007. Too many prototypes were floating around last year for it to be far off.
- D300 rumors start: okay, I'm starting them ;~). The thing that'll start being talked about is that this is a 35FF camera, not APS. But the talk is way premature. It won't appear in 2007, and probably not announced until Photokina 2008 (thus the interim D200s update; and it'll stay in the lineup past the D300 intro).
- Yes, the 400mm f/2.8 finally gets VR.
- Another DX lens appears: 35-135mm f/2.8 or something similar (e.g. 50-150mm, or 50-135mm). (Please, not a 55-200mm VR.)
- Several 35FF lenses are announced, surprise, surprise. I'm betting we'll see five or six lens announcements this year, total (up from the usual three).
- The Fujifilm S5 Pro isn't their only DSLR in the stable by year's end. And I don't mean just an S5 UVIR (though that will appear, too).
- It's not too difficult to predict a slew of Coolpix announcements. The question is, what's new? VR across the board, perhaps. A return towards making the lens relevant. Lots of WiFi. Most of the lineup will still be blah and me-too, though. But the Coolpix gurus will introduce one modest and pleasant surprise at the high end (please, not an S11!).
Remember, I try to be provocative with predictions, not necessarily accurate. Any relationship to actual products developed and announced by Nikon and Fujifilm is coincidental.