The Nikon D600 is a reality!

Not long ago the official announcement was made that the D600 is here. And not only that available in less than a week!!!. September 18th it will supposedly hit the shelves. I imagine preorders are going to be through the roof so I'd expect a wait. At full-frame camera at $2099 is going to fly off the shelves.

The D600, is as most people expected, essentially a D7000 with a full-frame 24MP sensor. Of course it's not exactly the same, it did inherit some features from the D800 as well.

The similarities between the D600 and the D7000:

• 39 point AF system with 9 cross-type.
• 2016 pixel RGB metering sensor
• 5.5 fps for D600 and 6 fps D7000 (pretty much the same). 
• Focus mode selector. 
• Magnesium / polycarbonate body.
• Scene modes.
• Double SD slot.
• U modes.
• Dual IR sensor for ML-L3
• Built-in AF motor for non-AF-S lenses. 

The D600 has had a few improvements over the D7000 all inherited from the D800 and mostly features relating to video. 

• Live View switch for stills/video.
• Video record button behind the shutter release button.
• Headphone output
• Uncompressed HD video though the HDMI out port
• Expeed 3 processor
• Auto-ISO.

There are a few things I like about the D600. Pretty much everything it inherited from the D800 is a good thing. The built-in AF motor is also a good thing, but doesn't mean much to me anymore since I've long since made the switch to all AF-S lenses and there really aren't any legacy lenses that interest me except for the 58mm f/1.2 NOCT which is manual focus. The U modes are also a handy option that a lot of people liked on the D7000. I never really used it, but it's there. The dual IR sensor for the ML-L3 is a big point for me. It always irked me that Nikon out this great feature on only it's lower end models. The inexpensive ML-L3 is a great thing and obviously it's not an expensive option to add. Instead of a $13 remote I have to spend $200 on a Nikon ML-3 (it does have more features, but still). 5.5 fps isn't bad. 100% viewfinder! This is great, no guestimating your composition. The D600 also get the amazing Auto-ISO from the D800. This feature is amazing. It recognizes your focal length and matches the shutter speed plus you can give more priority to speed over lower ISO's if you wish. The price is also pretty good for an FX camera, I know people were expecting it to be less, but it's still $1000 cheaper than the D700 when it was launched. 

There are quite a few things I don't like about the D600. First and foremost, it's not a D700 replacement. For me and a lot of others, the D700 was perfect. Pro build and insanely good low-light performance. The D800 just isn't the same camera, neither is the D4. First of all the magnesium / poly body don't stand up to abuse well. Some may say, buy a D4, but I like the smaller body with the option of adding a grip when needed. The focus mode selector is a pain, maybe I'm just not used to it, but I hated it when the D7000 came out and I don't like it on the D800 either. Flipping a switch is easier than pressing buttons and rotating dials. The AF module. Not enough focus points and -1EV sensitivity compared to -2EV on the D800. SD cards!!! I hate them. They are flimsy and I break them. I have broken every single one I have had. I have NEVER broken a CF card in my 10 years of using them. I was also disappointed with the kit lens. It's not great and it's way over-priced for a variable aperture zoom. 

In any case, I'm not trying to rag on the D600. It's a great camera for someone who wants to get into the FX game for relatively cheap. It's an FX camera for Joe Everyman. Obviously this camera isn't aimed at photographers like me. Personally I was hoping for a 16MP D800 style camera. Something for low-light, that shoots fast, but doesn't weight a ton or cost $6000. I have no doubt this will be a huge success for Nikon and will probably bring up the cost of Nikon's older AF-D lenses which could be great for folks who want to sell their old glass. 

All-in all the D600 looks like a very capable mid-level camera that you can use high quality FX glass with to its full potential. Let's face it, the only ultra-wide Nikon had for DX wasn't great. The D600 will allow you to use the 14-24mm f/2.8G and get the full experience. You'll also be able to use the newest fast primes, 28mm f/1.8G, 24mm f/1.4G, 35mm f/1.4G, as well as the great 50mm f/1.4.G as they were intended, with no crop factor.

Here's Nikon's press release for the D600.

And here are the specs:

Specifications

• Type
  Single-lens reflex digital camera
• Lens Mount
  Nikon F bayonet mount
• Picture Angle
  Nikon FX format
• Effective Pixels
  24.3 million
• Sensor Size
  35.9mm x 24.0mm
• Image Sensor Format
  FX
• Image Sensor Type
  CMOS
• Total Pixels
  24.7 million
• Dust-reduction system
  Image sensor cleaning
• Dust-Off Reference Photo
  Yes
• Image Area (pixels)
  FX-format
  (L) 6,016 x 4,016 
  (M) 4,512 x 3,008
  (S) 3,008 x 2,008 
  DX-format
  (L) 3,936 x 2,624 
  (M) 2,944 x 1,968
  (S) 1,968 x 1,312
  
• File Format Still Images
  JPEG: JPEG-Baseline Compliant; can be selected from Size Priority and Optimal Quality 
  JPEG: JPEG-Baseline Compliant with fine (approx 1:4), Normal (approx 1:8) or Basic (approx 1:16) Compression 
  NEF (RAW): Lossless Compressed, Compressed or Uncompressed 12 or 14 bit 
  TIFF (RGB)
• Picture Control
  Landscape 
  Monochrome 
  Neutral 
  Portrait 
  Standard 
  User-customizable Settings 
  Vivid
• Storage Media
  SD 
  SDHC 
  SDXC
• Card Slot
  2 Secure Digital (SD)
• File System
  Compliant with DCF (Design Rule for Camera File System) 2.0 
  DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) 
  EXIF 2.3 (Exchangeable Image File Format for Digital Still Cameras) 
  PictBridge
• Viewfinder
  Eye-level Pentaprism Single-Lens Reflex Viewfinder
• Viewfinder Frame Coverage
  FX (36x24): 100% Horizontal and 100% Vertical Approx.DX (24x16): 97% Horizontal and 97% Vertical Approx.
• Viewfinder Magnification
  0.70x Approx.
• Viewfinder Eyepoint
  20.6mm (-1.0m¯¹)
• Viewfinder Diopter Adjustment
  Built-in diopter adjustment (-3 to +1 m¯¹)
• Focusing Screen
  Type B BriteView Clear Matte Mark VIII with AF Area Brackets (grid lines can be displayed)
• Reflex Mirror
  Quick-return type
• Lens Aperture
  Instant-return type
• Depth-of-field Control
  Yes
• Lens Compatibility at a Glance***
  AF-S or AF lenses fully compatible 
  Metering with AI lenses
• Compatible Lenses
  AF NIKKOR lenses, including type G and D lenses (some restrictions apply to PC lenses) and DX lenses (using DX 24 × 16 1.5x image area), AI-P NIKKOR lenses, and non-CPU AI lenses (A and M modes only). 
  IX NIKKOR lenses, lenses for the F3AF, and non-AI lenses cannot be used.
• Shutter type
  Electronically controlled vertical-travel focal-plane
• Shutter Speed
  1/4000 to 30 sec. 
  Bulb
• Fastest Shutter Speed
  1/4000 sec.
• Slowest Shutter Speed
  30 sec.
• Flash Sync Speed
  Up to 1/200 sec. 
  Synchronizes with shutter at 1/250s or slower
• Bulb Shutter Setting
  Yes
• Shutter Release Modes
  Continuous low-speed [CL] mode; 1-5 frames per second 
  Continuous high-speed [CH] mode; 5.5 frames per second 
  Mirror-up [Mup] mode 
  Quiet Shutter Release 
  Self-timer mode 
  Single-frame [S] mode
• Continuous Shooting Options
  FX-format
  CH: Up to 5.5 frames per secondCL: Up to 1-5 frames per second
• Top Continuous Shooting Speed at full resolution
  5.5 frames per second
• Self-timer
  2, 5, 10, 20 sec. Timer duration electronically controlled
• Exposure Metering System
  TTL exposure metering using 2,016-pixel RGB sensor
• Metering Method
  Center-weighted: Weight of 75% given to 8mm circle in center of frame 
  Matrix: 3D color matrix metering II (type G and D lenses); color matrix metering II (other CPU lenses) 
  Spot: Meters 4mm circle (about 1.5% of frame) centered on selected focus point
• Metering Range
  0 to 20 EV (3D color matrix or center-weighted metering) 
  0 to 20 EV (spot metering)
• Exposure Meter Coupling
  CPU 
  AI
• Exposure Modes
  Aperture-Priority (A) 
  Manual (M) 
  Programmed auto with flexible program (P) 
  Shutter-Priority (S)
• Exposure Compensation
  ±5 EV in increments of 1/3, 1/2 or 1 EV
• Exposure Bracketing
  2 or 3 frames in steps of 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 1 or 2 EV
• Exposure Lock
  Yes
• Mirror Lock Up
  Yes
• ISO Sensitivity
  ISO 100 - 6400
  Lo-1 (ISO 50)
  Hi-1 (ISO 12,800)
  Hi-2 (ISO 25,600)
  
• Lowest Standard ISO Sensitivity
  100
• Highest Standard ISO Sensitivity
  6400
• Lowest Expanded ISO Sensitivity
  Lo-1 (ISO 50 equivalent)
• Highest Expanded ISO Sensitivity
  HI-2 (ISO 25,600 equivalent)
• Expanded ISO Sensitivity Options
  Hi-1 (ISO-12,800 equivalent) in 1/3, 1/2 or 1 EV 
  Hi-2, (ISO-25,600 equivalent) 1 EV
• Long Exposure Noise Reduction
  Yes
• High ISO Noise Reduction
  Low 
  Normal 
  High 
  Off
• Active D-Lighting
  Auto 
  Extra High 
  High 
  Normal 
  Low 
  Off
• D-Lighting Bracketing
  2 frames using selected value for one frame 
  3–5 frames using preset values for all frames
• Single-point AF Mode
  Yes
• Dynamic AF Mode
  Number of AF points: 9, 21, 39 and 39 (3D-tracking)
• Auto-area AF Mode
  Yes
• Autofocus System
  Nikon Multi-CAM 4800 autofocus sensor module with TTL phase detection
• Detection Range
  -1 to 19 EV (ISO 100, 68°F/20°C)
• Lens Servo
  Autofocus (AF): Single-servo AF (AF-S); Continuous-servo AF (AF-C); auto AF-S/AF-C selection (AF-A); predictive focus tracking activated automatically according to subject status 
  Manual focus (MF): Electronic rangefinder can be used
• AF-area mode
  9, 21 or 39 point Dynamic-area AF 
  Auto-area AF 
  Single-point AF 
  3D-tracking (39 points)
• Focus Lock
  Focus can be locked by pressing AE-L/AF-L button 
  Focus can be locked by pressing shutter-release button halfway (single-servo AF)
• Focus Modes
  Auto AF-S/AF-C selection (AF-A) 
  Continuous-servo (AF-C) 
  Face-Priority AF available in Live View only and D-Movie only 
  Manual (M) with electronic rangefinder 
  Normal area 
  Single-servo AF (AF-S) 
  Wide area
• Maximum Autofocus Areas/Points
  39
• Autofocus Sensitivity
  -1 to +19 EV (ISO 100, 20°C/68°F)
• Autofocus Fine Tune
  Yes
• Built-in Flash
  Yes
• Flash Bracketing
  2 to 3 frames in steps of 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 1 or 2 EV
• Built-in Flash Distance
  39 ft. (ISO 100)
• X-Sync Speed
  1/200
• Top FP High Speed Sync
  Up to 1/4000
• Flash Control
  TTL: i-TTL flash control using 2,016-pixel RGB sensor are available with built-in flash and SB-910, SB-900, SB-700, or SB-400; i-TTL balanced fill-flash for digital SLR is used with matrix and center-weighting metering, standard i-TTL flash for digital SLR with spot metering
• Flash Sync Modes
  Front-curtain sync (normal) 
  Rear-curtain sync 
  Red-Eye reduction 
  Red-Eye reduction with slow sync 
  Slow sync
• Flash Compensation
  -3 to +1 EV in increments of 1/3, 1/2 or 1 EV
• Flash-ready indicator
  Lights when built-in flash or optional flash unit such as SB-910, SB-900, SB-400, SB-80DX, SB-28DX or SB-50DX is fully charged
• Accessory Shoe
  Yes
• Nikon Creative Lighting System (CLS)
  CLS Supported
• White Balance
  Auto 
  Choose color temperature (2500K–10000K) 
  Cloudy 
  Direct Sunlight 
  Flash 
  Fluorescent (7 types) 
  Incandescent 
  Preset manual (up to 4 values can be stored) 
  Shade
• White Balance Bracketing
  2 or 3 exposures
• Live View Shooting
  Photography Live View Mode 
  Movie Live View Mode
• Live View Lens servo
  Autofocus (AF): Single-servo AF (AF-S); full-time-servo AF (AF-F) 
  Manual focus (MF)
• Live View AF-area mode
  Face-priority AF 
  Wide-area AF 
  Normal-area AF 
  Subject-tracking AF
• Live View Autofocus
  Contrast-detect AF anywhere in frame (camera selects focus point automatically when face-priority AF or subject-tracking AF is selected)
• Live View Scene Auto Selector
  Auto mode 
  Auto (flash off) mode
• Movie Metering
  TTL exposure metering using main image sensor
• Movie Maximum recording time
  20 minutes at highest quality 
  29 minutes 59 seconds at normal quality
• Movie File Format
  MOV
• Movie Video Compression
  H.264/MPEG-4 Advanced Video Coding
• Movie Audio recording format
  Linear PCM
• Movie
  HD 1,920x1,080 / 30 fps 
  HD 1,920x1,080 / 25 fps 
  HD 1,920x1,080 / 24 fps 
  HD 1,280x720 / 60 fps 
  HD 1,280x720 / 50 fps 
  HD 1,280x720 / 30 fps 
  HD 1,280x720 / 25 fps
• Movie Audio
  Built-in microphone, monaural 
  External stereo microphone (optional)
• Monitor Size
  3.2 in. diagonal
• Monitor Resolution
  921,000 Dots
• Monitor Type
  Wide Viewing Angle TFT-LCD
• Monitor Angle of View
  170-degree wide-viewing angle
• Monitor Adjustments
  Brightness, 5 levelsBrightness control using ambient brightness sensor
• Virtual Horizon Camera Indicator
  Yes
• Playback Functions
  Auto Image Rotation 
  Full-Frame and Thumbnail (4, 9, or 72 images or calendar) 
  Highlights 
  Histogram Display 
  Image Comment 
  Movie Playback 
  Movie Slideshow 
  Playback with Zoom 
  Slideshow
• In-Camera Image Editing
  Color Balance 
  Color Outline 
  Color Sketch 
  D-Lighting 
  Distortion Control 
  Edit Movie 
  Filter Effects 
  Fisheye 
  Image Overlay 
  Miniature Effect 
  Monochrome 
  NEF (RAW) Processing 
  Perspective Control 
  Quick Retouch 
  Red-Eye Correction 
  Resize 
  Selective Color 
  Side-by-Side Comparison 
  Straighten 
  Trim
• Image Comment
  Yes
• Interface
  Accessory Terminal: Remote Cord: MC-DC2 (available separately); GPS unit: GP-1 (available separately) 
  HDMI output: Type C mini-pin HDMI connector 
  Headphone Connector 
  Hi-speed USB 
  Stereo Microphone Input
• Wi-Fi Functionality
  Eye-Fi Compatible 
  WU-1b Wireless Mobile Adapter
• GPS
  GP-1 GPS unit 
  GP-1A GPS unit
• Save/Load Camera settings
  Yes
• Total custom Settings
  50
• My Menu
  Yes with customization
• Recent Settings
  Yes
• Supported Languages
  Arabic 
  Brazilian Portuguese 
  Chinese (Simplified and Traditional) 
  Czech 
  Danish 
  Dutch 
  English 
  Finnish 
  French 
  German 
  Greek 
  Hindi 
  Hungarian 
  Indonesian 
  Italian 
  Japanese 
  Korean 
  Norweigan 
  Polish 
  Portuguese 
  Romanian 
  Russian 
  Spanish 
  Swedish 
  Thai 
  Turkish 
  Ukrainian
• Date, Time and Daylight Savings Time Settings
  Yes
• World Time Setting
  Yes
• Battery / Batteries
  EN-EL15 Lithium-ion Battery
• Battery Life (shots per charge)
  900 shots per charge (Battery Life) (CIPA)
• AC Adapter
  EH-5b AC Adapter 
  Requires EP-5B Power Supply Connector
• Battery Charger
  MH-25 Quick Charger
• Tripod Socket
  1/4 in.
• Approx. Dimensions
  Width: 5.6 in. (141mm)Height: 4.4 in. (113mm)Depth: 3.2 in. (82mm)
• Approx. Weight
  42 oz. (760g)
  

  camera body only
• Operating Environment
  0–40 °C (+32–104 °F)
• Supplied Accessories
  
  

  • EN-EL15 Rechargeable Li-ion Battery
  • MH-25 Quick Charger
  • EG-D2 Audio Video Cable
  • UC-E15 USB Cable
  • BM-14 LCD Monitor Cover
  • DK-21 Rubber Eyecup
  • AN-DC8 Strap
  • DK-5 Eyepiece Cap
  • BF-1B Body Cap
  • BS-1 Accessory Shoe Cap
  • NikonView NX2 CD ROM