Nikon announce 10.2 megapixel D80 digital SLR camera

As expected, following the teaser on the Nikon website, the D80 digital SLR has been announced today and appears to be the successor to the Nikon D70s. The new D80 SLR is smaller and more streamlined than the D70s but offers a larger viewfinder with .94x magnification, a higher resolution 2.5" LCD and 10.2 megapixels as compared to the 6.1 megapixels of the D70s and D50 SLR cameras.

Nikon D80 SLR Image

The D80 will be competitively priced at $999 / £699 for the body and $1,299 / £949 for the body with the newly announced Nikon 18 - 135 mm AF-S DX zoom lens. This new lens offers a maximum aperture range of f3.5 - f5.6 and offers internal focusing, ED glass, silent wave motor and is the 35mm equivalent of 27 to 202.5 mm. The lens is only for digital cameras and is not compatible with 35mm SLR cameras.

Both the Nikon D80 and the 18 - 135 mm lens will ship in September 2006.

Nikon D80 SLR - Key Features

10.2 megapixel CCD sensor with 3,872 x 2,592 pixels
New high resolution 12 - bit image processing engine
Nikon 3D color matrix metering II, variable center-weighted and spot metering
Long battery life with 2,700 shots from Nikon's EN-EL3e lithium rechargeable battery.
Instant 0.18 sec start up, fast shutter response and continuous shooting upto 3 frames per second with upto 100 consecutive jpeg images.
Built in flash with Nikon i-TTL flash metering
2.5" color LCD with 170 degree viewing angle.
7 vari-programs plus programmed auto with flexible program, full manual, shutter and aperture priority modes.
Large bright viewfinder with 0.94x magnification.
Built in slideshow function.
ISO settings from 100 to 1600 with boost upto 3200.
JPEG and RAW (NEF) file formats.
Hotshoe for external flash. X-sync upto 1/200 sec.
In camera editing with retouching menu
Compatible with SD and SDHC memory cards
Weight 585 g / 668 g with battery
Size 132 x 103 x 77 mm