Nikon D600 – a small and light full-frame DSLR camera
What is the Nikon D600?
The new Nikon D600 claims to be the smallest and lightest full-frame DSLR camera, offering professional quality shots in a compact and portable body.
The D600 is a new addition to Nikon’s camera range and sits below the D800 in terms of price and size, but still includes some of the features found in its most expensive cameras.
The D600 will go on sale on September 18 and is priced at £1,955.99 for the body or £2,433.99 with the standard lens kit.
If this is too expensive for you check out our round-up of the best cheap DSLR cameras under £500.
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Find out how we test cameras or check out our video review of the Nikon D800.
Five things we like about the Nikon D600
- Top features
As well as a CMOS sensor providing 24.3 effective megapixels, the D600 has the usual features you would expect from a top level camera such as an ISO range of 100-6,400, the ability to shoot 5.5 frames per second and 39 point autofocus. - Professional image processing
The D600 includes the same Expeed 3 image processor included in Nikon’s top of the range D4. This should help it produce professional quality photos. - Dual SD card slots
Two SD card slots mean you will be able to switch between taking stills and video without fiddling about changing the cards. - HD video
As well as stills the D600 claims professional quality video and is able to shoot full 1080p video at 30, 25 or 24 frames per second. This frame rate can go all the way up to 60fps at 720p resolution. - Remote shooting with wi-fi
Nikon also announced the WU-1b wi-fi adapter that can either be used to transfer photos or – using a special Android or iOS app – as a remote shutter release. However, this will cost an extra £65.
Tim’s impressions of the Nikon D600
It has a slightly smaller body than the D800 and while it does have magnesium alloy in the body to cut down in weight, it’s not a full magnesium alloy body like the D800.
Still, the body only weighs around 760g so it is a lot lighter than many cameras with similar feature sets and – while this can make it feel a little unbalanced when attached to a particularly heavy lens – it is easy to hold and refreshingly lighter than some top-spec DSLRs.
It also does have some impressive sounding features with the image processor particularly standing out. Combined with a good sensor, decent ISO range and Nikon’s Nikkor lens this should create some top quality pictures.
The wi-fi adapter is a nice addition, although I’m not sure how often you’ll really need to remotely shoot photos. At £65 it doesn’t come cheap, especially for what might be considered more of a gimmick than a true feature.
At almost £2,500 with lenses it is definitely closer to the professional end of the scale rather than the average hobbiest. Costing £500 cheaper than the D800, it is an opportunity to get a taste of some professional features without straying too close to £3,000, but it will be too expensive for many.
- How to buy the best DSLR camera - advice on getting the right model for you
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- Nikon D800 hands-on video – see what we thought of Nikon’s D800
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john d
The UK price differential between this and the D800 does make me wonder if Nikon have quite got this right? As a beefed up full frame D7000 replacement maybe, but I think, if you have £2000 to spend, then maybe you’d be better saving a little more and getting the D800?
Nigel Megitt
Please could you make sure the ‘first look’ video makers know more about their subject matter? I clicked on this page hoping to see something from an informed commentator but the chap presenting took off the lens and talked about the sensor while showing his audience the mirror and reflection of the pentaprism, then appeared impressed by the number of AF sensors without considering their position (close together in the centre) or the fact that there are fewer than some of the older cameras, and didn’t linger at all on the advantages of a full frame sensor. Then to top it off he seemed to think that this Nikon camera should have the ergonomics of a Canon by having a scroll wheel where it’s control pad is on the back – if it did that would mark it out as a radical departure from Nikon. I learnt nothing about the camera but a fair bit about Which, sadly.
Noab
Hahaha