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Born for battle, it enters the fight
In May 2004, we published the world’s first hands-on report of the new 6MP $999 Nikon D70 (“War Is Declared!”). Now, using a standard production camera, here are the results of our lab and field tests.
The D70 starts up and is ready to fire in a split second, faster than any other digital SLR in its class. Its AF speed matches the earlier Nikon D100, but it bests the D100 in burst mode. Our tests captured up to 12 fine-quality JPEGs at 3 fps and 144 normal-quality JPEGs at the same rate. In RAW NEF mode, it was 4 images at 2.5 fps.
While bright, the viewfinder’s magnification isn’t the D100’s 0.83X. Instead, it’s 0.76X. This means a slight tunnel-vision effect, but not as much as the Olympus E-1.
The D70 is the first DSLR with adjustable centerweighted metering, a real plus (see graphs). But its spotmeter measures 5 percent of the viewing area, not 1 percent as claimed. White balance can be fine-tuned ±3 settings toward blue or red. Custom white balance can be measured off a white card or copied from a photo. Optional Nikon Capture 4 software ($99) lets you download custom contrast curves or control the camera from a computer.
The D70’s image quality is extremely high. In our color accuracy tests comparing fine-quality JPEGs, the D70 beat the D100 and Canon’s $899 EOS Digital Rebel and scored higher than any other 6MP DSLR.
At ISO 200, noise was low, but higher than the Digital Rebel’s. It also was low at ISO 800. With moderate noise at ISO 1600, the D70 is, overall, an exceptional performer.
Bottom line: If you can live with the lower magnification of the viewfinder and a 1.5X 35mm lens factor (though a plus for tele work), the D70 represents a grand well spent.
Download our Nikon D70 Digital SLR Certified Test Results
-requires Adobe Acrobat Reader
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