The Nikon D4 is announced

http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/05/nikon-d4-dslr-camera/

It's not like everybody is waiting anxiously at the edge of their seats waiting for the announcement of the camera -- I for one wasn't even expecting it, I thought the D800 will be announced first.  The D4 is definitely a step ahead of the D3s, but that step is definitely small.  If the rumors are correct, the D800 represent a MAJOR step over the D700.  In fact, people had been expecting the D800 a year after the announcement of the D3x, with the same 24M sensor, but everybody had been short-changed. 

When the D3 was introduced, a lot of people jump immediately to the sweet full-frame high sensitivity sensor, and a lot felt cheated when Nikon came up with the D700 -- a camera with the same innards (almost) -- same sensor, AF capability. To some (actually most amateurs), the D700 is a better camera, lighter, and with a build-in flash!! When the D3x was introduced, a lot of people waited on the sideline for the D700x, partly because of the hefty price tag, and partly because of the D700 debacle.  The D700x was never to be seen, and Nikon followers felt betrayed once again......

The story with the D2 series was very different.  When the D2h came out, it was clearly targeted towards a specific clientele, and the D2x came out as a pleasant surprise -- everyone was expecting it to be a 8-10M camera, and Nikon delivered 12.  So when they introduced the D200, the Nikon crowd rejoiced, and every D2x owners were buying the D200 as a second body.

This time around, rumors have it that the D800 will be equipped with a 36M sensor, and believe me, people will flock to the Nikon stores just for the taste of that 36M sensor, no matter how bad it is going to be (and judging by the quality from the small V1 sensor, it couldn't be bad, right?) And who is going to buy the D4?  D3 owners won't, unless they are trade issues. It's not like the step up from D2x to D3, these cameras were days and nights different.  And D700 owners will wait for the D800, and with all the rumors, Nikon wouldn't likely let them down this time.

Since the D3, Nikon has been on a roll, as a Nikon user, I'm glad.  But they still don't seem to understand their customers.  As a serious amateur, I jumped on the D3, and there is no way I can afford the D3x, so I was preparing for the D700x, and being a geek that I am, I jumped to the Sony A850, just to see what I can do with 24M.....

Assuming that the D800 rumors are correct, after it is release, the Nikon product line up is again in a very awkward proposition.  If they had the D700x, the whole line-up could still be very logical.  But with the grand canyon between the D800 and the D700, and the D7000 a better camera than the D300s, it becomes difficult if someone comes to me ask me for directions....... Hope 2012 is a year of reconciliation, and by the end of the year, the whole product line-up is properly aligned once again.