I'm ready to Buy a d600, Should I wait or buy now

aclearspot

I'm over the fear of spots and oil. I'm ready to buy .I saw the deals available the last 2 weeks of December and wondering if they will come back , say February ?

NSXTypeR

Don't the deals end on 2/2/13? At least for the D7000 they were.

Right now body only it's still $2000 at B and H and they throw in a lot of freebies.

Personally, in my opinion, if you have the FX lenses, just go for it.

[Deleted User]

For what it is worth. I bought it this month in The Netherlands, upgrade for my 4 year old D300.
Super camera. Now after 600 shots, no oil.

Msmoto

I am not sure the problem is corrected on all the D600 in stock. My thinking would be to order from a big distributor like Adorama or B & H, and if you get a bunch of oil/dirt on the sensor immediately i.e., within a 1000 clicks, I think I would send it back, get a full return and wait a month. If a few oil spots get on it and it appears not dirt, then you could have it cleaned after 3,000-5,000 clicks and quite possibly this would solve the problems.

Golf007sd

If you have Costco around, they have a very nice bundle available as well. Should you have any problems, Costco has a great return/exchange policy.

aclearspot

I don't need the lenses, well maybe the 24-85 would be fun, but I have a several lenses from my film camera's

jmanj78

I bought it in December (right BEFORE it dropped to $2000 with the kit lens) as an upgrade to my D90. Whilst I would have preferred to have gotten that deal, I feel it was still worth what I paid for it. Great camera. Noise control is every bit as good as you've been hearing, and the detail from the 24 mp with a good lens is amazing. I have about 1000 shots on it and have not had an issue with the oil/dust on the sensor. Maybe I got lucky, or maybe they've got that sorted out. In any case, I would suggest buying it as well.

MikeGunter

Hi all,

I doubt that there is any progress. At all.

There is no cause to what the problem really is, and clearly, no reason to be clear that it is fixed, and certainly no justification that any models will better earlier models.

As always 'Buyer beware".

My best.

Mike

[Deleted User]

@ Mikegunter

+1

I bought it 3 weeks ago, but see my response on the oil issue thread.

JJ_SO

I just wondering who would get the newer D600: a big store, which was already ordering 100 or 1000 bodies to get low prices and has to sell them first, or a small shop who has to worse conditions order it from Nikon and maybe get's the latest products?

[Deleted User]

@ JJ_SO In december the big stores in Holland did not have them in stock, I only could order it with a 3 days delivery time, I checked 3 big stores. That is why I think I have one from a new batch.

jjdarling

Does it seem likely that they'll have the 2000 with the kit lens deal again? I feel like now that they've had that deal, I'd have a hard time justifying buying the camera at it's current price.

PB_PM

Maybe next holiday season you'll see that kind of deal again. The price will slide a little over time, but not that much.

Msmoto

In the question of whether to purchase a D600, the price might be the last thing to think about. The real question is when Nikon produces a camera which does not have the dirt/oil problem. And, I do not think they have it solved or at least they are not giving any indication of this. So, for me, I would wait until a few months have passed, monitor the forums and when folks are stating they are getting new problem free cameras, then go buy one.

aclearspot

I have checked with 2 local camera shops on in San Jose and the other in Berkeley , both well respected local shops and they haven't seen any problem camera's. I know there have been quite a few of the D600's sold and am willing to play the lotto and see If I get a dust free camera.

Msmoto

@ aclearspot

A camera store may not acknowledge the problem, possibly a Nikon suggestion. But, if they state this with a straight face, either they are not listening, or they haven't sold any D600's. Lens rentals had to clean the sensor on every one of their D600 bodies each time it was returned.

If i purchased a D600 from one of the stores, i would in writing have it clearly outlined on the recipe you may return the camera for a new one in the first 3000 shutter clicks if dust/oil/ other appears on the sensor. Then check carefully as directed elsewhere in the forum for dust spots and return the body if they appear.

sevencrossing

A quick look NRF ( and elsewhere on the web ) you find the naysayers, are already rubbishing the latest Nikon lenses, even though they have not had a chance to use or test them

I find it difficult to believe that a reputable film such a Nikon and their equally reputable retailers, are going to sell the D600 if they know it to be faulty

If the D600 is such a big problem to Lens rentals, why do they stock it 0at all

and why do they say

For most Nikon shooters, though, the D600 is like Baby Bear’s Stuff was for Goldilocks — just right.

Msmoto

@ sevencrossing

http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/10/d600-sensor-dust-issues
"The dust kept reappearing with every rental, and more impressively – it was generally in the same location (upper left 1/3 of the image). That did get our attention, so we started looking into the matter a bit. We kept dust pictures for 20 consecutive D600s returning from rental and saw the problem was very real.
In general, about 1 out of 4 cameras requires sensor cleaning after a rental. All 20 of the D600s did."

proudgeek

For what it's worth, Lens Rentals did post a follow-up about a month later that observed that the dust issue "seemed to get better over time." They pulled 20 cameras from their stock and did a composite of all the sensors. There was still quite a bit of dust (but less than during the previous test), but it seemed to be more evenly distributed around the sensor indicating (at least to me) that the source of the dust was more likely to be due to lens changes than it was to some part of the camera spitting out debris with every actuation. Still not enough to get me to buy one though.

David

Ok, I am also getting ready to pull the trigger and make the jump to FX. I have accumulated enough lenses to justify the move at this point (aside from a wide angle, which I will likely be purchasing a 16-35 f/4 for my landscapes, which I will use quite often).

I am considering a D600 (new or refurb) or a D700. We all know how much the D600 costs, but I have a local who will sell his with 12k shutter actuations for $1,400 - with a battery grip, 2 batteries, strap etc. Seems like a pretty legit deal.

I cannot find something I do not like about the D700 - other than the lack of video (which does not matter much to me, as I do not generally have much use for the video - although it would be nice to have). Also, the D700 is a bit dated - and I am always wondering what is around the corner. In general, or Nikon's current FX format options, there is not one that strikes me as "This is the one - buy it." I would really like a D800 with a lower resolution sensor.

My main hangup with the D600 is the AF points. They are all bunched together in the middle of the frame - which seems like it may be a hassle for landscape shots. Does anyone here find that the AF system problematic in this way?

PB_PM

None of the FX bodies have wide enough spread AF points for good landscape composition. You need to learn to use hyperfocal distance focusing techniques.

sevencrossing

I would really like a D800 with a lower resolution sensor.

IMHO The D800 is the perfect landscape camera
much much better IQ than the D700 ( I have both, but never use the D700 )
why do you want lower resolution?

aclearspot

I have had a couple of discussions with a well known local camera shop and was told not to buy at this time.
I can't see myself with a D800 its way to big and the 2 different types of media is nutz

proudgeek

I have a local who will sell his with 12k shutter actuations for $1,400 - with a battery grip, 2 batteries, strap etc. Seems like a pretty legit deal.

If one believes that the dust/oil issue on the D600 is something that "works itself out over time," then this is probably the best of all worlds if you're totally sold on getting that body. Even with 12k actuations to start, you're still not likely to bump up against the expected shutter life expectancy, and if what I'm hearing is true you may be past the point in time where you'll be seeing spots.

That said, I might ask the person why the camera is for sale.

sevencrossing

and the 2 different types of media is nutz

this really is not an issue
I set mine to only use the second card CF if the first CD card is full
in practice this has never happened

Msmoto

I would always deduct the cost of a general refurb at Nikon, always make certain it is a USA body, and then calculate the price based on this. A "used" camera has no warranty under the terms of a Nikon Digital Warranty. So, to avoid any problem from a used item, IMO one wants to be able to send it back to Nikon and pay for the repairs if there is an issue. Thus, a used D600 may be a good deal at the price for a refurb, minus the cost of a complete refurb at Nikon. So, $1400 sounds like it is a good price provided no obvious damage or malfunctions.