Nikon Df - sales and production numbers

NikonMickNikonMick Posts: 41Member
edited April 2015 in Nikon DSLR cameras
Was wondering if anyone had come across the details for the number of Nikon Dfs produced or the sales numbers to date.

Searched quite hard but couldn't find anything.

Mick
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Comments

  • IronheartIronheart Posts: 3,017Moderator
    And you never will, it's considered trade secret.
  • NikonMickNikonMick Posts: 41Member
    Unhelpful answer, but thank you anyway.

    If Forum members who bought a Df shortly after it was released in Late 2013 were able to post their camera's serial number and any Forum members who bought a Df recently also posted their body's number, we could make an educated guess.

    Thanks in advance.

    Mick
  • PB_PMPB_PM Posts: 4,494Member
    Different countries have different serial number codes, so even that wouldn't give you a ball park figure.
    If I take a good photo it's not my camera's fault.
  • tcole1983tcole1983 Posts: 981Member
    And good luck getting people to post serial numbers.
    D5200, D5000, S31, 18-55 VR, 17-55 F2.8, 35 F1.8G, 105 F2.8 VR, 300 F4 AF-S (Previously owned 18-200 VRI, Tokina 12-24 F4 II)
  • snakebunksnakebunk Posts: 993Member
    It is not among the top ten DSLRs in my photography webshop. The Nikon cameras on the top ten list are in order: D750, D7200, D810 and D7100.
    I have personally never seen a Df camera except on the internet.
    I think it is safe to say that it has not been a top seller in Sweden.

    Why do you wonder?
  • heartyfisherheartyfisher Posts: 3,186Member
    you can look at flickr and see how many df cameras they have compared to other nikon cameras to get a "ball park" figure.
    Moments of Light - D610 D7K S5pro 70-200f4 18-200 150f2.8 12-24 18-70 35-70f2.8 : C&C very welcome!
    Being a photographer is a lot like being a Christian: Some people look at you funny but do not see the amazing beauty all around them - heartyfisher.

  • IronheartIronheart Posts: 3,017Moderator
    edited April 2015
    But since we don't know accurate sales figures for any of the other cameras, that is about as good as a shot in the dark. This is not a unique situation to Nikon. Almost none of the Japanese camera makers disclose anything other than total ILC numbers, and even those are industry-wide numbers, not specific to one manufacturer.
    Post edited by Ironheart on
  • tcole1983tcole1983 Posts: 981Member
    Why would any company want any other company knowing how well a product was selling? Oh right...they wouldn't. Also the op has never given the reason for his interest or why it would matter.
    D5200, D5000, S31, 18-55 VR, 17-55 F2.8, 35 F1.8G, 105 F2.8 VR, 300 F4 AF-S (Previously owned 18-200 VRI, Tokina 12-24 F4 II)
  • proudgeekproudgeek Posts: 1,422Member
    Tcole, that's not always the case. For instance, Apple tells us each quarter how many iPhones, etc. it sells. But I do grant you that the camera industry appears to be a different beast. A real Macy's vs. Gimbel's thing.
  • tcole1983tcole1983 Posts: 981Member
    @proudgeek true. Seems like camera companies keep most stuff on the down low though. Ha...the phone wars seem to be different. You always hear about iphones and galaxy S's and who is selling more.
    D5200, D5000, S31, 18-55 VR, 17-55 F2.8, 35 F1.8G, 105 F2.8 VR, 300 F4 AF-S (Previously owned 18-200 VRI, Tokina 12-24 F4 II)
  • NSXTypeRNSXTypeR Posts: 2,286Member
    Tcole, that's not always the case. For instance, Apple tells us each quarter how many iPhones, etc. it sells. But I do grant you that the camera industry appears to be a different beast. A real Macy's vs. Gimbel's thing.
    Sells or ships to stores?

    I mean I know Apple would have no problems selling stuff, but camera companies often disclose units shipped to stores as their camera sales figures.

    Nikon D7000/ Nikon D40/ Nikon FM2/ 18-135 AF-S/ 35mm 1.8 AF-S/ 105mm Macro AF-S/ 50mm 1.2 AI-S
  • NikonMickNikonMick Posts: 41Member
    Guess I've been a bit lazy about this topic that I started, but for any forum number-nerds who haven't come across it yet, Roland's Nikon Pages are a continuing source of "number wonder".

    http://www.photosynthesis.co.nz/nikon/index.html

    And 'tho my question re volume of Dfs sold or shipped is not completely answered, it seems that to April 15 2015, the number "out there" could be at least 24,000 - Japan 16000; USA 4100; Euro 1700; Pacific 2000.

    The explicit URL for body numbering of digital Nikon bodies is:

    http://www.photosynthesis.co.nz/nikon/camera.html

    Mick
  • PB_PMPB_PM Posts: 4,494Member
    Keep in mind that if any units were refurbished they would get a new serial number. ;)
    If I take a good photo it's not my camera's fault.
  • IronheartIronheart Posts: 3,017Moderator
    edited April 2015
    I find it hard to believe there are only 4000 Df in the USA. I'd add at least a zero to that. There are approximately 35,000 of the special 50 f/1.8 G lenses made according to Roland at http://www.photosynthesis.co.nz/nikon/serialno.html. And there are undoubtedly more bodies than lenses. The Sendai production plant was geared up to make 15,000 units a month (half of the D800 production capacity), and the camera was sold out for a few months after release.

    All in all, my best guess is 150K-200K units world-wide. Nikon makes over 4.5 million DX cameras a year, as a point of comparison.

    P.S. These are just my best wild guesses
    Post edited by Ironheart on
  • sevencrossingsevencrossing Posts: 2,800Member
    And you never will, it's considered trade secret.
    Correct. End of story

    Phones are different. They have to be registered with a network
    and are continually transmitting, loads of information about their use and location

  • ThomasHortonThomasHorton Posts: 323Member
    Keep in mind that if any units were refurbished they would get a new serial number. ;)
    Are you serious or joking? I always assumed that the serial number would stay the same unless the entire body was replaced.
    Gear: Camera obscura with an optical device which transmits and refracts light.
  • PB_PMPB_PM Posts: 4,494Member
    edited April 2015
    Keep in mind that if any units were refurbished they would get a new serial number. ;)
    Are you serious or joking? I always assumed that the serial number would stay the same unless the entire body was replaced.
    Keep in mind I'm no talking about Nikon fixing the original owners camera and returning it to them. So yes, I'm serious, if Nikon refurbishes and resells a camera it gets a new serial number. For two reasons, first the camera goes through Nikon's system again, new warranty etc, secondly to prevent the second own from dealing with false claims of theft etc.
    Post edited by PB_PM on
    If I take a good photo it's not my camera's fault.
  • ThomasHortonThomasHorton Posts: 323Member
    Wow, never knew that. I gots some learnin from NR today. :D
    Gear: Camera obscura with an optical device which transmits and refracts light.
  • jpjjpj Posts: 2Member
    There is simply no way of knowing how many of any particular model of Nikon camera has been sold. Trying to figure it out by drawing inferences from how many you personally see or the serial numbers randomly reported to a web site is an exercise in futility. It is certainly not a top seller in volume, nor was it expected to be.

    Why does it matter?

    J
  • blandbland Posts: 812Member
    My S/N is 3002 and I bought it the first week it came out.
    The haters on here don't have one but those that do have one love it!
  • WestEndFotoWestEndFoto Posts: 3,742Member
    +1 to neutralize the hater. I would love one personally.
  • Tradewind35Tradewind35 Posts: 77Member
    Can't understand the haters...... whether or not one likes the Df, surely Nikon should be congratulated for doing the Df. It is by any reckoning a camera which can provide superb images, which is actually the point of any camera. Canon in comparison has nothing like it. And the Df has escaped the quality poops which have clung to some recent Nikon products.
    For me the Df project is in complete contrast to the Nikon V1, J1, S1 and all those other little unintelligible models upon which the company has (in my opinion) dissipated corporate effort to no good effect. Are any of them capable of producing significantly better images than an I phone which is a fraction of the size and which many people already own? Are any of them better than the equivalent Panasonics or similar?
    Time spent doing the Df was well worth it methinks!
  • NikonMickNikonMick Posts: 41Member
    Agree with bland, WestEndFoto and Tradewind35, both about the utility & beauty of the machine, AND their observations re "haters".

    My 'thing' is simply that I would have preferred a body-shape or a body-design that more closely approximated the Nikomat/Nikkormat bodies, that is the same weight, length and depth as the Df but with a decrease in the vertical dimension.

    Which is what I was trying to show with my pic of a N'mat FT-3 and a Df for comparison purposes.

    https://www.flickr.com/photos/68039985@N08/11213892414/in/photostream

    Cheers

    Mick

  • PB_PMPB_PM Posts: 4,494Member
    Can't understand the haters...... whether or not one likes the Df, surely Nikon should be congratulated for doing the Df.
    Who is hating on the Df in this thread? I have no idea where this is coming from, it's kind of out of the blue.
    If I take a good photo it's not my camera's fault.
  • WestEndFotoWestEndFoto Posts: 3,742Member
    Can't understand the haters...... whether or not one likes the Df, surely Nikon should be congratulated for doing the Df.
    Who is hating on the Df in this thread? I have no idea where this is coming from, it's kind of out of the blue.
    Except for one "minus 1er", nobody is hating on this thread. Yet anybody that has participated in this forum even a quarter of what you have knows the comments about DF haters contain a large element of truth. I assume you are not excessively dumb and don't suffer from dementia being as young as you are. So I am curious, "What is the real agenda behind your question?" Is there a connection between your comment and the minus one on my post, which appeared in the time between the post immediately preceding yours and your post?
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