Entry-level
designs and form factors mean other changes too. The Nikon
D40x uses Secure Digital (SD) media for storage, as opposed
to the physically larger Compact Flash (CF) cards used
in the rest of its digital SLR line. If you're moving up
from a point & shoot Nikon or Canon, you'll be able
to reuse your existing SD storage cards of course, and that's
precisely the point. In another inviting acknowledgement
of the needs of the most likely buyers, the mode selector
dial on the top of the camera provides access to a full range
of scene modes which are also normally found in better quality
point & shoot cameras. This type of automation, coupled
with a much more robust CCD sensor and the excellent quality
and range of lenses available for Nikon digital SLRs, means
that anyone with a relatively steady hand and at least a
vague sense of light and composition can use the D40x to
take wonderful photos. Couple the D40x body as we did with
Nikon's superb 18-200 Vibration Reduction (VR) zoom lens
and you're got a hard-to-beat picture taking combination.
In any event, point & shoot camera owners who are moving
up to digital SLR will find the transition quite easy with
the Nikon D40x.
Smaller form factors
should never sacrifice handling, grip and security. Cameras, after
all, have to be held and pointed and be comfortable enough to carry
and shoot all day if necessary. While typical point & shoot
models don't usually offer very many all-day shooting accommodations
such as ergonomic hand grips, even a relatively compact
digital SLR like the D40x should offer a solid grip and
proper balance. Nikon excels at ergonomic camera design among other
things, and we were delighted at how well the D40x handled and carried
throughout three weeks of shooting. The synthetic surfaces over a
solid frame provide excellent grip. The prominent right-side grip
works extremely well for all but the biggest hands. Camera balance,
whether using our pro 17-55mm f2.8 Nikkor zoom or the much lighter
18-55mm kit zoom lens was always well controlled and predictable.
Balance was near perfect with the Nikkor 18-200 VR zoom lens. The
camera was a bit underweight when used with a large, heavy 70-200mm
f2.8 VR zoom lens, but we predict that the combination will be rare.
In fact, the D40x works beautifully with an enormous number of Nikon
lenses. We had great success with a wide variety of lenses including:
Nikkor 18-135mm zoom kit lens, Nikkor 17-55mm f2.8 zoom, Nikkor 18-200mm
VR zoom, Nikkor 12-24 f4 wide-angle zoom, Nikkor 105mm VR macro, Nikkor
70-300mm VR zoom, Nikkor 50mm f1.4 and the Nikkor 60mm f2.8 macro.
The camera is bundled with the latest version of Nikon PictureProject,
a decent piece of software designed to access, copy and manage photos
directly from the camera. PictureProject isn't particularly flashy and
doesn't offer a massive feature set by any means, but it continues to
be competent and stable and should provide anyone who doesn't already
have photo editing or photo viewing software with an easy to use solution.
The bundled camera battery is also new for Nikon, debuted in the D40,
and provides a lot of shooting. As with the D40, we used the D40x for
two solid days, taking hundreds of photos, before anyone thought to
check the battery life. It just goes and goes, although steady use of
the pop-up flash will reduce the total number of shots you'll get out
of a full charge.
Cons: I will always miss the top mounted LCD usually found on
digital SLRs — the D40 and D40x don't have them,
instead using the enhanced rear screen to display camera
status. This design change accommodates the smaller body
size of the D40 and it all works very well, but I miss that
status LCD. Squeezing more resolution out of given sensor
size usually results in the appearance of more noise at
each ISO setting. Although the D40x provided wonderful results
up to ISO400, as with many of the small sensors used by
the major camera makers, visual noise in many photos shot
beyond ISO400 is obtrusive. Note that this sort of noise
is primarily of concern when viewing photos on screen and
publishing to the online photo services (Flikr, Photo.Net,
etc.), but it often isn't reproduced when you make prints.
Pros: For this review Nikon again sent us a kit which included
the 18-135mm zoom lens, a lightweight, extremely sharp lens
which left us frowning at our collection of much more expensive
Nikon glass. Whether through more technologically refined
manufacturing process or smarter design or the use of the
latest appropriate high tech materials (or a combination
of all the foregoing) Nikon keeps coming up with these marvelous,
inexpensive lenses. The Nikon D40x digital SLR camera, like
the D40, is an ideal choice for budding photographers and
talented amateurs who want the backstop of superb automation,
casual photographers who want fine 10.2 megapixel photos
for printing at large sizes, and even a few professionals
who need a light, inexpensive back up body which works with
most Nikon lenses. Image quality is very good, with few rivals
on the market. Put the D40x together with the Nikkor 18-200mm
VR zoom, clearly our favorite Nikon lens of all time (so
far), and you've got a delightful match. Lightweight and
strong and not a mark on either the camera or the kit lens
after three weeks of enthusiastic review use. Just like the
D40, all of the people who handled the D40x liked it, but
our female research associates absolutely loved it. The smaller
form factor combined with a really intuitive user interface
and easy physical handling is obviously a great match for
smaller hands. New SLR users won't experience much of a learning
curve. Charge the battery, pop in an SD card and start shooting.
We really liked this one and we think you will too. Highly
recommended.
