It looks like Nikon is targeting the Canon EOS R5 with the upcoming Nikon Z 8

[Canon Rumors Guy]

If there is one company other than Canon that we want to see do well and improve their marketshare, it’s definitely Nikon. There is so much amazing heritage with the company, and it appears they have fixed the financials of the business and now it’s just time to get back to making great cameras and

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[fr34k]

I couldn’t be happier. I would now say: the R5 ii having a stacked sensor is a must.

 

[David - Sydney]

So basically the same as the Z9 but in a smaller body with smaller battery.

It will be interesting to see the flippy/tiltly screen in a smaller body.

The price difference will be fascinating of course being 3 years behind the R5 and the relative cheapness of the Z9 vs R3

I can't understand the dual CFe type B/USHii implementation though. CFe cards aren't new now and the space volume consumed and price are almost the same. It will impact dual recording for video and buffer clearance.
Yes, running dual CFe could be hotter.
Yes, SD cards are fully backward compatible and helps to import to PCs without a card reader but you need the card reader for any high bit rate video anyway. At this pointy end it seems just to be product segmentation rather than cost/functionality.

 

[David - Sydney]

I couldn’t be happier. I would now say: the R5 ii having a stacked sensor is a must.

Assuming that it fixes the banding issue under indoor lighting. Using the mechanical shutter is an advantage for the R5 albeit slower than 20fps.
Does the Z9 suffer from banding indoors?

 

[AlanF]

I've no doubt it will be excellent - Nikon makes superb cameras and the Z9 has been improved greatly by firmware upgrades since its release. The 275 shots from CIPA ratings is on the very low side. OK, I know everyone claims they get more than the CIPA, and so do I under the right circumstances.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

I can't understand the dual CFe type B/USHii implementation though. CFe cards aren't new now and the space volume consumed and price are almost the same.

SD cards are ubiquitous.
Even Apple folded and added them back to their laptops.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

It looks like an R5 with a stacked sensor and no mechanical shutter.
I still think it the Z 8 will cost a bit more.
Nikon has the Z 7 to compete with the R5 and a7R V.
The R5 price might drop a little more as well.
Now would be a good time to announce or at least leak the R5 S.
Nikon could then make a development announcement of a Z 7x.
Sony seems to have no problem introducing new models with new names.

 

[Chaitanya]

So basically the same as the Z9 but in a smaller body with smaller battery.

It will be interesting to see the flippy/tiltly screen in a smaller body.

The price difference will be fascinating of course being 3 years behind the R5 and the relative cheapness of the Z9 vs R3

I can't understand the dual CFe type B/USHii implementation though. CFe cards aren't new now and the space volume consumed and price are almost the same. It will impact dual recording for video and buffer clearance.
Yes, running dual CFe could be hotter.
Yes, SD cards are fully backward compatible and helps to import to PCs without a card reader but you need the card reader for any high bit rate video anyway. At this pointy end it seems just to be product segmentation rather than cost/functionality.

Panasonic showed with their recent S5 II it is possible to add cooling without increasing size and compromising on weather sealing. That Dual SD/CFx config seems as an attempt at product segmentation.

 

[neuroanatomist]

I would now say: the R5 ii having a stacked sensor is a must.

I wouldn’t count on it. Canon and Nikon are in very different market positions now, the former still dominates while the latter has hemorrhaged market share for several years and must reverse that trend. That means more aggressive design and price choices, Canon is not under that sort of pressure.

10-12 years ago, Nikon had sensors (sourced from Sony) with better low ISO DR than Canon, Nikon was a close second in the market, and Canon had to increase low ISO DR. They did, it just took 6 years. So I’d say look for a stacked sensor in the R5III.

 

[Exploreshootshare]

Great That will push the R5mkii and a hopefully a(nother) price drop for the R5

 

[bbasiaga]

It'll be interesting to see if their AF tracking has caught up to the 5 with this release.

Do not expect R5II to have a stacked sensor. I bet it will have BSI no stack, but a faster readout speed such that rolling shutter is very limited or non-existent.

-Brian

 

[David - Sydney]

SD cards are ubiquitous.
Even Apple folded and added them back to their laptops.

I agree and I use SD cards in my M1 MBP but 4kHQ video is only recorded to the CFe card... I would have thought that is could be recorded to both cards. I understand that the non-raw light 8k and 4k120 would need the CFe card for speed.

 

[koenkooi]

Assuming that it fixes the banding issue under indoor lighting. Using the mechanical shutter is an advantage for the R5 albeit slower than 20fps.
Does the Z9 suffer from banding indoors?

The R6II and R8 have an 'HF anti-flicker' option to fine-tune the shutter speed automagically or manually:

It hasn't failed me yet, with the LED lighting at home and the energy saving (fluorescent?) bulbs in the hotel this week.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

4kHQ video is only recorded to the CFe card

That can't be true.
I can dual record 4K Fine.

 

[AlanF]

The Z8 is midway in size between a Z7 and a Z9 - that is frankly huge for a camera without a built-in grip.

 

[entoman]

"Battery life 275 shots" - sounds like it's running on a single AA alkaline, rather than a EN-EL15c...

Apart from that, the rumoured specs sound very impressive, but nothing significant enough to tempt me away from Canon, even if I could afford to switch systems. Hopefully it won't encourage Canon to rush out the "R5Mkii" though - better to take their time and get it absolutely right. Meanwhile the R5 will do me just fine - and hopefully a couple of nice new features will still arrive with new firmware.

 

[entoman]

"If there is one company other than Canon that we want to see do well and improve their marketshare, it's definitely Nikon. There is so much amazing heritage with the company, and it appears they have fixed the financials of the business and now it's just time to get back to making great cameras and lenses".

***Well said***

 

[entoman]

That Dual SD/CFx config seems as an attempt at product segmentation.

Nothing wrong with product segmentation, it makes it easier for buyers to decide which model to get, it produces better pricing structure, and it sells more cameras, which is good for Nikon and in the long term good for their customers.

 

[neuroanatomist]

That Dual SD/CFx config seems as an attempt at product segmentation.

Not necessarily. As stated by others, SD cards offer conveniences not available with CFe – ubiquitous availability, cheaper cards, cheaper dedicated card readers, and built-in readers in many laptops including current Macs.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

The Z8 is midway in size between a Z7 and a Z9 - that is frankly huge for a camera without a built-in grip.

It is supposedly targeting DSLR users so the size makes sense.