Below is an archived record of the Nikon D700 rumors leading up to its official announcement.

Is this the new Nikon D700? These images have surfaced across the web and purport to be official promotion material of the Nikon D700. Looks pretty convincing to me. A good portion of the material is readable and appears to be quality copy written for a Nikon DSLR. Additionally, the Nikon D300 price appears to be dropping – perhaps in order to make room for the Nikon D700’s more premium price point. One thing’s for sure, the Nikon rumors are seriously heating up as we move closer to Photokina 2008.

If these are legit, here’s what you can expect from the new Nikon D700:

• FX Format
• 12.1 Megapixel CMOS Sensor
• EXPEED Image Processor
• 14 bit A/D Conversin
• 16 bit Image Processing
• Magnesium Alloy Body
• Compatible with MB-D10 Battery Grip

Nikon D700 Full Specs

Price (body only):

• US $ 2999

Sensor:

• 36 x 23.9 mm CMOS sensor
• FX format
• RGB Color Filter Array
• Built-in fixed low-pass filter
• 12.9 million total pixels
• 12.1 million effective pixels
• 3:2 aspect ratio

Image processor:

• Nikon EXPEED

A/D conversion:

• 14 bit

Image sizes:

(FX format)

• 4256 x 2832 [L; 12.1 MP]
• 3184 x 2120 [M; 6.8 MP]
• 2128 x 1416 [S; 3.0 MP]

(DX format)

• 2784 x 1848 [L; 5.1 MP]
• 2080 x 1384 [M; 2.9 MP]
• 1392 x 920 [S; 1.3 MP]]

File formats:

• NEF (12-bit or 14-bit, compressed or lossless compressed RAW)
• NEF + JPEG
• TIFF
• JPEG (EXIF 2.21)

Lens mount:

• Nikon F mount with AF coupling and AF contacts
• No field of view crop (full-frame)
• When using DX lenses / DX mode 1.5x FOV crop

Usable lenses:

• Type G or D AF NIKKOR: All functions supported
• DX AF NIKKOR: All functions supported except FX-format (36×24)/5:4 (30×24) image size
• AF NIKKOR other than type G or D: All functions supported except 3D Color Matrix Metering II
• AI-P NIKKOR: All functions supported except autofocus and 3D Color Matrix Metering II
• Non-CPU AI NIKKOR: Can be used in exposure modes A and M; electronic rangefinder can be used if maximum aperture is f/5.6 or faster; Color Matrix Metering and aperture value display supported if user provides lens data

Auto Focus:

• 51 focus points (15 cross-type sensors)
• Multi-CAM 3500FX
• AF working range: -1 to +19 EV
• Contrast Detect in Live View (Tripod) mode

Exposure modes:

• Program Auto [P] with flexible program
• Shutter-Priority Auto [S]
• Aperture-Priority Auto [A]

Metering:

• 3D Color Matrix Metering II (type G and D lenses); color matrix metering II (other CPU lenses); color matrix metering (non-CPU lenses if user provides lens data; metering performed)
• Center-weighted: Weight of 75% given to 8, 15, or 20 mm dia. circle in center of frame or weighting based on average of entire frame
• Spot: Meters approx. 4 mm dia. circle (about 1.5% of frame) centered on selected focus point (on center focus point when non-CPU lens is used)

White balance:

• Auto (1005-pixel CCD, image sensor)
• Presets (seven) with fine tuning
• Manual presets (four)
• Color temperature in Kelvin (2500 – 10000 K, 31 steps)
• White balance bracketing (2 to 9 frames, 10,20,30 MIRED steps)

Sensitivity:

• Auto (200 – 6400)
• Up to ISO 25600(expanded range)

Flash Sync Mode:

• Front-curtain Sync (normal)
• Red-Eye Reduction
• Red-Eye Reduction with Slow Sync
• Slow Sync
• Rear-curtain Sync

Storage:

• Compact Flash Type I or II
• UDMA, Microdrive and FAT32 supported

Power:

• Lithium-Ion EN-EL3e (7.4 V, 1500 mAh)
• Included battery charger MH-18a
• Optional AC adapter EH-5a
• Optional MB-D10 battery pack / vertical grip

Vertical grip:

• Optional MB-D10 battery pack / vertical grip
• One Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL4a, EN-EL4 or EN-EL3e or eight R6/AA-size alkaline (LR6), Ni-MH (HR6), lithium (FR6) batteries, or nickel-manganese ZR6 batteries

More Nikon D700 Images

Nikon D700 Updates

6/30/08: Rumored leak in German magazine – D700 and SB-900 (with photos).  (Read more)

6/26/08: Rumor of a June 30 announcement.  (Read more)

6/25/08: Rumored pic of D700 and new lens, turned out to be a fake. (Read more)

6/20/08: Info on a July 1 announcement. (Read more)