I don't know how long this will last, but click here and then put it in your cart and take a look at what happens to the price. You can delete it from your cart after you take a look.
Free shipping, too!
_____________________
Mike (Thanks to O.G.)
Featured Comment by Scott Johnson: "That's the price on Amazon, too."
Featured Comment by ShadZee: "The D700 has been hovering around $2,300 for a few weeks now. I've even seen them as low as $2,150 (Ritz Camera). To entice people to use your links, you should give out a print for every verified single purchase of over $2,000. ;-) Say for the D700, it could be an 8x10 print of the "Unscared of the Dark House." Just a thought...."
Mike replies: Done. Anybody who does this, let me know, I'll send you a print. It will have to be a full-sized print, though, because the edition in the small size is sold out.
Featured Comment by JS: "Maybe I'm a little bitter, but as someone that purchased the D700 a month after it came out, to see that I 'over paid' is extremely frustrating. I found a trade for a Sony A900 and I traded/sold all of my Nikon gear and I will never go back. $680 is more then a week's salary for me and this is the second time that Nikon did this. I was one that purchased the D2H about 45 days before they cut the price more than $1000. At least with the Sony stuff I don't have to worry about being screwed 60 days after purchasing a new camera."
(putting hands over ears) La-la-la-la-la-la-la I can't hear you! (Don't think I can return mine for what I paid for it and then re-order at this price.)
Posted by: David Dyer-Bennet | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:29 PM
Sorry, but that's nothing special. Buydig (aka New Jersey's well-regarded Beach Camera -- see resellerratings for reviews of both companies) has had this body for $2,329.00 for a while now. Plus free shipping. :)
Posted by: Elliot | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:29 PM
Hmmm...can a D700x be around the corner? THAT would be a nice start to the new year.
Posted by: chuck kimmerle | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:29 PM
I got this price at Amazon two or three days ago.
Posted by: JRS | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:29 PM
Mike,
It has been there since (at least) December 25th. I saw it first then and I remember it because we were at friends lightening the fifth candle of Hanukah. It seems like they have enough stock at this price point. Will it go lower before they run out of inventory? Will Canon and Sony react to this move? I will ask my wife to put away my credit card until further notice...
Posted by: EZ | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:29 PM
It's been that price on B&H and Amazon for almost a month. It made me jump.
Posted by: Rod Machen | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:46 PM
Click on Instant Rebate ad it says the offer is good under January 31st.
Posted by: Dave Kosiur | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:46 PM
Mike, I think Amazon is running the same price...
Now, quit doing this; I'm still paying off 2008.
You're killing me here...
Best regards,
Jim
Posted by: Jim Hart | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:46 PM
Wait it will get cheaper because the d700x will be out soon.
Posted by: eric erickson | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:46 PM
Amazon has a similar price
Posted by: OblongK | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 09:46 PM
The intriguing part of the whole deal is the empty box that says "Promo Code".
I wish I had a "Promo Code" to put in there.
Posted by: Tom K. | Monday, 05 January 2009 at 10:02 PM
I pulled the trigger at this price point and have been amazed at how much more camera this is over the D300.
Posted by: Don | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 12:33 AM
OMG! I'm over in Switzerland for an indefinite period (not an ex-pat, and still using American credit cards) and I'm always amazed at some of the prices we pay for things here, especially when the USD is weak. Not that the dollar has anything to do with the prices here, but when one has the choice between buying here or in the US, the forex rate is a factor in the decision making process. We have one camera store in our town (Lugano) and they want 4199 chf (~$3923.00) for the D700. Our 'department store' has it 'on sale' for 3999.00 chf (~$3665.00). The A900 is 'on sale' for 4299.00 chf. Back around Thanksgiving the USD was about where it should be, historically over the last 5 years, and the prices would have been about 15% less. I see that on Amazon.co.uk that the D700 is 1697.00 GBP, about $2517.00, but that doesn't help me much: they don't ship new or used electronics over to the Continent. It is about $2800.00 from Amazon.de (Germany), but still, no shipping into Switzerland. It's only a 3 hour drive, though!
All that said, I'm lucky. My in-laws live in Delaware (no sales tax). I just use Mike's Amazon link, ship to Delaware, then my in-laws ship or bring over whatever it is I ordered. I just have to have patience... I'm still waiting for items shipped on December 10th (thanks UPS, those were supposed to be x-mas presents).
Posted by: Jake | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 01:27 AM
I ordered my D700 and Voigtlander Ultron 40mm on December 15th when the price was $2350 (yes, I diligently clicked the B&H logo from within this site). By the afternoon the price had gone to $2320, but a simple call to B&H refunded the difference.
A couple of months ago I would not have thought about doing it, but after Thom Hogan, writer of Nikon guides, mentioned the rather surprising D700 price drop on his website ($2500 back then), I started selling some equipment which pretty much paid for the camera.
Coming from a small Pentax DS, the D700 is big; however once you start shooting it becomes transparent, and the responsiveness is great. The Voigtlander Ultron is compact and delivers lovely pictures, by the way.
So... do I get a free print? Thanks!
Posted by: Julio Marcos | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 01:27 AM
"So... do I get a free print?"
Yes. (I've asked Julio for his address privately.)
Mike J.
Posted by: Mike J. | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 01:31 AM
"I'm always amazed at some of the prices we pay for things here, especially when the USD is weak"
Jake, so am I (living in Germany). Indeed, sometimes I think they're making fun of us. Luckily, I am sufficiently equipped for the time being, so I don't have to worry about all that.
Posted by: Martin | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 07:24 AM
JS > Doesn't pretty much every other brand do that? Or any other piece of electronics? Prices really drop, and you really do pay a premium for getting new stuff early, my friend :)
Posted by: Diego Lorenzo Jose | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 07:24 AM
Martin,
You're fortunate to be stocked up for now. I only stumbled across the prices for the D700 & the A900 because I was looking for a 40d body. All the recent posts here about new gear got me jonesin' to replace my beat-up, full-of-dead-pixels 20d. When I first looked in mid-Nov., it was ~$1000.00. I decided to wait until after Christmas, but the $ sank so much, it is now ~$1200.00! I'll wait until I visit the States in April.
It really does amaze me that prices are all over the place, even in Eurozone countries, and their neighbors. What the heck is up when a camera is $2800 in Germany, but $1100 MORE in just next door?
I also sympathize with those who already bought but are now seeing prices drop post-Christmas. This is the flip side of Ctein's proposition:
http://the_online_photographer/2009/01/savvy-shopping.html
Posted by: Jake | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 06:21 PM
You're an evil, evil man, and I have no willpower! But at least I can show my wife a nice print if the offer still stands?
Posted by: Cliff | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 06:21 PM
I got my D700 the first week they shipped in the USA. To see the price drop so far and so fast is, I can't deny it, pretty annoying and painful.
But I got a lot of pictures in the past 5 months that are worth way more to me than the roughly $600 I would have saved by waiting.
Posted by: Eric Ford | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 06:21 PM
To your featured commenter, JS: Rather than 'bitter' perhaps 'naive' is a better word? This pricing strategy, i.e., charging a premium to early adopters, is as hoary, tried and true as P.T. Barnum's "sucker every minute" nostrum. This is the computer age of photography and the vendor who has not learned something from the standard practices of companies like Apple is ignoring the new facts of life. So are the consumers.
I keep hoping there will be something like a 'camera for life' like an F series Nikon, but the competitive leverage that used to be exerted around the chemistry of film and those companies that manufactured it has moved inside the camera and has become part and parcel with the whole system -- and the cost/price baggage that entails.
A truly innovative vendor who was looking to satisfy and retain customers rather optimize revenue and profit would probably design and sell a system with interchangeable or upgradeable processor circuit boards so that the vaunted 300,000 shutter clicks might actually be approached during the owner's life-time (and that of the camera itself.)
Where do the old digital cameras go after they die? That's one heck of a landfill situation.
Posted by: Ed Nixon | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 06:21 PM
When I was a kid, I envied people who traveled to Japan or Europe and bought native cameras there for far less than we could buy them in North America. To add data points to Jake's and Martin's comments, I browsed several stores camera stores in Tokyo last February (2008) when I was visiting my daughter. I seem to recall that cameras like the Nikon D300 at superstores like Bic Camera, Sakuraya or one of the big Akihabara department stores were a good US$200 to $300 more than at B&H. I suspect it would be even worse today at 93 JPY to the USD. But it sure is fun to browse there - lots of stock to fondle and drool over!
Carl
Posted by: Carl Blesch | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 09:19 PM
The D700 (why the model number 700, BTW)
is still well over $3200.00 here in Canada.
Add sales taxes and you'll be closer to $4000
when all the shouting is complete.
I doubt the D700 will drop in price, even if a viable replacement should appear. There simply is not enough of a market in Canada, for high-priced photographic gear.
Then too how many professional photographers
change their equipment from year to year?
Change does require income, and a regular
income at that.
I like the concept of a full-frame digital device however I don't like all the toys that new cameras seem to have as "added" features.
Posted by: Bryce Lee | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 09:19 PM
All this angst over the price of something good actually going *down* instead of up. I paid full list price for a 40D last year -- $1299US -- and it's available for about $775 right now. Am I upset? No, actually I think I'll buy another one. I got a year's worth of pictures out of it, which is well worth the money I paid.
Posted by: Ken Bennett | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 09:19 PM
A print? Well, well. I intentionally bought my D700 by linking through your site. I figured $2300 of Amazon partner dollars would help support this site that I love. Email me at the address above to get my address.
Thank you,
Rod Machen
Posted by: Rod Machen | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 09:19 PM
When I was a kid, I envied people who traveled to Japan or Europe and bought native cameras there for far less than we could buy them in North America. To add data points to Jake's and Martin's comments, I browsed several stores camera stores in Tokyo last February (2008) when I was visiting my daughter. I seem to recall that cameras like the Nikon D300 at superstores like Bic Camera, Sakuraya or one of the big Akihabara department stores were a good US$200 to $300 more than at B&H. I suspect it would be even worse today at 93 JPY to the USD. But it sure is fun to browse there - lots of stock to fondle and drool over!
Carl
Posted by: Carl Blesch | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 09:20 PM
This is what shocks me...Amazon sells a new D200 for $799.98. Wasn't the original suggested retail $1,699.00?
Isn't this just one generation old?...only last year's model?
Does it do just as well as my F100 for 8x12s or thereabouts? I.e., would it give me similar results to the F100 that I'm still using with an ASA 100 slide film or an ASA 400 b&w print film?
Posted by: MichaelS | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 09:20 PM
I can think of many reasons, good and bad, for deciding to buy (or not to buy) a particular camera. But the worst one I've heard to date is to not buy a manufacturer's camera's just because they're likely to lower prices.
Not only does this have nothing to do with photographic quality, it doesn't even guarantee you the best buy for your dollar.
I buy stuff all the time that gets cheaper by the minute. I buy it when I want it or need it, not a moment before. After that I don't sweat it. I got what I wanted when I wanted it, at a price I could bear.
Get over it and move on.
pax / Ctein
pax / Ctein
Posted by: ctein | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 11:17 PM
Quote "Ed Nixon" "JS: Rather than 'bitter' perhaps 'naive' is a better word?"
It's not naive, far from it in fact. By Nikon allowing their dealers to sell at or below cost they are looking for short term gain (Market Share) in exchange for long term damage to the entire retail camera industry. I buy my cameras from a local store, one that I greatly appreciate. When these stores cannot even make 10% on an item that ties up several thousand dollars in inventory, it is a sure fire recipe for going out of business. As much as I love B&H for certain odd ball things, I value being able to hold, touch, and shoot with a camera before plunking down my cash. Sony is price protecting retailers at the cost of slower gain in market share, and there for they will get my future camera business.
Posted by: JS | Tuesday, 06 January 2009 at 11:17 PM
"A truly innovative vendor who was looking to satisfy and retain customers rather optimize revenue and profit would probably design and sell a system with interchangeable or upgradeable processor circuit boards".
Sounds good to me :).
I could be mistaken, but doesn't the noy-yet-released Red video/still camera do that?
Posted by: Jay Moynihan | Wednesday, 07 January 2009 at 08:47 AM
TO JS:
I understand your frustrations, but that is a personal problem and not one with nikon. You should always know as a consumer anything electronical you buy will depreciate the moment you purchase it. It also helps if you have patience. It happens with everything.
Posted by: steve | Friday, 09 January 2009 at 03:42 PM
Quote-steve "TO JS:
I understand your frustrations, but that is a personal problem and not one with nikon. You should always know as a consumer anything electronical you buy will depreciate the moment you purchase it. It also helps if you have patience. It happens with everything."
When I purchased my first digital camera, the Canon 10D, I sold it a 1.5 years after I purchased it, I paid $1499 new, and sold it for $1350 used.
My second digital camera was a D2H. I paid 3299 for it, then Nikon dropped the price right after I purchased it to $1999. After about 1.5 years of use, I sold it for $1040.
My third digital camera was a Fuji S5 paid, $1400, sold it a year later for $1100.
My forth, Nikon D700, paid $2999, traded 3 months after buying it. Worth about $2000 used right now.
Current camera, Sony A900, worth about $2750 used.
I is not just an electronics thing, it's how Nikon does business. They need to price protect their real dealers and stop worrying about absolute volume at the expensive of long term damage to local retailers and damage to their customer base. Sony has a price protection policy in place, it will allow the small time dealers to compete with the internet wholesalers, and it will allow people like me, who don't collect camera's to keep up with the latest and greatest, by maintaining a good value on the used market.
Posted by: JS | Wednesday, 14 January 2009 at 03:20 PM