Everything, really.
Except for...

Video auto-focus
Needs an all new, and more expensive grip, which I'm sure I'll complain about then buy.
Not much else to grip about

I primarily became interested in the d7000 when I saw I poised as the succussor to the d90, and that it had all the upgrades I was hoping for plus more. I always felt that the d90 was as good of a camera I would need for a long time, and would only upgrade should a body like the d7000 come around. It did, and so I did.
The first features that drew me to this body were the alloy skeleton, weather sealing, faster fps, a slightly bigger build, and the expanded usable range in ISO. I also liked the idea of the release mode dial, and the elimination of the mode icons from the command dial...these relatively small changes really help the camera distinguish itsself as a serious camera aesthetically. The overall feel is very solid, and the sound the shutter makes just adds to the handling pleasure. The dials also feel more solid (all of these are compared to the d90).
Compared to the d90, the external layout is pretty familiar, with a few buttons being moved and some being stacked. The auto focus mode button has been stacked on to the af/m switch, and shows in the viewfinder when selecting which is nice. I like the release mode subdial as you get a quick visual reference of what you're on rather then having to do the whole button+dial thing. The d7000 adds a "quiet" mode, which basically allows you to control when the mirror comes back down after releasing the shutter...making it much more discrete compared to the single, sc, and hc, modes. Buried in the menus is also the ability to control the role the remote plays; quick, delayed, or mirror up. The latter comes in handy if you've got your focus fixed and want to click away discretely w/o your hands on the camera. Sneaky. 6 fps is nice, although touchy, as I've accidentally rattled off 3 shots on several occasions. I have noticed at times that it does not shoot as fast as it should, I'm assuming due to the focus priority mode, as I have yet to choke on the buffer. I would like to pop in a class 10 card to see if there is any improvement over my class 6. Speaking of focus priority, there is also a new option to allow you to determine if the camera goes click when it's in focus or when you push the button.
Video. I think it's a well known thing that if you want a quality video camera, then you should buy a quality video camera. Auto focus is a nice addition, and it works overall, but also depends on the mode. The af motor can be heard loud and clear in your playback, which is a pretty big deal breaker regarding the af. I have had good results with my 35mm 1.8 as that lens is absolutely silent when focusing. I do like being able to pull single frames from the video. All in all, video is a nice feature to have, but it's not why I bought the camera, and probably wouldn't miss it terribly.
IQ is hands down amazing, not to mention that iso 6400 is very usable, and even 12800 will give you acceptable results when a slightly noisey image is better then nothing a all. This may be in part to my (re)discovery of Nikon's active d-lighting, but either way, there are certainly improvements, I'm guessing due to the new processing. (Un)fortunately, I sold my d90 too quickly to be able to really compare their sooc images. I'm sure comparing them to my d40's would be a solid whooping. Again, framing this as the d90's successor, we've gone from 12mp to 16mp. Yay. Not a huge biggie, but nice that I get some more room to crop if needed. I have yet to really compare results of selecting the different bit options for shooting in raw, or the results of the compression options. I would guess that they'd be fairly marginal.
There are some other features that have turned out to be nice additions. The dof preview button, which was somewhat worthless on the d90, was given the option to be assigned to whatever functions can be assigned to the other function button on the right of the lens. I've got the electronic level assigned, which can be pretty handy considering I like to hold my camera crooked. Oh...there's an electronic level that can be accessed either in live view, or via menu/function menu. There is now a built in intervalometer. I've only played with this a little bit, but I'm sure it will come in handy for thunderstorms and such. Nikon added a little sketch feature and a tilt shift feature in the editing menu...kind of out of place and useless on a camera on this level. Nikon also removed the horrible music/slide show options, leaving just a straight forward timed slide show. Another nice addition is the IR receiver in the back of the camera. Yes! I love my little $15 remote (hell, it's made it through the washer 3 times now). I've heard the dual sd card slots are a pretty big deal. They can be assigned to take the overflow, act as a straight back up, take the video files, or split the Raw+jpegs. 100% viewfinder too. It looks nice. I particularly like the disappearing focus points.

Customer Service

n/a

Similar Products Used:

d40
d90
d200

In a head to head comparison with my D300 the D7000 matches up with the same 6fps continuous shooting, it has an improved CMOS sensor that has less noise at higher iso’s and has increased the resolution by 4 MP. What sets the D7000 apart from the D300 and the D3 is the obvious introduction of the full 1080p HD video with full time auto focus.
I’m sure that there are a lot of pros and serious amateurs shaking their heads saying that the D7000 can’t seriously compared to the D3. But in some ways it can. The D7000 matches up the D3 with the same 1/8000 shutter speed along with the lowest 30 second shutter speed. It also matches the D3 with a 6400 with low noise considering it is the DX format compared to the FX format. The biggest difference compared to the D300 and the D3 is the obvious $1199.00 suggested retail price. Of course the D3 is more suitable to daily professional use and has a flash sync input along with other upgrades but for the money the D7000 harnesses many of the options and takes them a step further with the video capability.

Anyone interested in using the video features on the D7000 will have to be patient though. The camera makes shooting in video extremely easy by flicking a rear control button and then pushing the same button to begin recording instantaneously. There is also a built in Virtual Horizon Graphic Indicator that removes the need for old bubble levels. The patience will be needed when it comes to steadying the camera and thinking less like a photographer and more like a videographer. Something that hasn’t come easy for me so far but after talking with some professional video shooters and learning some pointers I’m finding the camera to be a very useful tool for shooting video and getting unmatched depth of field when compared to professional video cameras.
I will note that the D7000 has many features catering to the pro-sumer that I haven’t used to this point only because I prefer to do my editing outside of the camera in Lightroom or Aperture. I’m sure it will be fun to explore some of the in-camera image editing features like: D-Lighting, filter effects, fish-eye and Quick retouch at some point.

I think pros and amateurs should both look seriously at purchasing the D7000. As a pro I can already see many opportunities to use the video functions of the camera on a daily basis and even some of the still photography capabilities.

Strengths:?- Low light images are excellent.?- durable and weather sealed?- 39 point Auto focus.?- 1080p HD video
Bright LCD.?- 6 fps Burst Mode.
Dual slot SD card bays that can be used to make backup versions of images or store different file types.

The size of the D7000 for me is both a strength and a weakness. The strength is easy portability and handling while shooting assignments especially when it’s compared to the size of the D3 but it’s also a weakness when it comes to shooting video. I’ve found it nearly impossible to keep the camera steady (I might be anal about this) when using the video mode. Because you are looking through the rear LCD it is difficult to brace the camera when taking video. There are brackets and other accessories on the market to help steady the camera but with those options come an increased investment.
I’m also still getting use to the placement of the auto focus selector on the front of the camera located on the auto focus/manual switch. On the previous Nikon bodies I have owned the AF switch is on the back of the camera near the LCD. I think it’s a great idea to place the switch there but at this point it doesn’t feel as intuitive for me to use the button in the front. I’m also still getting use to the focusing system and have found myself switching to manual several times to make sure that I’m focusing exactly where I want to be. I’m sure after continued use I will get use to the focusing system and it will be an asset though.

Here is the link to my flickr photo stream the most recent images were made with the D7000: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jmurphpix/

Here is a link to a simpe video I made using the D7000 with the kit 18-105mm DX VR Lens. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=US3GeoIzmhA

I purchased this camera after reading many articles about it in anticipation of it’s release. The combination of improved quality in low light situations, full 1080p HD video with full time auto focus and the 16.2 MP sensor combined with the 6 frames per second continuous shooting where key features for me.
I’ve been a long time user of Nikon camera dating back to an old F3 that I purchased from a friend before working my first professional job at a college newspaper. Through the years I’ve watched as Nikon has steadily improved it’s line of digital (I’ve owned a D100, D200, D70, D300 and used the D1, D1x, D2x and D3 at work) equipment but it seemed something was different for the release of the D7000. I couldn’t help but think as I researched the D7000 that if it lived up to the information that was being released it could easily replace the D300 that I owned and maybe even the D3 that I use at work. That might seem like a lofty claim but as I found out after I purchased the D7000 many of its features exceed or match the D300 and are on par with the D3.

Customer Service

Haven't had to use it yet although Nikon offers a great deal of information and support on their Nikon USA website.

Similar Products Used:

I've used many different Nikon digital cameras including the D100, D200, D300, D70, D1, D1x, D2x and D3

New 16.1mp CMOS Sensor
Shooting in low light ISO up to 6400
6 FPS
The 39 point AF system works great!
View finder has 100% frame coverage
Duel SD card slots. You can set one for jpeg and the other for raw.

I don't believe the video is as good as the Canon 7D

I owned a D90 previously and the D7000 is a big improvement over the D90. I think Nikon has definitely got some exciting technology that is going to improve digital photography. I shoot youth baseball with this camera and it works much better than my D90 did because of the increased FPS, higher ISO and improved 39 point AF system. I would recommend this camera to any D90 user.