Nikon D70 Comparison Review

The Nikon D70 is a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera that was officially introduced in January 2004 and is equipped with an APS-C sensor. It offers a resolution of 6 megapixel.

Is the Nikon D70 a good camera? The D70 has a Camera Elo of 783. This rating puts the D70 below average of all digital single lens reflex cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (APS cameras), the D70 also ranks below average. Based on its within category standings, the camera earns a 2.5-star performance rating. – Well, the Nikon D70 is more than 19 years old, and there have been many other good digital cameras released since 2004.

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

The physical dimensions of the Nikon D70 relative to a credit card are illustrated in the side-by-side display below. Three successive views from the front, the top, and the rear are shown. All size dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Nikon D70 alongside a set of similar cameras. If you want to review a particular camera pair side-by-side, just move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Body Specifications

		Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life	Weather Sealing	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Nikon D70	140 mm	111 mm	78 mm	679 g	400	n	Jan 2004	999	ebay.com
2.		Canon Rebel	142 mm	99 mm	72 mm	649 g	400	n	Aug 2003	899	ebay.com
3.		Nikon D5100	128 mm	97 mm	79 mm	560 g	660	n	Apr 2011	749	ebay.com
4.		Nikon D5000	127 mm	104 mm	80 mm	590 g	510	n	Apr 2009	749	ebay.com
5.		Nikon D90	132 mm	103 mm	77 mm	703 g	850	n	Aug 2008	1,299	ebay.com
6.		Nikon D40	124 mm	94 mm	64 mm	522 g	470	n	Nov 2006	499	ebay.com
7.		Nikon D80	132 mm	103 mm	77 mm	668 g	600	n	Aug 2006	999	ebay.com
8.		Nikon D50	133 mm	102 mm	76 mm	620 g	400	n	Apr 2005	749	ebay.com
9.		Nikon D70s	140 mm	111 mm	78 mm	679 g	500	n	Apr 2005	899	ebay.com
10.		Nikon D2X	158 mm	150 mm	86 mm	1252 g	3800	Y	Sep 2004	4,999	ebay.com
11.		Nikon D100	144 mm	116 mm	81 mm	780 g	370	n	Feb 2002	1,999	ebay.com
Note: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as add-on or interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.
Convert to Imperial

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Nikon D70 was launched in the US market at a price of $999. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Check D70 offers at
ebay.com

Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The size of the sensor inside a digital camera is one of the key determinants of image quality. A large sensor will generally have larger individual pixels that offer better low-light sensitivity, provide wider dynamic range, and have richer color-depth than smaller pixels in a sensor of the same technological generation. Furthermore, a large sensor camera will give the photographer more possibilities to use shallow depth-of-field in order to isolate a subject from the background. On the downside, larger sensors tend to be associated with larger, more expensive camera bodies and lenses.

The Nikon D70 features an APS-C sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 1.5. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Nikon D70 among the medium-sized sensor cameras that aim to strike a balance between image quality and portability.

Since 2007, DXO Mark has published sensor performance measurements that have been derived using a consistent methodology. This service is based on lab testing and assigns an overall score to each camera sensor, as well as ratings for dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), color depth ("DXO Portrait"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports"). The table below summarizes the physical sensor characteristics and sensor quality findings and compares them across a set of similar cameras.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Nikon D70	APS-C	6.0	3008	2000	none	20.4	10.3	529	50
2.		Canon Rebel	APS-C	6.3	3072	2048	none	21.0	10.8	544	55
3.		Nikon D5100	APS-C	16.1	4928	3264	1080/30p	23.5	13.6	1183	80
4.		Nikon D5000	APS-C	12.2	4288	2848	720/24p	22.7	12.5	868	72
5.		Nikon D90	APS-C	12.2	4288	2848	720/24p	22.7	12.5	977	73
6.		Nikon D40	APS-C	6.0	3008	2000	none	21.0	11.0	561	56
7.		Nikon D80	APS-C	10.0	3872	2592	none	22.1	11.2	524	61
8.		Nikon D50	APS-C	6.0	3008	2000	none	20.9	10.8	560	55
9.		Nikon D70s	APS-C	6.0	3008	2000	none	20.4	10.3	529	50
10.		Nikon D2X	APS-C	12.2	4288	2848	none	22.1	10.9	476	59
11.		Nikon D100	APS-C	6.0	3008	2000	none	20.4	9.9	394	48
Note: DXO values in italics represent estimates based on sensor size and age.

It should be noted that unlike many modern cameras, the D70 does not provide the possibility to capture videos.

Feature comparison

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. For example, the D70 has an optical viewfinder that provides a field of view of 95% and a magnification of 0.50x. The tables below summarize some of the other core capabilities of the Nikon D70 in connection with corresponding information for a sample of similar cameras.

Core Features

		Camera Model	Viewfinder (Type or 000 dots)	Control Panel (yes/no)	LCD Specifications (inch/000 dots)	LCD Attach- ment	Touch Screen (yes/no)	Max Shutter Speed *	Max Shutter Flaps *	Built-in Flash (yes/no)	Built-in Image Stab
1.		Nikon D70	optical	n	1.8 / 130	fixed	n	1/8000s	3.0/s	Y	n
2.		Canon Rebel	optical	n	1.8 / 118	fixed	n	1/4000s	2.5/s	Y	n
3.		Nikon D5100	optical	n	3.0 / 921	swivel	n	1/4000s	4.0/s	Y	n
4.		Nikon D5000	optical	n	2.7 / 230	full-flex	n	1/4000s	4.0/s	Y	n
5.		Nikon D90	optical	Y	3.0 / 920	fixed	n	1/4000s	4.5/s	Y	n
6.		Nikon D40	optical	n	2.5 / 230	fixed	n	1/4000s	2.5/s	Y	n
7.		Nikon D80	optical	n	2.5 / 230	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0/s	Y	n
8.		Nikon D50	optical	n	2.0 / 130	fixed	n	1/4000s	2.5/s	Y	n
9.		Nikon D70s	optical	n	2.0 / 130	fixed	n	1/8000s	3.0/s	Y	n
10.		Nikon D2X	optical	Y	2.5 / 235	fixed	n	1/8000s	5.0/s	n	n
11.		Nikon D100	optical	Y	1.8 / 118	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0/s	Y	n
Notes: *) Information refers to the mechanical shutter, unless the camera only has an electronic one.

One convenient feature of the D70 is the presence of an on-board flash. While this built-in flash is not very powerful, it can at times be useful as a fill-in light to brighten deep shadow areas.

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Nikon D70 and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

Input-Output Connections

		Camera Model	Hotshoe Port	Internal Mic / Speaker	Microphone Port	Headphone Port	HDMI Port	USB Port	WiFi Support	NFC Support	Bluetooth Support
1.		Nikon D70	Y	- / -	-	-	-	1.0	-	-	-
2.		Canon Rebel	Y	- / -	-	-	-	1.1	-	-	-
3.		Nikon D5100	Y	mono / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
4.		Nikon D5000	Y	mono / mono	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
5.		Nikon D90	Y	mono / mono	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
6.		Nikon D40	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
7.		Nikon D80	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
8.		Nikon D50	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
9.		Nikon D70s	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
10.		Nikon D2X	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
11.		Nikon D100	Y	- / -	-	-	-	1.1	-	-	-

Further information on the features and operation of the D70 can be found in the free online Nikon D70 Manual or on the Nikon support site.

Expert reviews

While the comparison of technical specifications can provide a useful overview of the capabilities of different cameras, it remains incomplete and does no justice, for example, to the way the D70 handle or perform in practice. At times, user reviews, such as those published at amazon, address these issues in a useful manner, but such feedback is on many occasions incomplete, inconsistent, and unreliable. This is why expert reviews are important. The adjacent table relays the overall verdicts of several of the most popular camera review sites (amateurphotographer [AP], cameralabs [CL], digitalcameraworld [DCW], dpreview [DPR], ephotozine [EPZ], photographyblog [PB]).

Review Scores

		Camera   Model	AP   score	CL   score	DCW   score	DPR   score	EPZ   score	PB   score	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Nikon D70	..	..	..	+ +	..	..	Jan 2004	999	ebay.com
2.		Canon Rebel	..	..	..	+ +	..	..	Aug 2003	899	ebay.com
3.		Nikon D5100	5/5	+ +	..	76/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Apr 2011	749	ebay.com
4.		Nikon D5000	..	+ +	..	75/100	4/5	4.5/5	Apr 2009	749	ebay.com
5.		Nikon D90	..	+ +	..	+ +	4/5	4.5/5	Aug 2008	1,299	ebay.com
6.		Nikon D40	..	81/100	..	+ +	o	4.5/5	Nov 2006	499	ebay.com
7.		Nikon D80	..	+	..	+ +	o	4.5/5	Aug 2006	999	ebay.com
8.		Nikon D50	..	78/100	..	+ +	4/5	4.5/5	Apr 2005	749	ebay.com
9.		Nikon D70s	..	..	..	..	..	5/5	Apr 2005	899	ebay.com
10.		Nikon D2X	..	..	..	+ +	..	..	Sep 2004	4,999	ebay.com
11.		Nikon D100	..	..	..	+ +	o	..	Feb 2002	1,999	ebay.com
Notes: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

The review scores listed above should be treated with care, though. The ratings were established in reference to similarly priced cameras that were available in the market at the time of the review. Thus, a score needs to be put into the context of the launch date and the launch price of the camera, and rating-comparisons among cameras that span long time periods or concern very differently equipped models make little sense. It should also be noted that some of the review sites have over time altered the way they render their verdicts.

Check D70 offers at
ebay.com

Camera to camera comparisons

If you would like to see a side-by-side review with another camera, just use the search menu below. There is also a set of direct links to comparison reviews that other users of the CAM-parator app explored.

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