As the market of DSLR cameras is being shrunk year by year, recent rumors indicated that Nikon is planning to terminate its DSLR lineup. Hence, Nikon published an announcement that clarifies the opposite, which means that the company will continue to produce, sell, and support DSLR cameras.

Mirrorless takes over

There’s no doubt that the mirrorless market is being dramatically reduced, and camera companies are investing almost all their resources in their mirrorless lineups and divisions. In fact, Nikon has announced on its plan to expand the mirrorless lens lineups by more than 50 (till 2025), and strengthen the mirrorless video capabilities, especially on the Z systems (The flagship Z9 is a solid proof of that declaration). Actually, in the most recent Medium-Term Management Plan, there was no mention of the DSLR lineup. Furthermore, Canon has confirmed that the EOS 1DX Mark III is its last DSLR flagship. As for Canon, it stated that the company will continue to manufacture and support other DSLR models. However, in the future, Canon will shift manufacturing to mirrorless only, but it will take some time. BTW, on many outlets the flagship 1DX Mark III is out of stock, and there’s a doubt if this stock renews.

Nikon won’t ditch DSLRs

Today, rumors sites focused on Nikon have reported that Nikon is going to halt DSLR development. The rumor was based on inner information from Nikon. However, Nikon has published a denial. As stated by Nikon Japan (Google translated): “About today’s partial coverage: Today, some media outlets have reported that we have withdrawn from the development of single-lens reflex cameras, but this is speculation and not announced by us. We continue to produce, sell, and support digital SLR cameras, and we hope that our customers will continue to use them with peace of mind”. Here’s the Nikon announcement below: 

We continue to produce, sell, and support digital SLR cameras, and we hope that our customers will continue to use them with peace of mind.

Nikon Japan

Update: Nikon USA has also made an announcement. As stated: “There was a media article regarding Nikon’s withdrawal of SLR development. This media article is only speculation and Nikon has made no announcement in this regard. Nikon is continuing the production, sales, and service of digital SLRs. Nikon appreciates your continuous support”.

Final thoughts

The published denial by Nikon can indicate some very important directions that the company aims at. Nikon clearly states that the DSLR lineup will continue to exist at least a few years from now. It’s hard to understand this strategy as the market is in a significant reduction, and preserving DSLR manufacturing and production divisions demands major company resources. Basically, Canon said the same thing, but Nikon, as opposed to Canon, promised to continue and invest in DSLR systems. It’s hard to tell if Nikon will produce a new DSLR flagship, as Canon has declared it won’t. Anyway, Nikon’s DSLR shooters can continue and sleep well at night.

Product List

Here’re the products mentioned in the article, and the links to purchase them from authorized dealers. 

• Nikon Z9 Mirrorless Camera
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