NikonGear'23
Gear Talk => Camera Talk => Topic started by: Erik Lund on October 10, 2019, 09:01:20
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Nikon Z series battery grip MB-N10 is coming, two batteries with hot swap functionality but no buttons at all,,,
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I wonder why this device took so long to appear? Basically it's just an empty container to be filled with batteries.
Maybe Nikon originally thought they could include control functions into it as well.
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Yes could be the case,,, Vertical IR trigger surgery needed ;D 8) like te one we made for Nikon 1
https://nikongear.net/revival/index.php?topic=479.msg3579#msg3579 (https://nikongear.net/revival/index.php?topic=479.msg3579#msg3579)
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Enter the ability to command by voice...but that's for the future I'm afraid. ;D
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I wonder why this device took so long to appear? Basically it's just an empty container to be filled with batteries.
Maybe Nikon originally thought they could include control functions into it as well.
I guess that Nikon had never even dreamed of making the battery grip for Z6/7 and developed the battery grip after-the-fact.
The camera body doesn't have any contact at the bottom in the first place.
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The grip actually was mentioned when the Z line launched.
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The MB-N10 solidifies my suspicion further that the first gen Zs were purposefully crippled in the control department to give second gen Zs easy selling points. Sad indicator of Nikon's current confidence. The Z6's battery really isn't so bad that it needs a battery back, and holy crap is the MB-N10 ugly. Take away the printed 'Nikon' and I would have assumed it was a $40 3rd party item off ebay.
I have a Smallrig bracket on my Z6 and it is excellent, it will likely never be removed. Solves the camera being too short for my hands, is an L bracket and doesn't block access to anything. Hopefully Nikon gets back to being innovative and stops leaving money on the table for 3rd parties. Producing extremely corrected large lenses in the age of computers isn't impressive, especially when you see them dumping things like the MB-N10 on the market.
https://hdvideoshop.com/15166-thickbox_default/smallrig-l-bracket-for-nikon-z6-and-nikon-z7-camera-2258.jpg (https://hdvideoshop.com/15166-thickbox_default/smallrig-l-bracket-for-nikon-z6-and-nikon-z7-camera-2258.jpg)
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Other small Nikon bodies don't have the option of a vertical grip with controls, either: D3x00, D5x00, Df, D7500. Nikon probably think that since the main selling point of mirrorless is small size and reduced weight (I know there are other reasons), adding the control interface to the bottom of the camera body would make it slightly larger and so they didn't want to do it. Or, it was an oversight and they didn't think anyone would want to buy a small camera only to make it large and heavy by adding a grip. But, because of the limited battery capacity the product turned out with (at least in CIPA ratings; I know people get more shots in practice in typical use), they decided to make a battery pack (not a grip; grips have shutter buttons and typically other controls; with the pack there is no way you can hold it from it and use the camera, thus it is not a grip) as an afterthought. Since the camera was not designed to take a grip, they can't make a grip without making changes to the camera body itself.
I wouldn't call it "crippling" but it is product segmentation. Nikon are trying to find a way for mirrorless and DSLR to coexist and the way they go about it is to design each to be optimal for a subset of photographic applications. Mirrorless is supposed to be small and light, hence no vertical grip. However, I am sure that by now Nikon will have gotten sufficient customer feedback to design the option for a battery grip into the next higher-end models of the Z lineup.
Now, how the 58/0.95 fits into this logic, don't ask me. ;-) Different people working on different projects within the company. Note that Sigma's heavyweight Art series is very popular and they took over Nikon as the second largest lens maker so clearly there is a market for highly corrected lenses that are not limited by a weight budget. Whether there is a market for extremely expensive highly corrected lenses that are not limited by a weight budget, that's a whole different question. Zeiss make the Otus series and the Milvus are quite large and heavy as well, so Nikon made something similar expect with one stop larger aperture. I can see that it's a bit of a sport. :)
I personally like vertical grips (especially integrated ones) but I can appreciate that sometimes light weight and small size are just the right approach. All the other lenses in the Z lineup and roadmap except the 50/1.2 and 58/0.95 seem compatible with the "mirrorless is for reduced weight and high quality" philosophy.
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As was pointed out, the grip was announced along with the Z line, so it wasn't an afterthought. Years of consideration went into the Z launch, so it was certainly mulled over. I don't buy that they omitted the proper connection for size, I notice no difference taking my Z6 around vs my D750. I'm not angry with Nikon for taking this route, it's a pretty typical product strategy. It just doesn't speak well for Nikon's internal confidence. They are clearly bracing for poor adoption of 2nd gen of Zs. We will see the 2nd gen Zs regaining drive buttons, real grip, live histogram w/rgb, meter button, etc. Or at least a smattering, with the remainder saved for 3rd gen if they are still feeling ill-confident. You can see the ill-confidence in the Noct. Eager to make a statement, but not confident enough to actually push the envelope. That's what ill-confident men do when they 'fake-it-to-make-it'.
On my comment about large corrected lenses, the fact that they are designing their lenses towards the current meta despite the fact that it negates the supposed main selling point of size/weight just further shows that their internal confidence is currently low. Companies that are confident internally release what they feel are the best products they can churn out. Companies that are not do what everyone else is succeeding with, even if it contradicts the supposed main points of the product these products are produced to compliment.
I hope this doesn't come across as a bash on Nikon. Nothing in this world is written in stone, companies changes. The current ill-confidence I note will likely pass with fresh employees coming into Nikon, gen Z is more confident and hopeful in general than the gens preceding them.
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I didn't notice that the battery grip (holder) was initially announced along with the camera. Sorry for my ignorance.
I guess that the absence of the buttons and wheels for the vertical position indicates that the grip was intended more as the additional power source for the video shooting. These FX Z models, especially Z6, were seriously designed as still-video hybrid cameras.
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I'm pretty sure the grip for Z6 and Z7 wasn't mentioned by Nikon until now.
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https://www.nikon.com/news/2018/0823_mirrorless_01.htm
https://nikonrumors.com/2018/08/28/another-nikon-z-interview.aspx/
Was announced along with Z in August 2018. I remember seeing images of the Z displays having a pre-production MB-N10 and thinking it looked awful, I wondered why they would display such an early development product. Was surprised when it came out that it hadn't changed. You can see it in the second link. It doesn't surprise me that the general commentary I have seen on it since release is mocking and disapproving.
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Tristin, thank you for the links.
IF the grip was developed along with the camera body, it is clear that the vertical shooting was not intended.
Also, I'm rather skeptical about the hot swap function. It should be tricky to change the battery (or the memory card in this regard) while shooting the video or time lapse without wobbling the camera even it is mounted on a sturdy tripod. The battery grip for BMPCC 4K doesn't offer the hot swap function. (This grip looks more like an afterthought by the way!) It would be better than nothing, though.
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There isn't much space for extra buttons on the current Z6/Z7 cameras; if they add buttons of the current size, it becomes more difficult to find somewhere to hold the camera from, and if they make the buttons smaller, pressing them becomes more difficult. I think they made an excellent design regarding the controls for this size of a camera.
As for the reason for not making a vertical grip (which they still haven't made, it is a pack and they emphasized this from day 1 that no grip is planned) as I said the cameras are meant to be small and lightweight and adding a vertical grip negates that. So it's clearly by intention and not an omission. The pack was not ready by the time they launched the cameras in contrast to all the vertical grips that they've made have been launched with the cameras. This basically shows that it's an afterthought, probably for video users as mentioned.
How is the new Noct not pushing the envelope? Compared to the Leica Noctilux 50/0.95, which is even more expensive, the Nikon has 40-200% higher 30lpmm MTF (interpolating 30lpmm lines between 20 and 40 for a rough comparison) (center to corner) than the Leica. How often do you see such a huge improvement in a state-of-the-art lens? Not very often at all.
There is really no room for Nikon to hold back - you think there will be a second and third generation Z, but how would they do that if no one is buying their products? I don't believe they are holding back; the Z6/Z7 may have been slightly rushed to the market (initially no eye AF, no grip etc.) but I don't think they made them purposefully any less good than possible.
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OK, so they just mentioned it,,, :o Thanks for the update!