Review of D200

Curt

Senior Member
I love my D200 as well. It has been a great camera and has not let me down yet. I just took it with me on a two week trip overseas and I like to think I got some great shots with my D200. It looks great, feels great, and for me it’s a wonderful camera. I use a D80 as my back up and I must say I have nothing bad to say about it either. I love the touch up menu…lol. I know there are lots of more advanced models out there (since 2005).
And at some point I will upgrade, but I will keep my D200. Anyone on a bit of a budget
Would be wise to pick up a gently use D200 J.
 

Ruidoso Bill

Senior Member
I was looking around on the net and found the review for this and the 300, I think every thread should have a good review to start it off. I actually prefer his style of review versus KR. Just the facts, just want the facts...
 

Curt

Senior Member
Bill, that is a great idea to have a good soild review at the start of each model thread. That way anyone looking at the model gets the facts right off the bat :). Great idea.
 

Otto

Senior Member
I found this thread and joined up to have a chat. My D200's CCD is dead or mortally wounded and this is after only moderate use (definitely under 10,000 clicks, as I also have other gear) so I am a bit disappointed as I have always liked Nikons since before the 1970's. My one other Nikon camera is the FA which is still in excellent condition, since 1983. I was told by the man at the repair centre that this is very uncommon, for the D200 CCD to fail, but I am not so sure, now that things are made all over the place with quality control more in favour of ushering in new models all the time rather than making something which has genuine lasting qualities. Everything about the D200 is extremely robust, EXCEPT for the CCD it seems. Replacement costs (CCD parts & labour) amounts to $1000+, so it really is the end of the line. I am sorely tempted to go back to the FM2 (or FM3 the latest rendition) which I foolishly sold. Maybe somewhere in Hong Kong or Thailand in a repair centre there is a D200 CCD lying around, ready to come to the rescue, but I rather doubt it. Neverthelss, if you have one at your place (new and ready to work) let me know. Now, I am either going to replace it with the D7000 to continue using my lenses (18-200VR, 35/1.8 etc) or just change direction altogether and go to a Fuji X100/XE-1. Either would be more than satisfactory, as I have had and still do have Fuji gear in the bag. Perhaps also, there is Fuji body S5Pro (?) out there, which is like the D200 by another name and that would do too. Any thoughts from anyone who might be or have traversed the same dilemma/problem?
Back to my D200, maybe taking it on top of Lake Louise mid-winter, followed by some hot humid times in SE Asia, might have done it, though it has been years since those occasions. My enthusiasm (and faith) in Nikons, has taken a dive.
 
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Otto

Senior Member
Hi Dave, I took the camera to an official Nikon Repair/Service Centre and the head technician spoke to me like I have just lost a close relative. He was absolutely clear that it was the CCD and the thing had to be replaced.
O.
 

Otto

Senior Member
I Can't say it doesn't hurt, but these days, I have come to expect it(!) Just getting more cynical with old age... Just about every electronic gadget I have ever had, from walkmans to portable CD players to computers have ALWAYS ended up in the trash can long before their time, meaning there is always a single little part that goes bust and they no longer make those parts, or that it was proven to be prohibitively expensive to repair meaning you are better off buying the latest new version(!) The outside of these things all look pristine and even the chassis, often made of non corrosive alloys, look like new, but somewhere in the guts, something always tend to rot and there goes the whole story. I am very gentle with my care and use so really, there is no excuse except BAD QUALITY CONTROL. I have had endless motherboard replacements just after their warranty period which amounts to a new rebuild of my computer every 2.5 years (don't even mention printers!) and you know what, my latest iphone has a p***-weak battery and therefore depends on 3rd party car-chargers, which when plugged in, responds with "charging with this accessory is not supported!!"...and this is after I bought these things from official Apple Reps.(returned, thank you very much...) Sorry to sound off a bit, but it's the sign of the times...I just want a camera that goes to 100,000+ clicks as they are supposed to.
O.
 

fotojack

Senior Member
Sorry to hear about your D200, Otto. I have one, too, and I can't say enough nice things about it. It has never given me a lick of trouble in the almost 3 years I've had it.
On Kijiji Calgary, I saw a D200 for sale for $350 with less than 4k clicks on it.
 

Otto

Senior Member
Hey Jack, I used to live in Edmonton and drove by Calgary almost weekly to go skiing(LL)! Canmore was my favourite place to stay! Yes, I am looking at low click D200's or even D300/300's. The D200 camera is beaut in the low iso range and although a bit of a dinosour now, it is still attractive (as a door stop). Also Fuji S5 Pro would work well I think...
O.
 

fotojack

Senior Member
As a doorstop?? LOL...that's nasty! :) Hey....mine works great, so no complaints from me. :)

So where do you live now? Anywhere near Edmonton or Red Deer or Calgary? Look for a Kijiji web site in your area. Always good deals to be had. You just have to look for them.
 

Otto

Senior Member
No offence RE D200, it's got to be good for a laugh now, (LOL) after I parted with quite a lot of money for it NEW! Anyway(s), my heart is still in the Rocky mountains, but I now live in Australia. Lots of sunshine, lots of bushfires, lots of floods (but no dog poo in the airport lifts!)....it's far from everywhere, except New Zealand and they are mostly over here anyhow...(again no offence...!)
I am confident that I will source another used D200 or S5 Pro for under $500, but in reality, the D7000 is getting to be near $720 NEW, supplied and delivered from the NET. so it might be a tough call. 2009_0426JOANNAs02090006.jpg Attach: Canmore one brilliant Winter Morning taken by D200!
O.
 

Otto

Senior Member
Hi All,
Back with a little good news. My D200 is repaired after I sent it to HK repair centre, figuring that if anyone has seen problems with these, they would have. Got he camera back after about $260 all up. Not exactly sure ahat they replaced, but it's a part which starts with DG..... a common failure I believe in not just the D200, but the D300s, D3 and D4's as well...(I can't verify that...just what I have gathered from reading ...) I am yet to run it through its paces, so lets hope there is nothing else...
O.
 

Otto

Senior Member
Reporting on returned/repaired D200....Well, initial tests of my D200 seem to suggest that all is back in excellent health. The rest of the camera is like new so that "new" feeling is still there after 7+ years. I look at the total bill as a kind of "7 year tune-up service cost" ($260) so not altogether too bad. Just BTW, I can't seem to find where in the handbook where they might tell me how to check for the total number of clicks the camera had had. Can anyone nlighten me on this please?
O.
 

Otto

Senior Member
Boring I know, but the replaced defective bit was called the "DG PCB unit...."
Problems much like my initial thread postings have disappeared!
O.
 

Otto

Senior Member
Final post on this subject: PCB or "Processing Circuit Board" or words to that effect for the D200. Not a rare thing for such things to fail in D200s, D300s, D3s, D80s and so on, from what I can gather from people who discover such niceties.
 
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