More mischief from Ken Rockwell

[RickW]

I tend not to follow what Rockwell has to say since my opinion of him is that he enjoys making comments that are extreme or, perhaps, "odd" is a better word.

Nonetheless, I just read a blurb on Peta Pixel which cites KR claiming that Nikon is intentionally scamming buyers since the D600, D800 and D4 are actually identical cameras physically other than for software tweaks to "detune" if you will the D4 and/or the D800 sensor and AF and metering.

http://www.petapixel.com/2012/10/01...mail&utm_campaign=Feed:+PetaPixel+(PetaPixel) and

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/00-new-today.htm

To support his argument that the D600 is really the same as a D4, he has a photo of a D600 that seems to have suddenly grown a built in grip.

If Nikon actually did have the same sensor, AF and exposure module in all 3 bodies and just tweaked the software to differentiate, it would indeed be a big story, but thowing flaming accusations like this without explaining how he came to this epiphany, is typical of the man.

I am almost angry at myself from allowing him to get under my skin, which of course is what his major claim to fame.

 

[Steve Beck]

I can't stand KR...

 

[socrdude]

I agree.. you should not care.

 

[ourabmen]

Yeah, right Ken, and a Ford Mustang GT is just a de-tuned Shelby GT500KR You know what the man said about opinions and anatomy. Just saying.

 

[Richard_R]

This is like starting a thread with "I'm not a bigot but" or "I love New Zealanders but have you heard this sheep joke"

Why, oh why does anybody give this guy air time? Every time you type his name in a thread his Google search rankings go up and his income from click throughs increases.

The best possible thing to do is ignore this person and effectively starve him.

 

[Mike66]

Most threads about Ken Rockwell are usually closed because they eventually turn into personal attacks against him. As long as the discussion remains civil, and not personal, this thread will remain open.

 

[camerapapi]

I read his "What is New" occasionally and over the years I followed some of his recommendations on buying gear that led me to buy items I wanted but I was not sure of their quality. His opinions were at a par with those of others based on the gear I wanted to buy.
I do not agree with everything he says and at times his comments are very controversial.
His statement that "Stinky tripods are obsolete" because of the introduction of VR is to me totally senseless. Tripods are steady platforms that have been used by photographers for as long as photography has been in existence. A tripod is an invaluable aid in composition and when VR is totally useless due to very slow shutter speeds, the tripod shines.
In one occasion he referred to Nikon as a "Terrorist Company" simply because during WW II the government of Japan commissioned the factory to manufacture optics for the war.
There are many prestigious reviewers of Nikon gear in the Net and among them Thom Hogan, Michael Richmann from Luminous Landscape and Bjorn Rorslett, just to mention three of them, that give us a more comprehensive, serious and better reviews of camera gear.
Everybody is entitled to an opinion and obviously Mr. Rockwell also has his owns. It is up to everyone of us to decide if his opinion merits one's attention. In the meantime he keeps on making a very good living from his website.

William Rodriguez
Miami, Florida.

 

[Chris101]

... Thom Hogan, Michael Richmann from Luminous Landscape and Bjorn Rorslett ...

I wouldn't put any of those reviewers above the occasional 'personal-opinion-stated-as-fact' either.

 

[Russ_]

This is like starting a thread with "I'm not a bigot but" or "I love New Zealanders but have you heard this sheep joke"

No. :biggrin:

 

[Estorki]

If you put his word in context... I usually do like his reviews...

 

[7006]

Would it be very surprising that Nikon would use 1 sensor and tweak the software to target different market segments?
In the printer market this is very common. Same engine with speed and cartridge yield tailored to each segment.

Intel and AMD used (and probably still do) this with their processors.
Economies of scales...

I would neither be shocked nor surprised.

 

[cbbr]

Like him or hate him, it's an interesting conspiracy theory... I have no idea if there is any truth to it, but he has done included just enough facts to make it sound plausible.

 

[Richard_R]

I have no idea if there is any truth to it, but he has done included just enough facts to make it sound plausible.

Read the fine print on his site

"I have a big sense of humor, and do this site to entertain you (and myself), as well as to inform and to educate. I occasionally weave fiction and satire into my stories to keep them interesting. I love a good hoax. Read The Museum of Hoaxes, or see their site. A hoax, like some of the things I do on this website, is done as a goof simply for the heck of it by overactive minds as a practical joke. "

 

[jjnik63]

Like him or hate him, it's an interesting conspiracy theory... I have no idea if there is any truth to it, but he has done included just enough facts to make it sound plausible.

Are you serious? As usual, this is typical Rockwell garbage intended to drive traffic to his lame site so he can make money. The supposed "facts" he has included do nothing to make his point plausible if you know anything about the 3 cameras in question. While the D4 and D800 share the same AF/metering and all 3 likely share the same basic Expeed processor for economy of scale in development/production, they are 3 completely different animals in almost every other category! Why anyone even acknowledges this guy's nonsensical website traffic baiting is beyond me!

 

[cdnpilot]

Why anyone even acknowledges this guy's nonsensical website traffic baiting is beyond me!

Lol.. Didn't you just do exactly that?

 

[bh626]

Intel does the same things with processors. Locks down speed according to price point.

 

[Ryan_T]

Most companies design the best products they possibly can, and then step parts costs down based on that 'ultimate' design. The resulting products are cheaper, because the original development cost can be spread across more products, and the parts themselves (slower chips, worse sensors, etc) are cheaper. In this sense, I agree with Ken. Except perhaps it's not so much a 'Deception' as it is a natural business path.

If you look at BMW, their 6, 4, and 3-cylinder engine share up to 40-60% parts/components across. Is this a deception, or clever and effective engineering to ensure modularity for cost-savings?

 

[ourabmen]

The relationship with the larger nikon family and KR is funny. I more or less ended up in the Nikon camp because of KR years ago when he was extolling the virtues of the D40 and was running the "why mega pixels don't matter" mantra. Love him or hate him, he is at the very lest provocative, and for new shooters, initially informative (shoot Jpeg, don't worry about RAW etc.). I did appreciate his straight forward, simplistic camera user guides, and general tips on shooting.

KR is kind of like a high school first love. He is someone that fosters the ignition of passion, but in the end, you are doomed to break up, meet other people, and grown. Alas, like many first crushes, I found places like the Cafe, FM, Nature scape's, etc., that fostered my growth, expanded my world view, and accelerated my education of this art form. In the end KR and I grew apart.

I found people like Randy, T-Monkey, and countless others, and realized that the world was bigger than the myopia that KR and I shared in the nascent phase of our relationship.

As with all first's, in the end, I had to give KR the, "It's not you, it's me" speech. We both knew it was coming, as it always does. I did thank him for helping me to start down this path, for his exuberant encouragement, and promised that we would always be friends.

 

[whoateallthepies]

If you put his word in context... I usually do like his reviews...

Exactly. Sarcasm and humour over the internet is hard to grasp for some people. None of the claims he makes in this post are technically wrong, people just interpret them in such a way and take lines out of context.
He writes his stuff like that on purpose obviously, and it works.

He does NOT say they have the same AF sensor, he says they have the same AF controls. He does not say they have the same image sensor, he says the three sensors all produce images that, for practical purposes, have the same image quality.

KR website is an incredible resource, especially for information older lenses. Read past the "this lens produces fantastic images" that every article starts out with, and you will find a lot of great information there.

 

[Taurahe]

I may be the oddball out here, But i have found kenrockwell to be very informative. with that said I dont want his opinion, just the technical knowledge, and his site loads easily on my tablet.