Going to purchase a d800e. Refurb, used or new?

Faymus Media

Faymus Media

Well-known member
I was going to get a D800, however the D800e is sharper and looks fantastic for video and everywhere I have looked there isnt much moire difference between the 2 cameras. So here is my question.

would I be better off getting a D800e refurbed @ 2699, used in excellent coniditon @ 2899, or new at 3099?

Adorama says that refurb is hand inspected by technicians and can usually be of higher quality than a new one because the new units are assembly line inspected and tested. Is this true?

I want a good price but I want to make sure I have a FULL warranty just like I purchased a new one.


Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
It may be a camera with better inspection, but you will get the 90 day warranty vs. the 1 year warranty.
 
Danny1280 said:
I purchased the d800 refurb, and just got the 3-year extra coverage. Save $500...not bad.
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Did it come in the box like new packaging? What makes we worry about this is the fact of the left side focus issue. That probably what all the refurbs are. Also the sale everyone was having at christmas time the $200 instant discount on the D800 seemed to be a way to accelerate the sale of the old batch to get rid of it, so they can get the fixed new batch in hand. Thats what I think.
 
Are you sure you want the D800E as opposed to the non-E version? IIRC its extra sharpness is a liability for video due to moire issues. And it costs more...
 
Ted Spencer said:
Are you sure you want the D800E as opposed to the non-E version? IIRC its extra sharpness is a liability for video due to moire issues. And it costs more...
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That was my concern originally. However after watching Kai Wong of digital rev, and Matt Granger, and many others the Moire issues with the D800E are very tame. I need the extra sharpness as I am also a photographer. They make filters I can insert for video mode.
 
I recently purchased the D800E, and I already have a D800. Yesterday, I got some time to do a few tests, and ....

So is the D800E sharper? .... well yes, but the lens you use is probably more important.

I did a matrix of testing for focus accuracy and sharpness with two lenses at 70mm (28-300 @f5 and 70-200 VRII at f4), and the D800, D800E, and a D4.

It was possible to quickly see an improved sharpness for the 70-200 lens over the 28-300 for all three cameras. When comparing the 70-200 pics from the d800/ d800E, the d800E was better, but it took much longer to study the pics and determine the winner. (almost a toss up).
Also, I used a 85mm, 1.4D earlier to test focus calibration, and the D800E actually looked worse than the D800 because it seemed to enhance the len's chromatic aberration issues.

Bottom line, we already understand the role of these two cameras, but I'll just note that you really need great glass to achieve the D800E's potential.
 
Terry_Martin said:
I recently purchased the D800E, and I already have a D800. Yesterday, I got some time to do a few tests, and ....

So is the D800E sharper? .... well yes, but the lens you use is probably more important.

I did a matrix of testing for focus accuracy and sharpness with two lenses at 70mm (28-300 @f5 and 70-200 VRII at f4), and the D800, D800E, and a D4.

It was possible to quickly see an improved sharpness for the 70-200 lens over the 28-300 for all three cameras. When comparing the 70-200 pics from the d800/ d800E, the d800E was better, but it took much longer to study the pics and determine the winner. (almost a toss up).
Also, I used a 85mm, 1.4D earlier to test focus calibration, and the D800E actually looked worse than the D800 because it seemed to enhance the len's chromatic aberration issues.

Bottom line, we already understand the role of these two cameras, but I'll just note that you really need great glass to achieve the D800E's potential.
Click to expand...


I agree. I plan to use Sigma 50mm 1.4, Nikkor 85mm 1.4g, Nikkor 24-70 2.8, Nikkor 70-200. Those are all great lenses, and also the Nikkor Micro lens also.
 
Faymus Media said:
I agree. I plan to use Sigma 50mm 1.4, Nikkor 85mm 1.4g, Nikkor 24-70 2.8, Nikkor 70-200. Those are all great lenses, and also the Nikkor Micro lens also.
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For still photos, you don't want your camera to do any sharpening for you. That's what photoshop is for. And with the Nikon lenses that you mention you'll be using, you probably won't need much, if any, sharpening in photoshop. They are all razor sharp optics. As for shooting video, according to Phillip Bloom, you want to avoid the D800E as the anti-aliasing filter will make aliasing and moire worse. Go to 8:28 of this video. I've acquired several Nikon factory refurb cameras including a D800 and I've never had a problem with them. The refurb units come in a grey box and not the gold of the new equipment. If you want to see how a refurb unit is packaged and what comes with it, you can view my Nikon D800 'factory refurb' unboxing video.

Hope this helps. :smile:
 
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