Originally Posted by
SJUAMMF
14 vs 12 bit A/D converters in a large chip really has very little price difference if any at all.
my point was that cameras with 14 bit a/d, such as the d300 and d700, are capable of higher dynamic range than ones with a 12 bit a/d, such as the d40, assuming the sensor is good enough, which on most dslrs, they are.
The real cost different is the 100K run rate of a D700 vs 1M run rate of a D40/D60.
yep, and that's going to change with time. it wasn't that long ago when a 2 megapixel dslr was $20,000 (the old kodak/nikon hybrids). then nikon broke the $5000 barrier for the 2.7 megapixel aps sized nikon d1. full frame dslrs are now $3000 (down from $8k a few years ago) and in a few years they will be even cheaper.
God forbid in making a package for the full size Hasselblad sensor.
the new 60 megapixel phase one back is about $40k, camera not included.